Japan-based research firms, Advanced Materials Innovation Center (AMIC) of Mie Industry along with Enterprise Support Center (MIESC) have developed a lithium based polymer battery which can be produced through printing technology.

There are numerous benefits towards this sheet shaped batteries since the printing technological production can reduce its thickness. It can be used with a flexible solar battery or its display or it can also be fastened to a curved surface in case if the battery comes with a solar battery integrated which is formed on a flexible substrate, delivering a sheet that can be used as power storage or a power generator. Moreover, the battery can be expanded as per the area and laminated. As per AMIC, the costs can be greatly lowered when a roll-to-roll method is adopted.

Many research groups had participated in the development project of the lithium polymer battery. The groups who participated were MIESC, Toppan Printing Co Ltd, Shin-Kobe Electric Machinery Co Ltd, Kureha Elastomer Co Lrd, Kinsei Matec Co Ltd, Mie Prefecture Industrial Research Institute, Suzuka National College of Technology and Meisei Chemical Works Ltd.

In this project, two batteries were used as an example. The first battery had about 4V of output voltage at room temperature while the output voltage of the second one was 2V. The battery capacity was not revealed. Using the printing technology, its negative and positive electrodes were manifested on a flexible substrate. While experimenting it this time, a regular sheet-shaped flexible substrate was used, however they utilized a printing technology which could be applied to roll-to-roll production. As a result of this experiment, thin batteries could be produced as the thickness of the flexible substrate could be lowered. However, packaging of the polymer electrolyte was not via printing technology this time.
According to AMIC, this three-year project would go on until March 2011.

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