Mobile terminal, DC-charging power source adaptor, and rapid charging method

• US 10,044,217 B2
• Filed: 02/24/2016
• Issued: 08/07/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hisense International Company Limited (Qingdao Huatong State-Owned Capital Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.), Hisense USA Corporation (Qingdao Huatong State-Owned Capital Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hisense International Company Limited (Qingdao Huatong State-Owned Capital Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.), Hisense Mobile Communications Technology Co., Ltd. (Qingdao Huatong State-Owned Capital Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.), Hisense USA Corporation (Qingdao Huatong State-Owned Capital Operation (Group) Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Huang, Yaling, Li, Chunqian, Zhang, Naifeng, Du, Wenjuan
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Mohammed
• Application Number:
  US15/052,007
• Publication Number:
  US 20170040805A1
• Time in Patent Office: 895 Days
• Field of Search: 320162
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/007182 in response to battery voltage
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 for charging batteries from ac mains by converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 Regulation of charging current or voltage

Abstract

This disclosure provides a mobile terminal, a DC-charging power source adaptor, and a rapid charging method, which are proposed for a power source adaptor outputting dynamically adjustable voltage, where core voltage of a battery is divided into several intervals, and further in a segmented constant-current-like charging mode, a volt value of charging voltage output by the power source adaptor is adjusted dynamically according to the interval in which the core voltage of the battery in the mobile terminal while the battery is being charged lies, and the battery is DC-charged directly using the charging voltage output by the power source adaptor.

Claims

1. A mobile terminal comprising:

a battery configured to store electric energy;

a USB interface configured to connect with a DC-charging power source adaptor;

a DC-charging switch connected between the USB interface and the battery;

a power managing chip connected between the USB interface and the battery; and

a microprocessor configured to detect a voltage of the battery upon detecting the USB interface is connected with the DC-charging power source adaptor; and

if the voltage of the battery is in a range S1 to S2 delimited by preset DC-charging thresholds, send the voltage of the battery to the DC-charging power source adaptor so that the DC-charging power source adaptor outputs a target charging voltage corresponding to the current voltage of the battery, and control the DC-charging switch to close upon detecting the voltage of the battery is in the range S1 to S2 to transmit the target charging voltage output by the DC-charging power source adaptor directly to the battery to charge the battery; and

a power managing chip connected between the USB interface and the battery, the power managing chip configured to be controlled by the microprocessor to receive the target charging voltage output by the DC-charging power source adaptor and charge the battery when the microprocessor detects that the voltage of the battery is out of the range S1 to S2 delimited by the preset DC-charging thresholds.

2. The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the microprocessor is configured to, upon detecting the voltage of the battery is less than S1, communicate with the DC-charging power source adaptor to instruct the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage, and start the power source managing chip to pre-charge the battery at a small current;

and to, upon detecting the voltage of the battery is more than S2, instruct the DC-charging power source adaptor to output the constant charging voltage, and start the power source managing chip to charge the battery at the constant voltage.

3. A DC-charging power source adaptor comprising:

a charging interface configured to externally connect with a mobile terminal;

an AC to DC converting unit configured to convert an AC input power source into a charging voltage required by the mobile terminal, and output the charging voltage via the charging interface;

a switch circuit connected between the AC to DC converting unit and the charging interface;

a controlling unit connected with the charging interface; and

a current detecting unit configured to detect in real time a charging current I_chgoutput via the charging interface, and feedback the charging current I_chg to the controlling unit,

wherein the controlling unit is configured to communicate with the mobile terminal after the charging interface is connected with the mobile terminal, receive a voltage of a battery in the mobile terminal in a range delimited by DC-charging thresholds sent by the mobile terminal, search a preset reference table using the voltage of the battery for a target charging voltage value V_out corresponding to an interval in which the voltage of the battery lies, adjust the charging voltage output by the AC to DC converting unit to the target charging voltage value V_out, search the preset reference table using the voltage of the battery for a target charging current value I_targ and a charging current maximum value I_max corresponding to the interval in which the voltage of the battery lies, upon detecting that I_trag−

I_e≤

I_chg<

I_trag, control the DC-charging power source adaptor to increase its charging voltage by a preset value Δ

V, and upon detecting the absolute value of the difference between the charging current I_chg and the target charging current value I_targ is more than I_e or the charging current I_chg is more than a charging current maximum value I_max control the switch circuit to disconnect a charging voltage transmission line between the DC-charging power source adaptor and the charging interface, and

wherein I_e represents a controllable range of the difference between the real charging current value of the DC-charging power source adaptor and the target charging current value I_targ.

