VOLTAGE SWITCHING CIRCUIT, SECONDARY BATTERY PROTECTION CIRCUIT, AND BATTERY PACK

• US 20120069481A1
• Filed: 09/15/2011
• Published: 03/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: RICOH Electronic Devices Co., Ltd. (Nisshinbo Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: YAMADA, Ryohji
• Granted Patent: US 8,674,661 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/93.7
• CPC Class Codes: H02H 7/18 for batteries; for accumulators

Abstract

A voltage switching circuit for a secondary battery protection circuit in a battery pack having a negative power supply terminal and a current-detection resistor. The secondary battery protection circuit has a charger negative power supply terminal and a detection circuit. The voltage switching circuit has a first input terminal to which a voltage obtained by converting a current flowing through the current detection resistor is supplied, a second input terminal to which voltages at the negative power supply terminal and at the charger negative power supply terminal are supplied, an output terminal, and a selection terminal. The voltage switching circuit causes an output voltage to switch between the voltages from the first input terminal and the second input terminal according to selection at the selection terminal when an excess current is detected and when the battery pack returns to a chargeable-dischargeable state from a charge-discharge inhibit state.

Claims

1. A voltage switching circuit for a secondary battery protection circuit installed in a battery pack having a negative power supply terminal and a current-detection resistor,

the voltage switching circuit comprising:

a first input terminal to which a voltage obtained by converting a current flowing through the current-detection resistor of the battery pack to voltage is supplied;

a second input terminal to which a voltage at the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack and a voltage at a charger negative power supply terminal of the secondary battery protection circuit are supplied;

an output terminal to output an output voltage to a detection circuit in the secondary battery protection circuit; and

a selection terminal to select either the voltage from the first input terminal or the voltage from the second input terminal as the output voltage for output through the output terminal,

wherein the voltage switching circuit causes the output voltage to switch between the voltage from the first input terminal and the voltage from the second input terminal in accordance with selection of the selection terminal either when an excess current is detected with the battery pack in a chargeable-dischargeable state or when the battery pack returns to the chargeable-dischargeable state from a charge-discharge inhibit state.

2. The voltage switching circuit according to claim 1, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the first input terminal for output to the detection circuit when the excess current is detected in the chargeable-dischargeable state of the battery pack.

3. The voltage switching circuit according to claim 1, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the second input terminal for output to the detection circuit when the battery pack returns from the charge-discharge inhibit state to the chargeable-dischargeable state.

4. The voltage switching circuit according to claim 1, wherein the voltage switching circuit comprises three transistors and a logic circuit including inverters and NAND circuits, and the voltage switching circuit selects the output voltage using the logic circuit and determines a switching timing using the transistors.

5. The voltage switching circuit according to claim 1, wherein the voltage switching circuit comprises three transistors and a logic circuit including inverters and capacitors, and the voltage switching circuit selects the output voltage using the logic circuit and determines a switching timing using capacitances of the capacitors.

6. A secondary battery protection circuit installed in a battery pack having a negative power supply terminal, a current-detection resistor, and a switching element connected in series to the current-detection resistor, the battery pack connected to a secondary battery and one of a charger and a load,

the secondary battery protection circuit comprising:

a sensing terminal, connected between the current-detection resistor and the switching element, to which a voltage obtained by converting a current flowing through the current-detection resistor to voltage is supplied;

a charger negative power supply terminal connected to the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack;

a voltage switching circuit to cause an output voltage to switch,

the voltage switching circuit comprising;

a first input terminal to which the voltage at the sensing terminal is supplied;

a second input terminal to which a voltage at the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack and a voltage at the charger negative power supply terminal of the secondary battery protection circuit are supplied;

an output terminal to output the output voltage; and

a selection terminal to select either the voltage from the first input terminal or the voltage from the second input terminal for output through the output terminal as the output voltage; and

a detection circuit to detect an excess current and output a detection result to the selection terminal of the voltage switching circuit to switch off the switching element and shut off the current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when the excess current is detected.

7. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 6, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the first input terminal connected to the sensing terminal for output to the detection circuit to cause the switching element to turn off to shut off the current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor, when the excess current is detected with the battery pack in a chargeable-dischargeable state.

8. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 6, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the second input terminal connected to the charger negative power supply terminal for output to the detection circuit to cause the switching element to turn on to release the current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when the battery pack returns to a chargeable-dischargeable state from a charge-discharge inhibit state.

9. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 6, wherein the detection circuit comprises:

a reference voltage generator to generate a predetermined reference voltage;

a comparator to compare the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit with the predetermined reference voltage generated by the reference voltage generator and output a comparison result to the selection terminal of the voltage switching circuit; and

a switching control element to control the switching element so that the switching element is turned off and shuts off the current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when the excess current is detected.

10. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 9, wherein the detection circuit further comprises a discharge detection circuit that detects the excess current in discharging, and the switching control element comprises a discharge control element to cause the switching element to turn off and shut off a discharging current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit exceeds the predetermined reference voltage based on the comparison result.

11. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 10, further comprising an over-discharge detection circuit, wherein the discharge control element causes the switching element to turn off and shut off the discharging current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when over-discharge is detected.

12. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 9, wherein the detection circuit further comprises a charging detection circuit that detects the excess current in charging, and the switching control element comprises a charge control element to cause the switching element to turn off and shut off a charging current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit exceeds the predetermined reference voltage based on the comparison result.

13. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 12, further comprising an over-charge detection circuit, wherein the charge control element causes the switching element to turn off and shut off the charging current flowing through the switching element and the current-detection resistor when over-charge is detected.

14. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 9, wherein:

the secondary battery protection circuit is connected to the switching element including a first switching element and a second switching element,

the detection circuit comprises a discharging detection circuit that detects the excess current during discharge and a charging detection circuit that detects the excess current during charging,

the reference voltage generator comprises a first reference voltage generator to generate a predetermined first reference voltage and a second reference voltage generator to generate a predetermined second reference voltage,

the comparator comprises a first comparator that compares the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit with the predetermined first reference voltage during discharging, and a second comparator that compares the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit with the predetermined second reference voltage during charging, and,

the switching control element comprises a discharge control element and a charge control element, the charge control element to cause the first switching element to turn off and shut off a discharging current flowing through the first switching element and the current-detection resistor when the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit exceeds the predetermined first reference voltage based on the comparison result during discharge and the charge control element to cause the second switching element to turn off and shut off a charging current flowing through the second switching element and the current-detection resistor when the output voltage from the output terminal of the voltage switching circuit exceeds the predetermined second reference voltage based on the comparison result during charging.

15. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 14, further comprising an over-discharge detection circuit, wherein the discharge control element causes the first switching element to turn off and shut off the discharging current flowing through the first switching element and the current-detection resistor when over-discharge is detected.

16. The secondary battery protection circuit according to claim 14, further comprising an overcharge detection circuit, wherein the charge control element causes the second switching element to turn off and shut off the charging current flowing through the second switching element and the current-detection resistor when overcharge is detected.

17. A battery pack to charge and discharge a secondary battery, connectable to one of a charger and a load,

the battery pack comprising:

a negative power supply terminal connected to one of negative terminals of the charger and the load;

a switching element to connect and disconnect the secondary battery and one of the charger and the load;

a current-detection resistor to detect a charging current and a discharging current, connected in series to the switching element; and

a secondary battery protection circuit to protect the secondary battery from an excess current,

the secondary battery protection circuit comprising;

a sensing terminal connected between the current-detection resistor and the switching element, to which a voltage obtained by converting a current flowing through the current-detection resistor to voltage is supplied;

a charger negative power supply terminal, connected to the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack, to which a voltage at the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack is supplied;

a detection circuit to detect the excess current; and

a voltage switching circuit, having a first input terminal to which the voltage at the sensing terminal is supplied, a second input terminal to which a voltage at the negative power supply terminal of the battery pack and a voltage at the charger negative power supply terminal of the secondary battery protection circuit are supplied, an output terminal to output an output voltage to the detection circuit, and a selection terminal to which an output signal from the detection circuit is supplied and to select either the voltage from the first input terminal or the voltage from the second input terminal for output through the output terminal as the output voltage,

wherein the voltage switching circuit switches between the voltage from the first input terminal and the voltage from the second input terminal for output as the output voltage when either excess current is detected while the battery pack is in a chargeable-dischargeable state or the battery pack returns to the chargeable-dischargeable state from a charge-discharge inhibit state.

19. The battery pack according to claim 17, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the second input terminal connected to the charger negative power supply terminal for output to the detection circuit to cause the switching element to turn on to connect the secondary battery and the one of the charger and the load when a state of the secondary pack returns to the chargeable-dischargeable state from the charge-discharge inhibit state.

20. An electronic device employing the battery pack of claim 17.

18. The battery pack according to claim 18, wherein the voltage switching circuit selects the voltage from the first input terminal connected to the sensing terminal for output to the detection circuit to cause the switching element to turn off to shut off a connection between the secondary battery and the one of the charger and the load when the excess current is detected with the battery pack in the chargeable-dischargeable state.