System for controlling charge/discharge of secondary battery, and battery controller

• US 7,719,238 B2
• Filed: 03/01/2007
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic EV Energy Company, Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic EV Energy Company, Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Togashi, Kouta, Morishita, Nobuyasu, Iida, Takuma
• Primary Examiner(s): Tso; Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLIAMS, ARUN C
• Application Number:
  US11/713,425
• Publication Number:
  US 20070205746A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,174 Days
• Field of Search: 320/128, 320/130, 320/132, 320/134, 320/136, 320/148, 320/149, 320/151, 320/161, 340/636.12, 340/636.19
• US Class Current: 320/151
• 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 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/25 by controlling the electric load
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00302 Overcharge protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00306 Overdischarge protection
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Abstract

In a charging/discharging control system for controlling an allowable power level of a secondary battery at the time of charging/discharging operations, excessive discharging or recharging of the secondary battery is prevented, and excessive suppression of the charging/discharging of the secondary battery is prevented. A vehicle ECU controls charging/discharging of the secondary battery in accordance with a predetermined allowable power level. A battery ECU detects an actual loading power level of a secondary battery; calculates a differential power level between the detected actual loading power level and an allowable power level; measures the number of times the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value; and downwardly revises the allowable power level when the count has become equal to or greater than a predetermined upper-limit level.

Claims

1. A system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery comprising:

a power level calculating section for calculating an actual loading power level of a secondary battery;

a differential calculating section for calculating a differential power level between the calculated actual loading power level and an allowable power level achieved during charging/discharging of the secondary battery; and

an allowable power level control section for measuring a number of times the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value and downwardly revising the allowable power level when a count has become equal to or greater than a predetermined upper-limit value.

2. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the allowable power level control section measures a number of times the calculated differential power level has continually become equal to or lower than the predetermined threshold value.

3. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the allowable power level control section measures the number of times the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than the predetermined threshold value within a predetermined period.

4. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the allowable power level control section increases an amount of downward revision to the allowable power level as the count is greater.

5. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the allowable power level control section increases an amount of downward revision to the allowable power level as the differential power level is greater when the actual loading power level surpasses the allowable power level.

6. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, further comprising:

cutoff means for cutting off charging/discharging of the secondary battery, wherein

the allowable power level control section downwardly revises the allowable power level to zero and requests the cutoff means to cut charging/discharging of the secondary battery when the count has reached a predetermined highest-limit value.

7. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the allowable power control section downwardly revises the allowable power level having reached the upper-limit value by an amount of downward revision determined for each allowable power level each time the count reaches the upper-limit value determined for each allowable power level when there are a plurality of allowable power levels whose power levels differ from each other.

8. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the secondary battery is formed by combination of a plurality of battery modules;

the allowable power level is determined for each of blocks into which battery modules constituting the secondary battery are divided on a predetermined unit;

the power level calculating section calculates an actual loading power level of the secondary battery on a per-block basis; and

the allowable power level control section measures the number of times a differential power level calculated on a per-block basis has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value and downwardly revises each of the allowable power levels determined for each block when the count has become equal to or greater than a predetermined upper-limit value.

9. The system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the power level calculating section calculates the actual loading power level at a shorter interval as a load on the secondary battery is greater.

10. A battery controller for adaptively setting an allowable power level of a secondary battery subjected to charging/discharging control within a range of charging/discharging capability in accordance with the allowable power level set according to at least a temperature, the controller comprising:

a power level calculating section for calculating an actual loading power level of the secondary battery;

a differential calculating section for calculating a differential power level between a calculated actual loading power level and the allowable power level; and

an allowable power level control section for measuring the number of times the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold level and downwardly revising the allowable power level when a count has become equal to or greater than a predetermined upper-limit level.

11. A system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery comprising:

a power level calculating section for calculating an actual loading power level of a secondary battery;

a differential calculating section for calculating a differential power level between the calculated actual loading power level and an allowable power level achieved during charging/discharging of the secondary battery; and

an allowable power level control section for, when the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold level and also the actual loading power level surpasses the allowable power level, downwardly revising the allowable power level by a greater amount of downward revision as the differential power level is greater.

12. A battery controller for adaptively setting an allowable power level of a secondary battery subjected to charging/discharging control within a range of charging/discharging capability in accordance with the allowable power level set according to at least a temperature, the controller comprising:

a power level calculating section for calculating an actual loading power level of the secondary battery;

a differential calculating section for calculating a differential power level between a calculated actual loading power level and the allowable power level; and

,

an allowable power level control section for, when the calculated differential power level has become equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value level and also the actual loading power level surpasses the allowable power level, downwardly revising the allowable power level by a greater amount of downward revision as the differential power level is greater.

13. A system for controlling charging/discharging of a secondary battery comprising:

an allowable level setting section for setting an allowable power level of the secondary battery according to at least one of a battery temperature, a state of charge, and a battery voltage of the secondary battery; and

a charging/discharging control section for controlling charging/discharging of the secondary battery according to the allowable power level, the section allowing charging/discharging operations exceeding the allowable power level before the number of times an actual loading power level of the secondary battery has exceeded the allowable power level reaches a predetermined number of times, and controlling charging/discharging of the secondary battery in accordance with a second allowable power level which is lower than the allowable power level when the number of times has reached the predetermined number of times.

14. The charging/discharging control system according to claim 13, wherein the secondary allowable power level becomes lower as the number of times becomes greater within a predetermined period.

15. The charging/discharging control system according to claim 14, wherein the secondary allowable power level becomes essentially zero when the number of times has reached an upper-limit number of times greater than the predetermined number of times within a predetermined period of time, and the control section stops charging/discharging of the secondary battery.