1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to batteries and, more particularly, relates to batteries of the type having a folded cathode and electrolyte laminate.
2. State of the Art
In recent years workers in the battery art have begun to understand the advantages of manufacturing batteries that have polymer electrolytes and sheet-like cathodes and anodes. The advantages include lower battery weights than batteries that employ liquid electrolytes, longer service life, relatively high power densities, relatively high specific energies, and elimination of the danger of acid spillage.
In fabricating batteries, it is necessary to connect an anode to an anode current collector and a cathode to a cathode current collector. In batteries of the type that have a thin polymer electrolyte and sheet-like anode and cathode layers, the connection of current collectors presents a particular difficulty. For example, if current collectors are connected to each anode and cathode layer by conducting leads, localized raised portions are formed at each layer, resulting in deformation of the battery shape. Thus, as each anode and cathode layer is repeated, each having its own current collector, an increasingly deformed stack is formed.