TW201521326A - Power management method, apparatus and chip and non-transitory computer readable recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

According to one exemplary embodiment, a power management method for electro-chemical batteries in low capacity state is provided, including: obtaining battery information based on device hardware, to know in advance the maximum allowable current and maximum allowable power when the battery power is low; by detecting the changes in the voltage versus current, updating BCC curve; using BCC curve as power budget to control the ON/OFF of device function thread; and determining whether the minimum battery capacity and the control restriction are reached, and when the minimum battery capacity and the control restriction are reached, turn off the battery through normal shutdown process; otherwise, return to the step of obtaining battery information.

Description

Power management methods, devices and wafers, and non-transitory computer readable recording media

The present disclosure relates to a power management method, apparatus and chip, and a non-transitory Computer Readable Recording Medium.

Even with the development and popularization of portable information and communication technology (ICT) devices, such as smart phones and tablets, when the battery power is reduced, the system suddenly crashes due to power cutoff. rare. The main reason for this power cut is that the "polarization loss" and the "impedance" associated with the lithium ion battery become very high when the state of charge (SoC) becomes low. Performing the same power/surge fluctuations caused by executing different programs and functions on the ICT device can cause greater voltage fluctuations in the low phase of the SoC of the battery. When the voltage fluctuation reaches a low voltage threshold, the battery low voltage protection mechanism will be activated to turn off the power. This situation is particularly noticeable in aging batteries because the impedance of the aging battery increases, so the voltage fluctuations of the low SoC will be greater, which in turn will result in a reduction. Less preparation time for correct data storage and system shutdown in the ICT system. Most current power management methods are based on electrical and electronic considerations, and the Battery Characteristic Curve (BCC) is based on the electrochemical characteristics of the battery shown in the first figure. BCC converts electrochemical properties into a common electronic control domain (Potential-Capacity Domain) to perform quantitative and simple control algorithms. BCC is particularly useful in low state SoCs when Concentration Polarization Loss is high.

The conventional problem with current battery states of electronic devices in low-capacity states is that power surges that may occur during operation can cause the system to shut down before the remaining battery capacity of the low-capacity battery is used. Current power management techniques are designed to limit the user's ability to consume a large amount of power to extend the life of the electronic device when the battery is low. However, such limitations can be extremely inconvenient when power is limited, as users often have to use features that consume more power, such as making calls, sending emails with attachments, and so on. At the high point of power consumption, if there is no other effective management, the battery in the low-capacity state may be forced to start the battery protection circuit and shut off the system without warning, because the threshold defined by the minimum safe voltage is reached. However, when a function is started, the high point of power consumption often occurs. Therefore, starting an important function often results in peak power consumption exceeding the safety threshold, and the power supply must be turned off prematurely. As a result, the remaining capacity of the battery is not used properly, even if the remaining power is sufficient to extend the operation of the system. Features.

The present disclosure provides a method of detecting a threshold when the polarization loss of a battery begins to increase significantly. The method is also adapted to the adjustment of the aging of the battery.

The present disclosure provides a power management method that can be used in a low capacity state electrochemical cell. The power management method is based on BCC, which reflects the boundary line of the battery in a low capacity state before the battery polarization rises significantly. The power management method also provides an adaptive method that can be adjusted as the battery ages and is applicable to any battery-powered device, such as an electric car, a 3C device, and the like. Through the power consumption of each functional component in the control device, the method may stop certain function threads or initiate (or maintain) some functions.

An embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to a power management method for adapting an electronic device to a plurality of electrochemical cells in a low-capacity state, the electronic device capable of performing a plurality of functions, and at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells Electrochemical cells have a minimum battery capacity. The method may include: acquiring a plurality of battery information, the maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power when the at least one electrochemical battery is in the low capacity state; Updating a battery characteristic curve (BCC) by detecting a change of current with respect to a current; using the battery characteristic curve Whether any of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and the control terminates or continues the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached, and no function is available When terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned.

