TWI759456B - Power supply apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A power supply apparatus includes a battery set, a switch set, a controller, and a discharge circuit. The switch set is controlled by a control signal to be turned on o cut off. The controller detects a temperature status and a voltage status of the battery set, and generates the control signal and a discharge control signal. The discharge circuit operates a discharge operation on the battery set according to the discharge control signal. The controller generates the discharge control signal according to the temperature status and the voltage status.

Description

power supply device

The present invention relates to a power supply device, and more particularly, to a power supply device that can reduce the probability of battery swelling.

With the evolution of electronic technology, electronic devices have become indispensable tools in people's lives. In order to improve the operating time of electronic devices, various mobile power supply devices have been proposed.

In addition to efficiently supplying power to improve the operation time of the electronic device, the safety of the power supply device is the most important. The battery pack in the power supply device swells under the influence of the high temperature environment and the high voltage of the stored power. In addition, the probability of swelling of the battery pack will also increase after a long period of use. This swelling phenomenon can easily lead to damage to the battery pack, and even cause combustion and explosion, which seriously affects the safety of users.

The present invention provides a power supply device, which can effectively reduce the possibility of battery expansion and ensure the safety of the power supply device in use.

The power supply device of the present invention includes a battery pack, a switch pack, a controller and a discharge circuit. The switch group is coupled between the battery group and the first load terminal, and is controlled by the control signal to be turned on or off. The controller is coupled to the battery pack and the switch pack. The controller detects the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack, and generates a control signal and a discharge control signal. The discharge circuit is coupled to the battery pack and the controller, and discharges the battery pack according to the discharge control signal. The controller generates the discharge control signal according to the temperature state and the voltage state.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the above-mentioned controller detects that the temperature state of the battery pack is not less than the first temperature value continuously during the first detection time interval, and the voltage state of the battery pack is continuously not less than the first voltage value , the controller generates a discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to discharge the battery pack.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the above-mentioned controller detects that in the second detection time interval, the temperature state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the first temperature value, and the voltage state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the third voltage value, The controller generates a discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to stop discharging the battery pack. Wherein, the third voltage value is smaller than the first voltage value.

In an embodiment of the present invention, in the first detection time interval, the above-mentioned controller detects that the temperature state of the battery pack is not less than the second temperature value continuously, and the voltage state of the battery pack is not less than the second voltage value continuously. , to generate a discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to discharge the battery pack. Wherein, the second temperature value is greater than the first temperature value, and the second voltage value is less than the first voltage value.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the above-mentioned controller detects that in the second detection time interval, the temperature state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the second temperature value, and the voltage state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the fourth voltage value, The controller generates a discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to stop discharging the battery pack. Wherein, the fourth voltage value is smaller than the second voltage value.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the power supply device further includes a storage device. The storage device is coupled to the controller. The storage device is used for storing the first temperature value, the second temperature value, the first voltage value and the second voltage value.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned controller detects the duration of the discharge operation performed by the discharge circuit, and stops the discharge operation of the discharge circuit when the duration is greater than a predetermined threshold.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned predetermined threshold value is 24 hours.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned discharge circuit includes a switch and a discharge resistor. The switch is controlled by the discharge control signal to be turned on or off. The discharge resistor and the switch are coupled in series between the battery pack and the reference ground terminal. Wherein, when the switch is turned on according to the discharge control signal, the discharge circuit provides a discharge current to discharge the battery pack.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned switch includes a transistor. The transistor is coupled in series between the battery pack and the reference ground terminal, and the control terminal of the transistor receives the discharge control signal.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the power supply device further includes a current sensor. The current sensor is coupled in series between the battery pack and the second load terminal, and is coupled to the controller. The current sensor is used for sensing the current between the battery pack and the second load terminal.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the power supply device further includes a circuit breaker. The circuit breaker is coupled in series between the battery pack and the switch pack, and is used to cut off the charging and discharging paths of the battery pack.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the power supply device further includes a connector. The connector is coupled to the first load end, the second load end and the controller for connecting the load.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned connector further provides an information transmission end, and the information transmission end is coupled to the controller, wherein the controller transmits information through the information transmission end.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned switch group includes a first transistor and a second transistor. The first transistor and the second transistor are coupled in series between the first load terminal and the battery pack. The first transistor and the second transistor are coupled to the controller, and are respectively controlled by the first control signal and the second control signal to be turned on or off.

