Reserve power supply for computers
First Claim
1. A power supply comprising:
- a first source of electrical energy;
a second source of electrical energy;
switch means for connecting said first source in electrical series with said second source when said switch means is in a first selectable state and for connecting said first source in electrical parallel with said second source when said switch means is in a second selectable state; and
coupling means for coupling said first and second sources to a first output of a primary power supply so that said sources provide electrical power to a load connected to the primary power supply when said sources are connected in series and the voltage at the first output of said primary power supply is a predetermined amount below a first voltage output of said serially connected first and second sources and so that the primary power supply provides a charging current to said first and second sources when said sources are connected in electrical parallel.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A reserve power supply for providing backup power to a computer system includes a first battery and a second battery which are switchably interconnected in series or parallel by a switch means. When the batteries are connected in parallel they may be charged by a primary power supply which normally drives the computer system. When the batteries are connected in series they provide power to the computer when the primary power supply fails. This association with the primary power supply and the computer system is effected by a coupling circuit of the reserve power supply. The reserve power supply further includes an indicator circuit which visually and audibly signals when the batteries are providing power to the computer system. The reserve power supply further includes an electrical circuit which connects the voltage from one of the batteries to a second voltage output of the primary power supply and a second voltage input of the computer system. This electrical circuit also converts the voltage from the one battery into a plurality of other voltages for use by the computer system.
91 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A power supply comprising:
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a first source of electrical energy; a second source of electrical energy; switch means for connecting said first source in electrical series with said second source when said switch means is in a first selectable state and for connecting said first source in electrical parallel with said second source when said switch means is in a second selectable state; and coupling means for coupling said first and second sources to a first output of a primary power supply so that said sources provide electrical power to a load connected to the primary power supply when said sources are connected in series and the voltage at the first output of said primary power supply is a predetermined amount below a first voltage output of said serially connected first and second sources and so that the primary power supply provides a charging current to said first and second sources when said sources are connected in electrical parallel. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A reserve power supply for providing auxiliary power to a computer, which computer is normally energized by a primary power supply, when the voltage at a first output of the primary power supply is a predetermined amount below a first voltage of said reserve power supply, said reserve power supply comprising:
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a first battery having a negative terminal and a positive terminal; a second battery having a negative terminal and a positive terminal; first switch means for connecting the negative terminal of said first battery to the positive terminal of said second battery when said switch means is in a first state and for both connecting the positive terminal of said first battery to the positive terminal of said second battery and connecting the negative terminal of said first battery to the negative terminal of said second battery when said switch means is in a second state; and coupling means for coupling the positive terminal of said first battery to the first output of the primary power supply when said switch means is in the first state so that said first and second batteries provide electrical power to the computer when the voltage at the first output of the primary power supply is the predetermined amount below the first voltage and for coupling the positive terminals of said first and second batteries to the first output of the primary power supply when said switch means is in the second state so that the primary power supply provides a charging current to said first and second batteries. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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Specification