Battery

Abstract

To provide a battery which prevents a liquid from being accumulated outside an outer package.SOLUTION: A battery that has an outer package for storing a power generation element therein and a terminal member 8 which is connected to the power generation element inside the outer package and has a terminal surface 81 exposed to the outside of the outer package has a conductive sealing body 5 which is a part of the outer package and is formed with a through hole 52 for penetrating a terminal member 8 therethrough, and an insulative sealing resin member 10 for closing a gap between the sealing body 5 and the terminal member 8 over the whole circumference of the through hole 52, wherein as a contour outside the sealing body 5 in the sealing resin member 10, an outwardly directed part 11 connected to the outer periphery of the terminal member 8, and an inclination part 12 which is connected to the outside the outwardly directed part 11 and has thickness from an outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 as a distance from the terminal member 8 by steep inclination thinner than the outwardly directed part 11 are provided over the whole circumference outside an outer edge 82 of the terminal surface 81.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The disclosed technology relates to batteries. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a battery including an exterior body and a terminal provided in a state of penetrating a through hole of the exterior body. For example, in the battery disclosed in Patent Document 1, the space between the terminal and the through hole of the exterior body is filled with an insulating resin member. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-91656 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The above-mentioned conventional technology has a problem that liquid is likely to accumulate on the outside of the exterior body. The resin member filling the gap between the terminal and the through hole of the exterior body, the part exposed to the outside of the exterior body, has, for example, a wall surface that rises almost perpendicularly to the outer surface of the exterior body. For example, when condensation occurs on the outer surface of the battery due to a change in the environmental temperature, water is likely to accumulate between the outer surface of the exterior body and the wall surface of the resin member due to the surface tension of the water. There is a problem that water accumulating on the outer surface of the exterior body may cause malfunctions such as short circuits.

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses an energy storage element in which a tapered "connection portion" is provided between the "enclosure portion" and the "first contact portion." In this energy storage element, the "enclosure portion" and the "first contact portion" that are connected by the "connection portion" are both part of a resin "support portion." In other words, this "connection portion" is not a connection point between an insulating resin member and a conductive exterior body. For this reason, it is not a place where water can accumulate and cause tracking.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made to solve the problems of the conventional techniques described above. That is, the object of the disclosure is to provide a battery in which liquid is less likely to accumulate on the outside of the exterior body. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A battery in one aspect of the disclosed technology is a battery having a power generating element, an exterior body that houses the power generating element inside, and a terminal member that is connected to the power generating element inside the exterior body and has a terminal surface exposed to the outside of the exterior body, and the battery has a conductive sealing body that is part of the exterior body and has a through hole formed therein to allow the terminal member to pass through, and an insulating sealing resin member that closes the gap between the sealing body and the terminal member around the entire circumference of the through hole, and the outer shape of the sealing body in the sealing resin member includes an outward portion that is connected to the outer periphery of the terminal member, and an inclined portion that is connected to the outside of the outward portion and has a steeper inclination than the outward portion so that the thickness from the outer surface of the sealing body decreases the further it moves away from the terminal member, both of which are provided around the entire circumference outside the outer edge of the terminal surface.

[0008] In the battery of the above embodiment, the sealing body, which is a part of the exterior body, and the terminal member are insulated by the sealing resin member. The sealing resin member has an outer shape of the sealing body with an outward portion and an inclined portion on the outside thereof, and the thickness of the inclined portion from the outer surface of the sealing body decreases the farther it is from the terminal member. In other words, the thickness of the sealing resin member is small at the point in contact with the outer surface of the sealing body, and the space in which liquid can collect is small. This makes it a battery in which liquid is less likely to accumulate on the outside of the exterior body.