4. The DC-charging power source adaptor according to claim 3, wherein the controlling unit is configured to adjust the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage when the voltage of the battery in the mobile terminal is out of the range delimited by the DC-charging thresholds.

5. A rapid charging method comprising:

detecting, by a mobile terminal, voltage of a battery thereof;

if the voltage of the battery is in a range S1 to S2 delimited by preset DC-charging thresholds, then sending the voltage of the battery to a DC-charging power source adaptor;

searching, by the DC-charging power source adaptor, a preset reference table using the voltage of the battery for a target charging voltage value V_out corresponding to an interval in which the voltage of the battery lies and for a target charging current value I_targ corresponding to the interval in which the voltage of the battery lies;

adjusting, by the DC-charging power source adaptor, its output charging voltage to the target charging voltage value V_out;

receiving, by the mobile terminal, the charging voltage output by the DC-charging power source adaptor, and transmitting the charging voltage to the battery to DC-charge the battery;

detecting, by the DC-charging power source adaptor, its real charging current I_chg output to the mobile terminal; and

if the real charging current I_chg is less than the target charging current value I_targ, then increasing the target charging voltage value V_out by a preset value Δ

V.

6. The rapid charging method according to claim 5, further comprising if the absolute value of the difference between the real charging current I_chg and the target charging current value I_targ is more than a preset value, then stopping the charging voltage from being output, wherein the preset value represents a controllable range of the difference between the real charging current value and the target charging current value.

7. The rapid charging method according to claim 5, wherein searching the preset reference table includes searching the preset reference table for a charging current maximum value I_max corresponding to the interval in which the voltage of the battery lies.

8. The rapid charging method according to claim 7, further comprising if the real charging current I_chg is more than the charging current maximum value I_max, then stopping the charging voltage from being output.

9. The rapid charging method according to claim 7, wherein:

the charging current maximum value I_max is determined from a maximum terminal voltage supported by the battery and an inner resistance of the battery;

the target charging current value I_targ is determined from the charging current maximum value I_max; and

the target charging voltage value V_out is determined from the target charging current value I_targ, a resistance value on a charging line, a resistance value on a circuit board of the mobile terminal, and the inner resistance of the battery.

10. The rapid charging method according to claim 9, wherein the target charging voltage value V_out, the target charging current value I_targ and the charging current maximum value I_max corresponding to each interval are calculated in the equations of:

I_max=min((V_{bat_max}−

V_{bat_real}) /R_bat, I_allow),

I_targ=I_max−

Δ

I,

V_out=V_{bat_real}+I_targ * (R_line+R_board+R_bat),and

wherein R_line represents the resistance value on the charging line;

R_board represents the resistance value on the circuit board of the mobile terminal;

R_bat represents the inner resistance value of the battery;

V_{bat_max} represents the maximum terminal voltage value supported by the battery;

I_allow represents the maximum safe charging current value selected while ensuring the safety of the battery being charged; and

Δ

I represents a preset difference in current.

11. The rapid charging method according to claim 10, wherein the DC-charging power source adaptor takes a lower bound value of the core voltage in said each interval as V_{bat_real}, and calculates the target charging voltage value V_out corresponding to the interval in which the voltage of the battery lies;

and

the DC-charging power source adaptor takes a higher bound value of the core voltage in said each interval as V_{bat_real}, and calculates the charging current maximum value I_max corresponding to the interval in which the voltage of the battery lies.

12. The rapid charging method according to claim 5, further comprising:

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to a power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to pre-charge the battery at a small current if the voltage of the battery is less than S1; and

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output the constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to the power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to charge the battery at the constant voltage if the voltage of the battery is more than S2.

13. The rapid charging method according to claim 11, further comprising:

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to a power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to pre-charge the battery at a small current if the voltage of the battery is less than S1; and

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output the constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to the power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to charge the battery at the constant voltage if the voltage of the battery is more than S2.

14. The rapid charging method according to claim 7, wherein:

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to a power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to pre-charge the battery at a small current if the voltage of the battery is less than S1; and

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output the constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to the power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to charge the battery at the constant voltage if the voltage of the battery is more than S2.

15. The rapid charging method according to claim 6, further comprising:

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output a constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to a power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to pre-charge the battery at a small current if the voltage of the battery is less than S1; and

instructing, by the mobile terminal, the DC-charging power source adaptor to output the constant charging voltage by default and transmit the constant charging voltage to the power source managing chip in the mobile terminal to start the power source managing chip to charge the battery at the constant voltage if the voltage of the battery is more than S2.