Electrical apparatus

• US 7,612,525 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2006
• Issued: 11/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Electric Works Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Works Ltd (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kawai, Akira, Miyazaki, Hiroshi, Ito, Masatoshi, Ohashi, Toshiharu
• Primary Examiner(s): Tso; Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): DIAO, M BAYE
• Application Number:
  US11/389,211
• Publication Number:
  US 20060214627A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,317 Days
• Field of Search: 320/106, 320/110, 320/128, 320/133, 320/134, 320/135, 320/136, 320/114, 320/155, 320/157, 320/158, 320/159, 307/66, 307/82, 307/125, 347/109, 399/85, 399/88, 340/635, 340/636.1, 340/636.12, 340/636.16
• US Class Current: 320/106
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/052 Li-accumulators
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/42 Methods or arrangements for servicing or maintenance of secondary cells or secondary half-cells H01M10/60 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/44 Methods for charging or discharging circuits for charging H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/443 in response to temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/48 Accumulators combined with arrangements for measuring, testing or indicating the condition of cells, e.g. the level or density of the electrolyte constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals, H01M50/569
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

An electrical apparatus includes an electrical apparatus main body and a battery pack. The electrical apparatus main body has a load, a manipulation switch, a power receiving electrode, a main body control unit for controlling the electric power supplied from the power receiving electrode in response to a manipulation of the manipulation switch, a signal generation unit for generating an on-manipulation signal if the manipulation switch is switched on, and a main body signal electrode for outputting the on-manipulation signal. The battery pack has a battery, a power supplying electrode, a battery control unit for controlling the electric power supplied from the battery to the power supplying electrode, a battery signal electrode for receiving the on-manipulation signal, and a power supplying unit for starting a power supply from the battery to the battery control unit when the battery signal electrode receives the on-manipulation signal.

Claims

1. An electrical apparatus comprising:

an electrical apparatus main body including;

a load,

a manipulation switch for operating the load,

a power receiving electrode for receiving an electric power,

a main body control unit for controlling the electric power supplied from the power receiving electrode to the load in response to a manipulation of the manipulation switch,

a signal generation unit for generating an on-manipulation signal to indicate that the manipulation switch is switched on if the manipulation switch is switched on, and

a main body signal electrode for outputting the on-manipulation signal generated by the signal generation unit; and

a battery pack including;

a battery,

a power supplying electrode for supplying an electric power from the battery to the power receiving electrode,

a battery control unit for controlling the electric power supplied from the battery to the power supplying electrode to suppress a performance deterioration of the battery,

a battery signal electrode for receiving the on-manipulation signal from the main body signal electrode, and

a power supplying unit for starting a power supply from the battery to the battery control unit when the battery signal electrode receives the on-manipulation signal, wherein the battery pack further includes;

a detection unit for detecting a state of the battery, and

wherein the signal generation unit further generates an off-manipulation signal to indicate that the manipulation switch is switched off if the manipulation switch is switched off,

the main body signal electrode further outputs the off-manipulation signal generated by the signal generation unit,

the battery signal electrode further receives the off-manipulation signal from the main body signal electrode, and

the battery control unit adjusts a period of time for which the electric power is supplied from the power supplying unit based on the state of the battery detected by the detection unit when the battery signal electrode receives the off-manipulation signal.

2. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein, when the battery signal electrode receives the off-manipulation signal, the battery control unit allows an electric power to be supplied from the power supplying unit for a first period of time if the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is a first state, allows the electric power to be supplied from the power supplying unit for a second period of time that is shorter than the first period of time if the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is a second state in which an amount of a remaining charge is smaller than that in the first state, and allows the electric power to be supplied from the power supplying unit for a third period of time that is shorter than the second period of time if the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is a third state in which the amount of the remaining charge is smaller than that in the second state.

3. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the battery control unit outputs an overdischarge signal to the electrical apparatus main body to indicate that the state of the battery is an overdischarged state if the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is the overdischarged state, and

wherein, an overdischarge threshold level by which the overdischarged state is determined is set to be a lower level until a preset period of time elapses after the battery signal electrode receives the on-manipulation signal, and a higher level otherwise.

4. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory unit for storing the state of the battery detected by the detection unit,

wherein the battery control unit has the memory unit store the state of the battery detected by the detection unit when the battery signal electrode receives the off-manipulation signal, and adjusts the period of time for which the electric power is supplied from the power supplying unit based on the state of the battery stored in the memory unit instead of the state of the battery detected by the detection unit.

5. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the on-manipulation signal is of a single pulse shape synchronous to the manipulation of the manipulation switch, and the battery control unit cuts off the power supply of the power supplying unit if the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is an overdischarged state.

6. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory unit for storing the state of the battery detected by the detection unit,

wherein the battery control unit has the memory unit store the state of the battery as an overdischarged state when the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is the overdischarged state, and, when the battery signal electrode receives the on-manipulation signal and if the state of the battery stored in the memory unit is the overdischarged state, the battery control unit has the power supplying unit cut off the power supply.

7. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory unit for storing the number of overdischarged states,

wherein the battery control unit counts the number of cases where the state of the battery detected by the detection unit is an overdischarged state to have the memory unit store the number of the cases as the number of the overdischarged states, and, when the battery signal electrode receives the on-manipulation signal and if the number of the overdischarged states stored in the memory unit is larger than or equal to a predetermined number, the battery control unit has the power supplying unit cut off the power supply.

8. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the battery is a lithium-ion battery.

9. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein no idling current flows in the electrical apparatus if a time period elapses after the manipulation switch is switched off, the length of the time period being determined based on a charged state of the battery.

10. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the main body control unit, which receives a discharging signal or an overdischarge signal depending on a state of the battery from the battery control unit, allows the electric power to be supplied from the power receiving electrode to the load when the main body control unit receives the discharging signal, and stops the electric power being supplied from the power receiving electrode to the load when the main body control unit receives the overdischarge signal.

11. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the battery pack further includes a remaining charge indication unit that indicates an amount of a remaining charge of the battery.

12. The electrical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the state of the battery is one of a fully charge state, a nearly fully charge state, a normal charge state and an overdischarged state.