Battery charger
First Claim
1. A battery charger for simultaneously charging a plurality of rechargeable batteries, each battery having a reference test current It amperes as defined in paragraph 2 of IEC Standard 61434:
- 1996, that is whereIt is the reference test current, in amperes (A);
Cn is the rated capacity of the cell or battery as declared by the manufacturer, in ampere-hours (Ah);
n is the time base (hours) for which the rated capacity is declared, the charger comprisinga base, a charging circuit contained within the base and connectable to a power supply, the base including means for individually mounting thereon a plurality of rechargeable batteries, the mounting means for each battery including contacts connected to the charging circuit for contacting the terminals of the battery for passage of a charging current through the battery, wherein the mounting means for each battery are located relative to the base and to each other such that a plurality of batteries mounted on the base are substantially exposed and spaced apart whereby the plurality of batteries are chargeable without over-heating with an average charging current greater than 1.0 It and up to about 2.0 It.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A battery charger for simultaneously charging a plurality of rechargeable batteries for example of AA or AAA size. The invention allows such batteries to be fully charged in up to about half the time previously considered to be possible without damaging or destroying the batteries. It has been found that by mounting the batteries on the base of a charger such that they are substantially exposed and spaced apart, an average charging current of up to about twice that previously considered to be possible can be applied without overheating the batteries.
26 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A battery charger for simultaneously charging a plurality of rechargeable batteries, each battery having a reference test current It amperes as defined in paragraph 2 of IEC Standard 61434:
- 1996, that is
where It is the reference test current, in amperes (A);
Cn is the rated capacity of the cell or battery as declared by the manufacturer, in ampere-hours (Ah);
n is the time base (hours) for which the rated capacity is declared, the charger comprising a base, a charging circuit contained within the base and connectable to a power supply, the base including means for individually mounting thereon a plurality of rechargeable batteries, the mounting means for each battery including contacts connected to the charging circuit for contacting the terminals of the battery for passage of a charging current through the battery, wherein the mounting means for each battery are located relative to the base and to each other such that a plurality of batteries mounted on the base are substantially exposed and spaced apart whereby the plurality of batteries are chargeable without over-heating with an average charging current greater than 1.0 It and up to about 2.0 It. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
- 1996, that is
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12. A battery charger for simultaneously charging a plurality of rechargeable batteries, each battery having a nominal charging current as determined by its capacity rating in milliamp hours at one hour, the charger comprising
a base generally of parallelepiped shape having a top surface and four side surfaces, a charging circuit contained within the base and connectable to a power supply, the base including four recesses in its top surface, each recess adjacent a side surface and open to that surface, oppositely located contacts within each recess and between which a battery is positionable, wherein the contacts are connected to the charging circuit for passage of a charging current through the battery, wherein a battery positioned in a recess between the contacts is substantially exposed at the top surface and a side surface of the base whereby four batteries positioned in the recesses are chargeable without over-heating with an average charging current of up to about twice their nominal charging current.
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13. A battery charger for simultaneously charging a plurality of rechargeable batteries, each battery having a nominal charging current as determined by its capacity rating in milliamp hours at one hour, the charger comprising
a base, a charging circuit contained within the base and connectable to a power supply, the base including means for individually mounting thereon a plurality of rechargeable batteries, the mounting means for each battery including contacts connected to the charging circuit for contacting the terminals of the battery for passage of a charging current through the battery, wherein the mounting means for each battery are located relative to the base and to each other such that a plurality of batteries mounted on the base are substantially exposed and spaced apart whereby the plurality of batteries are chargeable without over-heating with an average charging current of up to about twice their nominal charging current.
Specification