Battery pack, method for charging/discharging same, and power consumption device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10230249-B2
Application number	US-201113879580-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2011
Priority date	Oct 20, 2010
Publication date	Mar 12, 2019
Grant date	Mar 12, 2019

Abstract

Provided is a method for charging/discharging a battery pack having an auxiliary charging/discharging device and a battery assembly in which a plurality of secondary battery cell parallel modules, each of which includes a plurality of fasecondary battery cells connected in parallel, are connected in series, the method including, when there is no abnormality in the secondary battery cells during charging/discharging, connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to any of the secondary battery cell parallel modules, and when there is an abnormality in any of the secondary battery cells during charging/discharging, releasing connection to the secondary battery cell at which the abnormality has arisen in the secondary battery cell parallel module including the secondary battery cell at which the abnormality has arisen, and connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to the secondary battery cell parallel module including the secondary battery cell at which the abnormality has arisen.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
one of charging or discharging a battery pack having an auxiliary charging/discharging device and a battery assembly in which a plurality of secondary battery cell modules are configured to be connected in series,
wherein each of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules includes a plurality of secondary battery cells configured to be connected in parallel,

detecting an abnormality in a first secondary battery cell of the plurality of secondary battery cells during one of the charging or the discharging; and
based on the detection of the abnormality:
releasing a connection of the first secondary battery cell in a first secondary battery cell module of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, and
connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to the first secondary battery cell module.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
detecting whether the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during one of the charging or the discharging; and
based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless, connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to at least one of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules,
wherein, based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the charging, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a second secondary battery cell module of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, having a highest voltage between both ends thereof.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein, based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the discharging, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a third secondary battery cell module, of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, having a lowest voltage between both ends thereof.

4. A method, comprising:
one of charging or discharging a battery pack having an auxiliary charging/discharging device and a secondary battery cell module including a plurality of secondary battery cells configured to be connected in parallel;
detecting an abnormality in a first secondary battery cell of the plurality of secondary battery cells during one of the charging or the discharging; and
based on the detection of the abnormality:
short-circuiting both ends of the first secondary battery cell of the secondary battery cell module, and
connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to the secondary battery cell module.

5. The method according to claim 4 , further comprising:
detecting whether the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during one of the charging or the discharging; and
based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless, connecting the auxiliary charging/discharging device in parallel to at least one of the plurality of secondary battery cells,
wherein, based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the charging, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a second secondary battery cell of the plurality of secondary battery cells, having a highest voltage between both ends thereof.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein, based on the detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the discharging, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a third secondary battery cell, of the plurality of secondary battery cells, having a lowest voltage between both ends thereof.

7. A battery pack, comprising:
a battery assembly which includes a plurality of secondary battery cell modules, each of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules includes a plurality of secondary battery cells, wherein the plurality of secondary battery cells are interconnected in a parallel connection, and wherein the plurality of secondary battery cell modules are interconnected in a series connection; and
an auxiliary charging/discharging device, wherein the auxiliary charging/discharging device is configured to be connected in parallel to at least one of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules,
wherein based on a first detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during one of charge or discharge of the battery pack, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to at least one of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, and

based on a second detection that there is an abnormality in a first secondary battery cell of the plurality of secondary battery cells during one of the charge or the discharge of the battery pack:
a connection of the first secondary battery cell, at which the abnormality has arisen, in a first secondary battery cell module of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules is released, and
the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to the first secondary battery cell module.

8. The battery pack according to claim 7 , wherein, based on the first detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the charge of the battery pack, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a second secondary battery cell module of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, having a highest voltage between both ends thereof.

9. The battery pack according to claim 7 , wherein, based on the first detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during the discharge of the battery pack, the auxiliary charging/discharging device is further configured to be connected in parallel to a third secondary battery cell module, of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules, having a lowest voltage between both ends thereof.

10. The battery pack according to claim 7 ,
wherein a switching device is installed on at least one end of each of the plurality of secondary battery cells; and
based on an operation of the switching device, the connection of the first secondary battery cell at which the abnormality has arisen is configured to be released.

11. The battery pack according to claim 10 ,
wherein a voltage across the switching device is configured to be measured to detect whether the abnormality has arisen in the first secondary battery cell.

12. The battery pack according to claim 7 , further comprising a voltage measurement device configured to measure voltages across each of the plurality of secondary battery cell modules.

13. A battery pack, comprising:
a secondary battery cell module including a plurality of secondary battery cells configured to be connected in parallel; and
an auxiliary charging/discharging device,
wherein, based on a first detection that there is an abnormality in a first secondary battery cell of the plurality of secondary battery cells during one of charge or discharge of the battery pack:
the first secondary battery cell is configured to be disconnected from the secondary battery cell module, and
the auxiliary charging/discharging device is configured to be connected in parallel to the secondary battery cell module.

14. The battery pack according to claim 13 , wherein further comprising:
based on a second detection that the plurality of secondary battery cells are faultless during o

Assignees

• Ozawa Atsushi
• Nakamura Kazuo
• Hotta Shin
• Marutani Kentaro
• Uesaka Shinichi
• Murata Manufacturing Co

Inventors

• Ozawa Atsushi
• Nakamura Kazuo
• Hotta Shin
• Marutani Kentaro
• Uesaka Shinichi

Classifications

• H02J7/575

  Parallel/serial switching of connection of batteries to charge or load circuit · CPC title

• H02J7/96

  in response to battery voltage · CPC title

• H02J7/56

  Active balancing, e.g. using capacitor-based, inductor-based or DC-DC converters · CPC title

• H02J7/52

  for charge balancing, e.g. equalisation of charge between batteries · CPC title

• H01M10/441

  for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially · CPC title