Based on the above, the present invention provides a discharge circuit in the power supply device. By detecting the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack, and according to the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack, the discharge circuit is used to discharge the battery pack. Through the discharge action performed by the discharge circuit, the temperature state and voltage state of the battery pack can be reduced, the risk of expansion is reduced, and the safety of the system is improved.

In order to make the above-mentioned features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, the following embodiments are given and described in detail with the accompanying drawings as follows.

Please refer to FIG. 1 . FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a power supply device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The power supply device 100 includes a controller 110 , a switch pack 120 , a battery pack 130 , a discharge circuit 140 , a circuit breaker 150 and a current sensor 160 . The switch group 120 is coupled between the battery group 130 and the load terminal LE1, and is controlled by the control signal CTR to be turned on or off. The controller 110 is coupled to the switch pack 120 and can be coupled to the battery pack 130 through the circuit breaker 150 . In the embodiment of the present invention, the controller 110 is coupled to the current sensor 160 . The controller 110 is used for detecting the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack 130 , and can generate the control signal CTR and the discharge control signal DCTR according to the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack 130 , wherein the control signal CTR is transmitted to the control switch In the group 120 , the discharge control signal DCTR is sent to the discharge circuit 140 .

In the embodiment of the present invention, the discharge circuit 140 is coupled between the disconnecting element 150 and the switch group 120 . The discharge circuit 140 receives the discharge control signal DCTR, and determines whether to generate a discharge path according to the discharge control signal DCTR. Wherein, when the discharge circuit 140 generates a discharge path according to the discharge control signal DCTR, the battery pack 130 can discharge through the circuit breaker 150 (which is in an on state) through the discharge path provided by the discharge circuit 140 .

Please note that in order to reduce the possibility of expansion of the battery pack 130 , the controller 110 can detect the voltage state and temperature state of the battery pack 130 in the detection time interval, and determine the voltage state and temperature state of the battery pack 130 according to the voltage state and temperature state of the battery pack 130 A discharge control signal DCTR is generated. Specifically, when the controller 110 can detect that the voltage state of the battery pack 130 is not less than the first voltage value continuously during the detection time interval, and the temperature state of the battery pack 130 is continuously not less than the first voltage value during the detection time interval For a temperature value, the controller 110 can generate the enabled discharge control signal DCTR, and drive the discharge circuit 140 to provide a discharge path through the enabled discharge control signal DCTR to discharge the battery pack 130 .

Please note that if the battery pack 120 continues to be stored in an environment of not less than the first temperature value and stored in a state of not less than the first voltage value, there is a high probability that the phenomenon of expansion will occur. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, when it is determined that the voltage state of the battery pack 130 is not less than the first voltage value continuously, and the temperature state of the battery pack 130 is continuously not less than the first temperature value, the discharge action provided by the discharge circuit 140 is used to discharge The amount of charge storage in the battery pack 120 is reduced. In this way, the possibility of expansion of the battery pack 120 can be effectively reduced, and the safety of the system can be maintained.

Incidentally, the controller 110 can enable the discharge control signal DCTR by making the discharge control signal DCTR a first logic level. The first logic level can be a logic high level or a logic low level. In contrast, the controller 110 can disable the discharge control signal DCTR by making the discharge control signal DCTR a second logic level, wherein the first logic level is opposite to the second logic level.

In addition, the above-mentioned first voltage value and first temperature value are preset values. The designer can set the first voltage value and the first temperature value according to the characteristics of the battery pack 130 . The characteristics of the battery pack 130 can be known by setting the durability and safety of the battery pack 130 .

The first temperature value and the first voltage value may be pre-stored in the controller 110, or, in other embodiments of the present invention, the first temperature value and the first voltage value may also be pre-stored in an external storage device (not shown). shown) in. The controller 110 can obtain the first temperature value and the first voltage value by reading the external storage device.

