JP2005287091A - Charger - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a charger capable of performing appropriate charging control on the basis of the temperature of a battery cell while decreasing the number of temperature sensors. <P>SOLUTION: A plurality of battery cells 20 are arranged in matrix in a battery pack 2. A temperature sensor 22 comprising a thermistor is provided in each predetermined space 21 formed by the plurality of battery cells 20. Temperature is detected in units of block where the centers of the battery cells 20 are arranged square on a plane parallel with a cutting plane perpendicular to the axial direction of the battery cell 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a charging device including a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells and a charger that performs a charging operation on the battery pack.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a charging device including a battery pack composed of a plurality of battery cells and a charger for charging the battery pack is widely known. Patent Document 1 listed below discloses a battery pack (set) in this type of charging device. The configuration of the battery pack) is disclosed.

That is, in Patent Document 1 below, a plurality of unit cells (battery cells) are connected in series to form a plurality of series battery blocks, and each series battery block is connected in parallel to form an assembled battery. A technique is described in which a thermistor is provided corresponding to a series battery block, and charging control of the battery pack is performed based on the temperature of each series battery block detected by each thermistor.
JP 2001-114152 A

  By the way, in the battery pack as described above, for example, when an abnormal temperature rise occurs in one of all the battery cells during charging, the charging is performed in order to prevent or suppress the capacity deterioration of the battery pack. I need to stop. Thus, when charging a battery pack composed of a plurality of battery cells, it is desirable to perform the charge control based on the temperatures of all the battery cells.

  However, if sensors for detecting the temperature are provided for all the battery cells, the wiring for installing the temperature sensors becomes complicated and the cost increases.

  In addition, in the said patent document 1, only the structure which detects the temperature of a series battery block is described in the patent document 1, The structure about how a thermistor is arrange | positioned with respect to the structure of each unit cell is disclosed. It has not been.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a situation, providing the charging device which can perform appropriate charge control based on the temperature of a battery cell, aiming at reduction of the number of temperature sensors. Objective.

  To achieve the above object, a charging device according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a battery pack in which a plurality of battery cells are arranged, and a charger that performs a charging operation on the battery pack. In the charging device, for each battery cell, the temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the plurality of first spaces formed by the surfaces including the peripheral surfaces of the plurality of battery cells, the temperature around the battery cell. In addition to providing only one detection means, it has charge control means for performing charge control including charge start and charge stop of the battery cell based on temperature information output from each temperature detection means.

  The invention according to claim 2 is a charging device including a battery pack in which a plurality of battery cells are arranged, and a charger that performs a charging operation on the battery pack. For a plurality of first spaces formed by a surface including a peripheral surface, a number of first spaces smaller than the number of the plurality of first spaces is selected from the first spaces, and the selected first space is selected. In addition to providing temperature detection means for detecting the temperature in one space, it has charge control means for performing charge control including charge start and charge stop of the battery cell based on temperature information output from each temperature detection means.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the charging device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the heat conductor is in contact with each peripheral surface of the battery cell forming the first space provided with the temperature detecting means. The temperature detecting means indirectly detects the temperature of the battery cell by detecting the temperature of the thermal conductor.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the charging device according to any one of the first to third aspects, the first and second spaces other than the first space are insulated from each other. .

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the charging apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the charging control means detects a temperature increase rate based on temperature information respectively output from the temperature detecting means. Then, when at least one temperature increase rate among the detected plurality of temperature increase rates reaches a predetermined value, charging is stopped.

  A sixth aspect of the present invention provides the charging device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein an operating state for detecting normality / abnormality of the operation of the temperature detecting means based on a signal output from the temperature detecting means. The charging control means stops the charging operation when an abnormality of at least one temperature detecting means is detected by the operation state detecting means, and resumes the charging operation when all the temperature detecting means return to normal. Let

  In such a charging device, the temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature for the plurality of first spaces formed by the surfaces including the respective peripheral surfaces of the plurality of battery cells is provided for each battery cell. Since only one temperature detecting means is provided, the number of temperature detecting means can be reduced as compared with the case where all the battery cells are provided with the temperature detecting means. And since it was made to perform charge control including the charge start and charge stop of a battery pack based on the temperature of a battery cell, it can prevent or suppress the performance degradation and shortening of life of a battery pack.

