Doctor Blade With Inclined And Curved Tips For Battery Electrode Coating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods struggle to neatly process the boundary portion of patterns during electrode pattern formation and achieve uniform thickness of the active material on the current collector in lithium secondary battery manufacturing.
Innovation Solution
A doctor blade with a first blade having an inclined plane and a second blade with a curved surface, arranged orthogonally to the electrode, is used to form patterns and flatten the active material thickness by alternating contact and separation with the current collector.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a conventional doctor blade is used for electrode pattern formation, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the boundary portion of patterns cannot be neatly processed and the thickness of active material is non-uniform
Solution Approach 1:
The doctor blade is divided into two separate blades (first blade and second blade) instead of using a single conventional blade. Each blade has a specific function: the first blade processes the boundary portion of patterns while the second blade uniformizes the thickness of active material. This segmentation allows each blade to be optimized for its specific task, achieving neat pattern boundaries and uniform thickness simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Each blade is equipped with a specifically designed tip geometry tailored to its function. The first blade has a tip with a radius of curvature of 0.5mm to 2mm for boundary processing, while the second blade has a tip with a radius of curvature of 3mm to 5mm for thickness uniformization. This local quality differentiation ensures that each part of the device performs its specific function optimally.
2Manufacturing precision
If a single blade is used to both form patterns and uniformize thickness, then the device structure is simple, but it cannot simultaneously achieve neat pattern boundaries and uniform active material thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The functions of pattern formation and thickness uniformization are separated into two distinct blades. The first blade with a smaller tip radius (0.5mm to 2mm) is dedicated to forming neat pattern boundaries, while the second blade with a larger tip radius (3mm to 5mm) is dedicated to uniformizing the active material thickness. This functional segmentation resolves the contradiction by allowing each blade to excel at its specific task without compromise.
Solution Approach 2:
While the blades are specialized, the overall doctor blade assembly maintains universality by handling both pattern formation and thickness control in a single integrated system. The two blades work together in sequence to accomplish both functions that would otherwise require multiple separate processing steps, thus achieving multi-functionality without excessive complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a doctor blade comprising: a first blade having a first tip including an inclined plane; and a second blade having a second tip including a curved surface, wherein the first blade and the second blade are in contact with each other, wherein an active material is provided on a current collector and can be moved integrally or individually towards a traveling electrode or vice versa.