BATTERY PACK AND CHARGING SYSTEM INCLUDING BATTERY PACK

• US 20120206088A1
• Filed: 09/23/2011
• Published: 08/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung SDI Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Samsung SDI Company Limited
• Inventors: Park, Taeheom
• Granted Patent: US 9,099,867 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/106
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 7/0247 Orientating, locating, transporting arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

A battery pack and a charging system including the battery pack are disclosed. According to one aspect, when the battery pack is charged, magnets are used to fix the battery pack in a correct position within a charger, thereby improving charging efficiency. The battery pack includes at least one first magnet and a second magnet having an opposite magnetic pole from that of the first magnet.

Claims

1. A battery pack comprising:

a battery;

a battery case configured to house the battery;

a first magnet disposed on the case; and

a second magnet disposed on the case and having an opposite magnetic pole orientation from that of the first magnet, wherein the magnets are configured to position the battery pack in a battery charger for charging.

2. The battery pack as claimed in claim 1, wherein the case includes a plurality of first magnets and second magnets, and wherein an arrangement of the first magnets and the second magnets conforms to an arrangement of magnets on a charger configured to charge the battery pack.

3. The battery pack as claimed in claim 2, wherein the battery pack includes a frame configured to house the battery pack, and wherein the case is configured to house the frame including the battery pack.

4. The battery pack as claimed in claim 2, wherein the second magnet is disposed around the first magnet.

5. The battery pack as claimed in claim 4, wherein the battery pack includes a plurality of first magnets and a plurality of second magnets, and wherein the first magnets and the second magnets are formed in an array of at least one line.

6. The battery pack as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are circularly shaped, and wherein the second magnet is formed around the first magnet.

7. A battery pack charging system comprising:

a charger comprising a first magnet and a second magnet having an opposite magnetic pole from that of the first magnet; and

a battery pack including a third magnet and a fourth magnet, wherein the third magnet is configured to have the same pole as that of the first magnet, the fourth magnet is configured to have a different pole from that of the third magnet, and the pole of the fourth magnet is the same as that of the second magnet,

and wherein, when the battery pack is coupled to the charger, the first magnet faces the fourth magnet, and the second magnet faces the third magnet.

8. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are disposed on a case of the charger.

9. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the second magnet is disposed around the first magnet.

10. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein battery pack includes a plurality of first magnets and second magnets, and wherein the first magnets and the second magnets are formed in an array of at least one line.

11. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the charger includes a plurality of third magnets and fourth magnets, and wherein an arrangement of the first magnets and second magnets corresponds to an arrangement of the third magnets and fourth magnets.

12. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the charger further comprises a display, and

wherein the display displays whether magnet positions of the charger and the battery pack are correct.

13. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the battery pack further comprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag attached to the battery pack, and

wherein the charger further comprises an RFID reader attached to the charger, wherein the RFID reader is configured to communicate with the RFID tag to identify the battery pack.

14. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are circularly shaped, and wherein the second magnet is formed around the first magnet.

15. The battery pack charging system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the third magnet and the fourth magnet are circularly shaped to correspond to the first magnet and the second magnet.

16. A battery charger comprising:

a first magnet disposed on the charger; and

a second magnet disposed on the charger and having an opposite magnetic pole from that of the first magnet, wherein the magnets are configured to position a battery pack in the battery charger for charging.

17. The battery charger as claimed in claim 16, wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are disposed in a recessed portion of the battery charger.

18. The battery charger as claimed in claim 17, wherein the recessed portion comprises edges corresponding to a shape of the battery pack.

19. The battery charger as claimed in claim 16, wherein the battery pack includes a plurality of first magnets and a plurality of second magnets, and wherein the first magnets and the second magnets are formed in an array of at least one line.

20. The battery charger as claimed in claim 16, wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are circularly shaped, and wherein the second magnet is formed around the first magnet.