  In addition, a plurality of first spaces that are smaller than the number of the plurality of first spaces with respect to the plurality of first spaces formed by the surfaces including the peripheral surfaces of the plurality of battery cells are the first spaces. Since the temperature detection means for detecting the temperature in the selected first space is provided, the number of temperature detection means can be reduced as compared with the case where the temperature detection means is provided for all the battery cells. Can do. And since it was made to perform charge control including the charge start and charge stop of a battery pack based on the temperature of a battery cell, it can prevent or suppress the performance degradation and shortening of life of a battery pack.

  Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a charging device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an external appearance of a charger that constitutes a charging device 1 of the present embodiment, a battery pack suitable for the charger, and an appliance equipped with the battery pack.

  In FIG. 1, the battery pack 2 to be charged by the charger 3 is, as shown in FIG. 1A, a holding unit 100 a in an electric appliance main body 100 (an electric tool is illustrated in FIG. 1A). 1 is used while being attached to the charger 3 as it is after being attached and detached, as shown in FIG. 1 (b). In general, the battery pack 2 to be charged by the charger 3 according to the present invention is not limited to the one that is attached to the electric tool, but is attached to an electric appliance that can be driven by a battery such as a personal computer or a mobile phone. Including things. A battery cell 20 (see FIG. 3) described later built in the battery pack 2 is, for example, a nickel cadmium battery or a nickel metal hydride battery. The battery voltage can vary, for example, 12V, 18V, 24V.

  The battery pack 2 illustrated in FIG. 1 includes a main body portion 4 that holds the battery cell 20 and a connector portion 5 for establishing electrical connection between the electric appliance main body 100 and the charger 3. The charger 3 is provided with a connector portion 6 having an opening. By attaching the connector portion 5 of the battery pack 2 to the connector portion 6 of the charger 3, the battery pack 2 and the charger 3 are connected to each other. An electrical connection is established.

  More specifically, the battery pack 2 and the charger 3 have an appearance as shown in FIG. In this example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the connector portion 5 of the battery pack 2 has a shape protruding from the main body portion 4 so that the electrodes 7, 8, 9, 10 are exposed on the side surfaces. It is arranged. As shown in FIG. 2B, the connector portion 6 of the charger 3 has a recess into which the connector portion 5 of the battery pack 2 can be inserted, and electrodes 7 and 8 of the battery pack 2 are formed on the inner surface thereof. , 9 and 10 are provided with electrodes 11, 12, 13 and 14 for electrical connection. For example, the electrodes 8 and 14 are positive charging electrodes, the electrodes 7 and 11 are negative charging electrodes, the electrodes 9 and 13 are electrodes for transmitting a control signal (a signal including a charging start signal and a charging stop signal), and the electrodes 10 and 12. These are electrodes for detecting that the battery pack 2 is attached to the charger 3. If the battery pack 2 is not attached to the charger 3, the charger 3 cannot be charged, and if it is attached, it can be charged. Of the electrode 7, the electrode 7a and the electrode 7b are connected to the electrode 11a and the electrode 11b, respectively. For example, if the battery pack 2 is a battery having a large capacity (the capacity of the battery is expressed in ampere / hour, the larger the value, the larger the capacity), both the electrode 7a and the electrode 7b are provided, and the small capacity In this battery, only the electrode 7a is provided (including a form in which the electrode 7b is covered with an insulating member). The electrode 11b can detect whether or not the electrode 7b is provided, and thereby the battery capacity of the battery pack 2 can be detected. For this reason, it is not necessary to provide a separate charger due to the difference in battery capacity of the battery pack 2, and the charger can be used for charging the battery pack 2 having different battery capacities.

  The battery pack 2 and the charger 3 are provided with, for example, slit-shaped air holes 15 and 16 at positions on the surfaces facing each other when they are combined. The charger 3 includes a cooling fan 24 (see FIG. 4), and the air flow created by the cooling fan 24 is also supplied to the battery cells 20 in the battery pack 2 being charged through the vent holes 15 and 16. It has come to be. In the charger 3, a charging status display unit 17 that displays the charging status of the battery pack 2 is provided on the side of the vent hole 16. The charging status display unit 17 includes a plurality of lamps made of LEDs, for example, arranged in a line, and a character “empty” indicating that the charging amount is substantially 0 is attached according to the charging amount of the battery pack 2. The lamps are lit in order from the lamps to the lamps marked with “full” indicating that the charge amount is approximately 100%. Returning to FIG. 1B, the charger 3 is provided with an outlet 18 and a cable 19, and the outlet 18 is connected to a commercial power source, whereby the charger 3 is connected to the commercial power source via the outlet 18 and the cable 19. Power supply. The supplied power is converted into power suitable for charging the battery cell 20 by a power supply unit 23 described later.

