Battery over voltage and over protection circuit and adjustable adapter current limit circuit

• US 6,989,981 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2002
• Issued: 01/24/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: O2 Micro International Limited (O2 Micro Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: O2 Micro International Limited (O2 Micro Incorporated)
• Inventors: Lipcsei, Laszlo, Popescu-Stanesti, Vlad, Gustafson, Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): Sircus, Brian
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Danny
• Application Number:
  US10/279,345
• Publication Number:
  US 20040080892A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,188 Days
• Field of Search: 361/18, 361/91.1, 361/91.2, 361/91.4, 361/93.7, 361/93.8, 361/93.9, 361/111, 361/110, 320/136, 320/141, 320/139, 320/143, 320/145
• US Class Current: 361/93.9
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0068 Battery or charger load switching, e.g. concurrent charging and load supply H02J7/0013 takes precedence

Abstract

A battery charging circuit is disclosed that includes protection circuitry and/or adapter current limit offset circuitry. The protection circuitry is operable to reduce or eliminate an overvoltage and overcurrent condition generated by a charge controller when a charging path is an open circuit, for example, when a battery is disconnected from the charging path. The adapter current limit offset circuitry is operable to generate an offset signal to an adapter current signal utilized by a charger controller.

Claims

1. A battery charger circuit comprising a charge controller generating a charging current and voltage along a charging path based on a duty cycle of a PWM signal generated by said controller;

and a protection circuit coupled to said charging path and adapted to reduce said duty cycle of switches when said charging path is an open circuit, and thereby reduce the voltage and current generated by said PWM signal, wherein said protection circuit comprises a current limiting resistor in series with a transistor, a conduction state of said transistor being controlled by an error amplifier, said error amplifier receiving a first input indicative of a desired maximum voltage, and a second input indicative of the voltage generated by said charging circuit.

2. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 1, wherein said charging circuit further comprises a buck converter circuit including an inductor along said charging path and capacitor parallel to said charging path, and wherein the voltage on said capacitor is reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

3. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 2, wherein the current through said inductor is reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

4. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 1, further comprising adapter current limit protection circuitry that generates an offset signal to an adapter current signal utilized by said controller.

5. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 4, wherein said charging path further comprises a sense resistor generating a feedback signal indicative of current supplied by an adapter, and wherein said adapter current limit protection circuitry comprises a resistor in series with a current source to generate said offset to said feedback signal indicative of said current supplied by said adapter.

6. A battery charger circuit, comprising comprising a charge controller generating a charging current and voltage along a charging path based on a duty cycle of a PWM signal generated by said charge controller, said charging path further comprising a sense resistor generating a feedback signal indicative of current supplied by an adapter, said battery charging circuit further comprising adapter current limit protection circuitry that generates an offset signal to said feedback signal to alter said feedback signal to accommodate different types of said adapter having different maximum current ratings wherein said adapter current limit protection circuitry comprises a resistor in series with a current source to generate said offset signal.

7. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 6, further comprising a protection circuit coupled to said charging path and adapted to reduce said duty cycle of said PWM signal by said controller when said charging path is an open circuit, and thereby reduce the voltage and current generated by said PWM signal.

8. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 7, wherein said charging circuit further comprises a buck converter circuit including an inductor along said charging path and capacitor parallel to said charging path, and wherein the voltage on said capacitor being reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

9. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 7, wherein the current through said inductor is reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

10. A battery charger circuit, comprising comprising a charge controller generating a charging current and voltage along a charging path based on a duty cycle of a PWM signal generated by said charge controller, said charging path further comprising a sense resistor generating a feedback signal indicative of current supplied by an adapter, said battery charging circuit further comprising adapter current limit protection circuitry that generates an offset signal to said feedback signal to alter said feedback signal to accommodate different types of said adapter having different maximum current ratings, wherein said battery charging circuit further comprises a protection circuit counted to said charging path and adapted to reduce said duty cycle of said PWM signal by said controller when said charging path is an open circuit, and thereby reduce the voltage and current generated by said switches wherein said protection circuit comprises a current limiting resistor in series with a switch, the conduction state of said switch being controlled by an error amplifier, said error amplifier receiving a first input indicative of a desired maximum voltage, and a second input indicative of the voltage generated by said charging circuit.

11. A battery charger circuit, comprising comprising a charge controller generating a charging current and voltage along a charging path based on a duty cycle of a PWM signal generated by said controller;

a protection circuit coupled to said charging path and adapted to generate feedback data to said charge controller to reduce said duty cycle of switches when said charging path is an open circuit, and thereby reduce the voltage and current generated by said switches, said charging path further comprising a sense resistor generating feedback signal indicative of current supplied by an adapter, said battery charging circuit further comprising adapter current limit protection circuitry that generates an offset signal to said feedback signal to alter said feedback signal to accommodate different types of said adapter having different maximum current ratings wherein said protection circuit comprises a current limiting resistor in series with a transistor, the conduction state of said transistor being controlled by a shunt regulator, said shunt regulator receiving a reference signal generated by the output of said transistor.

12. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 11, wherein said charging circuit further comprises a buck converter circuit including an inductor along said charging path and capacitor parallel to said charging path, and wherein the voltage on said capacitor is reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

13. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 11, wherein the current through said inductor is reduced by said protection circuit when said charging path is an open circuit.

14. A battery charger circuit as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a voltage divider circuit coupled to said output of said transistor, said voltage divider generating said reference signal.