Panasonic Corporation announced today that it has developed a pin-shaped lithium-ion battery (CG-320, nominal capacity 13mAh) with a diameter of 3.5mm and a weight of 0.6g suitable for powering small devices such as wearable devices. This product, on top of being the industry's smallest cylindrical shaped rechargeable Li-ion battery, features the high reliability and high output required for near-field communications (NFC). Mass production and shipping are planned to begin in February, 2015 with a monthly production of one hundred thousand units. Also in 2015, Panasonic plans to introduce two additional models to this new product line, the CG-425 and CG-435, rated for 30mAh and 50mAh, respectively. All three batteries have a nominal output voltage of 3.75V.
The full-scale introduction of wearable device products, anticipated widely as the next wave in mobile devices after smartphones, is expected in a wide variety of applications from 2014. Rechargeable batteries, the power source for wearable devices, are expected to be not only small and light, but also to have a high level of reliability and performance.
Panasonic has taken advantage of its battery material technology cultivated with Li-ion batteries used in information and communication equipment applications, and coin-shaped and other small lithium battery production technology, to commercialize this battery, which at 3.5mm is the industry's smallest pin-shaped Li-ion battery. This product is a rechargeable battery that can be used repeatedly and has the output capability required for NFC. A stainless steel can is used for the exterior providing for dimensional stability. It will be possible to ensure good design for slim devices such as pen-shaped or spectacles-shaped products.
The industry's smallest diameter cylindrical rechargeable battery has been developed by using extremely fine components and materials compared to current cylindrical Li-ion batteries, and also by applying the know-how and technology cultivated during the high precision manufacturing process of small coin-shaped batteries. This product is also the smallest in the industry in terms of capacity by volume, at one twentieth of an AAA size battery (Diameter 10.5mm, Height 44.5mm). This size is suitable as a power source for small devices such as spectacles, pen-shaped and other slim devices. Design options can be expanded for these types of communication devices.
Despite the very thin diameter of 3.5mm, the same spiral electrode construction used in current cylindrical Li-ion batteries is employed, allowing a wide area between the cathode and anode and resulting in high output. By succeeding in developing this electrode construction at such a small size, it is possible to use similar materials and achieve high voltage (3.75V) as is seen in current Li-ion batteries. It is possible not only to operate devices that require high output that would not be possible with current small primary lithium batteries, but also to allow Bluetooth and other NFC with smart phones.
