Circuits and methods for controlling a current flowing through a battery
First Claim
1. A circuit for energy efficient controlling of a current flowing through a battery comprising a rechargeable multi-cell battery pack, said circuit comprising:
- a driver operable for generating a pulse signal in a first charge and discharge operating mode and for generating a first signal in a second charge and discharge operating mode corresponding to said first operating mode, wherein said driver controls said current through said battery using said pulse signal and said first signal; and
a filter coupled to said driver and operable for filtering said pulse signal to provide a filtered DC signal to adjust an on-resistance of a first switch in series with said battery based on a duty cycle of said pulse signal in said first operating mode, wherein said first switch is driven by said filtered DC signal to operate in a saturation region, and operable for receiving said first signal and for providing a second signal to drive said first switch to operate in a linear region in said second operating mode.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A circuit for controlling a current flowing through a battery includes a driver and a filter coupled to the driver. The driver can generate a pulse signal in a first operating mode and generate a first signal in a second operating mode to control the current through the battery. The filter can filter the pulse signal to provide a filtered DC signal to adjust an on-resistance of a switch in series with the battery based on a duty cycle of the pulse signal in the first operating mode. The filter can receive the first signal and provide a second signal to drive the switch in a linear region in the second operating mode.
12 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A circuit for energy efficient controlling of a current flowing through a battery comprising a rechargeable multi-cell battery pack, said circuit comprising:
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a driver operable for generating a pulse signal in a first charge and discharge operating mode and for generating a first signal in a second charge and discharge operating mode corresponding to said first operating mode, wherein said driver controls said current through said battery using said pulse signal and said first signal; and a filter coupled to said driver and operable for filtering said pulse signal to provide a filtered DC signal to adjust an on-resistance of a first switch in series with said battery based on a duty cycle of said pulse signal in said first operating mode, wherein said first switch is driven by said filtered DC signal to operate in a saturation region, and operable for receiving said first signal and for providing a second signal to drive said first switch to operate in a linear region in said second operating mode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A battery system with energy efficient controlling of a current flowing through a battery comprising a rechargeable multi-cell battery pack, comprising:
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a switch coupled in series with said battery; and a circuit coupled to said battery and said switch and operable for selectively operating in a first charge and discharge operating mode and a second charge and discharge operating mode corresponding to said first operating mode to drive said switch to operate in a saturation region and a linear region respectively so as to adjust a current flowing through said battery, said circuit comprising; a driver operable for generating a first pulse width modulation (PWM) signal in said first operating mode and for generating a first DC signal in a second operating mode; and a filter coupled to said driver and operable for receiving said first PWM signal in said first operating mode and generating a substantially constant DC signal to drive said switch to operate in said saturation region, and operable for receiving said first DC signal in said second operating mode and generating a second substantially constant DC signal to drive said switch to operate in said linear region. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for energy efficient controlling of a current flowing through a battery comprising a rechargeable multi-cell battery pack, said method comprising:
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generating at a driver a pulse signal in a first charge and discharge operating mode; filtering at a filter said pulse signal to provide a filtered DC signal having a substantially constant level determined by a duty cycle of said pulse signal; adjusting an on-resistance of a switch in series with said battery by said filtered DC signal in said first operating mode, wherein said filtered DC signal drives said switch to operate in a saturation region; generating at said driver a DC signal to drive said switch to operate in a linear region in a second charge and discharge operating mode; and filtering at said filter said DC signal to provide a second filtered DC signal in said second operating mode, wherein said second filtered DC signal drives said switch to operate in a linear region. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification