Flexible Battery Cell with Patterned Current Collector

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional pouch-shaped battery cells with a rectangular hexahedral shape cannot efficiently fit into devices with curved designs, leading to reduced space utilization and potential safety issues due to wrinkle formation and electrolyte leakage when deformed.

Innovation Solution

A battery cell with a flexible electrode assembly, where the electrode current collector has a patterned second surface to enhance flexibility, allowing the battery to be bent or curved, and a laminate cell case with specific resin and metal layers for improved durability and safety.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If a conventional pouch-shaped battery cell with a rectangular hexahedral shape is used, then the battery cell can be manufactured at low cost and stacked with high integration, but it cannot efficiently fit into devices with curved designs, leading to reduced space utilization

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing cost and integrationVSAvoidadaptability to curved device designs

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The battery cell employs a flexible pouch case made of laminate film that can be bent or curved without breaking, allowing the battery to adapt to various device shapes including curved designs while maintaining low-cost manufacturing processes

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The battery cell structure is designed to be dynamically adaptable, allowing it to change shape through bending or curving of the flexible pouch case to match different device configurations, transitioning from a fixed rectangular shape to adaptable curved forms

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

2Adaptability or versatility

If a conventional pouch-shaped battery cell is deformed to fit curved designs, then space utilization improves, but wrinkle formation and electrolyte leakage occur, leading to safety issues

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to fit curved device designsVSAvoidsafety against wrinkle formation and electrolyte leakage

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The flexible pouch case made of multi-layer laminate film can be bent or curved without forming wrinkles that compromise safety, allowing the battery to adapt to curved device designs while preventing electrolyte leakage and maintaining structural integrity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The pouch case is constructed from composite laminate material combining multiple layers with different properties, providing both flexibility for deformation and resistance to wrinkle formation and electrolyte leakage, thus ensuring safety during adaptation to curved designs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

3Adaptability or versatility

If the electrode current collector has a patterned second surface, then flexibility of the electrode is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveflexibility of the electrodeVSAvoidcomplexity of electrode structure

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The electrode current collector is designed with local quality variation, having a smooth first surface for active material coating and a patterned second surface for enhanced flexibility, allowing different regions of the same component to serve different functions without excessive overall complexity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS10276887B2Flexible battery cell

Publication Date: 2019.04.30 LG ENERGY SOLUTION LTD

AI summary

Disclosed herein is a battery cell having an electrode assembly including one or more unit cells mounted in a variable cell case in a state in which the electrode assembly is impregnated with an electrolyte, wherein at least one of the unit cells includes a flexible electrode that can be bent or curved, an electrode current collector of the flexible electrode includes a first surface, to which an electrode active material is applied, and a second surface, to which no electrode active material is applied, the second surface being opposite to the first surface, and the second surface is provided with a mesh for improving flexibility of the electrode.