It is worth mentioning that the judgment basis used for generating the discharge control signal DCTR is not unique. In the embodiment of the present invention, the controller 110 can further determine the temperature state and the voltage state of the battery pack 130 with the second temperature value and the voltage state respectively. The second voltage value is compared to generate the discharge control signal DCTR, wherein the second temperature value is greater than the first temperature value, and the second voltage value is less than the first voltage value. Please note here that when the temperature of the battery pack 130 is higher, the voltage state of the battery pack 130 may not need to be relatively high, and there is still a possibility of expansion. Therefore, in order to ensure the safety of the power supply device 100 , in this embodiment of the present invention, multiple sets of temperature values and corresponding voltage values can be set, so that the controller 110 can generate discharge control by detecting the temperature state and voltage state of the battery pack 130 . Signal DCTR, thereby reducing the possibility of battery pack 130 swelling.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the detection time interval may be generated periodically and may have a time length of 5 seconds. The first temperature value can be set to 63 degrees Celsius, the first voltage value can be set to 4000 millivolts, and the second temperature value can be set to 71 degrees Celsius, and the second voltage value can be set to 3900 millivolts. Of course, the above numerical value is only an example of an embodiment of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. The designer can set the above-mentioned values according to the component characteristics and working states of the power supply device 100 and the battery pack 130 .

On the other hand, after the discharging action of the discharging circuit 140 is activated, the controller 110 can detect whether the temperature state of the battery pack 130 is continuously lower than the above-mentioned first temperature value (or the first temperature value) in another detection time interval. two temperature values), and whether the voltage state of the battery pack 130 is continuously lower than the third voltage value (or the fourth voltage value). If the above determination action is yes, the controller 110 can make the discharge circuit 140 stop the discharge action by generating the disabled discharge control signal DCTR. On the other hand, if the above determination action is negative, the controller 110 can make the discharge circuit 140 continue to perform the discharge action by generating the enabled discharge control signal DCTR. Wherein, when the discharge action is generated based on the first temperature value and the first voltage value, the above-mentioned third voltage value is smaller than the first voltage value. For example, when the first voltage value is 4000 millivolts, the third voltage value may be 3950 millivolts. In addition, when the discharge action is generated based on the second temperature value and the second voltage value, the above-mentioned fourth voltage value is smaller than the second voltage value. For example, when the second voltage value is 3900 millivolts, the fourth voltage value may be 3850 millivolts.

It is worth mentioning that, in the embodiment of the present invention, the controller 110 detects the duration of the discharge operation performed by the discharge circuit 140 . If the controller 110 detects that the duration of the discharge operation performed by the discharge circuit 140 is greater than a predetermined threshold, the controller 110 can stop the discharge operation by generating the disabled discharge control signal DCTR. The above-mentioned preset threshold value can be set to 24 hours.

In the above example, when the battery pack 130 performs the discharging operation through the discharging circuit 140 for more than 24 hours, the temperature state and voltage state cannot be kept within the safe range. It is possible that the battery pack 130 or other components in the power supply device 100 have unusual phenomenon. Therefore, the controller 110 can correspondingly stop the discharge action performed by the discharge circuit 140 and can send an alarm message.

Of course, the above-mentioned preset threshold equal to the 24-hour prohibition is an exemplary implementation. The designer can set the value of the preset threshold value according to actual needs, and there is no certain limitation.

Regarding the hardware architecture of the controller 110 in the above-mentioned embodiment, it may be a processor with computing capability, or it may be a hardware description language (Hardware Description Language, HDL) or any other person with ordinary knowledge in the art. The well-known digital circuit design method is designed, and is designed through Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), or application-specific integrated circuit ( Application-specific Integrated Circuit, ASIC) way to realize the hardware circuit.

Incidentally, the current sensor 160 is coupled between the coupling path between the battery pack 130 and the load terminal LE2. The current sensor 160 can detect the magnitude of the current flowing between the battery pack 130 and the load terminal LE2 to generate a detection signal, and transmit the detection signal to the controller 110 . The controller 110 can determine whether to activate the overcurrent protection action according to the detection signal, and can turn on or off the switch group 120 through the control signal CTR, or make the circuit breaker 150 disconnect the connection between the battery group 130 and the switch group 120 path to achieve the function of circuit protection.

