Method and apparatus for automatic determination of lead-acid battery specific gravity
First Claim
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1. A method of determining a specific gravity of a lead-acid battery the method comprising:
- applying a current ramp to the battery while measuring a battery voltage of the lead-acid battery, observing if gas points occur while the current ramp is applied, and detecting the number of gas points that occur;
calculating a maximum voltage per cell by dividing a maximum of the measured battery voltage measured in response to the current ramp by a known number of cells of the lead-acid battery; and
determining if the specific gravity of the lead-acid battery is low or high when one or more gas points are detected by comparing the maximum voltage per cell to an SGLim,wherein the SGLim is an upper limit of a maximum measured battery voltage divided by the known number of cells.
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Abstract
In accordance with various embodiments, there is a method for determining the specific gravity of a battery. Various embodiments include the steps of applying an increasing current ramp to a battery and measuring a response voltage of the battery when the increasing current ramp is applied to the battery. When the current ramp reaches a predetermined current a decreasing current is supplied to the battery and the battery'"'"'s voltage response is measured. The specific gravity of the battery can be determined based on the voltage response of the battery to the applied current ramp.
5 Citations
22 Claims
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1. A method of determining a specific gravity of a lead-acid battery the method comprising:
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applying a current ramp to the battery while measuring a battery voltage of the lead-acid battery, observing if gas points occur while the current ramp is applied, and detecting the number of gas points that occur; calculating a maximum voltage per cell by dividing a maximum of the measured battery voltage measured in response to the current ramp by a known number of cells of the lead-acid battery; and determining if the specific gravity of the lead-acid battery is low or high when one or more gas points are detected by comparing the maximum voltage per cell to an SGLim, wherein the SGLim is an upper limit of a maximum measured battery voltage divided by the known number of cells. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An apparatus for determining a specific gravity of a battery comprising:
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a power supply; a controller that controls the power supply to apply a current ramp to the battery; a control relay electrically connected to the power supply and the battery; at least one sensor that detects a battery voltage response of the battery to the current ramp, the at least one sensor electrically connected to the control relay; and a processor configured to compare a maximum battery voltage detected in the battery voltage response divided by a known number of cells of the battery, to an SGLim, where the SGLim is an upper limit of a maximum measured battery voltage divided by the known number of cells;
wherein said processor determines if the battery is a higher specific gravity battery or a lower specific gravity battery. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method for determining a specific gravity of a battery, comprising:
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controlling the amount of current supplied to the battery comprising a known number of cells using a power supply control program; measuring a battery voltage response of the battery by controlling a current sensor with a current sensor control program; calculating a state of charge of the battery and a maximum voltage per cell of the battery using a processor control program; comparing a maximum battery voltage detected in the battery voltage response divided by the known number of cells of the battery, to an SGLim using the processor control program, where the SGLim is an upper limit of a maximum measured battery voltage divided by the number of cells; and determining a specific gravity of the battery by distinguishing between a higher specific gravity battery and a lower specific gravity battery using the processor control program. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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21. An automated battery charger comprising:
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a power supply; a controller to cause the power supply to apply a current ramp to a test battery including a sulfuric acid electrolyte and having a full charge specific gravity of about 1.30 and to control charging of the test battery; a sensor to detect a voltage of the test battery and gas points in response to the current ramp; a computer to determine a low or high specific gravity of the test battery based on a comparison of a maximum measured voltage per cell to an SGLim, wherein the SGLim represents a determination threshold between a high specific gravity battery and a low specific gravity battery; and an automated system for charging the test battery, wherein charging of the test battery is based on the computer'"'"'s determination of the specific gravity of the test battery. - View Dependent Claims (22)
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Specification