Dual sided reusable battery indicator

• US 10,608,293 B2
• Filed: 11/01/2016
• Issued: 03/31/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Duracell U.S. Operations, Inc. (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Duracell U.S. Operations, Inc. (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Inventors: Riemer, Joern, Pavlinsky, Robert, Bourilkov, Jordan, Specht, Steven J., Turco, George, Coronado, Sergio
• Primary Examiner(s): Jimenez, Anthony R
• Application Number:
  US15/340,757
• Publication Number:
  US 20180123175A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,246 Days
• Field of Search: 429 90
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/371 with remote indication, e.g. on external chargers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/3835 involving only voltage measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/425 Structural combination with electronic components, e.g. electronic circuits integrated to the outside of the casing printed circuits H05K1/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/4285 Testing apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/48 Accumulators combined with arrangements for measuring, testing or indicating the condition of cells, e.g. the level or density of the electrolyte constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals, H01M50/569
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/486 for measuring temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2010/4278 Systems for data transfer from batteries, e.g. transfer of battery parameters to a controller, data transferred between battery controller and main controller
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

A reusable battery indicator comprises a voltage sensor configured to convert sensed analog characteristics of a battery to digital information; a communication circuit communicatively connected to the voltage sensor; an antenna operatively coupled to the communication circuit; and a connection mechanism having at least a first connector and a second connector that are electrically connected to the voltage sensor, the first connector and the second connector being adapted to be removably connected to a first battery terminal and to a second battery terminal, respectively, thereby completing an electrical circuit between the voltage sensor and the first and second battery terminals when the connection mechanism is coupled to the first battery terminal and to the second battery terminal.

Claims

1. A reusable battery indicator comprising:

a voltage sensor configured to convert sensed analog characteristics of a battery to digital information;

a communication circuit communicatively connected to the voltage sensor;

an antenna operatively coupled to the communication circuit; and

a connection mechanism having at least a first connector comprising a first flexible spring wire and a second connector comprising a second flexible spring wire, the first and second flexible spring wires producing a spring force that biases the first and second flexible spring wires into an attached position, each of the first connector and the second connector being electrically connected to the voltage sensor, the first connector including a first end loop that is sized and shaped to removably capture a first battery terminal and the second connector including a second end loop that is sized and shaped to removably capture a second battery terminal, thereby completing an electrical circuit between the voltage sensor and the first and second battery terminals when the connection mechanism is coupled to the first battery terminal and to the second battery terminal,

wherein the voltage sensor, the communication circuit, and the antenna are formed on a printed circuit board, and

wherein the first connector includes first and second ends that are connected to the printed circuit board and the first connector extends from the printed circuit board in a first direction, and the second connector includes third and fourth ends that are connected to the printed circuit board and the second connector extends from the printed circuit board in a second direction, the second direction being opposite the first direction.

2. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, further comprising a voltage booster electrically connected to the voltage sensor.

3. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first connector and the second connector comprises at least one of a magnet, a cup, a sleeve, a tab, a socket, a pin, a washer, a spring connector, a wire loop, or any combination thereof.

4. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first connector and the second connector comprises at least one metal and at least one insulator.

5. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first connector and the second connector comprises at least one of a metal, a metal alloy, cold-rolled steel, hard drawn ferrous and non-ferrous alloys, high and low carbon steel alloys, post or pre-plated ferrous and non-ferrous alloys, or any combination thereof.

6. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein the communication circuit comprises at least one of radio-frequency identification circuitry, Bluetooth circuitry, Bluetooth low energy circuitry, Wi-Fi circuitry, Zigbee circuitry, LORA circuitry, and Z-wave circuitry.

7. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein the voltage sensor is capable of reading an open circuit voltage of less than 1.8 Volts.

8. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein the printed circuit board is disposed between the first connector and the second connector.

9. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein the voltage sensor is one of a thin disc BLE, UHF, or RF module.

10. An electronic device comprising the reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein a housing of the reusable battery indicator is mounted within a battery receptacle of the electronic device.

11. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, wherein the first connector and the second connector comprise conductive magnets.

12. The reusable battery indicator of claim 1, further comprising a housing, the voltage sensor, and the communication circuit being mounted within the housing, the housing being sized and shaped to fit between two cylindrical batteries that are arranged longitudinally side-by-side.

13. The reusable battery indicator of claim 12, wherein the housing has a cross-section that is in the shape of a triangular prism.

14. The reusable battery indicator of claim 12, wherein the housing has one side that is concave.

15. The reusable battery indicator of claim 12, wherein the housing has two sides that are concave.

16. A remote battery indication system, the system comprising:

a cylindrical battery having a first battery terminal at a first end and a second battery terminal at a second end; and

a reusable battery indicator, the battery indicator including a voltage sensor that converts sensed analog characteristics of the battery to digital information;

a communication circuit communicatively connected to the voltage sensor;

an antenna operatively coupled to the communication circuit; and

a connection mechanism having at least a first connector comprising a first flexible spring wire and a second connector comprising a second flexible spring wire, the first and second flexible spring wires producing a spring force that biases the first and second flexible spring wires into an attached position, each of the first connector and the second connector being electrically connected to the voltage sensor, the first connector including a first end loop that is sized and shaped to removably capture the first battery terminal and the second connector including a second end loop that is sized and shaped to removably capture the second battery terminal, thereby completing an electrical circuit between the voltage sensor and the first and second battery terminals when the connection mechanism is coupled to the first battery terminal and to the second battery terminal,

wherein the voltage sensor, the communication circuit, and the antenna are formed on a printed circuit board, the first connector includes first and second ends that are connected to the printed circuit board and the first connector extends from the printed circuit board in a first direction, towards the first battery terminal, and the second connector includes third and fourth ends that are connected to the printed circuit board and the second connector extends from the printed circuit board in a second direction, towards the second battery terminal, the second direction being opposite from the first direction, and

wherein the first connector and the second connector are electrically attached to the first battery terminal and the second battery terminal, respectively, so that the voltage sensor senses a characteristic of the battery.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising a computing device that is communicatively connected to the communication circuit, the computing device receiving information from the communication circuit through the antenna.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the computing device includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing a software routine that causes the processor to detect a wireless communication signal from the reusable battery indicator, to remotely control battery circuitry through the reusable battery indicator to determine battery characteristic data;

and to send the battery characteristic data to a user interface.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the battery characteristic data comprises at least one of an electrical capacity;

a voltage;

an impedance, a temperature, a current;

an age, a charge/discharge cycle count, and a coulomb count.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the software routine, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to determine at least one of a battery type, a physical location of the battery, and an electrical device that the battery is powering.