Another embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to a non-transitory computer readable recording medium for storing one or more programs. The one or more programs are executed by a processing unit: acquiring a plurality of battery information of at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells, the plurality of battery information including when the at least one electrochemical battery is in a low capacity state a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; updating a battery characteristic curve by detecting a change in voltage with respect to the current; using the battery characteristic curve, determining the plurality Whether any of the functions in the function can be terminated, and the control terminates or continues the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached and no function can be terminated Turning off the at least one electrochemical cell; otherwise, returning to the step of acquiring the plurality of battery information.

Yet another embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to a power management apparatus including a processing unit and a memory. The processing unit is configured to: obtain a plurality of battery information of at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells, the plurality of battery information including a maximum allowable current when the at least one electrochemical cell is in a low capacity state With a maximum allowable power, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; updating a battery characteristic curve by detecting a change in voltage with respect to current; using the battery characteristic curve to determine whether any of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and the control is terminated or continued The plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached, and none of the functions can be terminated, turning off the at least one electrochemical cell; otherwise, returning to obtain the plurality of battery information step.

Yet another embodiment of the present disclosure is directed to a power management wafer including one or more integrated circuits configured to process: acquiring at least one of a plurality of electrochemical cells Pen battery information, the plurality of battery information includes a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power when the at least one electrochemical cell is in a low capacity state, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; Detecting a change in voltage with respect to current, updating a battery characteristic curve; using the battery characteristic curve, determining whether any one of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and controlling to terminate or continue the execution on the electronic device a plurality of functions; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached and none of the functions can be terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned.

According to the above power management method, device and chip, and non-transitory computer readable recording medium, the disclosed embodiment can use BCC for dynamic current/power budget to more accurately control the power consumption of the electronic device; And update the BCC; and use a new algorithm to modulate the total A total discharge current; three types of power (peak power, occasional surge power, and offset power) are defined as the algorithm used. basis. This algorithm can tolerate the maximum power peaks used by other power management algorithms.

The above and other features of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings, detailed description of the embodiments, and claims.

201‧‧‧Supply voltage

202‧‧‧ Current

203‧‧‧Power consumption

USB‧‧‧Universal Serial Bus

CCMA‧‧‧Cloud Computing Application

I/O‧‧‧ Input/Output

3G‧‧‧3rd Generation Mobile Communication Technology

301‧‧‧Get battery information

302‧‧‧ by detecting the change in voltage with respect to current and updating a battery characteristic curve (BCC)

303‧‧‧ Use this BCC curve as the power budget to control the function of the device Start/close

304‧‧‧ Determine whether a minimum battery capacity and a control limit are reached

305‧‧‧ Turn off the battery with a normal shutdown procedure

The discharge curve of 401‧‧‧2.4 watts

402‧‧‧8.9 watt discharge curve

403‧‧‧Variable voltage threshold control line

404‧‧‧Fixed voltage threshold control line

501‧‧‧V-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 0.2 amps (curve)

502‧‧‧V-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 1 amp (curve)

503‧‧‧V-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 2 amps (curve)

504‧‧‧V-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 4 amps (curve)

505‧‧‧V-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 6 amps (curve)

506‧‧‧P-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 0.2 amps (curve)

507‧‧‧P-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 1 amp (curve)

508‧‧‧P-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 2 amps (curve)

509‧‧‧P-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 4 amps (curve)

510‧‧‧P-I-Ah surface model, discharge current: 6 amps (curve)

601‧‧‧BCC curve

knee_A, knee_B, knee_C‧‧‧ knees

701‧‧‧Voltage (curve)

702‧‧‧ Current (curve)

703‧‧‧Power (curve)

△V/△I‧‧‧ impedance

1001‧‧‧The battery is in a discharged state

1002‧‧‧Read battery information

1003‧‧‧Found △V/△ in the middle volume region during the ith discharge

1004‧‧‧ Find the knee point corresponding to △V/△I

1005‧‧‧ Found a new knee point?

