Patent ID: 7179562

Claim:
A battery comprising: a battery case defining an interior volume; and an electrode assembly mounted in the interior volume, the electrode assembly includes a plurality of metal reinforcing strips and a plurality of planar elements, the plurality of planar elements includes a plurality of positive electrodes, a plurality of negative electrodes, and a plurality of separators; each of the positive electrodes includes a metal substrate having a peripheral edge defining an active area and a tab extending from the active area, a layer of positive active material on the active area of the positive electrodes; each of the negative electrodes includes a metal substrate having a peripheral edge defining an active area and a tab extending from the active area, a layer of negative active material on the active area of the negative electrodes; the tab of each positive electrode and the tab of each negative electrode having a face attached to one of the reinforcing strip such that each reinforcing strip is attached to a single one of the tabs; the plurality of planar elements are arranged in a stack of alternating positive and negative electrodes with a separator between adjacent electrodes; and the positive electrode tabs are aligned to form a positive tab column and the negative electrode tabs are aligned to form a negative tab column that spaced apart from the positive tab column, including a plurality of clips that each includes an integral metal piece having first and second portions bent around a foldline; and wherein each of the clips is mounted on an electrode tab with the clip first portion attached to a front face of the tab and the second portion attached to a rear face of the tab such that the first portion and the second portion each serve as one of the metal reinforcing strips.