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Battery management system with temperature sensing and charge management for individual series-connected battery cells

  • US 10,396,570 B2
  • Filed: 01/07/2013
  • Issued: 08/27/2019
  • Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A modular battery management system for controlling and monitoring a plurality of battery cells connected in series in a battery connected to a load, the system comprising:

  • a central controlling microcontroller;

    a plurality of cell balancing means and a plurality of slave sensing means, each of the cell balancing means and each of the slave sensing means being in communication with the central controlling microcontroller and operatively connected to an associated one of the battery cells in the plurality of battery cells; and

    a plurality of temperature sensors operable to monitor the temperature of each of the plurality of cell balancing means and each of the plurality of slave sensing means to determine if an excessive temperature has been reached;

    wherein the cell balancing means and the slave sensing means connected to each associated one of the plurality of battery cells are operable;

    (a) to measure a charging state of the associated one of the plurality of battery cells;

    (b) when a maximum charging state is reached in at least one of the associated battery cells, to establish a shunt across the at least one of the associated battery cells that has reached the maximum charging state, thereby allowing a continued charging of the remaining battery cells in the plurality of battery cells;

    (c) when the shunt is established, to communicate to the central controlling microcontroller a message representing that the maximum charging state has been reached in the at least one of the associated battery cells in which the maximum charging state has been reached;

    (d) during discharging of the battery, to inform the central controlling microcontroller when a non-zero minimum voltage has been reached in the associated one of the battery cells so as to cause the central controlling microcontroller to disconnect all the cells in the plurality of cells from the load in order to prevent further discharging of the associated one of the battery cells in which the non-zero minimum voltage has been reached to a cell-ruining voltage below the non-zero minimum voltage; and

    (e) shut down charging of the battery when the excessive temperature is reached;

    wherein each of said cell balancing means is configured to establish the shunt in response to a signal from the slave sensing means when the respective slave sensing means has measured a maximum voltage across the at least one of the associated battery cells that has reached the maximum charging state; and

    wherein each of the plurality of slave sensing means is further operatively connected to the central controlling microcontroller via a common data bus, whereby a continuous charging of the remaining battery cells is controlled by the central controlling microcontroller.

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