Automotive battery packs for electric vehicles typically consist of a large number of battery cells. These cells must be assembled together with robust mechanical and electrical joints. This chapter provides a comprehensive review of joining technologies for automotive lithium-ion battery manufacturing. It compares the advantages and disadvantages of the different joining technologies as related to battery manufacturing, including ultrasonic welding, resistance welding, laser beam welding, wire-bonding, and mechanical joining. Joining processes for electrode-to-tab, tab-to-tab, tab-to-busbar, and module-to-module assembly are discussed with respect to cell types and pack configuration. This chapter also describes the basic concepts in ultrasonic welding, serving as the foundation for the rest of the book.