[0009] In the battery according to the above aspect, the inclined portion further includes a steeply inclined portion connected to the outside of the outwardly facing portion, and a gently inclined portion connected to the outside of the steeply inclined portion and having an outer edge connected to the outer surface of the sealing body, the inclination of the gently inclined portion is gentler than the inclination of the steeply inclined portion, and both the steeply inclined portion and the gently inclined portion are desirably provided around the entire circumference surrounding the terminal surface. In this case, since the inclination of the sealing resin member is gentler around the entire circumference at the portion connected to the outer surface of the sealing body, there is almost no space between the sealing resin member and the sealing body where liquid can collect, and liquid is less likely to collect between the sealing body and the sealing resin member.

[0010] In the battery according to any of the above aspects, it is preferable that the gently sloping portion has a concave curved shape in which the slope becomes gentler as it is farther away from the terminal member. With this, the slope of the sealing resin member can be made more gentle without making the distance from the terminal member to the outer periphery of the sealing resin member too large. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the disclosed technology, a battery is provided in which liquid is less likely to accumulate on the outside of the exterior body. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is an external perspective view of a battery according to an embodiment; [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view of a sealing body and a terminal member in the battery of FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a terminal member. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] 4A to 4C are enlarged cross-sectional views showing examples of the shape of a sealing resin member. [Figure 6] 11A to 11C are explanatory diagrams showing examples of angles of inclined portions of a sealing resin member. [Figure 7] 4A to 4C are explanatory views showing examples of cross-sectional shapes of sealing resin members. [Figure 8] 4A to 4C are explanatory views showing examples of cross-sectional shapes of sealing resin members. [Figure 9] 4A to 4C are explanatory views showing examples of cross-sectional shapes of sealing resin members. [Figure 10] FIG. [Figure 11] 4A to 4C are explanatory views showing examples of cross-sectional shapes of sealing resin members. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. A battery 1 according to this embodiment is a secondary battery having a power generating element 3 housed inside an exterior body 2, as shown in FIG.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1, the exterior body 2 is composed of a box body 4 and a sealing body 5. The battery 1 has an overall outer shape of a flat rectangular plate. The sealing body 5 shown at the top in FIG. 1 has positive and negative external terminals 6, 7 near both ends in the longitudinal direction. Terminal members 8, 9 are attached to the external terminals 6, 7, respectively, via a sealing resin member 10. One surface of the terminal members 8, 9 (the surface facing upward in FIG. 1) is exposed to the outside of the exterior body 2 and serves as a terminal surface used for connection to other batteries, etc.

[0015] The sealing body 5 and external terminals 6, 7 of the battery 1 shown in FIG. 1 are shown in FIG. 2. What is shown in FIG. 2 is the stage where the terminal members 8, 9 are attached to the sealing body 5 and fixed with a sealing resin member 10. Through holes are provided in the sealing body 5 at the locations of the external terminals 6, 7, and the terminal members 8, 9 are disposed passing through the through holes. In the battery 1 of FIG. 1, the lower ends of the terminal members 8, 9 in FIG. 2 are connected to the positive and negative electrode plates of the power generating element 3 inside the exterior body 2, respectively. The battery 1 is formed by housing the power generating element 3 in a box 4, and joining the sealing body 5 and the box 4.

[0016] The terminal members 8 and 9 are metal members or alloy members. Main metal types used for the terminal members 8 and 9 include aluminum, copper, etc. The exterior body 2 is also a metal member or alloy member. Main metal types used for the exterior body 2 include aluminum, stainless steel, etc. In other words, the terminal members 8 and 9 and the sealing body 5, which is a part of the exterior body 2, are both conductive members. A sealing resin member 10 is provided between the sealing body 5 and the terminal members 8 and 9, respectively. The sealing resin member 10 is formed of an insulating synthetic resin.

[0017] The area around terminal member 8 in sealing body 5 is shown in a cross-sectional view in Fig. 3 and a plan view in Fig. 4. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the outside of battery 1, with the outside of sealing body 5 facing upward and the inside of battery 1 facing downward, as indicated by the arrows in the figure. Fig. 4 is a view of the area around terminal member 8 as viewed from the external side of Fig. 3. Note that in the following explanation and each figure, the area of ​​terminal member 8 will be described, but this structure is also the same for the area of ​​terminal member 9.