1006‧‧‧Recalculating BCC curves

1007‧‧‧ Calculate current budget and power budget

1008‧‧‧Executing control functions based on current budget and power budget

1101‧‧‧Determines whether the current power supply capacity is sufficient to activate the priority K function

1102‧‧‧From the function with the lowest priority, calculate the sum of the offset powers of all the functions with a lower priority than K

1103‧‧‧Determines whether the sum of the available current/power capacity and the calculated offset power is greater than the occasional surge power of the target function with K

1106‧‧‧Cancel the start of function

1107‧‧‧End of function

1108‧‧‧Start function

1201‧‧‧ voltage curve (with BCC)

1202‧‧‧ Current curve (with BCC)

1203‧‧‧ voltage curve (without BCC)

1204‧‧‧ Current curve (without BCC)

1205‧‧‧BCC control line

The first figure is a schematic diagram of the polarization curve of a typical battery, including the IR drop, the activation polarization, and the concentration polarization of the cell.

The second figure is a schematic diagram illustrating the rate consumption caused by a power surge during a 3G mobile phone call in an actual situation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The third figure is a power management method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, which is adapted to an electrochemical battery in a low capacity state.

The fourth figure illustrates the characteristics of the battery in a low capacity state in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The fifth figure is a battery discharge curve model according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein (a) VI-Ah features, (b) V-Ah features, (c) PI-Ah features, (d) P-Ah feature.

The sixth figure is an illustration of determining a BCC curve according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. intention.

The seventh figure is a schematic diagram of V-I-Ah for discharging a battery in a practical application in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The eighth figure is a schematic diagram for determining the BCC curve by sampling the rate of change of ΔV/ΔI according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The ninth figure is a schematic diagram showing the BCC curve obtaining I-Ah and P-Ah by V-Ah according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein (a) a schematic diagram of the BCC curve in the V-Ah domain, and (b) BCC A schematic diagram of the curve in the I-Ah domain, and (c) a schematic representation of the BCC curve in the P-Ah domain.

The tenth figure is a flow chart illustrating a power management method including the step of updating the BCC curve in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The eleventh diagram is a flowchart illustrating an execution control step of executing a function based on a current budget and a power budget, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The twelfth figure is a schematic diagram showing the result of the adjustment of the operating frequency of the CPU based on the BCC curve according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The thirteenth diagram is a schematic diagram showing the performance of the operating frequency adjustment of the CPU based on the BCC curve according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Hereinafter, the embodiments according to the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, which will be readily understood by those skilled in the art. The inventive concept described above may take a variety of variations, and should not be limited to only these embodiments. The disclosure omits the description of a well-known part, and the same reference number is represented in the disclosure. The same components.

The second figure is a schematic diagram illustrating power consumption caused by a power surge during a 3G mobile phone call in an actual situation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in the second figure, the supplied voltage 201, the current 202, and the power consumption 203 represent three measured parameters: P _peak represents the peak power of the function, which is in a function The power peak during the execution period is related to the use of the highest power, as shown in (1) in the second figure; the P _{occasional surge} represents the power associated with some occasional peaks during the execution of a function. , as shown in (2) in the second figure; and P _offset refers to the power offset when a function is turned off, as shown in (3) of the second figure, the supplied voltage (supplied voltage) 201, current 202, and power consumption 203 represent three measured parameters: the peak power _Ppeak represents the peak power of the function, which is used during the execution of a function with a highest power ( The highest power usage) is related to a power peak, as shown in (1) in the second figure; occasionally, the peak P _{occasional surge} represents a period of time during which a function is executed, related to some occasional peaks (occasional peaks). Power, as shown in the second figure (2); and the offset power P _offset represents a power _offset when a function is turned off, as shown in (3) of the second figure. The peak power of this function usually occurs when a function is started. Some of the occasional peaks of a function are often spikes that occur occasionally during the execution of a function. This type of power surge peak is higher than the nominal power, but the period of occurrence is shorter. The offset power can be considered as an additional power allowance when a function is turned off. This power allowance can then be used by other functions.

The third figure is a power management method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, which is adapted to an electrochemical battery in a low capacity state. As shown in the third figure, the power management method acquires battery information (step 301), for example, based on the battery information of the device hardware, to know in advance the maximum allowable current and the maximum allowable power of the battery when the battery is low; Changing the voltage with respect to the current, and updating a battery characteristic curve (BCC) curve (step 302); using the BCC curve as a power budget to control the on/off of the device function thread (step 303); A minimum battery capacity and a control limit are reached (step 304); and when the minimum battery capacity and control limit are reached, the battery is turned off in a normal shutdown procedure (step 305); otherwise, the step of obtaining battery information is returned (step 301).