In this embodiment, the circuit breaker 150 is coupled in series between the battery pack 130 and the switch pack 150 . The disconnect element 150 may be a fuse or a fuseless switch.

Please refer to FIG. 2 , which is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of a discharge circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention. The discharge circuit 200 includes a transistor T1 and a discharge resistor RA1. The transistor T1 is used to form a switch, wherein one end of the transistor T1 is connected to the disconnecting element 150 and the coupling terminal of the switch group 140 , and the other end of the transistor T1 is coupled to the discharge resistor RA1 . The discharge resistor RA1 is coupled in series between the transistor T1 and the reference ground terminal GND. The control terminal of the transistor T1 receives the discharge control signal DCTR, and is turned on or off according to the discharge control signal DCTR. When the transistor T1 is turned on according to the discharge control signal DCTR, the transistor T1 and the discharge resistor RA1 provide a discharge path, and generate a discharge current IDIS to discharge the battery pack 150 . On the contrary, when the transistor T1 is turned off according to the discharge control signal DCTR, the discharge circuit 200 stops performing the discharge operation.

The magnitude of the discharge current provided by the discharge circuit 200 can be set by the resistance value of the resistor RA1.

In this embodiment, the discharge circuit 200 further includes a resistor RA2. The resistor RA2 is connected in series between the control terminal of the transistor T1 and the coupling terminals of the disconnecting element 150 and the switch group 140 .

Please refer to FIG. 3 below. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of a switch group according to an embodiment of the present invention. The switch group 300 includes a switch 310 and a switch 320 . The switch 310 and the switch 320 are constructed by transistors T2 and T3, respectively. The transistors T2 and T3 are coupled to each other in series and controlled by the control signals CTR1 and CTR2 respectively. The switch 310 and the switch 320 can be used as a charging switch and a discharging switch, respectively.

Next, please refer to FIG. 4 , which is a schematic diagram of a power supply device according to another embodiment of the present invention. The power supply device 400 includes a controller 410 , a switch pack 420 , a battery pack 430 , a discharge circuit 440 , a circuit breaker 450 , a current sensor 460 and a connector 470 . Different from the power supply device 100 of the previous embodiment, the power supply device 400 of the present embodiment further includes a connector 470 . The connector 470 is coupled to the load terminals LE1 and LE2, and is used for connecting a load (eg, an electronic device). In addition, the connector 470 can further have an information transmission end ITE, and can be coupled to the controller 410 through the information transmission end ITE. The controller 410 may provide a message IFO (such as the aforementioned alarm message, or other types of various messages) to the load through the information transmission end ITE.

On the other hand, in this embodiment, the controller 410 has an embedded storage device 411 . The storage device 411 can be used to store the related information such as the first temperature value, the second temperature value, the first voltage value, the second voltage value, the third voltage value, and the fourth voltage value mentioned in the foregoing embodiments. The storage device 411 can be constructed by any form of memory circuit without specific limitation.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the storage device 411 may also be constructed in a form external to the controller 410 .

To sum up, the present invention provides a discharge circuit, and when the temperature state and voltage state of the battery pack of the power supply device fall within an unsafe range, the discharge circuit is used to discharge the battery pack to reduce the voltage of the battery pack value. It can effectively reduce the risk of expansion of the battery pack and improve the safety of the system.

Although the present invention has been disclosed as above with examples, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Anyone with ordinary knowledge in the technical field can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The protection scope of the present invention shall be determined by the scope of the appended patent application.

