Abnormal voltage detector apparatus for detecting voltage abnormality in assembled battery

• US 7,521,896 B2
• Filed: 07/19/2005
• Issued: 04/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic EV Energy Company, Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic EV Energy Company, Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakanishi, Toshiaki, Yudahira, Hirofumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Berhane; Adolf
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fantu; Yalkew
• Application Number:
  US11/184,690
• Publication Number:
  US 20060028179A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,372 Days
• Field of Search: 320/133, 320/104, 320/150, 324/434
• US Class Current: 320/133
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/16542 for batteries charge condition monitoring in G01R31/36
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0013 acting upon several batteries simultaneously or sequentially H02J7/1423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00302 Overcharge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00306 Overdischarge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/005 Detection of state of health [SOH]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

An abnormal voltage detector apparatus is provided for an assembled battery including a plurality of battery blocks connected in series to each other. In the abnormal voltage detector apparatus, a detecting part detects whether or not each of the battery blocks is in a voltage abnormality state by comparing either one of a voltage of each battery block and each battery measuring voltage, that is a voltage lowered from the voltage of each battery block, with a predetermined reference voltage, generates each of abnormality detecting signals containing information about a detected result, calculates a time ratio of a time interval, for which the assembled battery is in a voltage abnormality state, to a predetermined time interval, based on the abnormality detecting signals, and detects a voltage abnormality of the assembled battery based on a calculated time ratio.

Claims

1. An abnormal voltage detector apparatus for use in an assembled battery comprising a plurality of battery blocks connected in series to each other, said abnormal voltage detector apparatus detecting voltage abnormality in said assembled battery, each battery block comprising at least one secondary battery, said abnormal voltage detector apparatus comprising:

a detecting part;

for detecting whether or not each of said battery blocks is in a voltage abnormality state by comparing one of a voltage of said each battery block and each battery measuring voltage with a predetermined reference-voltage, wherein each battery measuring voltage is lowered from a voltage of each associated battery block,

for generating abnormality detecting signals for each battery block, each abnormality detecting signal containing information about a detected result,

for calculating a time ratio of a time interval, for which said assembled battery is in a voltage abnormality state, to a predetermined time interval, based on the abnormality detecting signals, and

for detecting a voltage abnormality of said assembled battery based on the calculated time ratio.

2. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said detecting part compares each of the battery measuring voltages that is the voltage lowered from the voltage of said each battery block with a plurality of reference voltages.

3. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said detecting part generates each of the battery measuring voltages by dividing the voltage of said each battery block by using a constant voltage source.

4. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said detecting part compares each of battery measuring voltages that is a plurality of voltages lowered from the voltage of said each battery block with the reference voltage.

5. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 2,

wherein the voltage abnormality state is such a state that the battery measuring voltage of at least one of said battery blocks is higher than the reference voltage, and

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with a first reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a second reference voltage, which is higher than the first reference voltage.

6. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 3,

wherein the voltage abnormality state is such a state that the battery measuring voltage of at least one of said battery blocks is higher than the reference voltage, and

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with a first reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a second reference voltage, which is higher than the first reference voltage.

7. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 5,

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with the second reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a third reference voltage, which is higher than the second reference voltage.

8. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 6,

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with the second reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a third reference voltage, which is higher than the second reference voltage.

9. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 2,

wherein the voltage abnormality state is a state that the battery measuring voltage of at least one of said battery blocks is lower than the reference voltage, and

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with a first reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a second reference voltage, which is lower than the first reference voltage.

10. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 3,

wherein the voltage abnormality state is a state that the battery measuring voltage of at least one of said battery blocks is lower than the reference voltage, and

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with a first reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a second reference voltage, which is lower than the first reference voltage.

11. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 9,

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with the second reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a third reference voltage, which is lower than the second reference voltage.

12. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 10,

wherein, when said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with the second reference voltage, said detecting part detects the voltage abnormality of said assembled battery by comparing each of the battery measuring voltages with a third reference voltage, which is lower than the second reference voltage.

13. The abnormal voltage detector apparatus as claimed in claim 1,

wherein said detecting part relatively changes either one of each of the battery measuring voltages of said each battery block and the reference voltage, generates each of the abnormality detecting signals by comparing each of battery measuring voltages with the reference voltage, and detects whether or not said detecting part operates normally based on the abnormality detecting signals.

14. An abnormal voltage detector apparatus comprising:

a plurality of abnormal voltage detectors, each abnormal voltage detector connected to a different battery block in an assembled battery, each battery block including a plurality of secondary batteries;

wherein each abnormal voltage detector generates an abnormality detecting signal that contains information about each the corresponding battery block;

wherein the abnormality detecting signals are logically summed and sampled during a first time period;

wherein a ratio of voltage abnormality is determined by dividing a number of samples that indicate abnormal voltage by a total number of samples during the first time period;

wherein an abnormal voltage is determined if the ratio is above a threshold ratio.