ANALYZING AND CONTROLLING PERFORMANCE IN A COMPOSITE BATTERY MODULE

• US 20120116699A1
• Filed: 10/11/2011
• Published: 05/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Haag, Michael, Muehge, Thorsten, Weyerhaeuser, Joerg, Krause, Rainer K.
• Granted Patent: US 9,851,412 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/63
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/44 by parameter estimation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/50 by future state prediction
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/52 drive range estimation, e.g. of estimation of available travel distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0046 relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/14 Preventing excessive discharging
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/16 responding to battery ageing, e.g. to the number of charging cycles or the state of health [SoH]
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/22 Balancing the charge of battery modules
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/3842 combining voltage and current measurements
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/396 Acquisition or processing of data for testing or for monitoring individual cells or groups of cells within a battery
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/0445 Multimode batteries, e.g. containing auxiliary cells or electrodes switchable in parallel or series connections
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/425 Structural combination with electronic components, e.g. electronic circuits integrated to the outside of the casing printed circuits H05K1/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/482 for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/486 for measuring temperature
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 70/50 : Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 : Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries

Abstract

A method for performance analysis and use management of a battery module is disclosed, wherein the battery module includes a multitude of interconnected battery cells and a battery management system with a plurality of dedicated analysis/control units (ACUs) that analyze performance of the battery module, the ACUs being assigned to individual battery cells and/or battery blocks of battery module. The method includes measuring current and voltage of one or more of an individual battery cell and a battery block; calculating a charge removal from the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; calculating a loading charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; determining the remaining charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; and failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

Claims

1. A method for performance analysis and use management of a battery module, wherein the battery module comprises a multitude of interconnected battery cells and a battery management system with a plurality of dedicated analysis/control units (ACUs) that analyze performance of the battery module, the ACUs being assigned to individual battery cells and/or battery blocks of battery module, the method comprising:

measuring current and voltage of one or more of an individual battery cell and a battery block;

calculating a charge removal from the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block;

calculating a loading charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block;

determining the remaining charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; and

performing failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the voltage measurement is performed through power contacts of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the current measurement is performed using a Hall effect probe located in close proximity of one of the power contacts of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises issuing a warning if the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block is found to have reached a predefined level of degradation.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the warning is issued to one of a vehicle control unit and a charger control unit.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises active switching of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block if the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block is found to have reached a predefined level of degradation.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises adding one or more of a spare battery cell and a spare battery block as a replacement for the degraded one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

8. A battery module, comprising:

a plurality of interconnected battery cells and a battery management system with a plurality of dedicated analysis/control units (ACUs) comprising ACU chips that analyze performance of one or more of an individual battery cell and a battery block, wherein each ACU chip comprises;

at least one sensor configured to measure voltage and one sensor configured to measure current of an associated one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; and

a switch configured to remove the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block from the battery module network if the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block is found to have reached a predefined level of degradation.

9. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the battery module comprises one or more of spare battery cells and battery blocks for replacement of a degraded one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

10. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the ACU chip is attached in close proximity to a power pin of an associated one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

11. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein for a battery cell in serial arrangement with other battery cells, the ACU chip is connected in parallel arrangement to the battery cell.

12. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the ACU chip further comprises a thermal sensor configured to monitor the temperature of an associated one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

13. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the ACU chip comprises a transmission circuit for configured to transfer signals issued from sensors to a collector unit of the battery module.

14. The battery module according to claim 13, wherein the ACU chip comprises an RF unit configured to enable wireless communication between a control unit chip of a solar cell and a collector unit of a photovoltaic module.

15. The battery module according to claim 8, wherein the ACU chip comprises a switch configured to short-circuit a selected one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

16. A non-transitory, computer readable medium having computer readable instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a computer, implement a method for performance analysis and use management of a battery module, wherein the battery module comprises a multitude of interconnected battery cells and a battery management system with a plurality of dedicated analysis/control units (ACUs) that analyze performance of the battery module, the ACUs being assigned to individual battery cells and/or battery blocks of battery module, wherein the method comprises:

measuring current and voltage of one or more of an individual battery cell and a battery block;

calculating a charge removal from the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block;

calculating a loading charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block;

determining the remaining charge of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block; and

performing failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

17. The computer readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the voltage measurement is performed through power contacts of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

18. The computer readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the current measurement is performed using a Hall effect probe located in close proximity of one of the power contacts of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.

19. The computer readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises issuing a warning if the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block is found to have reached a predefined level of degradation.

20. The computer readable medium according to claim 19, wherein the warning is issued to one of a vehicle control unit and a charger control unit.

21. The computer readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises active switching of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block if the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block is found to have reached a predefined level of degradation.

22. The computer readable medium according to claim 21, wherein the failure monitoring of the one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block comprises adding one or more of a spare battery cell and a spare battery block as a replacement for the degraded one or more of the individual battery cell and the battery block.