100, 400‧‧‧Power supply device 110, 410‧‧‧Controller 120, 300, 420‧‧‧Switch group 130, 430‧‧‧Battery group 140, 200, 440‧‧‧Discharging circuit 150, 450‧‧ ‧Disconnecting elements 160, 460‧‧‧Current sensor 470‧‧‧Connector 310, 320‧‧‧Switch 411‧‧‧Storage device CTR, CTR1, CTR2‧‧‧Control signal DCTR‧‧‧Discharge control signal LE1 , LE2‧‧‧Load terminals T1, T2, T3‧‧‧Transistor RA1‧‧‧Discharging resistor RA2‧‧‧Resistor GND‧‧‧Reference ground terminal ITE‧‧‧Information transmission terminal IFO‧‧‧Message

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a power supply device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of a discharge circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of a switch group according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a power supply device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

100‧‧‧Power Supply Unit

110‧‧‧Controller

120‧‧‧Switch group

130‧‧‧battery pack

140‧‧‧Discharge circuit

150‧‧‧circuit breaker

160‧‧‧Current Sensor

CTR‧‧‧Control Signal

DCTR‧‧‧discharge control signal

LE1, LE2‧‧‧Load side

Claims (13)

A power supply device, comprising: a battery pack; a switch pack coupled between the battery pack and a first load terminal, controlled by a control signal to be turned on or off; a controller coupled to the battery the battery pack and the switch pack, the controller detects a temperature state and a voltage state of the battery pack, and generates the control signal and a discharge control signal; and a discharge circuit, coupled to the battery pack and the controller, according to the The discharge control signal discharges the battery pack, wherein the controller generates the discharge control signal according to the temperature state and the voltage state, wherein the controller detects the battery pack in a first detection time interval When the temperature state of the battery pack continues to be no less than a first temperature value, and the voltage state of the battery pack continues to be no less than a first voltage value, the controller generates the discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to discharge the battery pack. , wherein in the first detection time interval, the controller detects that the temperature state of the battery pack continues to be no less than a second temperature value, and when the voltage state of the battery pack continues to be no less than a second voltage value, The discharge control signal is generated to drive the discharge circuit to discharge the battery pack, the second temperature value is greater than the first temperature value, and the second voltage value is less than the first voltage value. The power supply device as described in claim 1, wherein the controller detects a second detection time interval, the temperature state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the first temperature value, and the battery pack is When the voltage state is continuously lower than a third voltage value, the controller generates the discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to stop discharging the battery pack, wherein the third voltage value is lower than the first voltage value. The power supply device of claim 1, wherein the controller detects a second detection time interval, the temperature state of the battery pack is continuously lower than the second temperature value, and the battery pack is When the voltage state is continuously lower than a third voltage value, the controller generates the discharge control signal to drive the discharge circuit to stop discharging the battery pack, wherein the third voltage value is lower than the second voltage value. The power supply device according to claim 3, further comprising: a storage device coupled to the controller for storing the first temperature value, the second temperature value, the first voltage value and the first temperature value Two voltage values. The power supply device as described in claim 1, wherein the controller detects a duration during which the discharging circuit performs the discharging operation, and stops the discharging of the discharging circuit when the duration is greater than a predetermined threshold value action. The power supply device as described in claim 5, wherein the predetermined threshold value is 24 hours. The power supply device as described in claim 1, wherein the discharge circuit comprises: a switch controlled by the discharge control signal to be turned on or off; and a discharge resistor coupled in series with the switch between the battery pack and a reference ground terminal, wherein when the switch responds to the discharge control signal to When turned on, the discharge circuit provides a discharge current to discharge the battery pack. The power supply device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the switch comprises: a transistor coupled in series between the battery pack and the reference ground terminal, and a control terminal of the transistor receives the discharge control signal. The power supply device of claim 1, further comprising: a current sensor, coupled in series between the battery pack and a second load terminal, and coupled to the controller for sensing current between the battery pack and the second load terminal. The power supply device of claim 1, further comprising: a circuit breaker, coupled in series between the battery pack and the switch pack, for cutting off the charging and discharging paths of the battery pack. The power supply device of claim 1, further comprising: a connector coupled to the first load terminal, a second load terminal and the controller for connecting to a load. The power supply device of claim 11, wherein the connector further provides an information transmission end, the information transmission end is coupled to the controller, wherein the controller transmits and receives information through the information transmission end . The power supply device of claim 1, wherein the switch group comprises: a first transistor; and a second transistor, wherein the first transistor and the second transistor are coupled in series Between the first load terminal and the battery pack, the first transistor and the second transistor are coupled to the controller, and are respectively controlled by a first control signal and a second control signal to be turned on or off open.

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