[0018] 3, a through hole 52 is formed in the sealing body 5, through which the terminal member 8 passes. The terminal member 8 is disposed in a position where it does not contact the sealing body 5 through the through hole 52 and where the terminal surface 81 protrudes toward the outside of the battery 1 beyond the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5. A sealing resin member 10 is provided in the gap between the terminal member 8 and the sealing body 5, all around the through hole 52. The terminal member 8 and the sealing body 5 are insulated from each other by the sealing resin member 10.

[0019] As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5, the terminal surface 81 of the terminal member 8, and a part of the sealing resin member 10 are exposed to the outside of the battery 1. The terminal surface 81 has a planar shape. As shown in Fig. 4, the exposed portion of the sealing resin member 10 is provided around the entire periphery of the outer edge 82 of the terminal surface 81. The outer edge 82 is the outer periphery of the terminal surface 81, and in the example of Fig. 4, it is a rectangular frame line. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the sealing resin member 10 has an outward portion 11 connected to the outer edge 82 and provided around the entire periphery of the outer edge 82, and an inclined portion 12 connected to the outside of the outward portion 11 and provided around the entire periphery of the outward portion 11.

[0020] The detailed shapes of the outward portion 11 and the inclined portion 12 are shown in the cross-sectional view of Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the exterior of the battery 1 at the top and the interior of the battery 1 at the bottom, as indicated by the arrows in the figure. In Fig. 5, the side closer to the terminal member 8 is shown to the right, and the side farther from the terminal member 8 is shown to the left, as indicated by the arrows in the figure. The portion shown above the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 in Fig. 5 corresponds to the outside of the sealing body 5. Also, the portion shown to the left of the outer edge 82 of the terminal member 8 and its extension line in Fig. 5 corresponds to the outside of the terminal member 8.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 5, the outward portion 11 has a planar shape in approximately the same plane as the terminal surface 81. The inclined portion 12 includes a steeply inclined portion 121 and a gently inclined portion 122. Both the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122 are provided around the entire circumference of the terminal surface 81. The steeply inclined portion 121 is connected to the outward portion 11, and the thickness from the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 decreases toward the side farther from the terminal member 8 than the outward portion 11. The gently inclined portion 122 is connected to the steeply inclined portion 121, and the thickness from the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 decreases toward the side farther from the terminal member 8, and the outer edge farther from the terminal member 8 is connected to the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5. In FIG. 5, the steep slope portion 121 and the gradual slope portion 122 are each shown surrounded by a dashed line, but where the boundary between the steep slope portion 121 and the gradual slope portion 122 is considered to be is arbitrary.

[0022] An example of the inclination angles of the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122 is shown in Fig. 6. As shown in Fig. 6, the inclination angle θ1 between the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 and the steeply inclined portion 121 is smaller than 90° and larger than the inclination angle θ2 between the outer surface 51 and the gently inclined portion 122. In other words, the gently inclined portion 122 has a gentler inclination than the steeply inclined portion 121 and is connected to the outer surface 51 at a gentle angle. Note that Fig. 6 illustrates the inclination angle with the outer surface 51, but similarly, the inclination angle of the steeply inclined portion 121 with respect to the outward portion 11 and the terminal surface 81 is larger than the inclination angle of the gently inclined portion 122.

[0023] By providing the outward portion 11, the portion of the terminal member 8 that is disposed outside the battery 1 relative to the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 is securely held by the sealing body 5. Furthermore, by providing the inclined portion 12, liquid is less likely to collect between the sealing body 5 and the sealing resin member 10, compared to a case in which the outer end of the outward portion 11 rises vertically to the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5. Furthermore, compared to a case in which only the outward portion 11 is provided, a larger area of ​​the outer surface 51 is covered, so that the distance between the exposed portions of the terminal member 8 and the sealing body 5 is larger, and the creepage distance due to the sealing resin member 10, which is an insulating member present therebetween, is longer, resulting in better insulation.

