Method for determining cell number, cell number determination device, power supply device and program

• US 20100259270A1
• Filed: 03/25/2010
• Published: 10/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TDK Corporation, Tdk-Lambda Corporation (TDK Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TDK Corporation, Tdk-Lambda Corporation (TDK Corporation)
• Inventors: Sakamoto, Takumi, Hirokawa, Masahiko, Hirao, Noriyuki, Senriuchi, Tadao, Nakazawa, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,604,797 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/429
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/16542 for batteries charge condition monitoring in G01R31/36
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/396 Acquisition or processing of data for testing or for monitoring individual cells or groups of cells within a battery
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 11/10 Multiple hybrid or EDL capacitors, e.g. arrays or modules housings, cases, encapsulations or mountings thereof H01G11/78
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 11/14 Arrangements or processes for adjusting or protecting hybrid or EDL capacitors emergency protective circuit arrangements specially adapted for capacitors, and effecting automatic switching in the event of an undesired change from normal working conditions H02H7/16; emergency protective circuit arrangements for limiting excess current or voltages without disconnection H02H9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/4207 for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/482 for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/13 Energy storage using capacitors

Abstract

A number of cells can be determined before control for a battery without providing cell number setting and input means. The cell number determination device comprises voltage measuring units that select an “i”th cell among cells that are connected in series and that configure a battery, and that measure a voltage value between a terminal in which the “i”th cell and an (i−1)th cell, which is in one location higher than the “i”th cell, are connected and a ground potential line, voltage comparators that determine an existence, nonexistence or normality of the cells by comparing a voltage value of an (i+1)th cell that is in one location lower than the “i”th cell with the voltage value of the “i”th cell measured by the voltage measuring units and a cell number determination unit that determines a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the battery.

Claims

1. A cell number determination device comprising:

a voltage measuring unit that selects an “

i”

th cell (“

i”

is an integer from 1 through N) among a number N of cells that are connected in series and that configure a battery, and that measures a voltage value between a terminal in which the “

i”

th cell and an (i−

1)th cell, which is in one location higher than the “

i”

th cell, are connected and a ground potential line;

a voltage comparator that determines an existence, nonexistence or normality of the cells by comparing a voltage value of an (i+1)th cell that is in one location lower than the “

i”

th cell with the voltage value of the “

i”

th cell measured by the voltage measuring unit; and

a cell number determination unit that determines a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the overall battery based on a comparison result of the voltage comparator.

2. The cell number determination device according to claim 1, wherein

when the cell in which one terminal is connected to the ground potential line is a bottom-level Nth cell, the cell number determination unit instructs the voltage measuring unit to measure a voltage between a terminal in which the Nth cell and the (N−

1)th cell that is in one location higher than the Nth cell are connected and the ground potential line,

when a voltage difference between a measurement result by the voltage measuring unit and the ground potential line is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, or is less than the predetermined threshold value, the cell number determination unit instructs the voltage comparator to determine that the Nth cell is not assembled or has failed to operate properly even though the Nth cell is assembled,

the cell number determination unit instructs the voltage measuring unit to measure a voltage between a terminal in which the (N−

1)th cell and an (N−

2)th cell that is in one location higher than the (N−

1)th cell are connected and the ground potential line,

when a voltage difference between a measurement result by the voltage measuring unit and the measurement result of the voltage value of the Nth cell is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, or is less than the predetermined threshold value, the cell number determination unit instructs the voltage comparator to determine that the (N−

1)th cell is not assembled or has failed to operate properly even though the (N−

1)th cell is assembled, and

a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the overall battery are determined based on a result that is obtained by repeatedly executing the processing until an upper-level first cell through the voltage measuring unit and the voltage comparator.

3. The cell number determination device according to claim 2, wherein

the single voltage measuring unit and the single voltage comparator are provided,

a selector switch that connects the N number of the terminals that are target for measurement for N number of the cells and the single voltage measuring unit through sequentially switching is provided, and

the single voltage comparator stores and compares a previous measurement result with a latest measurement result among measurement results of the cells that are sequentially output from the voltage measuring unit in accordance with switching the selector switch.

6. A power supply device comprising:

the cell number determination device according to claim 1; and

a battery with a plurality of cells, wherein

the cell number determination unit determines the number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the battery as power-on is a trigger.

7. The power supply device according to claim 6, wherein

when all determination results in which determinations are performed several times are the same, the cell number determination unit determines that the determination result is correct.

8. A power supply device comprising:

the cell number determination device according to claim 2; and

a battery with a plurality of cells, wherein

the cell number determination unit determines the number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the battery as power-on is a trigger.

9. The power supply device according to claim 8, wherein

when all determination results in which determinations are performed several times are the same, the cell number determination unit determines that the determination result is correct.

10. A power supply device comprising:

the cell number determination device according to claim 3; and

a battery with a plurality of cells, wherein

the cell number determination unit determines a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the battery as power-on is a trigger.

11. The power supply device according to claim 10, wherein

when all determination results in which determinations are performed several times are the same, the cell number determination unit determines that the determination result is correct.

12. A computer program that realizes a function of the cell number determination device according to claim 1 in an information processing device by being installed in the information processing device.

13. A computer program that realizes a function of the cell number determination device according to claim 2 in an information processing device by being installed in the information processing device.

14. A computer program that realizes a function of the cell number determination device according to claim 3 in an information processing device by being installed in the information processing device.

4. A method for determining a cell number that is executed by a cell number determination device for determining a number of assembled cells and normal cells, and cell assembled locations in a battery configured with a plurality of cells, comprising:

executing a voltage measuring step that selects an “

i”

th cell among a number N of cells that are connected in series and that configure the battery, and that measures a voltage value between a terminal in which the “

i”

th cell and an (i−

1)th cell that is in one location higher than the “

i”

th cell are connected and a ground potential line;

executing a voltage comparison step that determines existence or nonexistence, or normality of the cells by comparing a voltage value of an (i+1)th cell that is in one location lower than the “

i”

th cell with the voltage value of the “

i”

th cell measured by the voltage measuring unit; and

executing a cell number determination step that determines a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the overall battery based on a comparison result of the voltage comparator through a cell number determination unit of the cell number determination device.

5. The method for determining a cell number according to claim 4, wherein

as processing of a cell number determination step executed by the cell number determination unit,

when the cell in which one terminal is connected to the ground potential line is a bottom-level Nth cell, the cell number determination unit executes the voltage measuring step to measure a voltage between a terminal in which the Nth cell and the (N−

1)th cell that is in one location higher than the Nth cell are connected and the ground potential line,

when a voltage difference between a measurement result by the voltage measuring step and the ground potential line is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, or is less than the predetermined threshold value, the cell number determination unit executes the voltage comparator step to determine that the Nth cell is not assembled or has failed to operate properly even though the Nth cell is assembled,

the cell number determination unit executes the voltage measuring step to measure a voltage between a terminal in which the (N−

1)th cell and an (N−

2)th cell that is in one location higher than the (N−

1)th cell are connected and the ground potential line,

when a voltage difference between a measurement result by the voltage measuring step and the measurement result of the voltage value of the Nth cell is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, or is less than the predetermined threshold value, the cell number determination unit executes the voltage comparator step to determine that the (N−

1)th cell is not assembled or has failed to operate properly even though the (N−

1)th cell is assembled, and

a number of assembled cells and normal cells and cell assembled locations in the overall battery are determined based on a result that is obtained by repeatedly executing the processing until an upper-level first cell through the voltage measuring step and the voltage comparator step.