Improvements in and relating to Secondary Batteries.
Year: 1894

page_text: Date of Application, 6th Mar., 1894
L
a Ou
2001
A
L
4005
Date of Application, 6th Mar., 1894
4005
Complete Specification Left, Oth Dec., 1004 Accepted, 12th Jan., 1805
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Secondary Batteries.
I, OCTAVIUS MARCH, of 70 Sinclair Road, Kensington, in the County of
Middlesex, Electrical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
Ito be as follows:-
My invention relates to secondary batteries and has for its object to provide
an improved support or grid for holding the active material, also. an improved
construction of battery plate. My invention moreover comprises improved methods
of holding a number of battery plates together.
According to my invention the supports for the active material are constructed
in part from sheets of lead or of a suitable lead alloy, perforated and corrugated
in the manner hereafter described and in part from cast frames of lead or lead
alloy also more particularly hereinafter described. Said sheets are perforated
with holes of suitable shape and size. I preferably make circular holes in the
plate the diameter of the holes being greater than the minimum distance between.
the circumferences of any two holes. The perforations are preferably arranged
so that the holes in one vertical or horizontal row are alternate with the holes
in the adjacent vertical or horizontal rows. The sheets are corrugated in such
a manner that the corrugations exactly coincide with the perforations, one row of
holes being correctly in line with the upper curve of the corrugation and the
next row of holes in line with the bottom curve of the corrugations.
example a sheet in which the corrugations are required to be "deep will leave
holes not less than " or thereabouts in diameter. If the corrugations are
required to be deeper, I either make the holes proportionately larger and corrugate
the sheet in the manner already. described or employ similar sized holes and
corrugate the sheet to a greater depth. In the latter case the relation between
the corrugation and the perforation is such that one row of holes is correctly in line
with the upper curve of the corrugation, the next row of holes half way between
the upper and lower curves and the third row in line with the lower curve. By
making large holes in the plate I secure homogeneity and continuity of active
material which cannot be done when small holes only are provided.
As an.
I am aware that perforated and corrugated lead or lead alloy has been used
for this purpose both separately and together but I believe that the particular
method I employ is new, and by it great advantages are obtained which are not
attainable by any previous method of corrugating a perforated sheet of metal.
The perforated and corrugated sheet is now according to my invention secured
by its edges in a frame of lead or of lead alloy the edges being preferably burnt
or fused to the frame. The frame is then filled with lead oxide or other suitable
material to be transformed into active material, the said material covering both
sides of the corrugated plate and filling..the perforations so as to entirely enclose
the, plate or support.
The said material thereby "keys" into the plate in such
a manner that there is no failure of continuity throughout the mass in any
direction although the same is completely interwoven with the perforated and
corrugated support. Great firmness and improved conductivity are thus obtained
since the active material is not split up into pellets or independent sections as
is the case in the ordinary form of perforated grid. By constructing a battery
plate in this manner the substance used to form the active material can.if desired.

