Electrical apparatus, computer system, intelligent battery, battery diagnosis method, batter-state display method, and program

• US 20030054229A1
• Filed: 09/19/2002
• Published: 03/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lenovo PC International Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Lenovo Singapore Pte Limited (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Masaki, Odaohhara, Shigefumi, Matsumoto, Takeshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,663,374 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 429/61
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/3648 comprising digital calculation means, e.g. for performing an algorithm
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/374 with means for correcting the measurement for temperature or ageing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/263 Arrangements for using multiple switchable power supplies, e.g. battery and AC G06F1/30 takes precedence
• 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: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

To accurately determine whether a battery has a trouble by a unit provided with a battery for supplying power to the body while repeating charge and discharge. A computer system connecting with an intelligent battery 52 for repeating charge and discharge to supply power from the intelligent battery 52 to the system body, in which the intelligent battery 52 is provided with a voltage-measuring circuit 70 for measuring a battery voltage, a current-measuring circuit 63 for measuring charge and discharge currents, a temperature-measuring circuit 90 for measuring a temperature, and a CPU 62 for checking the full charge capacity of the intelligent battery 52 in accordance with a battery voltage obtained from the voltage-measuring circuit 70, charge and discharge currents obtained from the current-measuring circuit 63, and a temperature obtained from the temperature-measuring circuit 90, and the CPU 62 compares an estimate minimum capacity deciding the level of a capacity to be assured with the checked full charge capacity and communicates the comparison result to an embedded controller 41 of the system body.

Claims

1. An electrical apparatus having a body for consuming power and a battery for supplying power to the body while repeating charge and discharge, comprising:

estimated-capacity storage means for previously storing an estimated capacity in a predetermined condition of use assumed for the battery;

full-charge-capacity check means for checking a full charge capacity of the battery; and

diagnosis means for diagnosing the battery in accordance with the level of the full charge capacity checked by the full-charge-capacity check means to an estimated capacity stored in the estimated-capacity storage means.

2. The electrical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the estimated-capacity storage means stores estimated charge capacities varied with the cycle count about charge and discharge.

3. The electrical apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the diagnosis means diagnoses that the battery is failed when the full charge capacity checked by the full-charge-capacity check means is lower than the estimated capacity stored in the estimated-capacity storage means.

4. The electrical apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means for displaying a diagnosis result of the battery in accordance with a diagnosis result by the diagnosis means.

5. An electrical apparatus comprising:

a body for consuming power; and

a battery for supplying power to the body while repeating charge and discharge;

wherein the battery diagnoses that a trouble occurs in a battery cell when the value of the full charge capacity at a certain number of cycles is lower than the estimated minimum capacity at this number of cycles.

6. The electrical apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the estimated minimum capacity is an estimated capacity when assuming a condition of use in which the maximum load is applied to the battery.

7. An electrical apparatus comprising:

a body for consuming power; and

a battery for supplying power to the body while repeating charge and discharge;

wherein

the body obtains the diagnosis information for the battery from the full charge capacity of the battery and displays states of the battery with different colors in accordance with the obtained diagnosis information for the battery.

8. The electrical apparatus according to claim 7, wherein

the battery stores the information about the date on which a user first used the battery, and

the body displays the date on which the battery was first used in accordance with the information stored in the battery.

9. A computer system for supplying power to the system body from a connected battery for repeating charge and discharge, wherein

the battery includes a voltage-measuring circuit for measuring the battery voltage of its own, a current-measuring circuit for measuring the charge and discharge currents of its own, and a CPU for checking the full charge capacity of the battery in accordance with the battery voltage measured by the voltage-measuring circuit and the charge and discharge currents measured by the battery-current measuring circuit, and

the CPU compares the estimated minimum capacity in which the level of a capacity to be assured is decided with the checked full charge capacity and communicates the comparison result to a controller of the system body.

