Battery charger system and method

• US 10,468,899 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2018
• Issued: 11/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Swanbarton Limited Of Barton House
• Original Assignee: Swanbarton Limited Of Barton House
• Inventors: Tomlinson, Clive, Shotton, Oliver
• Primary Examiner(s): Fantu, Yalkew
• Application Number:
  US15/936,867
• Publication Number:
  US 20190131796A1
• Time in Patent Office: 588 Days
• Field of Search: 320134
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/392 Determining battery ageing or deterioration, e.g. state of health
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/005 Detection of state of health [SOH]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00712 the cycle being controlled or terminated in response to electric parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 for charging batteries from ac mains by converters

Abstract

Battery state of health is a term used to describe the amount by which a battery has degraded since manufacture, and in particular is a measure of the total capacity of the battery relative to its original total capacity. As it can be dangerous to attempt to charge an unhealthy battery, the present invention provides a system and method for determining battery 1 state of health in remote environments where equipment and high-speed data access are limited.

Claims

1. A battery charger system configured to monitor a state of health of a battery, the battery charger system comprising:

a charger device configured to be connectable to the battery, the charger device having a power source, and the charger device comprising;

a microcontroller configured to control operation of the charger device;

a DC power supply for supplying direct current to the battery connected to the charger device;

at least one voltmeter for determining a potential difference between two terminals;

an AC power supply for supplying alternating current to the battery connected to the charger device; and

a transceiver for transmitting data signals from the charger device and receiving instruction signals at the charger device;

a mobile computing device connected to the charger device, the mobile computing device configured to receive the data signals from the charger device and transmit instruction signals to the charger device, the mobile computing device further configured to communicate over a mobile telecommunication system; and

a remote computing device configured to communicate with the mobile computing device over the mobile telecommunication system;

wherein the battery charger system is configured to;

supply alternating current to the battery with the AC power supply;

determine a potential difference between two terminals due to the supplied alternating current with the at least one voltmeter;

transmit a data signal indicative of the potential difference determined by the at least one voltmeter to the mobile computing device from the charger device;

send a communication based on the data signal indicative of the potential difference determined by the at least one voltmeter to the remote computing device from the mobile computing device over the mobile telecommunication system, in response to the mobile computing device receiving the data signal;

determine a state of health of the battery at the mobile computing device from the data signal indicative of the potential difference, or at the remote computing device from the communication based on the data signal indicative of the potential difference;

send an instruction communication to the mobile computing device from the remote computing device over the mobile telecommunication system, in response to determining the state of health of the battery and receiving the communication;

transmit an instruction signal to the charger device with the mobile computing device, in response to receiving the instruction communication; and

supply direct current to the battery with the DC power supply, in response to receiving the instruction signal at the charger device.

2. The battery charger system of claim 1, wherein the AC power supply is configured to supply alternating current at more than one frequency.

3. A method of monitoring the state of health of a battery, comprising:

providing the battery charger system of claim 1;

supplying alternating current to the battery with the AC power supply;

determining a potential difference between two terminals due to the supplied alternating current with the at least one voltmeter;

transmitting a data signal indicative of the potential difference determined by the at least one voltmeter to the mobile computing device from the charger device;

sending a communication based on the data signal indicative of the potential difference determined by the at least one voltmeter to the remote computing device from the mobile computing device over the mobile telecommunication system, in response to the mobile computing device receiving the data signal;

determining a state of health of the battery at the mobile computing device from the data signal indicative of the potential difference, or at the remote computing device from the communication based on the data signal indicative of the potential difference;

sending an instruction communication to the mobile computing device from the remote computing device over the mobile telecommunication system, in response to determining the state of health of the battery and receiving the communication;

transmitting an instruction signal to the charger device with the mobile computing device, in response to receiving the instruction communication; and

supplying direct current to the battery with the DC power supply, in response to receiving the instruction signal at the charger device.