Pole piece coating apparatus

Abstract

The application relates to a kind of pole piece coating equipment, the pole piece coating equipment includes rack, coating mechanism and adjusting roller;Coating mechanism includes the coating roller and coating die head oppositely arranged on rack, and coating die head and coating roller leave the coating gap for the passage of material belt;Adjusting roller is movably arranged on rack, and is located in the downstream of coating roller along the direction of material belt, to adjust the coating angle between coating die head and material belt in coating gap.The scheme provided by the application can adjust the coating angle of die head to material belt through adjusting roller, to adjust coating thickness, so as to meet the needs of different coating.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of battery electrode production technology, and in particular to electrode coating equipment. Background Technology

[0002] In lithium-ion battery technology, the coating process requires a composite structure that combines thin and thick layers. The base coat needs to be thin and uniformly applied to enhance the adhesion and conductivity between the current collector and the active material layer; while the active material layer requires a larger thickness to ensure the battery's energy density. This differentiated coating requirement places higher demands on coating technology.

[0003] In related technologies, to meet the process requirements of different coatings, existing production lines typically use two types of coating equipment to perform the operation separately: for thicker active layers, extrusion coating is often used, which can stably achieve thicker coatings; while for thin base coatings, micro-gravure or gravure coating processes are used, which ensure coating uniformity with their excellent thin-layer control capabilities.

[0004] However, this approach of introducing two independent coating equipment not only significantly increases production costs, but also brings cleaning and debugging time during process switching, affecting production rhythm and making it difficult to adapt to the industry development trend of continuous efficiency improvement and cost reduction. Utility Model Content

[0005] To address or partially address the problems existing in related technologies, this application provides an electrode coating device that can adjust the coating thickness by adjusting the coating angle of the die head on the material strip through the adjustment roller, thereby meeting the needs of differentiated coating.

[0006] The first aspect of this application provides an electrode coating apparatus, comprising: frame; A coating mechanism, comprising a coating roller and a coating die arranged opposite to each other on the frame, wherein a coating gap is provided between the coating die and the coating roller for the passage of a feed belt; An adjusting roller is movably mounted on the frame and located downstream of the coating roller along the belt travel direction to adjust the coating angle between the coating die and the belt within the coating gap.

[0007] As an optional embodiment, the coating die head includes an upper die head and a lower die head disposed opposite to each other, wherein the upper die head forms an upper lip at the end near the coating roller, and the lower die head forms a lower lip at the end near the coating roller.

[0008] As an optional embodiment, the upper lip and the lower lip are misaligned.

[0009] As an optional embodiment, the lower lip is closer to the coating roller than the upper lip.

[0010] As an optional embodiment, the coating equipment further includes a drive mechanism, which is mounted on the frame and is connected to the adjusting roller for driving the adjusting roller to move on the frame.

[0011] As an optional embodiment, the drive mechanism includes at least one drive component, and the at least one drive component includes: A mounting base is provided on the frame; A sliding plate, which is slidably mounted on the fixed base, and is connected to one end of the adjusting roller; A driver is connected to the slide plate and is used to drive the slide plate to move horizontally on the fixed base.

[0012] As an optional embodiment, the drive assembly further includes a slide rail, which is horizontally disposed on the fixed base, and the slide plate is slidably disposed on the slide rail.

[0013] As an optional embodiment, the drive assembly further includes a position detection element disposed on the fixed base and used to detect the position of the adjusting roller.

[0014] As an optional embodiment, the coating mechanism further includes a pressure roller disposed on the frame, the pressure roller being disposed opposite the coating roller and forming a pressing gap between the pressure roller and the coating roller to press the material strip.

[0015] As an optional embodiment, the coating equipment further includes a guide roller disposed on the frame and located upstream of the coating roller along the conveyor belt direction.

[0016] As an optional embodiment, the coating apparatus further includes a tension roller disposed on the frame and located downstream of the adjusting roller along the belt travel direction, and the tension roller is movably disposed on the frame to adjust the tension of the belt.

[0017] The technical solution provided in this application may include the following beneficial results: In this application, the movement of the adjusting roller on the frame alters the wrap angle of the strip as it leaves the coating roller. When the position of the adjusting roller changes, it pulls the strip at the coating gap exit, changing the relative angle between the strip and the coating die. This change in the coating angle affects the shear force, leveling, and pressure distribution of the slurry as it transfers from the coating die to the strip. For example, a small change in angle can cause the slurry to spread more fully or remain more concentrated, thus enabling online, dynamic, and continuous adjustment of the coating thickness without changing the coating die or adding coating equipment. This meets the needs of producing differentiated electrodes with thicker heads and thinner tails.

