A bipolar storage battery includes cell members arranged with spacing in a stacked manner, each of the cell members including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and separators interposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode, space-forming members including a substrate that forms a plurality of spaces individually accommodating the plurality of cell members, and a frame body surrounding a side surface of the cell member. Each of the plurality of separators has a first surface and a second surface with different surface roughness, and a surface in contact with at least the positive active material layer is a surface having a smaller (finer) surface roughness than the first surface or the second surface. This configuration may suppress local use of active material during charging and discharging to achieve uniform use of active material in a cell.

A bipolar storage battery that can prevent outward leakage of an electrolytic solution and reduction of mechanical strength by strongly joining plates each holding a cell member, thereby ensuring hermeticity of the inside of a cell and the mechanical strength, and also making the bipolar storage battery compact while reducing the number of components. The bipolar storage battery includes an internal frame unit including a bipolar plate in which a positive pole is provided on one surface and a negative pole is provided on an other surface, and an internal rim is provided in an outer edge of the bipolar plate. A plurality of the internal frame units are stacked and adjacent internal rims are welded to each other. A ratio of a width of the internal rim to a depth of welding between the rims is between 2.7 times and 16.0 times, inclusive.

A bipolar storage battery that can prevent outward leakage of an electrolytic solution and reduction of mechanical strength by strongly joining plates each holding a cell member, thereby ensuring hermeticity of the inside of a cell and the mechanical strength, and also making the bipolar storage battery compact while reducing the number of components. The bipolar storage battery includes an internal frame unit including a bipolar plate in which a positive pole is provided on one surface and a negative pole is provided on an other surface, and an internal rim is provided in an outer edge of the bipolar plate. A plurality of the internal frame units are stacked and adjacent internal rims are welded to each other. A ratio of a width of the internal rim to a depth of welding between the rims is between 2.7 times and 16.0 times, inclusive.

Provided is a wound cell, formed by winding of a first and second separator, a first and second electrode plate from start ends thereof, outermost circle of second electrode plate includes second single-side coated area, surface of which facing center of the wound cell is second blank current collector area not coated with second active material, portion of first electrode plate opposite to second blank current collector area includes first single-side coated area, surface of which away from the center of the wound cell is first blank current collector area not coated with first active material; tail end of first electrode plate contains first blank foil area, portion of second electrode plate opposite to first blank foil area contains second blank foil area; start ends of first and second single-side coated area are located at two opposite sides in thickness direction of the cell.

Provided is a wound cell, formed by winding of a first and second separator, a first and second electrode plate from start ends thereof, outermost circle of second electrode plate includes second single-side coated area, surface of which facing center of the wound cell is second blank current collector area not coated with second active material, portion of first electrode plate opposite to second blank current collector area includes first single-side coated area, surface of which away from the center of the wound cell is first blank current collector area not coated with first active material; tail end of first electrode plate contains first blank foil area, portion of second electrode plate opposite to first blank foil area contains second blank foil area; start ends of first and second single-side coated area are located at two opposite sides in thickness direction of the cell.

A cover for a mold system comprises a baseplate, a top plate fastened to the baseplate, and a strap tab disposed between the baseplate and the top plate. The baseplate extends in a longitudinal direction and has a base protrusion protruding beyond the baseplate in a width direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. The top plate extends in the longitudinal direction and has a top protrusion protruding beyond the top plate in the width direction. The strap tab is held between the base protrusion and the top protrusion in a height direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the width direction and is movable along the base protrusion in the width direction.

The invention relates to an apparatus for stacking battery plates comprising a delivery conveyor for supplying battery plates sequentially along a delivery path. The delivery conveyor includes a plurality of spaced apart plate carriers each configured to support at least one battery plate in use, the plate carriers defining a series of gaps between adjacent plate carriers, wherein each gap is larger than the battery plate. The apparatus further includes a stop mechanism, configured to selectively intercept the delivery path at a plurality of indexed stop positions without impeding the delivery conveyor; wherein when the stop mechanism intercepts the delivery path at a selected one of the stop positions in use, it interrupts the movement of the battery plates on the delivery conveyor causing the battery plate(s) to move off the respective plate carrier and pass through the subsequent gap of the conveyor. The apparatus also includes a plate stacking mechanism for receiving battery plates as they are moved off the delivery conveyor by the stop mechanism.

A battery plate loading system includes a battery plate separator apparatus having a work surface for receiving a stack of battery plates, and a loading mechanism including an arm coupled to the work surface. The arm is pivotable to move the work surface between a substantially horizontal position and a substantially vertical position. A pallet has a surface arranged to receive a plurality of stacks of battery plates, each stack being arranged in at least a first or a second orientation; and, a robot head arrangement configured to transfer stacks of battery plates from the pallet to the battery plate separator apparatus. The robot head arrangement includes a sensor configured to detect the orientation of each stack. The pivotable arm is configured to move the work surface to the substantially horizontal position or to the substantially vertical position in response to the detected orientation of a selected stack.

A battery plate loading system includes a battery plate separator apparatus having a work surface for receiving a stack of battery plates, and a loading mechanism including an arm coupled to the work surface. The arm is pivotable to move the work surface between a substantially horizontal position and a substantially vertical position. A pallet has a surface arranged to receive a plurality of stacks of battery plates, each stack being arranged in at least a first or a second orientation; and, a robot head arrangement configured to transfer stacks of battery plates from the pallet to the battery plate separator apparatus. The robot head arrangement includes a sensor configured to detect the orientation of each stack. The pivotable arm is configured to move the work surface to the substantially horizontal position or to the substantially vertical position in response to the detected orientation of a selected stack.

An electrode stacking device includes a stacking unit that is disposed between a positive electrode conveying unit conveying a separator-equipped positive electrode and a negative electrode conveying unit conveying a negative electrode, and includes a plurality of stages of stacking sections on which the separator-equipped positive electrode and the negative electrode are stacked, a conveying control unit that controls a drive section to hold a plurality of the separator-equipped positive electrodes at height positions corresponding to the plurality of stages of stacking section and controls a drive section to hold a plurality of the negative electrodes at height positions corresponding to the plurality of stages of stacking sections, a push-out unit that simultaneously pushes out the plurality of separator-equipped positive electrodes toward the plurality of stages of stacking sections, and a push-out unit that simultaneously pushes out the plurality of negative electrodes toward the plurality of stages of stacking sections.