Single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter that directly charges a battery requiring a multi-state charging profile

• US 9,509,162 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2015
• Issued: 11/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Active-Semi, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Active-Semi, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Carpenter, John H. Jr., Mao, Hong, Huang, Wan Nian
• Primary Examiner(s): Rodas, Richard Isla
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bui, Dung V
• Application Number:
  US14/700,363
• Publication Number:
  US 20160322834A1
• Time in Patent Office: 579 Days
• Field of Search: 320/162
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00711 with introduction of pulses during the charging process
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00712 the cycle being controlled or terminated in response to electric parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/007194 of the battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 1/0009 Devices or circuits for detecting current in a converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/33523 with galvanic isolation between input and output of both the power stage and the feedback loop
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/30 by dynamic converters

Abstract

A multi-state battery charger includes a single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter, where the single-stage converter receives an AC supply voltage and directly charges a rechargeable battery without there being any intervening second power stage. A novel battery charger controller integrated circuit in the converter'"'"'s secondary side detects profile selection resistor values, monitors battery voltage, monitors charging current, monitors battery temperature, controls a protection transistor, and sends a control signal back to a PWM in the primary side. The controller includes a flexible preprogrammed digital state machine circuit that is configured to control the converter from charging state to charging state so that the battery is charged in accordance with a selected one of multiple preprogrammed different multi-state battery charging profiles, where at least one of the profiles has at least one CC (constant current) state and one CV (constant voltage) state.

Claims

1. A battery charger device for charging a rechargeable battery, the battery charger device comprising:

an output terminal adapted to be coupled to a battery assembly, wherein the rechargeable battery is a part of the battery assembly;

a pair of AC supply voltage input terminals;

a single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter circuit that receives a 110 volt AC RMS supply voltage from the pair of AC supply voltage input terminals and that supplies a charging current through the output terminal and to the battery, wherein the single-stage AC-to-DC converter comprises;

a primary side circuit that comprises a pulse width modulator (PWM) integrated circuit and a primary winding of a transformer; and

a secondary side circuit that comprises a secondary winding of the transformer, a current sense resistor, and a battery charger controller integrated circuit, wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit detects a voltage on the output terminal and detects a current supplied to the rechargeable battery via the output terminal and sends a control signal to the PWM integrated circuit of the primary side circuit such that the rechargeable battery is charged in accordance with a multi-state battery charging profile, wherein the multi-state battery charging profile includes a constant current (CC) charging state and a constant voltage (CV) charging state, wherein a charging current supplied to the battery flows from the secondary winding, through the current sense resistor, through the output terminal, and into the battery without passing into the battery charger controller integrated circuit and without passing through any switching converter power stage and without passing through any linear regulator power stage, and wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit comprises;

a digital state machine circuit, wherein the digital state machine circuit is configured to implement a digital state machine, wherein the digital state machine is in a first state when the battery charger device is charging in the CC charging state, and wherein the digital state machine is in a second state when the battery charger device is charging in the CV charging state.

2. The battery charger device of claim 1, wherein the multi-state battery charging profile is one of a plurality of multi-state battery charging profiles, and wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit sends the control signal to the PWM integrated circuit of the primary side circuit such that the battery is charged in accordance with a selectable one of the plurality of multi-state battery charging profiles.

3. The battery charger device of claim 2, wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit further comprises:

a first integrated circuit terminal coupled to a first lead of the current sense resistor;

a second integrated circuit terminal coupled to a second lead of the current sense resistor;

an amplifier that outputs a first voltage that is proportional to a voltage dropped across the current sense resistor;

a reference voltage selector circuit that outputs a second voltage, wherein the second voltage is a selected one of a plurality of reference voltages;

a comparator that receives the first voltage from the amplifier and that receives the second voltage from the reference voltage selector circuit, and that outputs a digital signal, wherein the digital state machine circuit outputs a control signal that determines which one of the plurality of reference voltages will be output by the reference voltage selector circuit;

a control signal output terminal; and

an Integrator and Control Signal Generator (ICSG) circuit coupled to receive the digital signal from the comparator, wherein the ICSG circuit generates the control signal, and wherein the control signal is output from the battery charger controller integrated circuit via the control signal output terminal.

4. The battery charger device of claim 3, wherein the digital state machine circuit is taken from the group consisting of:

a hardwired digital state machine that includes no addressable memory device, a programmed universal state machine that stores state transition information in a single memory device, a programmed microcontroller.

5. The battery charger device of claim 3, wherein the digital state machine circuit is a programmed universal state machine that stores state transition information in a single memory device.

6. The battery charger device of claim 4, wherein the control signal passes out of a terminal of the battery charger controller integrated circuit, and through an optocoupler, and into a terminal of the PWM integrated circuit.

7. The battery charger device of claim 1, further comprising:

a housing that houses the single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter circuit, wherein the battery assembly is not disposed within the housing, wherein each terminal of the pair of AC supply voltage input terminals has a surface that is accessible from outside the housing.

