Unitary energy storage and sensing batteries

• US 9,356,327 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2012
• Issued: 05/31/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CPS Technology Holdings, LLC
• Original Assignee: Johnson Controls Technology Company (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Sisk, Brian C., Roberts, Jason L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jelsma, Jonathan
• Assistant Examiner(s): KEKIA, OMAR M
• Application Number:
  US13/719,025
• Publication Number:
  US 20130157093A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,260 Days
• Field of Search: 429/7, 429/61, 429/62, 429/90, 429/91
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/374 with means for correcting the measurement for temperature or ageing
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/382 Arrangements for monitoring battery or accumulator variables, e.g. SoC
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0525 Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/4257 Smart batteries, e.g. electronic circuits inside the housing of the cells or batteries
• 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: H01M 10/486 for measuring temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/633 characterised by algorithms, flow charts, software details or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2010/4271 Battery management systems including electronic circuits, e.g. control of current or voltage to keep battery in healthy state, cell balancing
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2010/4278 Systems for data transfer from batteries, e.g. transfer of battery parameters to a controller, data transferred between battery controller and main controller
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

A battery apparatus having an electrochemical cell that includes an electrically insulating hollow mandrel, a pair of active materials wound on the mandrel, and a sensing unit located within the mandrel and coupled to the pair of active materials through a pair of contacts. The active materials are connected and separated by an electrolyte. The sensing unit is configured to monitor conditions of the cell and to generate a signal indicative of a sensed condition for communication to a battery management unit.

Claims

1. An electrochemical battery cell, comprising:

an electrically insulating hollow mandrel;

a pair of active materials wound on the mandrel, wherein the pair of active materials comprises an anode and a cathode; and

an integrated circuit located within the mandrel and directly coupled to the pair of active materials, wherein the integrated circuit comprises a processor, a memory, and a sensor having a graphene-based temperature sensor head, wherein the processor of the integrated circuit is configured to;

receive a measurement of the temperature of the pair of active materials from the sensor;

determine an internal condition of the electrochemical battery cell from the measured temperature; and

generate a signal indicative of the internal condition for communication to a battery management unit external to the electrochemical battery cell.

2. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 1, wherein the pair of active materials are wound around the mandrel in a jelly roll arrangement.

3. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 1, wherein the electrochemical battery cell is configured to be electrically coupled to at least one other electrochemical battery cell by a power line.

4. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 3, wherein the power line is configured to communicatively couple the integrated circuit to the battery management unit.

5. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 1, comprising a power line communications (PLC) chip located within the mandrel and coupled to the integrated circuit, wherein the PLC chip is configured to receive the indicative signal from the integrated circuit and to transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit.

6. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to:

receive the measurement of the temperature of the pair of active materials from the sensor;

determine a value of the internal condition of the electrochemical battery cell based on the received temperature measurement;

determine whether the value of the internal condition is outside of a predetermined range;

determine an amount of time that the value of the internal condition is outside of the predetermined range;

determine whether the amount of time exceeds a predetermined threshold; and

generate the indicative signal when the amount of time exceeds the predetermined threshold.

7. A battery module comprising:

a battery management unit; and

a plurality of electrochemical battery cells, wherein each electrochemical battery cell of the plurality of electrochemical battery cells comprises;

an electrically insulating hollow mandrel;

a pair of active materials wound on the mandrel, wherein the pair of active materials comprises an anode and a cathode;

an integrated circuit located within the mandrel and directly coupled to the pair of active materials, wherein the integrated circuit comprises a processor, a memory, and a sensor having a graphene-based temperature sensor head, wherein the processor of the integrated circuit is configured to receive a measurement of the temperature of the pair of active materials from the sensor and to determine an internal condition of the electrochemical battery cell from the measured temperature; and

a power line communications (PLC) chip located within the mandrel and coupled to the integrated circuit, wherein the PLC chip is configured to receive a signal indicative of the internal condition of the electrochemical battery cell from the integrated circuit and to transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit;

wherein the battery management unit is configured to control operation of the plurality of electrochemical battery cells.

8. The battery module of claim 7, comprising a monobloc housing configured to house the plurality of electrochemical battery cells and the battery management unit.

9. The battery module of claim 8, wherein the monobloc housing comprises a cover that hermetically seals the plurality of electrochemical battery cells and the battery management unit within the monobloc housing.

10. The battery module of claim 9, wherein the cover comprises a power line that is configured to electrically couple the plurality of electrochemical battery cells when the cover hermetically seals the plurality of electrochemical battery cells within the monobloc housing.

11. The battery module of claim 7, wherein the PLC chip in each electrochemical battery cell of the plurality of electrochemical battery cells is configured to modulate the respective indicative signal, and wherein the battery management unit is configured to demodulate the respective modulated indicative signals from the plurality of electrochemical battery cells.

12. The battery module of claim 7, comprising a wireless communication unit located within the battery module, and coupled to the PLC chip of each electrochemical battery cell of the plurality of electrochemical battery cells, wherein each wireless communication unit is configured to receive the indicative signal from the connected PLC chip and configured to wirelessly transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit.

13. An electrochemical battery cell, comprising:

an electrically insulating hollow mandrel;

a pair of active materials wound on the mandrel, wherein the pair of active materials comprises an anode and a cathode;

an integrated circuit located within the mandrel and directly coupled to the pair of active materials, wherein the integrated circuit comprises a processor, a memory, and a sensor having a graphene-based temperature sensor head, wherein the processor of the integrated circuit is configured to;

receive a measurement of the temperature of the pair of active materials from the sensor;

determine an internal condition of the electrochemical battery cell from the measured temperature; and

generate a signal indicative of the internal condition; and

a power line communications (PLC) chip located within the mandrel and coupled to the integrated circuit, wherein the PLC chip is configured to receive the indicative signal from the integrated circuit and transmit the indicative signal to a battery management unit external to the electrochemical battery cell.

14. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 13, wherein the electrochemical battery cell is configured to be electrically coupled to at least one other electrochemical battery cell by a power line.

15. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 14, wherein the PLC chip is configured to transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit via the power line.

16. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 13, wherein the PLC chip is configured to modulate the indicative signal, and the battery management unit is configured to demodulate the indicative signal.

17. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 13, comprising a wireless communication unit coupled to the PLC chip, wherein the wireless communication unit is configured to receive the indicative signal from the PLC chip and configured to wirelessly transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit and configured to wirelessly transmit the indicative signal to the battery management unit.

18. The electrochemical battery cell of claim 13, wherein the mandrel comprises a conductive coating that forms a pair of electrode leads that directly couple the pair of active materials to the integrated circuit.