Multiple station charging apparatus with single charging power supply for parallel charging
First Claim
1. A charging apparatus for charging a plurality of rechargeable battery packs, the apparatus comprising:
- a) a housing defining a plurality of charging stations and an interior region supporting apparatus electronics, each of the charging stations having an opening sized to receive a battery pack;
b) the apparatus electronics including a power supply and a microprocessor electrically coupled to the power supply and the plurality of charging stations, the microprocessor controlling the power supplied to each charging station;
c) each of the plurality of charging stations including electrical circuitry to electrically couple a battery pack inserted in the charging station to the apparatus electronics to charge the battery pack;
d) the microprocessor controlling the power supplied to each charging station to;
i) first, sequentially charge each battery pack having at least one lithium-ion battery cell such that a voltage across each battery pack corresponds to a predetermined output voltage of the pack; and
ii) second, charge in parallel each battery pack having at least one lithium-ion battery cell until each pack is fully charged.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A charging apparatus with multiple charge stations is disclosed. The apparatus includes a single power supply which operates under the control of a microprocessor to charge a plurality of battery packs disposed in respective charging stations. Associated with each charging station is a wiring harness assembly which includes an EEPROM memory chip having one or more stored charging algorithms for the type or types of battery packs to be charged at that charging station. The microprocessor reads the charging algorithm from a charging station'"'"'s memory chip when a battery pack is inserted in the charging station. The microprocessor utilizes a feedback control loop including a resistor network to regulate the charging current and charging voltage supplied to each battery pack being charged. If a plurality of Li-Ion battery packs are disposed in respective charging stations, each pack is sequentially charged such that the voltage across the pack is raised to the rated output voltage of the pack. Then, all of the Li-Ion battery packs are charged in parallel until each is fully charged. The parallel charging reduces total charging time.
95 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A charging apparatus for charging a plurality of rechargeable battery packs, the apparatus comprising:
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a) a housing defining a plurality of charging stations and an interior region supporting apparatus electronics, each of the charging stations having an opening sized to receive a battery pack; b) the apparatus electronics including a power supply and a microprocessor electrically coupled to the power supply and the plurality of charging stations, the microprocessor controlling the power supplied to each charging station; c) each of the plurality of charging stations including electrical circuitry to electrically couple a battery pack inserted in the charging station to the apparatus electronics to charge the battery pack; d) the microprocessor controlling the power supplied to each charging station to; i) first, sequentially charge each battery pack having at least one lithium-ion battery cell such that a voltage across each battery pack corresponds to a predetermined output voltage of the pack; and ii) second, charge in parallel each battery pack having at least one lithium-ion battery cell until each pack is fully charged. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A battery charging apparatus for charging a plurality of rechargeable battery packs, the apparatus comprising:
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a) a housing defining a plurality of charging stations and an interior region supporting apparatus electronics; b) the apparatus electronics including a power supply and a microprocessor electrically coupled to the power supply and the charging stations, the microprocessor controlling a charging voltage and a charging current coupled to each of the plurality of charging stations; c) each charging station adapted to receive a rechargeable battery pack, and each charging station including electrical circuitry to electrically couple the battery pack inserted in the charging station to the apparatus electronics to charge the battery pack; and d) the apparatus electronics selectively coupling the power supply to each of the charging stations to sequentially charge each lithium-ion battery pack for a period of time such that the battery pack output voltage rises to a predetermined voltage value and subsequently to simultaneously charge the lithium-ion battery packs until each lithium-ion battery pack is charged to a full charge condition. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19)
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17. A method of charging a plurality of rechargeable battery packs in a charging apparatus having a plurality of charging stations and a single power supply selectively coupleable to battery packs disposed in respective charging stations to selectively charge the battery packs disposed in the charging stations, the battery packs being of two different battery pack types, a first battery pack type being a battery pack having one or more lithium-ion battery cells and a second battery pack type being other than a battery pack having one or more lithium-ion battery cells, the steps of the method comprising:
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a) identifying the battery pack type of each of the battery packs; b) sequentially charging each of the battery packs, a battery pack of the first battery pack type being charged for a period of time such that a voltage across the battery pack is substantially equal to a rated output voltage of the battery pack and a battery pack of the second battery pack type being charged for a period of time such that the battery pack is charged to a fully charged condition; and c) simultaneously charging battery packs of the second battery type, each battery pack being charged until the pack is charged to a fully charged condition.
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Specification