In step 302, the update of the BCC curve is performed regardless of the condition of the battery; in other words, the battery is aged, or the old battery is replaced with a new battery, etc., and the BCC curve is updated. Moreover, three types of power-related parameters are defined for the power consumption of each functional component (execution function) in a device, so that the device can control the hardware according to the maximum allowable current and the maximum allowable power to perform important functions. thread. Accordingly, the power management method of the present disclosure enables the device to perform more functions than without using the power management method.

The power management method of the low capacity state electrochemical cell according to the disclosed embodiment is based on the electrochemical characteristics of the battery and the distribution of electrical power. As shown in the fourth figure, there are two constant power discharge curves (2.4 watt discharge curve 401 and 8.9 watt discharge curve 402). When the battery power of the device is to be used up, the battery is controlled to discharge above a knee point of the BCC curve in the V-Ah domain, wherein the knee point is defined as this BCC curve. One point, the slope of the point changes much more than other neighboring points. This BCC curve can also be mapped to the I-Ah domain or the P-Ah domain, as shown in the ninth figure, which will be described later. This BCC can be used as a current budget (in the I-Ah domain) or as a power budget for power modulation (in the P-Ah domain) so that the device can perform important functions with greater power consumption. .

The BCC curve in the power management method in accordance with the disclosed embodiments may be an extension of the technique disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0133331, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The voltage versus discharge capacity domain (V-Ah). In the present disclosure, the BCC curve extends to a current versus discharge capacity domain (I-Ah) and a power versus discharge capacity domain (P-Ah), and thus is relatively easy. Used by power management circuits. In other words, in the present disclosure, this BCC curve is represented in the V-Ah domain, the I-Ah domain, and the P-Ah domain. By means of the BCC of the I-Ah domain or the BCC of the P-Ah domain, the device can The maximum allowable current and the maximum allowable power are known in advance, both of which are related to the amount of State of Charge (SoC). In contrast, the current technology is to fix the maximum allowable current/power at a selected value or to reduce the current according to the operating temperature of the battery, and according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, a program is used to calculate the operating temperature of the battery. Define the change in current or decrease the current. The change in current/power relative to the SoC of the battery is defined in accordance with the disclosed one-of-a-kind program to obtain a corresponding amount referenced to the system and for battery discharge control. The device automatically searches for and updates the BCC curve during battery discharge. Therefore, the power management method can avoid an improper shutdown of the system due to a power consumption surge, and can perform more functions.

The following is a theoretical basis for the steps of knowing the maximum allowable current and the maximum allowable power in advance.

Different batteries exhibit different discharge characteristics. The fifth figure is a battery discharge curve model formed by two or more different discharge curves in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(c), an interpolation function, or other curve fitting method, and intelligent reasoning method can be used to establish the VI-capacity of the battery. (Ah) and PI-capacity (Ah) surface model. This 3D model is then projected to the V-Ah plane (fifth (b) map), the I-Ah plane, and the P-Ah plane (fifth (d) map), respectively, and the BCC curve can be represented by a simple linear function. . In the V-I-Ah surface model shown in the fifth (a) and fifth (b), there are five curves representing Different discharge currents: 0.2 amps (curve 501), 1 amp (curve 502), 2 amps (curve 503), 4 amps (curve 504), and 6 amps (curve 505). Also, in the PI-Ah surface model, there are five curves representing different discharge currents: 0.2 amps (curve 506), 1 amp (curve 507), 2 amps (curve 508), 4 amps (curve 509), and 6 Ampere (curve 510).

In the V-Ah domain of the sixth and ninth (a) figures, the soft-limit voltage curve suggested in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0133331 is: V = f(Ah) = a _v ×Ah+b _v

In the I-Ah field of the ninth (b) diagram, the soft limit current budget curve proposed at low power according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is: I = f (Ah) = a _I × Ah + b _I

In the P-Ah domain of the ninth (c) diagram, the soft-restricted power budget curve proposed in the present disclosure at low power is: P = f(Ah) = a _P × Ah + b _P

Therefore, the current and power of the battery at a specific capacity and a specific voltage state can be obtained by the above equation.