[0024] The sealing resin member 10 is formed, for example, by insert molding. That is, the terminal members 8 and 9 are placed in a mold while being inserted into the through-holes 52 of the sealing body 5, and a synthetic resin is injection molded using the mold to form the sealing resin member 10 as shown in Fig. 2. The shape of the sealing resin member 10 shown in Fig. 2 and other figures is realized by the shape of the mold used for insert molding.

[0025] The cross-sectional shape of the inclined portion 12 may be an arc-shaped concave curved surface, i.e., a cylindrical surface, in which the curvature is equal between the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122, or may be a spline-shaped concave curved surface in which the curvature changes midway. In this way, if the shape of the gently inclined portion 122 is a concave curved surface whose inclination becomes gentler the further away from the terminal member 8, the angle between the outer surface 51 and the outer edge of the sealing resin member 10 can be made small without increasing the distance on the outer surface 51 from the terminal member 8 to the outer edge of the sealing resin member 10.

[0026] In addition, although the inclined portion 12 has been described as having the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122, it does not have to be divided into these portions. In other words, the inclined portion 12 may have a uniform inclination. However, if the inclined portion 12 has the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122, it becomes easy to reduce the angle that the outer edge of the inclined portion 12 forms with the outer surface 51.

[0027] The cross-sectional shape of the inclined portion 12 is not limited to the continuous concave curved shape as shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6. For example, as shown in Fig. 7, the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122, both of which are planar, may be connected to each other. Also, as shown in Fig. 8, the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122, both of which are planar, may be connected to each other. In these examples, the steeply inclined portion 121 and the gently inclined portion 122 are steeper than the outward portion 11, and the gently inclined portion 122 is more gently inclined than the steeply inclined portion 121.

[0028] 9, the inclined portion 12 may include a step portion 123 connected to the gentle slope portion 122 on the outer side of the gentle slope portion 122. The step portion 123 has a convex surface with a steeper slope than the gentle slope portion 122. For example, a slight step portion may be generated unintentionally due to manufacturing reasons. However, it is preferable that the height L of the step portion 123 from the outer surface 51 is, for example, one-fourth or less of the distance H between the outer surface 51 and the outward portion 11. Even if there is a small step portion 123, there is almost no space where liquid can collect between the sealing body 5 and the sealing resin member 10, and liquid is unlikely to collect.

[0029] Furthermore, the sealing resin member 10 only needs to be provided around the entire periphery of the terminal surface 81 of the terminal member 8, and the shapes of the terminal surface 81 and the sealing resin member 10 in a plan view are not limited to a quadrangle as shown in Fig. 4. For example, the shape of the terminal surface 81 is not limited to a rectangle, and may be any shape, such as a rectangle with rounded corners, a square, a circle, an ellipse, etc. Furthermore, the sealing resin member 10 is not limited to having a uniform width around the entire periphery of the terminal surface 81, and may include, for example, a partial convex portion 101 as shown in Fig. 10, or may include a partial concave portion.

[0030] In addition, although the outward portion 11 has been described as being flush with the terminal surface 81, it may be a slope that approaches the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 as it moves away from the outer edge 82 and has a gentler slope than the slope portion 12, as shown in Fig. 11. In addition, instead of providing a corner between the outward portion 11 and the slope portion 12, there may be a gentle connection.

[0031] As described above in detail, in the battery 1 according to this embodiment, the sealing body 5 and the terminal members 8, 9 are insulated from each other by the sealing resin member 10. The sealing resin member 10 has a shape on the outer side of the sealing body 5 that includes an outward portion 11 that is connected to the outer periphery of the terminal members 8, 9, and an inclined portion 12 whose thickness from the outer surface 51 of the sealing body 5 decreases the further away from the terminal members 8, 9. Therefore, there is almost no space between the sealing resin member 10 and the sealing body 5 where liquid can collect, and the battery 1 is such that liquid is less likely to accumulate on the outside of the exterior body 2.

