Stepped Electrode Assembly for Curved Battery Spaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional lithium secondary battery packs with rectangular parallelepiped structures do not efficiently utilize curved device spaces, leading to reduced capacity per unit volume due to dead spaces, as they cannot be mounted in devices with curved designs.
Innovation Solution
The electrode assembly is designed in a stair-like structure with varying sizes and shapes of electrode plates, allowing for flexible stacking configurations that adapt to device curvature, including the use of separation films to prevent short circuits and enhance safety, and can be mounted in a battery case with a corresponding stair-like structure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional rectangular parallelepiped battery packs are used, then manufacturing and assembly are simplified, but device space utilization is reduced due to dead spaces in curved device areas
Solution Approach 1:
The battery pack is segmented into multiple electrode assemblies with different footprints (first, second, and third electrode assemblies). Each assembly occupies a different horizontal area, allowing them to be stacked in a configuration that conforms to curved device spaces. This segmentation enables the battery system to adapt to non-rectangular device contours while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through modular assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a single two-dimensional rectangular battery pack to a three-dimensional stacked configuration of multiple electrode assemblies with varying footprints. By utilizing the vertical stacking dimension combined with horizontal area differentiation, the battery system can fill curved device spaces more effectively without complicating the manufacturing process.
2Quantity of substance
If electrode assembly size is increased to improve energy density, then capacity per unit volume increases, but adaptability to devices with various curvature radii decreases
Solution Approach 1:
Each electrode assembly is designed with specific local qualities - different footprints and dimensions tailored to fit specific regions of the device. The first, second, and third electrode assemblies have progressively different horizontal areas, allowing each to optimize for its specific location while collectively achieving high energy density throughout the available device volume.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs parameter changes by varying the footprint and dimensional parameters of different electrode assemblies. By adjusting the horizontal area and stacking configuration of each assembly, the system adapts to different device curvature radii while maintaining high energy density through optimized spatial utilization.
Data Source
Figure 1a
Figure 1b
Figure 2~3
AI summary
Disclosed herein are an electrode assembly and a composite electrode assembly mounted in a battery case of a secondary battery. The electrode assembly and the composite electrode assembly have a stair-like structure. The stair-like structure is formed based on the curvature of a device to utilize a dead space of the device, thereby improving the capacity of the device per unit volume.