Coating apparatus for applying coating material onto sheet member

{
  "publication_number": "US9486821B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Coating apparatus for applying coating material onto sheet member",
  "abstract": "[Object] To provide a coating apparatus that can prevent distortion of the shape of a coating area on a sheet member. [Solution Means] A coating apparatus 50 includes a suction roller peripheral wall 114 a (base plate 70) on which a flexible electrolyte membrane 21 shaped like a thin film (sheet member 60) is placed, drawing unit 80 that draws the electrolyte membrane on the suction roller peripheral wall, and a coating mechanism 90 that applies catalyst ink 91 (material) onto the electrolyte membrane drawn on the suction roller peripheral wall by the drawing unit. The electrolyte membrane has, in a range from a center portion to a portion on an inner side of an outer peripheral edge 61, a coating area 62 where the catalyst ink is applied. The drawing unit draws the electrolyte membrane on the suction roller peripheral wall in the coating area where the catalyst ink is applied, and also draws the electrolyte membrane on the suction roller peripheral wall 114 a in a range 63 extending outward beyond the coating area.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A coating apparatus for applying a coating material onto a sheet member, comprising: a base plate on which a flexible sheet member is placed; an attraction plate having electrodes connected to a power supply for supplying electric power to the electrodes, wherein the attraction plate electrostatically draws the sheet member onto the base plate; and a coating unit configured to apply a coating material onto the sheet member drawn on the base plate by the attraction plate, wherein the sheet member has, in a range from a center portion to a portion on an inner side of an outer peripheral edge, a coating area where the coating material is to be applied, wherein the attraction plate has a width larger than a width of the coating area and extends outward in the range between the coating area and the outer peripheral edge of the sheet member, and wherein the attraction plate draws the sheet member on the base plate in the coating area where the coating material is to be applied, and also draws the sheet member on the base plate in a range extending outward beyond the coating area.",
    "2. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet member is formed of a porous material or a solvent-impregnated material.",
    "3. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the sheet member drawn on the base plate by the attraction plate is a surface to which the coating material has not been applied yet or a surface to which the coating material has already been applied.",
    "4. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet member has a long shape such as to be paid out from a supply reel and to be sequentially wound around a take-up reel, and wherein the coating unit is disposed in a transport path through which the sheet member is transported from the supply reel to the take-up reel.",
    "5. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the applied coating material is dried while the sheet member is drawn on the base plate by the attraction plate.",
    "6. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet member is an electrolyte membrane having an electrode catalyst layer, and wherein the coating material is catalyst ink for the electrode catalyst layer."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "The present invention relates to a coating apparatus that applies a material onto a sheet member.\n\nIn response to recent social demands and trends in the context of energy and environment problems, fuel cells capable of operating even at ordinary temperature and obtaining high output density have attracted attention as a power supply for an electric car and a stationary power supply. A fuel cell is a clean power generation system in which an electrode reaction product is water in principle and which reduces the load on the global environment. In particular, a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is expected as a power supply for an electric car because it operates at relatively low temperature.\n\nA polymer fuel cell includes a membrane electrode assembly (MEA, hereinafter referred to as MEA) having an electrolyte membrane, catalyst layers provided on both surfaces of the membrane, gas diffusion layers (GDLs), and so on. A plurality of MEAs are stacked with separators being disposed therebetween to constitute a fuel cell.\n\nAs a technique of forming electrode catalyst layers on both surfaces of an electrolyte membrane when manufacturing an MEA, a method of applying catalyst ink onto the electrolyte membrane is known (see, for example, Patent Literature 1). In the method described in Patent Literature 1, an outer peripheral frame is attached to an electrolyte membrane such as to clamp an outer peripheral portion of the electrolyte membrane. A porous sheet is disposed in an aperture of the outer peripheral frame sheet, and catalyst ink is applied while vacuum-sucking the electrolyte membrane via the porous sheet.",
  "cpc": [
    "B05B 5/14",
    "B05B 13/02",
    "B05C 13/00",
    "B05C 5/02",
    "B05C 5/0245",
    "B05C 5/0254",
    "B05C 5/0283",
    "B65G 47/92",
    "B65H 5/004",
    "H01M 2008/1095",
    "H01M 4/881",
    "Y02E 60/50"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "B05B 13/02",
    "B05B 5/14",
    "B05C 13/00",
    "B05C 13/02",
    "B05C 5/00",
    "B05C 5/02",
    "B65G 47/92",
    "B65H 5/00",
    "H01M 4/88",
    "H01M 8/00",
    "H01M 8/10"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Nissan Motor Co Ltd"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Kenichi Toyoshima",
    "Kei Ono",
    "Masaya Yamamoto",
    "Norifumi Horibe",
    "Takayuki TERASAKI"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2013-08-27",
  "publication_date": "2016-11-08",
  "grant_date": "2016-11-08",
  "priority_date": "2012-09-28",
  "application_number": "US-201314431434-A",
  "family_id": "50387815",
  "cited_by_count": 1,
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    "JP2005205268A",
    "JP2006164790A",
    "EP1857189A1",
    "JP2007250539A",
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    "WO2012036007A1",
    "EP2618414A1",
    "US20130196254A1"
  ]
}