Power supply apparatus and power supply method

• US 10,050,437 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2012
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Furukawa Automotive Systems Incorporated (Furukawa Electric Company Limited), Furukawa Electric Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Furukawa Automotive Systems Incorporated (Furukawa Electric Company Limited), Furukawa Electric Company Limited
• Inventors: Nomoto, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Perez Borroto, Alfonso
• Application Number:
  US14/342,369
• Publication Number:
  US 20140225443A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,245 Days
• Field of Search: 307 77
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 1/00 Supplying electric power to auxiliary equipment of vehicles circuit arrangements for charging batteries H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/19 Switching between serial connection and parallel connection of battery modules
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/22 Balancing the charge of battery modules
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/441 for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/482 for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/569 Constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals battery terminal connectors with integrated measuring arrangements G01R31/364
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0016 using shunting, discharge or bypass circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0024 Parallel/serial switching of connection of batteries to charge or load circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0063 with circuits adapted for supplying loads from the battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00712 the cycle being controlled or terminated in response to electric parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/34 Parallel operation in networks using both storage and other dc sources, e.g. providing buffering H02J7/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/342 The other DC source being a battery actively interacting with the first one, i.e. battery to battery charging with circuits for polarity protection H02J7/0034
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A power supply apparatus is provided that has a plurality of secondary batteries connected in series, outputs a composite voltage of all of the secondary batteries, and outputs an output of a part of the secondary batteries as a partial voltage. The power supply apparatus includes a detecting unit that detects states of the secondary batteries, a changing unit that changes an order of series connection of the plurality of secondary batteries based on a detection result of the detecting unit in such a manner that the partial voltage is outputted from a secondary battery that is in a relatively good state.

Claims

1. A power supply apparatus comprising:

a plurality of secondary batteries connected in series;

a first output terminal that outputs a composite voltage of all of the plurality of secondary batteries, the first output terminal being configured to be connected to a first load;

a second output terminal that outputs an output of a part of the plurality of secondary batteries as a partial voltage, the second output terminal being configured to be connected to a second load, the first load and the second load being different from each other;

a detecting unit that detects states of the plurality of secondary batteries; and

a changing unit that changes an order of series connection of the plurality of secondary batteries based on a detection result of the detecting unit in such a manner that the composite voltage of a part of the plurality of secondary batteries that is a secondary battery in a relatively good state as well as a part of the plurality of secondary batteries that is a secondary battery other than the secondary battery in a relatively good state is supplied to the first load via the first output terminal, and the partial voltage is outputted from the part of the plurality of secondary batteries that is a secondary battery in a relatively good state and supplied to the second load via the second output terminal, so that power from the secondary battery in a relatively good state is supplied to both the first load and the second load.

2. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the power supply apparatus has two secondary batteries;

the power supply apparatus outputs a composite voltage of terminal voltages of the two secondary batteries and a terminal voltage of a secondary battery connected to a ground side as a partial voltage;

the detecting unit detects states of the two secondary batteries; and

the changing unit changes an order of the series connection in such a manner that a secondary battery that is in a relatively good state, which has been detected by the detecting unit, is connected to a ground side.

3. The power supply apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the changing unit has four switches each having a single common terminal, a first selective terminal and a second selective terminal;

a positive pole and a negative pole of each of the two secondary batteries are connected to the respective common terminals of the four switches;

respective first selective terminals of the four switches are connected with one another, the respective first selective terminals being the second output terminal that outputs the partial voltage;

respective second selective terminals of two switches connected to the positive pole through the respective common terminals are connected with each other, the respective second selective terminals being the first output terminal that outputs the composite voltage;

respective second selective terminals of the two switches connected to the negative pole through the respective common terminals are connected with each other, the respective second selective terminals being a terminal that is connected to a ground; and

the order of series connection is changed by controlling a connecting state of the four switches.

4. The power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the detecting unit is connected between the terminal that is connected to the ground and the ground.

5. The power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a discharge unit that makes the secondary battery discharge when detecting the states of the secondary batteries is connected between the second output terminal that outputs the partial voltage and the ground.

6. The power supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the two secondary batteries are connected in parallel by the four switches and the partial voltage is supplied to a load.

7. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in detecting the states of the secondary battery by the detecting unit, the state of one of the secondary batteries is detected by the detecting unit and a terminal voltage of the other secondary battery is supplied to the load as a partial voltage.

8. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the power supply apparatus has three secondary batteries;

the power supply apparatus outputs a composite voltage of terminal voltages of the three secondary batteries and a terminal voltage of one of the secondary batteries connected to a ground side as a partial voltage;

the detecting unit detects the states of the three secondary batteries; and

the changing unit changes an order of series connection in such a manner that a secondary battery having a relatively good state, which has been detected by the detecting unit, is connected to a ground side.

9. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the power supply apparatus has four secondary batteries;

the power supply apparatus outputs a composite voltage of terminal voltages of the four secondary batteries and outputs a terminal voltage of one or two of the secondary batteries, which is connected to the ground side, as a partial voltage;

the detecting unit detects the states of the four secondary batteries; and

the changing unit changes an order of the series connection in such a manner that a secondary battery having a relatively good state, which has been detected by the detecting unit, is connected to a ground side.

10. The power supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, in the power supply apparatus, the detecting unit is a single detecting unit that detects the states of the plurality of secondary batteries is provided.

11. A power supplying method for supplying power from a power supplying apparatus having a plurality of secondary batteries connected in series, the power supply method comprising:

outputting a composite voltage of all of the plurality of secondary batteries;

outputting an output of a part of the plurality of secondary batteries as a partial voltage;

detecting states of the plurality of secondary batteries; and

changing an order of series connection of the plurality of secondary batteries based on detected states of the plurality of secondary batteries in such a manner that the composite voltage of a part of the plurality of secondary batteries that is a secondary battery in a relatively good state as well as a part of the plurality of secondary batteries that is a secondary battery other than the secondary battery in a relatively good state is supplied to a first load via a first output terminal of the power supplying apparatus, and the partial voltage is outputted from a secondary battery in a relatively good state and supplied to a second load via a second output terminal of the power supply apparatus, so that power from the secondary battery in a relatively good state is supplied to both the first load and the second load, the first load and the second load being different from each other.

12. The power supplying method according to claim 11, wherein,

in the power supplying method, a changing switch is switched only when a current detected in the detecting is less than or equal to a predetermined current.

13. The power supplying method according to claim 11,

wherein the states of the plurality of secondary batteries are detected with a single detecting unit by operating switches connected to the plurality of secondary batteries.