[0018] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and do not limit this application. Attached Figure Description

[0019] The above and other objects, features and advantages of this application will become more apparent from the more detailed description of exemplary embodiments thereof in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals generally represent the same components in the exemplary embodiments thereof.

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the electrode coating equipment shown in the embodiments of this application; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the coating angle in the electrode coating equipment shown in the embodiments of this application; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the coating roller and the coating die head shown in the embodiments of this application; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the drive mechanism shown in the embodiments of this application.

[0021] Figure label: 1. Frame; 2. Coating mechanism; 20. Coating roller; 21. Coating die head; 210. Upper die head; 211. Lower die head; 212. Upper lip; 213. Lower lip; 22. Coating gap; 23. Pressure roller; 3. Adjusting roller; 4. Drive mechanism; 40. Drive assembly; 400. Fixing base; 401. Slide plate; 402. Driver; 403. Slide rail; 404. Position detection element; 5. Guide roller; 6. Tension roller; 7. Material belt. Detailed Implementation

[0022] Embodiments of this application will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. While embodiments of this application are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that this application may be implemented in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to make this application more thorough and complete, and to fully convey the scope of this application to those skilled in the art.

[0023] It should be understood that although the terms "first," "second," "third," etc., may be used in this application to describe various information, this information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish information of the same type from one another. For example, without departing from the scope of this application, first information may also be referred to as second information, and similarly, second information may also be referred to as first information. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this application, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0024] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "length", "width", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

[0025] Unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "linking," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this application according to the specific circumstances.

[0026] In related technologies, to meet the process requirements of different coatings, existing production lines typically use two separate coating equipment: for thicker active layers, extrusion coating is often used, which can reliably achieve thicker coatings; while for thinner base coats, microgravure or gravure coating processes are used, whose excellent thin-layer control capabilities ensure coating uniformity. However, this approach of introducing two independent coating equipment not only significantly increases production costs but also introduces cleaning and debugging time during process changeovers, affecting production cycle time and making it difficult to adapt to the industry's trend of continuous efficiency improvement and cost reduction.

[0027] To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides an electrode coating apparatus that can adjust the coating thickness by adjusting the coating angle of the die head onto the strip using an adjustable roller, thereby meeting the requirements for differentiated coating.

[0028] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] See Figure 1 and Figure 2 This application provides an electrode coating apparatus, including a frame 1, a coating mechanism 2, and an adjusting roller 3. The coating mechanism 2 includes a coating roller 20 and a coating die 21 disposed opposite to each other on the frame 1, and a coating gap 22 is left between the coating die 21 and the coating roller 20 for the material belt 7 to pass through. The adjusting roller 3 is movably disposed on the frame 1 and is located downstream of the coating roller 20 along the conveying direction of the material belt 7, so as to adjust the coating angle between the coating die 21 and the material belt 7 in the coating gap 22.

[0030] In this embodiment, the frame 1 serves as the supporting skeleton of the entire equipment, providing the mounting foundation for all functional components and ensuring overall rigidity and stability. The coating roller 20 is a rotatable main roller whose surface is used to support and convey the material strip. The coating die 21 has internal slurry channels that can uniformly deliver the slurry to the coating gap 22. The coating gap 22 is formed by the small distance between the coating die 21 and the coating roller 20, where the slurry is squeezed and coated onto the material strip 7. The size of the coating gap 22 directly affects the coating thickness. The movement of the adjusting roller 3 on the frame 1 changes the wrap angle of the material strip 7 when it leaves the coating roller 20. When the position of the adjusting roller 3 changes, it pulls the material strip 7 at the exit of the coating gap 22, causing the relative angle between the material strip 7 and the coating die 21 (i.e., the coating angle, see...) Figure 2 Angles a, b, and c in the middle change.

[0031] The principle for adjusting the coating thickness in this embodiment is as follows: The change in the coating angle affects the shear force, leveling, and pressure distribution of the slurry as it is transferred from the coating die 21 to the strip 7. For example, a small change in angle can cause the slurry to spread more fully or remain more concentrated, thus enabling online, dynamic, and continuous adjustment of the coating thickness without replacing the coating die 21 or adding coating equipment. This meets the needs of producing differentiated electrodes with thicker heads and thinner tails.

