JP2005124310A - Secondary battery device and charger - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a secondary battery device which can present certainly information, such as a classification, a battery capacity of a built-in secondary battery and to provide a charger which can charge stably the secondary battery built in the secondary battery device based on information acquired from this secondary battery device. <P>SOLUTION: The secondary battery device includes a memory for storing the information (the classification, the battery capacity and the like) concerning a secondary battery, and an antenna for electromagnetically coupling between an external apparatus and the device, and further includes a communicating means for outputting the information stored in the memory through the antenna. The charger includes a reader for supplying a power energy (electromagnetic coupling energy) to the secondary battery device through the antenna and receiving the information outputted from the secondary battery device through the antenna, and a charge control means for controlling charging of the secondary battery by a charging power source by analyzing the information received by this reader. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a secondary battery device capable of reliably presenting information related to a secondary battery, and a charging device capable of stably charging this type of secondary battery.

  When charging secondary battery devices (so-called pack batteries) each containing a different type of secondary battery, it is necessary to charge under optimum conditions according to the type of battery, specifically the type and capacity of the battery. is there. For example, the optimum charging method differs between a nickel metal hydride battery or a nickel-cadmium storage battery and a lithium ion secondary battery. That is, in the case of an alkaline storage battery such as a nickel metal hydride battery or a nickel-cadmium storage battery, charging may be performed at a constant current and the charging may be stopped when the battery is fully charged. On the other hand, in the case of a battery that should be charged at a constant voltage, such as a lithium secondary battery or a lead battery, for example, the battery voltage is monitored while charging at a constant current, and when the battery voltage rises to a predetermined value, the charging current is It is necessary to reduce the battery voltage so that the battery voltage does not exceed a predetermined value. Furthermore, even if the battery type (type) is the same, the charging condition varies depending on the electric capacity.

Therefore, when charging multiple types of battery packs with different battery types and electrical capacities by sharing a single charger, the type of battery built into the battery pack is determined and the optimum conditions for each battery are determined. It becomes important to charge with.
Therefore, in order to determine the type of such a battery, it has been proposed to provide a mechanical unevenness depending on the type of battery in the outer case of the battery pack.

Also, a discrimination resistor having a resistance value corresponding to the type of battery is provided inside the battery pack, and on the charger side, the discrimination resistor is fixed to the discrimination resistor connected in series with the discrimination resistor. It is proposed to discriminate the type of battery by detecting a voltage divided by these resistances (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Furthermore, it is also proposed that an information transmission terminal is provided between the battery pack and the charger, and information such as the battery type is obtained from a memory previously incorporated in the battery pack via this terminal.
JP-A-2-299428

  However, the method of providing unevenness on the outer case is poor in reliability because it is necessary to mechanically determine the type of battery. In addition, since there is a limited space where unevenness can be provided, it becomes difficult to cope with the increase in the number of types of batteries. In addition, since it is necessary to prepare a case mold corresponding to the type of battery, there are problems such as high initial cost and complicated management of the case type during mass production.

  In the method using the discrimination resistor, the divided voltage changes depending on the voltage applied through the voltage dividing resistor, so that there is a possibility that the battery type is erroneously discriminated due to the fluctuation of the applied voltage. For this reason, it is necessary to set the accuracy of the discrimination resistor and the voltage dividing resistor sufficiently high, as well as sufficiently improve the stability of the applied voltage and further increase the voltage detection accuracy. As a result, there is a problem in that the cost required to determine the battery type increases. Furthermore, when a terminal for transmitting information is provided separately from the charge / discharge terminal of the secondary battery, there are problems that the cost increases with the increase in the number of terminals and that the battery pack size increases.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and its purpose is to ensure information such as the type of the built-in secondary battery and the battery capacity without incurring the problem of an increase in the number of terminals or an increase in size. It is providing the secondary battery apparatus which can be shown to.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a charging device capable of stably charging a secondary battery built in the secondary battery device based on the information obtained from the secondary battery device described above. .