  FIG. 3 is a partial cutaway view showing a cut surface when the battery cell portion of the main body 4 is cut along a plane parallel to the plane having the vent holes 16 of the battery pack 2. As shown in FIG. 3, inside the battery pack 2, a plurality of battery cells 20 are arranged in a matrix on a plane parallel to the cut surface. Each of the predetermined spaces 21 formed by the peripheral surface of the battery cell 20 is provided with a temperature sensor 22 configured with, for example, a thermistor, and the center of the battery cell 20 is located on a plane parallel to the cut surface. The battery cells 20 arranged in a square shape are regarded as one block, and the temperature is detected in units of blocks. The thermistor is a ceramic semiconductor whose electrical resistance changes according to temperature, and the temperature sensor 22 includes a thermistor and a lead wire connected to the thermistor. In the present embodiment, the thermistor of the temperature sensor 22 is disposed in the space 21 so as not to contact the battery cell 20.

  According to this configuration, when the battery cells 20 in all the blocks have substantially the same temperature, the temperatures detected by the temperature sensors 22 are also substantially uniform. For example, in one block, for example, one battery cell 20 When the temperature of the battery becomes higher than that of the other battery cell 20, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 22 corresponding to the block is higher than the temperature detected by the other temperature sensor 22. Value. Thus, the temperature change of all the battery cells 20 can be monitored. In addition, since one temperature sensor 22 is provided for one block, the number of temperature sensors 22 can be reduced as compared with the case where each battery cell 20 is provided with a temperature sensor 22 (in FIG. 3, Six temperature sensors 22) for 24 battery cells 20), increase in cost and complexity of wiring can be suppressed.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the charging apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the charger 3 includes a power supply unit 23, a cooling fan 24, a fan driving unit 25, and a control circuit 26. In FIG. 4, the battery cell 20 and the temperature sensor 22 correspond to the battery cell 20 and the temperature sensor 22 shown in FIG. 3, respectively.

  The power supply unit 23 supplies electric power to the battery pack 2 after converting electric power supplied from a commercial power source into electric power suitable for charging the battery cell 20 or the like. The cooling fan 24 corresponds to the above-described cooling fan that generates an air flow and supplies air through the vent hole 33 shown in FIG. The fan drive unit 25 is connected to the power supply unit 23 and the control circuit 26. While receiving power from the power supply unit 23, the fan drive unit 25 receives instructions from the control circuit 26 (such as starting / stopping the cooling fan 24 and changing the wind force). The cooling fan 24 is driven by an instruction). The electrodes 8 and 14 correspond to the positive charging electrodes 8 and 14 shown in FIG. 2B, and the electrodes 7 and 11 are the negative charging electrodes 7 and 11 shown in FIG. 2B. Similarly, the electrodes 9 and 13 correspond to the electrodes 9 and 13 shown in FIG.

  The control circuit 26 controls the operation of the charger 3 as a whole. For example, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores a control program for controlling the operation of the charger 3 and a RAM (temporarily storing data). Random Access Memory) and the like, and a microcomputer for reading out a control program from the ROM and executing it are configured. The control circuit 26 controls power supply / stop by the power supply unit 23 and controls the operation of the cooling fan 24 by the fan drive unit 25 (start / stop of driving of the cooling fan 24 and change of wind power).

  The battery pack 2 includes a plurality of battery cells 20, a plurality of battery cells 20 arranged so that the cross-sectional center forms a square shape, a plurality of temperature sensors 22 installed in units of blocks, a control circuit 27, Have

  The control circuit 27 controls the overall operation of the battery pack 2, and includes a storage unit (not shown) composed of the ROM, RAM, etc., a microcomputer, and the like. The control circuit 27 is connected to each temperature sensor 22 and mainly takes in battery temperature information from each temperature sensor 22 and controls signals based on the battery temperature information (such as a signal for instructing start or stop charging). And outputs the control signal to the control circuit 26 of the charger 3.

  FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the control circuit 27.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the control circuit 27 includes a connection detection unit 271 that detects connection with the electric appliance body 100 or the charger 3, and a charge control unit 272 that instructs the start and stop of the charging operation by the power supply unit 23. Based on the output from each temperature sensor 22, a sensor monitoring unit 273 that monitors whether or not the temperature sensor 22 is operating normally, and an increase per unit time from the battery temperature information output from each temperature sensor 22 Whether the temperature (temperature increase ΔT / Δt when temperature is expressed in T and time is expressed in t) should be calculated, and charging should be terminated by comparing the calculated temperature increase ΔT / Δt with the threshold α for the temperature increase A determination unit 274 for determining whether or not, and the connection detection unit 271 and the like operate as follows. Note that when the fully charged state or a state close thereto is reached, the temperature increase degree ΔT / Δt becomes larger than the predetermined value α, and therefore the determination unit 274 determines whether or not to stop charging based on this.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control circuit 27.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when connection detection unit 271 determines that battery pack 2 is attached to charger 3 (YES in step # 1), charge control unit 272 causes control circuit 26 of charger 3 to The determination unit 274 starts to calculate the temperature increase ΔT / Δt based on the battery temperature information output from each temperature sensor 22 (step S120). # 2).

  Next, the sensor monitoring unit 273 monitors whether or not the temperature sensor 22 is operating normally based on whether or not the battery temperature information is output from each temperature sensor 22 (step # 3). That is, the sensor monitoring unit 273 outputs battery temperature information from each temperature sensor 22 when each temperature sensor 22 is operating normally, and the battery temperature indicated by the battery temperature information is within a normal range, If an abnormality occurs in each temperature sensor 22 due to disconnection or short circuit, battery temperature information is not output from the temperature sensor 22 or the battery temperature exceeds the normal range. Based on this, the temperature sensor 22 is normal. / Monitor abnormalities.

  As a result, when sensor monitoring unit 273 detects that any one of the plurality of temperature sensors 22 is abnormal (NO in step # 3), charging control unit 272 causes control circuit 26 of charger 3 to A charge stop signal for instructing stop of the charge operation is transmitted (step # 4).

  Thereafter, the sensor monitoring unit 273 determines whether or not all the temperature sensors 22 have returned to normal based on the presence / absence of output of battery temperature information from each temperature sensor 22 (step # 5). If the sensor 22 has not returned to normal, it stands by until it returns (NO in step # 5).

  When all temperature sensors 22 return to normal (YES in step # 5) and when all temperature sensors 22 are normal in step # 3 (YES in step # 3), charging control unit 272 performs charging. The charging start signal is transmitted to the control circuit 26 of the vessel 3 (step # 6), and the determination unit 274 compares each calculated temperature rise ΔT / Δt with the threshold value α to determine whether or not to end the charging. Is determined (step # 7). That is, when the battery cell 20 is in a substantially fully charged state, the temperature rise ΔT / Δt becomes larger than the threshold value α. Therefore, the determination unit 274 determines whether or not charging should be terminated based on this.

  As a result, when the temperature rise ΔT / Δt for all the battery cells 20 is equal to or less than the threshold value α (NO in step # 7), the process returns to step # 3, and even one of the plurality of battery cells 20 If temperature rise ΔT / Δt exceeds threshold value α (YES in step # 7), charging control unit 272 transmits a charge stop signal to control circuit 26 of charger 3 (step # 8). . Here, the criterion for determining whether or not to stop charging is that the temperature rise ΔT / Δt exceeds the threshold value α even in one of the plurality of battery cells 20. When the battery cell 20 that does not exceed α is continuously charged as being not fully charged, the battery cell 20 whose temperature increase ΔT / Δt exceeds the threshold value α is prevented from being overcharged, thereby preventing capacity deterioration of the battery cell 20. It is to do.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the temperature sensor 22 is provided in the predetermined space 21 formed by the plurality of battery cells 20, and the battery cells 20 arranged so that the cross-sectional centers form a square shape as described above are combined into one. As a block, the temperature is detected in units of blocks. Therefore, as compared with the case where each battery cell 20 includes a temperature sensor 22, the increase in cost and the complexity of wiring are suppressed, and all the battery cells 20 are controlled. Charging control based on temperature changes can be performed. Therefore, if any one of the plurality of battery cells 20 becomes hot or has an abnormality, charging is stopped to prevent damage to the battery cells 20 and the like. 2 performance deterioration and shortening of life can be prevented or suppressed.

  In addition, since the charging operation is stopped when the temperature rise ΔT / Δt exceeds the threshold value α even in one battery cell 20, damage due to overcharging of the fully charged battery cell 20 is prevented in advance. In addition, it is possible to prevent or suppress performance deterioration and shortening of life of the battery pack 2.