10. The computer system according to claim 9, wherein

the system body displays predetermined information on a display in accordance with the comparison result received by the controller.

11. A computer system for supplying power to the system body from a connected battery for repeating charge and discharge, comprising:

storage means for storing the information about the minimum assurance capacity used for diagnosis of the battery;

full-charge-capacity check means for checking the full charge capacity of the battery;

battery diagnosis means for comparing the full charge capacity checked by the full-charge-capacity check means with the minimum assurance capacity obtained from the information stored in the storage means to diagnose the battery; and

display means for displaying the information for urging a user to replace the battery with a new one in accordance with the diagnosis result of the battery by the battery diagnosis means.

12. The computer system according to claim 11, further comprising:

a storage-deterioration check means for checking storage deterioration which is capacity deterioration due to storage of the battery; and

cycle-deterioration check means for checking cycle deterioration which is capacity deterioration due to charge and discharge of the battery;

wherein

the full-charge-capacity check means corrects the full charge capacity of a battery in accordance with the storage deterioration checked by the storage-deterioration check means and the cycle deterioration checked by the cycle-deterioration check means.

13. An intelligent battery connected to an electrical apparatus to supply power to the apparatus while repeating charge and discharge, comprising:

estimated-capacity storage means for previously storing an estimated capacity in an assumed predetermined condition of use;

full-charge-capacity check means for checking the full charge capacity of its own; and

diagnosis means for performing self-diagnosis in accordance with the level of the full charge capacity checked by the full-charge-capacity check means to the estimated capacity stored in the estimated-capacity storage means.

14. The intelligent battery according to claim 13, wherein

the diagnosis means determines that a trouble occurs when the full charge capacity is smaller than the estimated capacity at a predetermined cycle.

15. An intelligent battery set to an electrical apparatus to supply power to the apparatus while repeating charge and discharge, comprising:

a voltage-measuring circuit for measuring the battery voltage of its own;

a current-measuring circuit for measuring the charge and discharge currents of its own; and

a CPU for checking the full charge capacity of a battery in accordance with the battery voltage measured by the voltage-measuring circuit and the charge and discharge currents measured by the current-measuring circuit;

wherein

the CPU compares an estimated minimum capacity in which the level of a capacity to be assured is decided with the checked full charge capacity and outputs the comparison result.

16. A battery diagnosis method for diagnosing a battery for supplying power to a body while repeating charge and discharge, comprising the steps of:

predetermining and storing the level of a capacity to be assured correspondingly to the cycle count;

obtaining the full charge capacity at a predetermined cycle in the battery;

diagnosing the battery in accordance with the obtained full charge capacity and the level of the stored capacity; and

outputting the diagnosis result of the battery.

17. A battery-state display method for displaying a diagnosis result of a battery for supplying power to a body while repeating charge and discharge, comprising the steps of:

displaying the information showing that a battery must be replaced with a new one when the actually-checked full charge capacity of the battery is lower than an estimated minimum capacity level to be assured correspondingly to the cycle count; and

displaying the information showing that the battery is normal when the full charge capacity is higher than the level of the estimated minimum-capacity level.

18. The batter-state display method according to claim 17, wherein

the information showing that the battery currently used must be replaced with a new one is displayed when the full charge capacity is higher than the estimated minimum-capacity level but it is lower than a predetermined rate of a design capacity of the battery.

19. The battery-state display method according to claim 18, wherein

the information showing the battery is normal is displayed when the full charge capacity is higher than the estimated minimum capacity level and moreover higher than the predetermined rate of the design capacity.

20. A program for causing:

a computer provided with a battery for supplying power to a body while repeating charge and discharge to perform;

a function for displaying the information showing that the battery must be replaced when the actually-checked full charge capacity of the battery is lower than an estimated minimum capacity level to be assured correspondingly to the cycle count; and

a function for displaying the information showing that the battery is normal when the full charge capacity is higher than the estimated minimum capacity level.