Energy storage charging from an adjustable power source

• US 10,164,444 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2017
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Sawyers, Thomas P., Lloyd, Jon G., Wozniak, John, Matthews, Christopher K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Diao, M Baye
• Application Number:
  US15/615,584
• Publication Number:
  US 20170271905A1
• Time in Patent Office: 567 Days
• Field of Search: 320134
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/4257 Smart batteries, e.g. electronic circuits inside the housing of the cells or batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/446 Initial charging measures
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/448 End of discharge regulating measures
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/46 Accumulators structurally combined with charging apparatus circuits for charging H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0071 with a programmable schedule
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 Regulation of charging current or voltage
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

An energy storage device includes an integrated fuel gauge that is operatively connected to the energy storage device. The fuel gauge evaluates an operating parameter of the energy storage device and dynamically determines a state of charge. The fuel gauge communicates a communication including a requested operating parameter to the charging component with the single communication line and the signal indicates to an operating system component a change of an energy storage device state. The signal is used to trigger an alert or interrupt that causes the operating system component to display the change of the energy storage state based on the signal.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

an energy storage device operating according to an operating parameter and comprising a fuel gauge, wherein the fuel gauge is to;

receive a different operating parameter in response to a change in the energy storage device charge state; and

modify a pulse width modulated signal in response to the change in the energy storage device charge state;

a detection component coupled to the fuel gauge and an operating system component, wherein the detection component is to;

detect the modification of the pulse width modulated signal using a filter; and

cause the operating system component to generate an interrupt or alarm to update data representing the energy storage device charge state.

2. The system of claim 1, the operating system component is to display update of the energy storage device charge state in response to generating the interrupt or alarm to update data.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the fuel gauge is to receive the different operating parameter from an adjustable power source in response to the change in the energy storage device charge state.

4. The system of claim 3, further comprising the adjustable power source adjusting the operating parameter to charge the energy storage device using a taper algorithm during a charging cycle.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the operating parameter includes at least one of a charge voltage and a charge current.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the detection component is to detect the modification of the pulse width modulated signal by includes detecting the pulse width modulated signal decreasing.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the detection component is to cause the operating system to generate the interrupt or alarm in response to the pulse width modulated signal decreasing.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the filter is a low pass filter.

9. The system of claim 1, the fuel gauge is to write the different operating parameter in registers of the energy storage unit according to a predetermined charge profile based on the state of charge determined.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the fuel gauge is to update the different operating parameter throughout a charging cycle of the energy storage device.

11. A method comprising:

monitoring, via a fuel gauge operatively integrated with an energy storage device, a state of charge of the energy storage device;

determining, by the fuel gauge, an operating parameter of the energy storage device;

modifying, by the fuel gauge, a pulse width modulated signal to cause an interrupt to an operating system component communicatively coupled to the energy storage device in response to a change in the energy storage device charge state;

receiving, by the fuel gauge from an adjustable power source, a different operating parameter to adjust a charge current to charge the energy storage device in response to the change in the energy storage device charge state; and

indicating, by the fuel gauge, the change in the energy storage device charge state to the operating system component in response to the operating system component detecting the modification of the pulse width modulated signal.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the method includes controlling the adjustable power source with a request from the fuel gauge for a different operating parameter to adjust a charge current that charges the energy storage device according to a taper algorithm during a charging cycle.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the method includes receiving the different operating parameter from the adjustable power source includes modifying an output current of the adjustable power source to a different current during a charging of the energy storage device.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the modifying the pulse width modulated signal comprises toggling the pulse width modulated signal to trigger an event detector of the operating system component.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the method includes filtering the pulse width modulated signal to detect the frequency.

16. A computing device comprising:

an operating system component to manage hardware and software for the computing device; and

a fuel gauge to;

determine a change in a state of an energy storage device;

request a different operating parameter from an adjustable power source based on the change in the state of the energy storage device determined by the fuel gauge; and

transmit a pulse width modulated signal to the operating system component, wherein the signal has a modification based on the change in the state of the energy storage device;

wherein the operating system component is to generate, in response to detection of the modification of the signal, a triggering event to update the state of the energy storage device in accordance with the modification of the signal.

17. The computing device of claim 16, further comprising a detection component coupled to the operating system component, wherein the detection component is to detect a variation in a frequency of the signal using a low pass filter.

18. The computing device of claim 16, wherein the triggering event is an interrupt or alarm that causes a display for the state of the energy storage device to update.

19. The computing device of claim 16, wherein the triggering event comprises an alter flag or an interrupt pulse that varies according to a frequency associated with the modification of the signal.

20. The computing device of claim 16, wherein the state of the energy storage device comprises at least one of:

a charge beginning point;

a charge ending point;

a discharge beginning point;

a discharge ending point; and

a percentage full indicator update.