Battery impedance monitor

• US 5,773,978 A
• Filed: 10/25/1996
• Issued: 06/30/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Inventors: Becker, Thomas P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Karlsen, Ernest F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Solis, Jose M.
• Application Number:
  US08/736,992
• Time in Patent Office: 613 Days
• Field of Search: 324/430, 324/436, 340/636, 340/455, 320/48
• US Class Current: 324/430
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/389 Measuring internal impedance, internal conductance or related variables

Abstract

A battery impedance monitor includes a driver section having an oscillator which produces a pulsating loading signal which controls periodic loading of the battery to produce at its output terminals a pulsating voltage component having a peak-to-peak amplitude superimposed on the DC output voltage of the battery. This pulsating voltage component is detected in a measuring section, which applies the battery output through a voltage divider to a peak detector which outputs an indicating voltage level proportional to the peak-to-peak amplitude of the pulsating output signal, this indicating level being held on a storage capacitor. The voltage divider includes a Zener diode which shifts the DC level of the battery output without affecting the amplitude of the pulsating component. The measuring section is electrically connected to the driver section only through the battery terminals, but the storage capacitor is coupled to the oscillator through a load resistor and an opto-isolator which provides a discharge path for the storage capacitor during each loading pulse, so that the detector can follow decreasing as well as increasing indicator voltage levels. A delay circuit delays application of the loading pulses to the battery so that the discharge path is removed before the end of each pulse of the battery output voltage.

Claims

1. An impedance monitor for a battery having positive and negative output terminals across which a DC output voltage is provided, said monitor comprising:

an oscillatory loading circuit adapted to be coupled across the battery terminals for periodically loading the battery to produce at the output terminals a time-varying voltage component having a peak-to-peak amplitude superimposed on the DC output voltage, and

a measuring circuit adapted to be connected across the battery output terminals for sensing the time-varying voltage component to determine the internal impedance of the battery,

said measuring circuit including an impedance portion connected in series with the battery when said detector circuit is connected across the battery terminals and having a finite DC impedance and a substantially zero AC impedance for shifting the level of the DC output voltage without affecting the peak-to-peak amplitude of the time-varying component,

said measuring circuit including a peak detector for generating, in response to the output of said impedance portion, an indicating voltage level proportional to the peak-to-peak amplitude of the time-varying voltage component.

2. The impedance monitor of claim 1, wherein said measuring circuit includes a voltage divider consisting of said impedance portion and a resistance.

3. The impedance monitor of claim 1, wherein said impedance portion includes a uni-directional current element.

4. The impedance monitor of claim 3, wherein said unidirectional current element is a diode.

5. The impedance monitor of claim 4, wherein said diode is a Zener diode.

7. The impedance monitor of claim 1, and further comprising a meter coupled to said measuring circuit for providing an indication of the internal impedance of the battery.

6. An impedance monitor for a battery having positive and negative output terminals across which a DC output voltage is provided, said monitor comprising:

an oscillatory loading circuit adapted to be coupled across the battery terminals for periodically loading the battery to produce at the output terminals a time-varying voltage component having a peak-to-peak amplitude superimposed on the DC output voltage, and

a detector circuit adapted to be connected across the battery output terminals for sensing the time-varying voltage component to determine the internal impedance of the battery,

said detector circuit being electrically connected to said loading circuit only at the output terminals of the battery.

14. The impedance monitor of claim 6, and further comprising coupling circuitry providing a non-electrical coupling between said oscillatory circuit and said detector circuit.

15. The impedance monitor of claim 14, wherein said coupling circuitry includes an optical coupling.

16. The impedance monitor of claim 15, wherein said optical coupling includes an optoisolator.

17. The impedance monitor of claim 16, wherein said detector circuit includes a peak detector for generating an indicating voltage level proportional to the peak-to-peak amplitude of the time-varying voltage component, and a storage element for storing the indicating voltage level, and further comprising a reset circuit for periodically resetting said storage element so that it can store a decreasing indicating voltage level.

8. An impedance monitor for a battery having positive and negative output terminals across which a DC output voltage is provided, said monitor comprising:

an oscillatory circuit providing a time-varying signal including periodic loading pulses,

means for coupling the oscillatory circuit across the battery terminals for periodically loading the battery to produce at the output terminals a time-varying voltage component including voltage pulses having a peak-to-peak amplitude superimposed on the DC output voltage,

a detector circuit adapted to be connected across the battery output terminals for sensing the time-varying voltage component and generating an indicating voltage level proportional to the peak-to-peak amplitude of the voltage pulses for determining the internal impedance of the battery,

said detector circuit including a storage element for storing the indicating voltage level, and

a reset circuit coupled between said oscillatory circuit and said storage element for providing a discharge path for the storage element during each periodic loading pulse to permit the storage element to store a decreasing indicating voltage level.

9. The impedance monitor of claim 8, wherein said storage element includes a capacitor.

10. The impedance monitor of claim 8, wherein said reset circuit includes a switch circuit.

11. The impedance monitor of claim 10, wherein said means for coupling the oscillatory circuit across the battery terminals includes a delay circuit for delaying the appearance of each of said loading pulses at the battery output terminals and thereby delaying each of said voltage pulses, whereby the discharge path provided by said reset circuit during each loading pulse is removed before the termination of the corresponding voltage pulse.

12. The impedance monitor of claim 10, wherein said switch circuit includes an optoisolator.

13. The impedance monitor of claim 8, wherein said detector circuit includes a peak detector for generating the indicating voltage level.