In step 302, the device automatically searches for and updates the BCC curve. The key to automatically updating the BCC curve is to search for V-Ah curves, I-Ah curves, and The corresponding knee point on the P-Ah curve. The guide for searching for the knee point is to find a point at which the impedance (the impedance is defined as the ratio of the voltage change to the current change, that is, ΔV/ΔI) suddenly increases relatively when the discharge capacity of the battery increases. This can be observed by periodically checking ΔV/ΔI.

An embodiment is used below to describe how to find a knee point. By reading the relative change ratio of V and I in the V-I-Ah model, two endpoint values (ie, maximum current and minimum current) of the BCC curve when the limit is reached can be obtained. This result is reported to the device to enable the device to effectively use the capacity of the battery.

An experiment of constant current discharge as suggested by U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0133331 can then be used to establish the relationship between voltage and capacity at different discharge rates, as shown in the sixth figure. The discharge rate is usually expressed as C or C-rate to indicate that a discharge rate is equal to the capacity of a battery within one hour. For a 2 Ah cell with a discharge curve 501 of 0.1 C (0.2 amps) (as shown in Figure 6), the discharge time (from full charge to full empty state) is sufficient for about 10 hours. The discharge times corresponding to the discharge curves 502, 503, 504, and 505 are approximately two hours (0.5 C), one hour (1 C), 30 minutes (2 C), and 20 minutes (3 C), respectively. Similar relationship information can also be found in each discharge curve database. However, existing databases may not be suitable for practical applications. Also, these curves may change as the battery ages. And, within a specific temperature range (for example, 25 ° C ~ 30 ° C, or room temperature temperature for different climate regions) Range), real-time information on the non-constant current measurements of these discharge curves can be used to build a database. The minimum number of discharge curves required is 2. In other words, in this embodiment, the device needs to pass through the low volume area twice to be able to find the knee point.

The next step is to automatically search for the boundary of the nonlinear region during battery discharge (the turning point of V-Ah in the sixth figure). During actual operation, the battery discharge is a non-constant current (plot 702), resulting in fluctuations in voltage (plot 701) and power (plot 703), as shown in the seventh figure, and it is more difficult to find the BCC curve. However, as shown in the eighth figure, the rate of change of ΔV/ΔI can be used to find the turning point. Taking the eighth figure as an example, ΔV/ΔI in a minimum capacity region, for example 30% ± 20%, and ΔV/ΔI in a medium capacity region, for example 50% ± 30%, can be compared. For a point where ΔV/ΔI is higher than a threshold (for example, 10%), it can be selected as a knee point. In the eighth figure, this threshold is defined as 30%.

Then, using the plurality of selected ΔV/ΔI, the I-Ah BCC curve and the P-Ah BCC curve can be configured, wherein the following parameters a and b can be obtained by two turning points of the BCC curve. For example, in the sixth figure, knee_A and knee_B are selected. That is, the parameter a can be obtained by connecting the slopes of the BCC lines (curves 601) of knee_A and knee_B, and the parameter b can then be obtained by the following calculation: minimum voltage allowed = a _V × discharge capacity + b _V (description U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0133331), current budget = f _I (discharge capacity) = a _I × discharge capacity + b _I , power budget = f _P (discharge capacity) = a _P × discharge capacity + b _P .

Then, the relationship between the allowable discharge current and the discharge capacity is configured to obtain the ninth diagram. The easiest way is to select two values corresponding to two different currents in one straight line after selecting ΔV/△I: current budget = f _I (discharge capacity)

Another method is to connect two values corresponding to two different powers in one straight line: power budget = f _P (discharge capacity)

Finally, by reaching the knee point during battery discharge (which may be a non-constant power discharge), using the sixth, seventh, and ninth diagrams as an example, a new one can be found by knowing knee_A and knee_B. knee_C. The newly discovered knee_C can be used as an update point. By connecting this update point with the aforementioned known knee_B, a new BCC curve can be obtained.

