SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR TRACKING AND ARCHIVING BATTERY PERFORMANCE DATA

• US 20120274280A1
• Filed: 04/27/2012
• Published: 11/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zoll Circulation Incorporated (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Zoll Circulation Incorporated (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: Yip, Sean, Mack, David
• Granted Patent: US 9,197,079 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/112
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 31/004 Heart stimulation
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/23 The load being a medical device, a medical implant, or a life supporting device
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00038 using passive battery identification means, e.g. resistors or capacitors identification by mechanical connections H02J7/0045
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00045 Authentication, i.e. circuits for checking compatibility between one component, e.g. a battery or a battery charger, and another component, e.g. a power source
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0014 Circuits for equalisation of charge between batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0024 Parallel/serial switching of connection of batteries to charge or load circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00302 Overcharge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00304 Overcurrent protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00306 Overdischarge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00308 Overvoltage protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00309 Overheat or overtemperature protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0045 concerning the insertion or the connection of the batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0049 Detection of fully charged condition

Abstract

An intelligent rechargeable battery pack having a battery management system for monitoring and controlling the charging and discharging of the battery pack is described. The battery management system includes a memory for storing data related to the operation of the battery, and the battery management system is also configured to communicate the data related to the operation of the battery to other processors for analysis.

Claims

1. A battery pack for powering a device, comprising:

a rechargeable battery having a positive and a negative terminal;

a sensor for monitoring a parameter related to operation of the rechargeable battery,

a memory for storing data related to operation of the rechargeable battery, and

a processor in electrical communication with the sensor and the memory, the processor configured to receive signals from the sensor and to store the data related to operation of the rechargeable battery extracted from the signals from the sensor in the memory, the processor also configured to retrieve the stored data from the memory and to communicate the stored data to a processor external to the battery pack.

2. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the memory is an event archive.

3. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the processor external to the battery is a processor located in a battery charger.

4. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the processor is also configured to communicate with a processor in a device being powered by the battery pack, and wherein the processor in the device being powered by the battery pack communicates information related to an operational parameter of the device being powered by the battery pack to the processor for storage in the memory.

5. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the data related to the operation of the rechargeable battery includes history data related to the operation of the rechargeable battery.

6. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the data related to the operation of the rechargeable battery includes run time data.

7. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the data related to the operation of the rechargeable battery includes data selected from the group consisting of number of times the battery has been charged or discharged, a maximum or minimum lifetime load test voltage, a maximum or minimum lifetime load test current, a maximum or minimum lifetime load test power, a maximum lifetime peak charge temperature, a temperature sensor ID, a minimum lifetime peak charge temperature, a maximum lifetime peak discharge temperature, a lifetime full charge cycle count, a lifetime condition cycle count, a lifetime low power count, a lifetime wakeup count, a lifetime reset count, an lifetime total fault count, a lifetime cell under-voltage fault count, a lifetime over-current fault count and a last condition cycle time.

8. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the data includes data related to identification of the rechargeable battery.

9. The battery pack of claim 8, wherein the data related to identification of the rechargeable battery is a serial number.

10. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the data related to operation of the rechargeable battery includes a time stamp to identify a data and time the data was stored in the memory.

11. The battery pack of claim 3, wherein the processor located in the charger is programmed to request that the processor of the rechargeable battery communicate the data stored in the memory to the processor located in the charger, and wherein the processor located in the charger stores the received data in a memory associated with the processor located in the charger.

12. The battery pack of claim 11, wherein the processor located in the charger is configured to communicate the data stored in the memory associate with the processor located in the charger to a server remote from the charger.

13. The battery pack of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for determining a location of the battery pack from location signals received by a receiver in the battery pack; and

wherein the processor stores the location of the battery pack in the memory.

14. The battery pack of claim 13, wherein the processor stores the location of a device powered by the battery pack in the memory.

15. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the sensor is an accelerometer and the processor is configured to determine data related to forces experienced by the battery pack and also configured to store the data related to the forces experienced by the battery pack in the memory.

16. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to retrieve the stored data from memory in response to a request for the data received from a processor external to the battery pack.

17. The battery pack of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to retrieve the stored data from memory and communicate the stored data to a processor external to the battery pack in response to the occurrence of an event sensed by the processor that causes the processor to execute a programmed command code.

18. A battery pack for powering a device, comprising:

a rechargeable battery having a positive and a negative terminal;

a battery management system in electrical communication with the rechargeable battery, including

a sensor for monitoring a performance parameter related to operation of the rechargeable battery,

a memory for storing data related to operation of the rechargeable battery, and

a processor in electrical communication with the sensor and the memory, the processor configured to receive signals from the sensor and to store the data related to operation of the rechargeable battery extracted from the signals from the sensor in the memory, the processor also configured to retrieve the stored data from the memory in response to a request for the data received from a processor external to the battery pack.