In order to achieve the above-described object, the secondary battery device according to the present invention includes
(a) a secondary battery provided with a charging terminal;
(b) information relating to the secondary battery, for example, a memory storing information such as the type of secondary battery and battery capacity;
(c) A communication means that includes an antenna that electromagnetically couples with an external device, operates using the electromagnetic coupling energy received via the antenna as a power source, and outputs the information stored in the memory via the antenna It is characterized by comprising.

Moreover, the charging device according to the present invention includes:
(d) a charging power source having a charging terminal connected to the charging terminal of the secondary battery;
(e) An antenna that is electromagnetically coupled to an antenna provided in the secondary battery device is provided, and power energy (electromagnetic coupling energy) is supplied to the secondary battery device via the antenna, and the secondary battery device A reader for receiving information output from the antenna,
(f) It is characterized by comprising charging control means for analyzing information received by the reader and controlling charging of the secondary battery by the charging power source.

  According to the secondary battery device configured as described above, the communication unit that operates using the electromagnetic coupling energy supplied via the antenna as the power source transmits the information on the secondary battery stored in the memory in advance via the antenna. Therefore, it is possible to accurately present information such as the type and battery capacity related to the secondary battery without providing irregularities on the outer case of the secondary battery device or providing a terminal for information communication. Therefore, it is possible to effectively cope with an increase in the battery type, and there is no inconvenience such as an increase in the overall shape. For example, in a charging device, it is possible to accurately know information related to a secondary battery to be charged simply by receiving the above information, so that the secondary battery can be obtained in an optimum manner according to the battery type (model) and state. This makes it possible to charge the battery.

  Further, in the charging apparatus configured as described above, an optimum method for charging the secondary battery can be selected according to the information acquired from the secondary battery via the antenna, and can be stably charged. In addition, if information about the battery cannot be obtained from the secondary battery side, for example, the battery device whose charge is to be charged in this state can be prohibited as the primary battery. It is possible to prevent such a problem that the battery is unintentionally charged.

  In addition, since it is essentially different from conventional battery type identification by unevenness, it can sufficiently cope with diversification of battery type (model), and does not require extra terminals other than charging terminals, Effects such as not requiring a change in the basic structure of the battery can be achieved.

Hereinafter, a secondary battery device according to an embodiment of the present invention and a charging device used for charging a secondary battery device of this type will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a secondary battery device 10 and a charging device 20 according to this embodiment. The secondary battery device 10 includes a secondary battery 13 including a pair of charging terminals 11 and 12 as a main body, and further includes a secondary battery 13 such as a type (model) and a secondary battery capacity. The memory 14 which memorize | stored the information regarding the battery 13 is provided. The memory 14 may be a ROM (mask ROM, PROM, etc.) in which information is written in advance, or a ROM (for example, EEPROM, flash memory, etc.) capable of electrically rewriting the information. .

  Further, the secondary battery device 10 includes an antenna 15 that is electromagnetically coupled to the charging device 20 that is an external device, and the communication control unit 16 that is operated by being supplied with power from the charging device 20 side via the antenna 15. And an RF circuit 17. The communication control unit 16 constitutes a communication unit that reads out information stored in the memory 14 and transmits the information from the antenna 15 via the RF circuit 17. In particular, the memory 14, the communication control unit 16, and the RF circuit 17 described above are realized as a semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) integrated with the power supply unit 18, for example, and are connected to an external device (charging device 20) via the antenna 15. ) To operate using electromagnetic coupling energy as a power source.

  Specifically, the power supply unit 18 rectifies electromagnetic coupling energy obtained through the antenna 15 to generate a predetermined internal power supply. That is, the power supply unit 18 converts the electromagnetically induced energy using radio waves via the antenna 15 into a predetermined power, and uses this power as an internal power source. The memory 14, the communication control unit 16 as the communication means, and the RF circuit 17 are fed with the voltage generated by the power source unit 18 using the electromagnetic coupling energy supplied through the antenna 15 in this way as a power source. Thus, it operates independently of the secondary battery 13. When the power is supplied from the power supply unit 18, the communication control unit 16 reads out information stored in the memory 14 and gives it to the RF circuit 17. The RF circuit 17 is connected to the communication control unit 16. The information given from the signal is modulated and transmitted through the antenna 15.