The tenth figure is a flow chart illustrating a power management method including the step of updating the BCC curve in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. When considering the battery aging and the ΔV/ΔI value of the new battery corresponding to the old battery is compared in different SoCs, the ΔV/ΔI of the old battery will increase significantly at different SoCs. Therefore, this comparison is made during the discharge and in the middle of the SoC, and the degree of increase of ΔV/ΔI is used as a reference threshold for finding the knee point. As shown in the tenth step, the steps 1001 is to put the battery in a discharged state. Step 1002 is to read battery information. Step 1003 is to find ΔV/ΔI in the intermediate capacity region during the ith discharge. Step 1004 is to find a knee point corresponding to ΔV/ΔI. In step 1005, when a new knee point is found, proceed to step 1006; otherwise, return to step 1003. Step 1006 is to recalculate the BCC curve. Step 1007 is to calculate the current budget and power budget, and step 1008 is to perform the function execution control based on the current budget and the power budget.

In step 1002, the battery information includes voltage (V), current (I), discharge capacity, temperature or a count of the discharge process "i", and the like. In step 1003, the medium volume region may be selected, for example, 50% ± 30%, and the corresponding ΔV / ΔI is recorded. A plurality of comparisons were made by observing ΔV/ΔI during discharge and ΔV/ΔI selected in step 1003. When the comparison result exceeds a threshold, for example, 10%, it is indicated that a knee point knee_i is found during the i-th discharge. In step 1006, a new BCC curve is established by connecting the new knee point to the previous knee point knee_i-1 or even a plurality of more forward knee points. In step 1007, a set of parameters, such as voltage, current, power, discharge capacity, temperature, etc., can be found from knee_i and compared to the knee point knee_i-1 parameter of the previous (i-1th) discharge process. A linear equation on the V-Ah plane, the I-Ah plane, and the P-Ah plane can be formed, and the lower limit of the voltage, the upper limit of the current, and the upper limit of the power can be obtained from these equations.

Referring to the fourth figure, when the low-capacity state of the battery is analyzed to find the voltage threshold control mechanism (ie, the BCC curve) of the battery in the low-capacity state, the mechanism may be (1) the variable voltage threshold control line 403 or (2) One of the foregoing two of the fixed voltage threshold control lines 404; wherein the variable voltage threshold control is the BCC curve, and its appropriate control curve can be found near the knee point in the V-Ah diagram. Taking a battery with a minimum allowable voltage of 2.8V as an example, when the battery is discharged according to the control curve, the maximum allowable power is P _{max allowable} . Taking the 3G mobile phone call in the second figure as an example, the peak power, occasional surge power, and offset power of other functions are also measured, and a priority list is listed to determine the function. Control to reduce power consumption so that the power released due to the terminated function can be allowed to be used by functions with higher priority. Therefore, in step 1006 of the tenth figure, the apparatus can operate stably even when the battery is in a low capacity state. On the other hand, users have more flexibility to manage the execution of the function thread through the priority list executed by the function thread.

The power consumption load mode of each function in the device of the second figure, the V-Ah diagram of the battery of the sixth figure, the previously obtained BCC control data stored in the storage device, and the battery information during operation ( Measurements of voltage, current, capacity, temperature, etc., the device can control the on/off of the function to reduce the battery when the battery is low (ie, with limited power budget and limited current budget). Provide more convenience to users.

An eleventh diagram is based on an embodiment of the present disclosure, illustrating a current budget based on The power budget is a flowchart of the execution control step 1008 of the function. Taking a function with priority K(=3) as an example, as shown in FIG. 11, step 1101 is a function for determining whether the current power supply capacity is sufficient to activate the priority order K (=3); When the capacity is sufficient, step 1108 is continued to initiate the function; otherwise, step 1102 is performed. Steps 1102 to 1105 start from the function with the lowest priority order and calculate the sum of the offset powers of all the functions whose priority order is lower than K(=3). For example, if there are 9 priority levels and 8 is the lowest priority level, the offset power sum of the function level of 4 to 8 is calculated. In step 1102, the calculation of the sum of the offset powers begins with all of the functions of the lowest priority level (ie, 8) until the priority level (8-j). In an embodiment, the initial value of the parameter j is set to zero. Step 1103 is to determine if the available current/power capacity and the sum of the offset powers calculated in step 1102 are greater than the occasional surge power of the target function thread with K(=3); when available current/power When the sum of the capacity and the offset power calculated in step 1102 is greater than the occasional surge power of the target function with K (=3), step 1107 is continued to terminate all the functions in step 1102, and then the target function is activated. As shown in step 1108; otherwise, step 1104 is performed. Step 1104 is to include all of the functions with the next higher priority level (incremented by 1 iteration). Step 1105 is to determine whether the priority level of the function in the calculation reaches the priority level of the target function. When the priority level of the function in the calculation is still lower than the priority level of the target function, return to step 1102; otherwise, continue to step 1106 to cancel The target function is started because even if all functions with a lower priority level than the target function are terminated, it is still not enough to release enough power capacity to start the target function.