[0032] See Figure 2 As an optional embodiment, the coating die head 21 includes an upper die head 210 and a lower die head 211 disposed opposite to each other. The upper die head 210 forms an upper lip 212 at the end near the coating roller 20, and the lower die head 211 forms a lower lip 213 at the end near the coating roller 20.

[0033] The coating die 21 in this embodiment consists of an upper die 210 and a lower die 211. The upper lip 212 is the tip of the upper die 210 near the coating roller 20, and the lower lip 213 is the tip of the lower die 211 near the coating roller 20. The upper lip 212 and the lower lip 213 together form the final slurry extrusion slit. When the adjusting roller 3 moves, the angle between the material strip 7 and the end face of the lower lip 213 changes.

[0034] See Figure 3 In a preferred embodiment, the upper lip opening 212 and the lower lip opening 213 are staggered.

[0035] In this embodiment, the misalignment of the upper lip 212 and the lower lip 213 means that the upper lip 212 and the lower lip 213 are not perfectly aligned in position. For example, the lower lip 213 is closer to the coating roller 20 than the upper lip 212, or the upper lip 212 is closer to the coating roller 20 than the lower lip 213.

[0036] This "misaligned" design creates a tiny step or gap between the upper lip 212 and the lower lip 213. Under the pressure of the slurry inside the coating die 21, a stable slurry "reservoir" is formed in the area before the tip of the lip and before the material strip reaches it. This "reservoir" is equivalent to a miniature slurry reservoir. When the adjusting roller 3 moves, changing the coating angle and the material strip tension, the fluid dynamics within the coating gap 22 changes instantaneously. The reserved slurry can immediately compensate for this change, quickly filling any gaps that may be caused by the angle change. This avoids defects such as localized thinning of the coating, foil exposure, and streaks caused by insufficient material supply. This ensures the continuity and uniformity of the coating throughout the entire dynamic adjustment process.

[0037] See Figure 3 In a preferred embodiment, the lower lip 213 is closer to the coating roller 20 than the upper lip 212.

[0038] In this embodiment, by setting the lower lip 213 to be closer to the coating roller 20 than the upper lip 212, the lower lip 213 protrudes, which can form a certain pre-shielding and support for the material strip 7, which helps to stabilize the slurry "reserved area" in the coating start area and prevent slurry leakage.

[0039] See Figure 1 and Figure 4 As an optional embodiment, the coating equipment also includes a drive mechanism 4, which is mounted on the frame 1 and is connected to the adjusting roller 3 for driving the adjusting roller 3 to move on the frame 1.

[0040] In this embodiment, the drive mechanism 4 provides power for the movement of the adjusting roller 3, realizing automated and precise control, which greatly improves production efficiency and process consistency.

[0041] See Figure 4In a preferred embodiment, the drive mechanism 4 includes at least one drive component 40, which includes a fixed base 400, a slide plate 401, and a driver 402. The fixed base 400 is disposed on the frame 1. The slide plate 401 is slidably disposed on the fixed base 400 and is connected to one end of the adjusting roller 3. The driver 402 is drivenly connected to the slide plate 401 and is used to drive the slide plate 401 to move horizontally on the fixed base 400.

[0042] In this embodiment, the fixed base 400 is mounted on the frame 1 as the base for driving. The slide plate 401 can be directly connected to the bearing seat of the adjusting roller 3, and the driver 402 can be a servo motor or a stepper motor, which drives the slide plate 401 to move the adjusting roller 3 together.

[0043] See Figure 4 In a preferred embodiment, the drive assembly 40 further includes a slide rail 403, which is horizontally disposed on the fixed base 400, and the slide plate 401 is slidably disposed on the slide rail 403.

[0044] By adding a slide rail 403, this embodiment of the application can ensure the stability and straightness of the slide plate 401 during movement, prevent the adjusting roller 3 from shaking or shifting during movement, ensure that the change of coating angle is smooth and precise, and avoid quality defects such as coating thickness fluctuations or streaks caused by mechanical vibration.

[0045] See Figure 4 In a preferred embodiment, the drive assembly 40 further includes a position detection element 404, which is disposed on the fixed base 400 and is used to detect the position of the adjusting roller 3.

[0046] In this embodiment, closed-loop control can be achieved by adding a position detection element 404, such as a grating ruler or a magnetic encoder. The position detection element 404 can detect the actual position of the adjusting roller 3 in real time and provide this information to the control system, forming a closed loop with the driver 402.

[0047] See Figure 1 and Figure 2 As an optional embodiment, the coating mechanism 2 also includes a pressure roller 23 disposed on the frame 1. The pressure roller 23 is disposed relative to the coating roller 20 and forms a pressing gap for pressing the material strip 7 between it and the coating roller 20.