  The information about the secondary battery 13 stored in the memory 14 includes, for example, the type (model) of the secondary battery 13 and the battery capacity, as well as the maximum charging current and maximum charging voltage, the charging control method, the control threshold, and the like. Become. Specifically, when the secondary battery 13 is a nickel metal hydride battery, the memory 14 includes, for example, a maximum charge current in addition to information indicating that the battery type is a nickel metal hydride battery and its battery capacity. 2A, the maximum charge voltage is 20V, and the charge control is performed by the -ΔV method, and information indicating that the charge is stopped when it is 50 mV lower than the peak voltage and the charge is stopped is encoded with respect to the secondary battery Stored as stored information. Such information is transmitted and output to the external device (charging device 20) via the antenna 15.

  On the other hand, the above-described charging device 20 for charging the secondary battery device 10 includes a charging power source including a pair of charging terminals 21 and 22 electrically connected to the charging terminals 11 and 12 of the secondary battery 13. 23. The charging power source 23 has a function of generating a predetermined DC voltage from the external commercial power source AC, the operation of which is controlled by a charging control unit 24 described later. In addition, the charging device 20 includes a reader 26 that outputs electromagnetic wave energy (power energy) to the outside via the antenna 25 and analyzes a signal received via the antenna 25 to acquire the information. . The above-described charging control unit 14 has a function of controlling the charging of the secondary battery 13 by the charging power source 23 according to the information obtained via the reader 26.

  In particular, the charging control unit 24 detects that the secondary battery device 10 is attached to the charging device 20 according to the information only when information about the secondary battery 13 is obtained via the reader 26. The charging of the secondary battery 13 is started according to the information acquired from the secondary battery device 10 side. That is, the antenna 25 of the charging device 20 and the antenna 15 of the secondary battery device 10 are opposed and electromagnetically coupled only when, for example, the secondary battery device 10 is mounted on the charging device 20 and arranged close to each other. Is provided. In this state, electromagnetic energy (power energy) is supplied from the charging device 20 side to the secondary battery device 10 side by electromagnetic coupling between the antennas 15 and 25, and information transmitted from the secondary battery device 10 side. Is supposed to be received. Therefore, in the charge control unit 24, when the information from the secondary battery device 20 side cannot be received, the secondary battery device 10 is not installed or a battery other than the secondary battery device 10 described above is installed. It is determined that When the information from the secondary battery device 10 side is acquired through the reader 26, the charging control unit 24 analyzes the information to analyze the type and capacity of the secondary battery 13 to be charged, and further charge the information. The secondary battery 13 is charged from the charging terminals 21 and 22 through the charging / discharging terminals 11 and 12 by analyzing the conditions and controlling the operation of the charging power source 23 according to the designated charging method. At this time, the charging control unit 24 executes the charging control by detecting the charging voltage of the secondary battery 13 through the charging terminals 21 and 22, for example.

  Thus, according to the secondary battery device 10 and the charging device 20 configured as described above, the charging device 20 provides information on the secondary battery 13 incorporated in the secondary battery device 10 in a non-contact manner with the secondary battery device 10. Since it can acquire, it can charge stably by the optimal charge system and charge condition according to the model (type) and battery capacity of the secondary battery 13. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a problem that the primary battery erroneously attached to the charging device 20 is unintentionally charged. Even if the secondary battery device 10 incorporating a nickel-metal hydride battery or nickel-cadmium storage battery and the secondary battery device 10 incorporating a lithium ion secondary battery are similar in appearance and size, these secondary batteries 13 This makes it possible to accurately determine the type of the battery and to perform charging using an optimum method according to the type.