  Further, based on the output from the temperature sensor 22, whether or not the temperature sensor 22 is operating normally is monitored, and charging is stopped when even one temperature sensor 22 is detected as abnormal. It is possible to prevent erroneous charge control based on the temperature rise ΔT / Δt calculated including an abnormal value due to occurrence of an abnormality in the temperature sensor 22 and to accurately perform charge control based on the temperature rise ΔT / Δt. Can do. In addition, since charging is resumed when all the temperature sensors 22 are normal, more power can be provided to the user of the battery pack 2 than when charging is not resumed. It is possible to prevent or suppress the convenience of the battery pack 2 and the deterioration of workability when the battery pack 2 is mounted on the electric appliance main body 100 and used.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the following modifications (1) to (3) can be employed.

  (1) In the above-described embodiment, the temperature sensor 22 is disposed in the predetermined space 21 in a non-contact manner with the battery cell 20. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and a configuration for detecting the temperature of each battery cell 20 is, for example, The following may be used.

  7-10 is a figure which shows the modification concerning the structure which detects the temperature of the battery cell 20. FIG.

  In FIG. 7, a temperature sensor 22 ′ that contacts all of the plurality of battery cells 20 forming the space 21 is selected as a space 21 formed by the peripheral surface of the battery cell 20 constituting each block, and the temperature sensor A configuration is shown in which the temperature is detected in units of blocks by 22 '.

  As described above, since the temperature of the battery cell 20 is detected by the temperature sensor 22 ′ that contacts all of the plurality of battery cells 20 forming the space 21, the detected temperature is further increased depending on the temperature of the battery cell 20. The temperature of the battery cell 20 can be detected more accurately.

  FIG. 8 shows, in addition to the configuration in the first embodiment, the peripheral surface of the battery cell 20 that forms the space 21 in which the temperature sensor 22 is disposed, from a material having high thermal conductivity such as aluminum foil or copper foil. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration in which one sheet-like body 28 is attached and the temperature of the sheet-like body 28 is detected by a temperature sensor 22.

  According to this configuration, the temperature in the space 21 is approximated by the temperature of the battery cell 20, so that the temperature of the battery cell 20 can be detected more accurately than in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 9 shows a state in which the space 21 and other spaces are insulated from each other by isolating the air in the space 21 from the outside air with a heat insulating sheet 29 made of a material having low thermal conductivity such as paper, cork, or asbestos. FIG. 9 is a view showing a configuration in which the temperature in the space 21 is detected by the temperature sensor 22, and FIG. 9A is a perspective view showing an arrangement state of the heat insulating sheet 29 with respect to the battery cell 20. b) is a sectional view thereof. The space 21 and the other spaces correspond to the first space and the second space in the claims.

  As shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, the battery pack 2 of the present embodiment has both end portions of the battery cell 20 covered with the heat insulating sheet 29 and corresponds to the space 21 in the heat insulating sheet 29. A through hole 29 a is formed in a portion where the lead wire of the temperature sensor 22 passes, the lead wire of the temperature sensor 22 is inserted through the through hole 29 a, and the temperature sensor 22 is disposed in the space 21.

  As described above, the space 21 and other spaces are spatially and thermally isolated so that the temperature in the space 21 is hardly affected by the outside air temperature. It approximates the temperature, and the temperature of the battery cell 20 can be detected more accurately.

  The present invention is not limited to the battery pack 2 in which the battery cells 20 are arranged in a matrix on the plane orthogonal to the axial direction, as in the first embodiment and the modifications shown in FIGS. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the battery cell 20 can also be employed in the battery pack 2 in which the battery cells 20 are linearly arranged on a plane orthogonal to the axial direction. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the adjacent battery pack 2 is made into one block, and the space 21 formed between the peripheral surface of the battery cell 20 constituting this block and the inner wall surface of the exterior member of the battery pack 2 is used. Each temperature sensor 22 may be disposed.

  (2) In the first embodiment, detection signals from the temperature sensors 22 in the battery pack 2 are input to the control circuit 27 of the battery pack 2, and the control circuit 27 performs the processing shown in FIG. The control signal including the charge start and the charge stop is exchanged between the battery pack 2 and the charger 3. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a charging device may be configured as shown in FIG. . FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating another configuration of the charging device 1.

  11 is configured such that the charger 3 directly receives battery temperature information from the temperature sensor 22 in the battery pack 2 and performs the process shown in FIG. That is, the terminal 30 of each temperature sensor 22 provided in the space 21 formed by the battery cell 20 is connected to the terminal 31 of the control circuit 26 of the charger 3, and the detection signal (temperature information) of each temperature sensor 22 is controlled. The point which is output to the circuit 26 is different from the charging device 1 shown in FIG. 4, and the present invention can also be adopted by this configuration.