page_text: be subjected to a greater pressure than can be applied to the material put into
a grid constructed in the usual way.
:
Battery plates constructed in the manner before described have a very large
capacity for their weight, the surface of contact between the active and inactive
material is very great and the weight of inactive material proportionately very
small.
The method I preferably adopt for connecting together the several plates
required to form a cell is as follows:
The frames hereinabove mentioned which are to be used for the spongy lead
plate have two feet formed thereon a hole being pierced through each foot, and the
frames for both plates have lugs formed at their upper portions pierced with
holes. The holes can be made however in the frames themselves instead of in
lugs attached thereto. The contact lugs of both frames are shouldered at the
top and are furnished with tenons which fit the mortice holes in suitable connecting
straps. The mortice holes are made at such distances apart that when the plates
are put together with suitable separators between them, the distance of such
mortice holes coincides with the distance between the lugs to which they are to
be attached. In a nine plate cell for example, one contact strap will be made
to fit upon the lugs of the five spongy lead plates and the other contact strap
to fit upon the lugs of the four peroxide plates.
When the plates are put together with separators between them, bolts of ebonite
or other suitable material are passed through the holes in the frames or in the lugs
at the top and bottom of the frames of the spongy lead plates, the two upper bolts
also passing through the holes in the frames or lugs of the peroxide plates. The
bottoms of the peroxide plates rest upon the lower bolts which pass through the feet,
of the spongy lead plates. The bolts are secured in place by nuts of the same or
other suitable material screwed on their ends or by other suitable means. When
the plates are bolted together the contact straps are put in place and the projecting
ends of the tenons are burnt or fused to them to secure good electrical contact.
The contact straps are provided with holes at the end for bolts or terminals for.
connecting the strap of one cell with that of the next in the usual manner.
of plates bolted together and connected in the manner described can be very con-
veniently handled without fear of disarrangement. The feet at the bottom of the
spongy lead plates rest upon the bottom of the cell, and the bottom of the peroxide
plates resting upon the bolts passing through such plates as hereinabove mentioned
are held up above the bottom of the cell thereby avoiding any danger of short,
circuit from metallic deposit without the use of independent feet for the plates.
A set.
The method I adopt of bolting together the plates and connecting them with
straps having mortice holes fitting the tenons on the lugs of the plates enables us
more easily to set up the plates at the place where they are to be used, without
special appliances a soldering bit being all that is necessary for this purpose.
Dated this 6th day of March 1894.
1
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45,. Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant..
Improvements in and relating to Secondary Batteries.
I, OCTAVIUS MARCH, of 70 Sinclair Road, Kensington, in the County of
Middlesex, Electrical Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:
My invention relates to secondary batteries and has for its chief object to
provide an improved support or grid for holding the active material. My

page_text: connecting together the several plates required to form a cell.
According to my invention the supports for the active material are constructed
in part from sheets of lead or of a suitable lead alloy, perforated and corrugated in
the manner hereafter described and in part from cast frames of lead or lead-alloy
also as more particularly hereinafter described.
In order that my invention may be clearly understood I will now proceed to
describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawing in which
Figure 1 is a plan of a portion of a perforated sheet.
Figure 2 is a section on the line a, a Figure 1 after the sheet has been
corrugated.
Figure 3 is a section of a corrugated sheet taken at right angles to the section
shewn in Figure 2.
Figures 4 and 5 are corresponding views to Figures 2 and 3 but illustrate a
modification hereinafter explained.
Figure 6 is an elevation of the frame I prefer to use in making peroxide
plates, and
Figure 7 is a similar view of the frame I use for the spongy lead plate.
Figures 8 and 9 shew alternative constructions of frame.
Figures 10 and 11 are plans of the straps I prefer to use for connecting the
plates together.
Figures 1 to 5 are drawn to a larger scale than the remaining figures of the
drawing.
The perforations in the sheet are of any suitable shape and size.
Referring now to Figure 1 A is the lead plate in which circular holes A' are
made, the diameter of the said holes being greater than the minimum distance
between the circumferences of any two holes. The perforations are preferably
arranged so that the holes in one vertical or horizontal row are alternate with the
holes in the adjacent vertical or horizontal rows as shewn. The sheets are
corrugated in such a manner that the crests and troughs of the corrugations
coincide with the rows of perforations, that is to say, alternate rows of holes are in
the upper curves of the corrugations and the intermediate rows of holes are in the
lower curves of the corrugations. This is very clearly shown in Figures 2 and 3,
the section Figure 2 being taken in a plane perpendicular to the direction of the
corrugations. As an example of my invention a sheet in which the corrugations
are required to be a quarter of an inch deep will have holes not less than a quarter
of an inch or thereabouts in diameter. If the corrugations are required to be
deeper I either make the holes proportionately larger and corrugate the sheet in
the manner already described or I make the holes of the size above indicated and
corrugate the sheet to a greater depth. In the latter case the relation between
the corrugations and the perforations is such that one row of holes is correctly in
line with the upper curve of the corrugation, the next row of holes half, way
between the upper and lower curves, and the third row in line with the lower
curve. Sections of a plate corrugated in this manner are shewn in Figures 4 and 5.
By making large holes in the plate I secure homogeneity and continuity of active
material which cannot be done when small holes only are provided.
I am aware that perforated and corrugated lead or lead-alloy has been used for
this purpose both separately and together but I believe that the particular method
I employ is new, and by it great advantages are obtained which are not attainable
by any previous manner of corrugating a perforated sheet of metal.
The perforated and corrugated sheet is according to my invention secured by its
edges in a frame B (see Figure 6) of lead or of lead-alloy the edges being
preferably burnt or fused to the frame. The frame is then filled with lead oxide
or other suitable material to be transformed into active material, the said material
covering both sides of the corrugated plate and filling the perforations so as to
entirely enclose the plate or support. The said material thereby "keys" into or
locks with the plate in such a manner that there is no failure or interruption of

