Electrical energy source

• US 7,511,451 B2
• Filed: 07/05/2006
• Issued: 03/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gerald Pierce
• Original Assignee: Gerald Pierce
• Inventors: Pierce, Gerald
• Primary Examiner(s): Ullah; Akm E
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLIAMS, ARUN C
• Application Number:
  US11/480,350
• Publication Number:
  US 20070019453A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,000 Days
• Field of Search: 320/103, 320/116, 320/111, 361/601, 361/622, 361/625, 361659-661, 361/663, 361/665, 361/666, 312/351.11, 324/110
• US Class Current: 320/103
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/425 Structural combination with electronic components, e.g. electronic circuits integrated to the outside of the casing printed circuits H05K1/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/46 Accumulators structurally combined with charging apparatus circuits for charging H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/204 Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/251 specially adapted for stationary devices, e.g. power plant buffering or backup power supplies
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/256 Carrying devices, e.g. belts
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/296 characterised by terminals of battery packs terminals of batteries H01M50/543
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/34 Parallel operation in networks using both storage and other dc sources, e.g. providing buffering H02J7/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

The electrical energy source includes a portable enclosure that houses at least one battery pack, at least one battery charger, at least one AC inverter and, optionally, a regeneration device that can power the battery charger. Operation of batteries, AC inverters and regeneration unit is coordinated by a control circuit. During operations under a load, the batteries supply an input to AC inverters which in turn provide voltage regulated AC power to the load. When the batteries have discharged to a predetermined level, the load is removed from the AC inverters, and a dedicated on-board inverter is used to power the regeneration unit which recharges the batteries. Once the batteries have been recharged, the AC inverters are again made available to the load.

Claims

1. An electrical energy source, comprising:

an enclosure;

at least two batteries electrically connected in series and being disposed in the enclosure;

at least one battery charger being disposed in the enclosure, the battery charger being in electrical communication with a charging circuit including at least one half-wave bridge rectifier, at least one transformer, and at least one diode;

at least one DC to AC power inverter being disposed in the enclosure;

a DC driver circuit having an input connected to the batteries;

the DC driver circuit having an output responsive to battery current detected at the DC driver circuit input;

a DC output stage having a DC driver receiving input and a low voltage, high current output, the DC output stage being provided to perform a DC to DC conversion to reduce a voltage produced by the at least two batteries connected in series, the DC to DC conversion supplying input to drive the DC to AC power inverter;

the DC output stage DC driver receiving input having a connection to the DC driver circuit output, the connection being provided to control the DC to DC conversion;

the low voltage, high current output of the DC output stage being connected to an input of a DC filter;

a first output of the DC filter being connected to an input of the at least one DC to AC power inverter;

a second output of the DC filter being connected to a DC filter input of a control unit;

a switch control output of the control unit being connected to an AC control switch in order to provide a switch control signal;

an AC power output of the at least one DC to AC power inverter being connected to the AC control switch, the AC control switch having the capability to connect and disconnect the AC power output of the inverter to and from an AC outlet port responsive to the switch control signal from the control unit, the AC outlet port being disposed on the enclosure;

the control unit having an AC input from an external source, the control unit having the capability to route the external source AC input to the charger for a predetermined charging time period;

a timer, being operably connected to the charger and to the control unit in order to set the predetermined charging time period, the timer having at least one bi-directional electrical interface to the control unit;

an on/off switch provided for powering up the electrical power source, and alternatively powering down the electrical power source; and

,

wherein when the electrical energy source is powered up and delivering electrical power to a load, the control unit, responsive to a change in the second output from the DC filter, interrupts electrical power delivery from the electrical energy source to the load and initiates recharging of the batteries for a predetermined time determinable by the timer after which predetermined time the control unit reestablishes power delivery to the load by the electrical energy source.

2. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, wherein the at least two batteries comprises at least one sealed battery pack.

3. The electrical energy source according to claim 2, wherein the sealed battery pack comprises spiral wound plate batteries.

4. The electrical energy source according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the at least one sealed battery pack electrically connected in parallel with each other.

5. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, wherein the DC output stage comprises a plurality of Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBT array) in order to provide the high current controlling capability and DC to DC voltage conversion required by the at least one DC to AC power inverter.

6. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, wherein the external source AC input to the charger is a utility line.

7. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

a regeneration device;

the regeneration device having an input and an output;

the regeneration device input being connected to the AC power output of the at least one DC to AC power inverter;

the regeneration device output being operably connected to the timer and the control unit in order to provide routing of the regeneration device output to the at least one battery charger.

8. The electrical energy source according to claim 7, wherein the external source AC input to the charger is the regeneration device output.

9. The electrical energy source according to claim 7, wherein the regeneration device further comprises:

a drive motor, the drive motor being mounted on a base plate;

a concentric belt sheave assembly that includes a larger diameter sheave concentrically attached to a smaller diameter sheave, the concentric belt sheave assembly being mounted on the base plate;

a power generator, the power generator being mounted on the base plate;

a first belt rotatably connecting the drive motor to the smaller sheave;

a second belt rotatably connecting the power generator to the larger sheave;

the input being electrical power leads on the drive motor; and

, the output being electrical output leads on the power generator;

wherein when the drive motor is powered up by the at least one of the inverter/filters, rotation of the drive motor transmitted to the sheave set causes the power generator to rotate due to the rotatable connection of the sheave set to the power generator thereby producing voltage at the power generator'"'"'s output required by the battery charger to recharge the batteries of the electrical energy source.

10. The electrical energy source according to claim 7, wherein the regeneration device is disposed on the enclosure.

11. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

an auxiliary input port through which charging voltage from auxiliary sources such as solar power generators, automotive/marine power sources, and the like, may be provided by a connection to the auxiliary input port.

12. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

an ammeter having a connection between the battery charger and a series resistor to ground in order to provide monitoring capability of the charging process.

13. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, wherein the DC driver circuit includes a voltage regulator to provide a voltage regulation function of the DC driver circuit.

14. The electrical energy source according to claim 13, wherein the voltage regulator comprises a Darlington pair of transistors having a set-point determined by a resistor connected between the base of one of the transistors and ground.

15. The electrical energy source according to claim 9, wherein the ratio of the larger diameter sheave to the smaller diameter sheave is approximately 4:

1 in order to produce a high torque output to rotate the generator.

16. The electrical energy source according to claim 9, wherein the drive motor has a rotational speed of approximately 1,700 RPM.

17. The electrical energy source according to claim 9, wherein the power generator has a rotational speed of approximately 2,200 RPM.

18. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

a programmable dial up module having a connection to a phone service line to provide status notification of the electrical energy source to a remote location.

19. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

a breaker panel interface cable capable of being connected between a house wiring breaker panel and the electrical energy source so that the electrical energy source can provide power to the house wiring instead of a utility source.

20. The electrical energy source according to claim 1, further comprising:

a crystal controlled timing circuit being in operable communication with power switching transistors of the at least one inverter/filter;

the crystal controlled timing circuit being capable of converting inverter input power to pulses by switching action of the crystal controlled timing circuit.