[0032] This embodiment is merely an example and does not limit the disclosed technology in any way. Therefore, the disclosed technology can be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the technology. For example, the type of battery 1 is not particularly limited, and it may be a lithium ion secondary battery, a nickel hydrogen secondary battery, or the like. In addition, for example, the outer shape of the battery 1, the shape of the power generating element 3, and the arrangement of the external terminals 6 and 7 are not limited to the examples shown in the drawings.

[0033] In addition, in the present embodiment, the terminal members 8 and 9 are provided with the sealing resin members 10 having the same shape, but this is not limited thereto. The technology disclosed herein may be applied to only one of the terminal members 8 and 9. Furthermore, the terminal members 8 and 9 may be provided with sealing resin members 10 having different shapes.

[0034] 3, the terminal surface 81 and the outward portion 11 of the sealing resin member 10 are in the same plane, but the terminal surface 81 may protrude outward beyond the sealing resin member 10. Also, for example, while Fig. 3 shows the terminal member 8 having an L-shaped cross section, the shape of the terminal members 8, 9 is not limited thereto. [Explanation of symbols]

[0035] 1 Battery 10 Sealing resin material 2 Exterior body 11 Outward facing part 3 Power generating element 12 Inclined portion 5 Sealing body 8 Terminal material 9 Terminal material

Claims

1. A battery including a power generating element, an exterior body that houses the power generating element, and a terminal member that is connected to the power generating element inside the exterior body and has a terminal surface exposed to the outside of the exterior body, a conductive sealing body which is a part of the exterior body and has a through hole through which the terminal member passes; an insulating sealing resin member that closes a gap between the sealing body and the terminal member over an entire periphery of the through hole, The outer shape of the sealing body in the sealing resin member is as follows: an outward portion connected to an outer periphery of the terminal member; an inclined portion that is connected to the outside of the outward portion and has a steeper inclination than the outward portion and a thickness thereof from the outer surface of the sealing body that decreases as the inclination increases away from the terminal member; Each of them is provided around the entire periphery outside the outer edge of the terminal surface, A battery in which an outer edge of the inclined portion of the sealing resin member on a side farther from the terminal member is connected to an outer surface of the sealing body.

2. A battery including a power generating element, an exterior body that houses the power generating element, and a terminal member that is connected to the power generating element inside the exterior body and has a terminal surface exposed to the outside of the exterior body, a conductive sealing body which is a part of the exterior body and has a through hole through which the terminal member passes; an insulating sealing resin member that closes a gap between the sealing body and the terminal member over an entire periphery of the through hole, The outer shape of the sealing body in the sealing resin member is as follows: an outward portion connected to an outer periphery of the terminal member; an inclined portion that is connected to the outside of the outward portion and has a steeper inclination than the outward portion and a thickness thereof from the outer surface of the sealing body that decreases as the inclination increases away from the terminal member; Each of them is provided around the entire periphery outside the outer edge of the terminal surface, The inclined portion has a steeply inclined portion connected to the outside of the outward facing portion; a gently sloping portion that is connected to the outside of the steeply sloping portion and has an outer edge that is connected to the outer surface of the sealing body, The gradient of the gradual slope portion is gentler than the gradient of the steep slope portion, A battery in which the steeply inclined portion and the gently inclined portion are both provided around the entire periphery of the terminal surface.

3. 3. The battery of claim 2, The gently sloping portion is a concave curved surface whose slope becomes gentler as it moves away from the terminal member.

4. The battery according to claim 2 or 3, The battery has an outer contour of the sealing body in the sealing resin member that includes a stepped portion that connects to the outside of the gently sloping portion and forms a convex surface whose slope is steeper than that of the gently sloping portion.

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