8. The battery charger device of claim 1, further comprising:

a housing that houses the single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter circuit, wherein the battery assembly is not disposed within the housing, wherein the pair of AC supply voltage input terminals is a pair of coplanar straight metal blades of a standard NEMA (National Electrical manufacturers Association) wall power plug, wherein the pair of blades extends from the housing.

9. The battery charger device of claim 1, further comprising:

a housing that houses the single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter circuit, wherein the battery assembly is not disposed within the housing; and

a power cord that extends from the housing and terminates in a standard NEMA (National Electrical manufacturers Association) wall power plug, wherein the pair of AC supply voltage input terminals is a pair of coplanar straight metal blades of the standard NEMA wall power plug.

10. The battery charger device of claim 1, wherein the secondary side circuit further comprises:

a protection transistor, wherein the charging current supplied to the battery flows in a current path from the secondary winding, through the current sense resistor, through the protection transistor, and to the output terminal, and wherein the digital state machine circuit controls the protection transistor by outputting a protection transistor control signal, wherein the protection transistor control signal passes out of a protection transistor output terminal of the battery charger controller integrated circuit and to the protection transistor.

11. The battery charger device of claim 1, wherein the secondary side circuit further comprises:

at least one profile selection resistor, wherein the profile selection resistor has a value, and wherein the value of the profile selection resistor at least in part determines which one of a plurality of digital state machines is implemented by the digital state machine circuit.

12. The battery charger device of claim 11, wherein the plurality of digital state machines is preprogrammed into the digital state machine circuit, but where only one of the plurality of digital state machines is selected and implemented at a given time.

13. The battery charger device of claim 1, wherein the digital state machine circuit is configured to implement a selected one of a plurality of selectable digital state machines.

14. A secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit, comprising:

a first current sense terminal;

a second current sense terminal;

a battery voltage sense terminal;

a battery temperature detection signal input terminal;

a control output signal terminal;

an amplifier that outputs a first voltage that is proportional to a voltage between the first and second current sense terminals;

a first reference voltage selector circuit that outputs a second voltage, wherein the second voltage is a selected one of a plurality of reference voltages;

a first comparator circuit that compares the first voltage to the second voltage and that outputs a first digital signal;

a second reference voltage selector circuit that outputs a third voltage, wherein the third voltage is a selected one of a plurality of reference voltages;

a second comparator circuit that determines whether a voltage on the battery voltage sense terminal is above the third voltage, and that outputs a second digital signal;

a control signal generating circuit that receives a selected one of the first and second digital signals and that generates a control signal, and wherein the control signal is output from the secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit via the control signal output terminal; and

a digital state machine circuit that controls the first reference voltage selector circuit and that controls the second reference voltage selector circuit, wherein a plurality of digital state machines is preprogrammed into the digital state machine circuit, but wherein only one of the digital state machines is selected and implemented at a given time.

15. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, further comprising:

a protection transistor output terminal, wherein the digital state machine circuit causes a protection transistor control signal to be output from the protection transistor output terminal.

16. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein the control signal generating circuit comprises an integrator, wherein the integrated is taken from the group consisting of:

a digital integrator, an analog integrator.

17. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein the control signal that is output from the control signal output terminal is an analog current signal that is sinked into the control signal output terminal, and wherein the secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit controls a magnitude of the current that is sinked.

18. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, further comprising:

a temperature sense comparator circuit that receives a voltage present on the battery temperature detection signal input terminal and that generates digital signals indicative of a temperature of a battery, wherein the digital signals indicative of the temperature of the battery are supplied to the digital state machine circuit.

19. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, further comprising:

means for selecting one of the digital state machines that are preprogrammed into the digital state machine circuit so that the selected digital state machine is selected and implemented.

20. The secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit of claim 14, wherein a flyback converter has a primary side and a secondary side, wherein the secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit outputs a control signal from the control signal output terminal that is supplied to a pulse width modulator circuit of the primary side of the flyback converter, and wherein the secondary side battery charger controller integrated circuit is a part of the secondary side of the flyback converter.

21. A battery charger device for charging a rechargeable battery, the battery charger device comprising:

an output terminal adapted to be coupled to a battery assembly, wherein the rechargeable battery is a part of the battery assembly;

a pair of AC supply voltage input terminals;

a single-stage AC-to-DC switching converter circuit that receives a 110 volt AC RMS supply voltage from the pair of AC supply voltage input terminals and that supplies a charging current through the output terminal and to the battery, wherein the single-stage AC-to-DC converter comprises;

a primary side circuit that comprises a pulse width modulator (PWM) integrated circuit and a primary winding of a transformer; and

a secondary side circuit that comprises a secondary winding of the transformer, a current sense resistor, a transistor, and a battery charger controller integrated circuit, wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit controls the transistor, wherein the battery charger controller integrated circuit detects a voltage on the output terminal and detects a current supplied to the rechargeable battery via the output terminal and sends a control signal to the PWM integrated circuit of the primary side circuit such that the rechargeable battery is charged in accordance with a multi-state battery charging profile, wherein the multi-state battery charging profile includes a constant current (CC) charging state and a constant voltage (CV) charging state, and wherein a charging current supplied to the battery flows from the secondary winding, through the current sense resistor, through the transistor, through the output terminal, and into the battery.