  In the configuration shown in FIG. 11, the control circuit 26 requires terminals 31 corresponding to the number of temperature sensors 22 in order to receive detection signals from the respective temperature sensors 22. The battery pack 2 is frequently attached and detached from the charger 3, and if there are many terminals of the temperature sensor 22 and the control circuit 26 that repeat contact / non-contact each time the battery pack 2 is attached / detached, the battery pack 2 There is a high possibility of failure or malfunction. On the other hand, when the configuration shown in FIG. 4 is adopted, the necessary terminals between the battery pack 2 and the charger 3 are transferred from the control circuit 27 of the battery pack 2 to the control circuit 26 of the charger 3. Since only a terminal for connecting the control circuit 27 and the control circuit 26 to send a signal is provided, it is possible to prevent or suppress the occurrence of a failure or the like at the terminal portion as described above.

  (3) In FIGS. 3, 7, 8, and 10, a plurality of spaces 21 formed by the peripheral surfaces of the battery cells 20 having a circular cross section arranged in a matrix are arranged in the battery cells 20. It is arranged in the arrangement direction (two intersecting arrangement directions, the vertical direction and the horizontal direction in each figure), and out of the plurality of spaces, every other space is selected in each arrangement direction, and the temperature is set in the selected space. Although each of the sensors 22 is provided, the space 21 to be selected as a target for arranging the temperature sensor 22 is not limited to the selection method of selecting every other space, and may be selected, for example, every two spaces or every three spaces. You may choose.

It is the schematic of the external appearance of the battery suitable for the charger which comprises the charging device which concerns on embodiment of this invention, and the said charger. It is a figure which shows the external appearance of a battery pack and a charger. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows a cut surface when the battery cell part of the main-body part is cut | disconnected by the plane parallel to the plane which has a ventilation hole of a battery pack. It is a block diagram which shows the electric constitution of a charging device. It is a block block diagram of the control circuit of a battery pack. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the control circuit of a battery pack. It is a figure which shows other embodiment of the structure which detects the temperature of a battery cell. It is a figure which shows other embodiment of the structure which similarly detects the temperature of a battery cell. It is a figure which shows other embodiment of the structure which similarly detects the temperature of a battery cell. It is a figure which shows the deformation | transformation form of a battery pack. It is a figure which shows the other structure of a charging device.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Charger 2 Battery pack 3 Charger 20 Battery cell 21 Space 22 Temperature sensor 27 Control circuit 271 Connection detection part 272 Charge control part 273 Sensor monitoring part 274 Judgment part 28 Sheet-like body 29 Thermal insulation sheet

Claims (6)

In a charging device comprising a battery pack formed by arranging a plurality of battery cells, and a charger that performs a charging operation on the battery pack,
The temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the plurality of first spaces formed by the surfaces including the peripheral surfaces of the plurality of battery cells is provided, and the temperature detecting means is arranged around the battery cell for each battery cell. And only to be arranged,
A charging apparatus comprising charge control means for performing charge control including charge start and charge stop of the battery cell based on temperature information output from each temperature detection means. In a charging device comprising a battery pack formed by arranging a plurality of battery cells, and a charger that performs a charging operation on the battery pack,
With respect to the plurality of first spaces formed by the surfaces including the peripheral surfaces of the plurality of battery cells, a number of first spaces smaller than the number of the plurality of first spaces are separated from the first space. A temperature detecting means for selecting and detecting the temperature in the selected first space;
A charging apparatus comprising charge control means for performing charge control including charge start and charge stop of the battery cell based on temperature information output from each temperature detection means.   A thermal conductor is further provided so as to contact each peripheral surface of the battery cell forming the first space provided with the temperature detection means, and the temperature detection means detects the temperature of the thermal conductor. The charging device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the temperature of the battery cell is indirectly detected.   The charging device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a heat insulating unit configured to insulate the first space and the second space other than the first space.   The charge control unit detects a temperature increase rate based on the temperature information output from each of the temperature detection units, and at least one of the detected temperature increase rates reaches a predetermined value. The charging device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the charging is stopped. Based on a signal output from the temperature detection means, comprising an operation state detection means for detecting normal / abnormal operation of the temperature detection means;
The charging control means stops the charging operation when an abnormality of at least one temperature detecting means is detected by the operating state detecting means, and restarts the charging operation when all the temperature detecting means return to normal. The charging device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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