  The information communication circuit including the antenna 15, the memory 14, the communication control unit 16, the RF circuit 17, and the power supply unit 18 can be realized as a one-chip IC as seen in an IC card. When these circuits are made into one chip IC, it is sufficient to embed them in the cylindrical positive electrode portion and negative electrode portion of the cylindrical battery as shown in FIG. 2, for example. Specifically, the one-chip IC 32 having the communication function described above is embedded inside the plus-side insulating plate 31 of the cylindrical secondary battery 30, or one chip is placed in the recess 34 provided on the minus-side can bottom 33. The embedded IC 32 may be embedded. At this time, the one-chip IC 32 may be coated with an adhesive or the like. In FIG. 2, 35 and 36 are a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate that are insulated and wound by a separator 37 and accommodated in a cylindrical can (negative electrode terminal) 38, and 39 indicates the cylindrical can 38 through a gasket 40. A sealed sealing plate 41 is a positive electrode cap. The hole 43 formed in the sealing plate 39 is closed by a vent 42 formed of an elastic material, and the cylindrical can 38 is covered with an insulating tube 44.

  Further, although not shown in particular, it is also possible to provide a one-chip IC 32 in the case of a square secondary battery. When the secondary battery 13 is covered with a plastic case, a one-chip IC 32 may be installed inside the case. When the case is made of metal, a recess provided on the metal surface is provided. The one-chip IC 32 may be installed in the first. Alternatively, a material such as a plastic that transmits electromagnetic waves may be provided in a part of the metal case, and the one-chip IC 32 may be installed inside the material.

  Further, the secondary battery device 10 may be equipped with a microcomputer to calculate learning capacity, remaining capacity, charge / discharge current, battery voltage, battery temperature, charge / discharge cycle, and the like, and store the information in the memory 14. . Then, by outputting these information to the charging device 20, the charging may be performed more efficiently. In this case, since power consumption increases, it is sufficient that power can be supplied also from the secondary battery 13. When there is a possibility that the charger 20 is disconnected from the device serving as the load of the secondary battery 13 or when the secondary battery 13 is floatingly charged, the charging terminals 11 and 12 of the secondary battery 13 are illustrated. You may share the discharge terminal which does not.

  Furthermore, a capacitor or inductance for storing the power supplied from the charging device 20 side may be added to the power supply unit 18 in order to ensure the power when transmitting and outputting the antenna 15 information via the RF circuit. Useful. Furthermore, information is communicated with the charging device 20 and information about the secondary battery 13 is output here. However, the secondary battery device 20 can be connected to an external device such as a mobile phone or a notebook computer that operates using the secondary battery device 20 as a power source. It is also possible to configure so as to output information.

  The information stored in the memory 14 includes battery type, nominal capacity, rated capacity, maximum charging voltage, maximum charging current, maximum battery temperature, maximum charging time, full charge control method and threshold, learning capacity, remaining capacity. The capacity, charge / discharge current, battery voltage, battery temperature, charge / discharge cycle, production lot, date of production, serial number, etc. may be determined according to the specifications. In addition, the present invention can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the scope of the invention.

The schematic block diagram of the secondary battery apparatus and charging device which concern on one Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the specific structural example of a secondary battery apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Secondary battery apparatus 13 Secondary battery 14 Memory 15 Antenna 16 Communication control part 17 RF circuit 20 Charging apparatus 23 Charging power supply 24 Charging control part 25 Antenna 26 Reader

Claims (2)

A secondary battery having a charging terminal;
A memory storing information about the secondary battery;
An antenna that electromagnetically couples to an external device, and a communication means that operates by being supplied with power through the antenna and outputs information stored in the memory via the antenna. Secondary battery device. A charging power source having a charging terminal connected to the charging terminal of the secondary battery;
An antenna that is electromagnetically coupled to an antenna provided in the secondary battery device according to claim 1, supplies power energy to the secondary battery device via the antenna, and outputs from the secondary battery device A reader for receiving the received information via the antenna;
A charging device comprising: charge control means for analyzing information received by the reader and controlling charging of the secondary battery by the charging power source.

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