page_text: continuity throughout the mass in any direction although the same is completely
interwoven with the perforated and corrugated support. Great firmness and
improved conductivity are thus obtained since the active material is not split up
into pellets or independent sections as is the case with ordinary perforated grids
heretofore employed. By constructing a battery plate in this manner the substance
used to form the active material can if desired be subjected to a greater pressure
than can be applied to the material put into a grid constructed in the usual way.
Battery plates constructed in the manner hereinbefore described have a very
large capacity, the surface of contact between the active and inactive material is
very great, and the weight of the inactive material proportionately very small.
The method I preferably adopt for connecting together the several plates
required to form a cell is as follows:
The frames which are to be used for the spongy lead plate have two feet C, C
formed thereon as shewn in Figure 7 and Figure 9 a hole C₁ being pierced
through each foot, and when the plates are large the frames for both plates have
lugs D, D, E, E, formed at their upper portions pierced with holes D', D', E', E',
as shewn in Figures 8 and 9. The holes can be made however in the frames
themselves instead of in lugs attached thereto. The contact lugs E, E of both
frames are shouldered at the top and are furnished with tenons E2, E2 which fit the
mortice holes F, F in suitable connecting straps F1, F₁ shewn in plan in Figures 10
and 11. The mortice holes are made at such distances apart that when the plates
are put together with suitable separators between them, the distance between such
mortice holes coincides with the distance between the lugs to which they are to be
attached. In a nine plate cell for example, one contact strap will be made as
shewn in Figure 11 to fit upon the lugs of the five spongy lead plates and the other
contact strap as shewn in Figure 10 to fit upon the lugs of the four peroxide
plates.
.
When the plates are put together with separators between them, bolts of ebonite
or other suitable material are passed through the holes in the frames or in the lugs
at the top and bottom of the frames of the spongy lead plates, the two upper bolts
being passed through the holes in the frames or lugs of the peroxide plates. The
lower edges of the peroxide plates rest upon the lower bolts which pass through
the feet of the spongy plates. The bolts are secured in place by nuts of the
same or other suitable material screwed upon their ends or by other suitable means.
When the plates are bolted together the contact-straps are put in place and the
projecting ends of the tenons are burnt or fused to them to secure good electrical
contact. Each contact-strap is provided with a hole F2 at its end for a bolt or
terminal for connecting the strap of one cell with that of the next in the usual
manner. A set of plates bolted together and connected in the manner described
can be very conveniently handled without fear of disarrangement. The feet of
the spongy lead plates rest upon the bottom of the cell, and the lower edge of
the peroxide plates rest upon the bolts passing through such plates as hereinabove
mentioned and are thereby held up above the bottom of the cell thus avoiding
any danger of short circuiting from metallic deposit without the use of independent
feet for the plates.
I
The method adopt of bolting together the plates and connecting them with
straps having mortice holes fitting the tenons on the lugs of the plates enables
me more easily to set up the plates at the place where they are to be used, a
soldering bit being the only apparatus required for this purpose.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. A secondary battery plate having for its basis a perforated sheet of lead
corrugated in such a manner that perforations occur at the crests and troughs of
the corrugations, with or without perforations in the sides of the corrugations,
substantially as and for the purpose described.

page_text: 2. A secondary battery plate constructed according to any of the methods
hereinabove described for the purposes specified.
3. The method of mechanically and electrically connecting together the several
plates required to form a cell, substantially as described.
Dated this 5th day of December 1894.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.