According to the research results of the Advanced Institute of Lithium Battery Industry (GBII), in 2012, ATL's lithium battery operating income will exceed 7 billion yuan, an increase of more than 30% year-on-year; it is more than twice the output value of my country's second-ranked lithium battery manufacturer.

　　Dongguan New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (ATL for short) is a miracle in the history of China's lithium battery development.

　　"Odd" is: (1) Although it has been wholly-owned by Japanese companies for a long time, there are no Japanese executives; (2) Lithium polymer batteries are always the focus of development. Although they have faced many criticisms, they do not Shake; (3) In the atmosphere of "fear of Korea" in China's lithium battery industry, some of ATL's products are more expensive than Japanese and Korean products; (4) more than 10% of the chief engineers or technology R&D managers of Chinese battery cell manufacturers It comes from ATL, but ATL itself is still running healthy; (5) More than 20% of the actual controllers or technical parties of Chinese lithium battery cell production equipment manufacturers come from ATL.

　　According to the research results of the Advanced Institute of Lithium Battery Industry (GBII), in 2012, ATL's lithium battery operating income will exceed 7 billion yuan, an increase of more than 30% year-on-year; it is more than twice the output value of my country's second-ranked lithium battery manufacturer.

　　Although the rise of ATL has a certain relationship with Apple in the United States, its continuous innovation and development of lithium battery technology and technology based on China's national conditions and integration of Eastern management are the most fundamental reasons for its stand out.

　　The Institute of Advanced Technology Lithium Battery Industry combed through the patent situation of ATL in 2012, hoping to help readers to understand the development of lithium battery technology.

　　ATL process related patents accounted for 44%　　In 2012, ATL (including Dongguan and Ningde) applied for 175 patents, 91 utility model patents, and 84 invention patents.

　　From the perspective of patents, 33% of patents are related to batteries, 31% are related to battery production and testing equipment, 16% are related to battery materials, and the proportion of packaging technology is as high as 7% (Figure 1).

　　is particularly worth mentioning. Although ATL's direct process accounted for only 13%, the equipment patents are the direct result of process improvement, so the proportion of the total number of process-related patents is 44%. Only 16% of battery material patents reflect the results of basic research, which confirms the evaluation of ATL by an industry veteran:

　　"The core competitiveness of ATL is not innovative research and development, but continuous process improvement."

　　The core competitiveness is not innovative research and development, but continuous process improvement not only for ATL, but also for Tianjin Lishen, which is the second largest producer of lithium batteries in China.

　　According to the statistics of the Advanced Institute of Lithium Battery Industry (GBII), Tianjin Lishen applied for 67 patents in 2012, of which 56% are related to equipment, 13% are direct processes, 11% are packaging, and 10% are patents for batteries and materials ( figure 2).

　　69% of the patents applied by Tianjin Lishen in 2012 are related to the process, which shows that it is more dependent on the improvement of the process.

　　According to incomplete statistics, as the world’s largest manufacturer of lithium batteries, Samsung SDI has applied for 37 lithium battery patents in China since 2011, 35 of which are related to materials and generate new lithium based on new battery materials. Battery patent. The reasons why domestic lithium battery companies focus on process are: (1) Domestic lithium battery equipment companies are generally small and lack research and development capabilities, and cannot meet the process requirements of large lithium battery manufacturers; (2) The basic research cycle of battery materials is long and the investment is large. , And the protection of domestic intellectual property rights is weak; (3) The automation level of domestic cell factories is low, most of them are in a semi-automated state, and there are many production links that can be optimized.

　　High voltage and high safety are the key research directions of ATL batteries

　　Although the voltage of the lithium battery of iPhone5 is only 0.1V higher than the voltage of a traditional lithium battery, it enhances the industry’s confidence in improving the energy density of lithium batteries through voltage.

　　Throughout 2012, of the 175 patents of ATL batteries, 8 were related to high voltage. Ways to increase the voltage include: (1) Change the connection mode of the positive and negative plates, such as: multi-layer pole pieces in parallel reduces the internal impedance of the cell, so that the polarization is reduced and the discharge platform is improved.

　　(2) Using additives, such as: using specific positive active materials, and conductive carbon materials with a three-dimensional spatial conductive network, and adding a small amount of wetting agent, lithium salt stabilizer, anode film-forming additives and cathode composition to the electrolyte. Membrane protector, so that the lithium ion battery can work at a higher cut-off voltage.

　　(3) The packaging method, such as: two lithium ion battery cells connected in series, and an insulating film is arranged between two adjacent lithium ion battery cells.

　　While the energy density is gradually increasing, the instantaneous burst of energy in the unit space of the lithium battery increases, which puts forward higher requirements for the safety of the lithium battery.

　　In 2012, ATL had 12 patents related to battery safety. Ways to improve security are:

　　(1) Improve the internal structure, such as: the arc setting at the corners of the aluminum-plastic packaging film greatly reduces the stress at the corners, so it can significantly reduce the corner damage that occurs at the side sealing position of the flexible packaging polymer lithium ion battery. Prevent water vapor from entering the battery to ensure the safety and electrical performance of the soft-packaged lithium-ion battery.

　　(2) Packaging materials, such as flame retardant in the outer packaging, can not only improve the safety performance of the battery, but also prevent the flame retardant from damaging the normal performance of the battery.

　　(3) Coating diaphragm materials, such as: the ceramic material layer coated on the porous membrane substrate can improve the heat resistance of the diaphragm; while the polymer adhesive layer with adhesive effect coated on the ceramic material layer can It can prevent the internal short circuit caused by the staggered layer between the diaphragm and the electrode, and enhance the safety performance of the battery.

　　The use of new electrolytes, cathode materials, additives, material systems and other methods to improve battery safety is also one of the research directions of ATL.