[0048] In this embodiment, the pressure roller 23 and the coating roller 20 are paired to form a holding gap. The main function of the pressure roller 23 is to ensure that the material strip 7 is in close contact with the surface of the coating roller 20, and to prevent the material strip 7 from slipping, wrinkling or jumping.

[0049] See Figure 1As an optional embodiment, the coating equipment also includes a guide roller 5, which is mounted on the frame 1 and located upstream of the coating roller 20 along the conveying direction of the material belt 7.

[0050] In this embodiment, the guide roller 5 is located upstream of the coating roller 20 along the conveying direction of the material belt 7, which can guide the material belt 7 into the coating area and ensure the smooth path of the material belt 7.

[0051] See Figure 1 As an optional embodiment, the coating equipment also includes a tension roller 6, which is mounted on the frame 1 and located downstream of the adjusting roller 3 along the belt travel direction of the material belt 7, and the tension roller 6 is movably mounted on the frame 1 to adjust the tension of the material belt 7.

[0052] In this embodiment, the tension roller 6 is located downstream of the adjusting roller 3 along the belt travel direction of the belt 7 to actively adjust the tension of the belt 7. The tension roller 6 can compensate for tension fluctuations caused by the movement of the adjusting roller 3, achieving differentiated coating while avoiding problems such as belt breakage and wrinkles.

[0053] The solution of this application has been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses; for parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments. Those skilled in the art should also understand that the actions and modules involved in the specification are not necessarily essential to this application. Furthermore, it is understood that the steps in the method of this application embodiment can be adjusted, combined, and deleted according to actual needs, and the modules in the device of this application embodiment can be combined, divided, and deleted according to actual needs.

[0054] The various embodiments of this application have been described above. These descriptions are exemplary and not exhaustive, nor are they limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein is chosen to best explain the principles, practical application, or improvement of the technology in the market, or to enable others skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An electrode coating device, characterized in that, include: Rack (1); The coating mechanism (2) includes a coating roller (20) and a coating die (21) arranged opposite to each other on the frame (1), and a coating gap (22) is left between the coating die (21) and the coating roller (20) through which the feed belt (7) passes. Adjusting roller (3), which is movably mounted on the frame (1) and located downstream of the coating roller (20) along the conveying direction of the material strip (7), to adjust the coating angle between the coating die head (21) and the material strip (7) in the coating gap (22).

2. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coating die (21) includes an upper die (210) and a lower die (211) arranged opposite to each other. The upper die (210) forms an upper lip (212) at the end near the coating roller (20), and the lower die (211) forms a lower lip (213) at the end near the coating roller (20).

3. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The upper lip opening (212) and the lower lip opening (213) are misaligned.

4. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that, The lower lip (213) is closer to the coating roller (20) than the upper lip (212).

5. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coating equipment also includes a drive mechanism (4), which is mounted on the frame (1) and is connected to the adjusting roller (3) for driving the adjusting roller (3) to move on the frame (1).

6. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 5, characterized in that, The drive mechanism (4) includes at least one drive component (40), and at least one drive component (40) includes: A mounting base (400) is provided on the frame (1); A sliding plate (401) is slidably disposed on the fixed base (400), and the sliding plate (401) is connected to one end of the adjusting roller (3); A driver (402) is connected to the slide plate (401) and is used to drive the slide plate (401) to move horizontally on the fixed base (400).

7. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 6, characterized in that, The drive assembly (40) further includes a slide rail (403), which is horizontally disposed on the fixed base (400), and the slide plate (401) is slidably disposed on the slide rail (403).

8. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 6, characterized in that, The drive assembly (40) further includes a position detection element (404), which is disposed on the fixed base (400) and is used to detect the position of the adjusting roller (3).

9. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coating mechanism (2) further includes a pressure roller (23) disposed on the frame (1), the pressure roller (23) being disposed relative to the coating roller (20), and forming a pressing gap for pressing the material strip (7) between the pressure roller (23) and the coating roller (20).

10. The electrode coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coating equipment further includes a guide roller (5), which is disposed on the frame (1) and located upstream of the coating roller (20) along the belt travel direction of the material strip (7); and / or, the coating equipment further includes a tension roller (6), which is disposed on the frame (1) and located downstream of the adjusting roller (3) along the belt travel direction of the material strip (7), and the tension roller (6) is movably disposed on the frame (1) to adjust the tension of the material strip (7).

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