According to an experiment, the power management method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure enables the device to start more functions, as explained below: when the battery is discharged along the BCC curve, the battery voltage is adjusted to a higher level due to the battery capacity reduction. The level is reduced, and the current decreases as the battery capacity decreases. It can be reasonably inferred that a battery operating in this manner has the characteristic of tolerating the occurrence of peak power, especially when the battery is near its low capacity state, its concentration polarization leads to an increase in impedance. A small current fluctuation causes a large voltage response compared to the medium capacity region. In other words, ΔV/ΔI will increase rapidly. Increasing the operating voltage (and decreasing current) of the battery at low battery capacity provides the following characteristics: When determining whether a function can be started, occasional surge power is taken into account, rather than being considered only in the prior art. The maximum peak power is used to decide whether to activate a function. Therefore, the stability of the system according to the disclosed embodiment is more robust than the prior art.

System status: Allowable power = 2.5W (according to the previous BCC budget); The power consumption consumption table is as follows:

The system currently performs functions #2 and #3, and is scheduled to start function line #1.

Step 1102: Calculate the sum of the offset powers of the function of the lower priority level (priority level ≧2) (1W+0.8W=1.8W); Step 1103: Compare the calculated 1.8W (step 1002) with the permission The sum of power (=2.5W) and the occasional surge power of function #1: 2.5W: 1.8W+2.5W≧ the occasional surge power of function #1; steps 1104 and 1105: the low priority that must be terminated The minimum number of functions such as order. In this example, function #3 needs to be terminated; step 1107: terminate function #3 (release 0.8W power + 2.5W = 3.3W > 2.8W); step 1108: start function #1. (At this time, the system allows power = 0.5W).

To restart function #3, the device needs to go through the above procedure. However, Function #3 cannot be turned on because of insufficient power budget. The final result is to execute function #1 and function #2.

In contrast, the existing power management method only considers the maximum peak power consumption. When the system power supply still maintains 2.5W, the function #1 cannot add an additional 1W+ by turning off the function #2 and the function #3. The 0.8W power supply is activated.

Moreover, the operating frequency of the CPU can also be adjusted according to the BCC power budget. As shown in Fig. 12, by using the known BCC curve 1205, as the discharge capacity increases, the current and voltage are reduced. The hardware mechanism that can be reduced is the operating frequency of the CPU, 1200MHz, 920MHz, 700MH, 350MHz, etc., as shown in the function power consumption table above. These four frequencies can be regarded as different functions, with the highest frequency of 1200MHz being the lowest priority level, and the lowest frequency of 350MHz with the highest priority order. The CPU consumes less power when operating at lower frequencies. When the BCC control current (curve 1202) and voltage (curve 1201) of the battery are higher than the system power consumption level at the current time, the device starts to terminate the frequency setting of the lowest priority level, and the operating frequency of the CPU is Adjust the only lower frequency. In other words, the maximum operating frequency of the CPU is limited. When the battery is not controlled by BCC, its voltage (curve 1203) and current (curve 1204) behavior will cause the system to operate less than when the BCC is controlled. The following tests illustrate the control from having BCC The result of the device for adjusting the budget power and the device without the BCC control budget power adjustment, as shown in the thirteenth figure. Since the clock of the CPU is discrete, the adjustment of power consumption can only initially and approximately follow the BCC power budget. Even with this limited adjustment, when the system is at the last 30% of the generation capacity, the device with BCC control budget power adjustment (as shown in Figure 11) can extend the usage time by nearly 20% and Execute more than 20% of the number of functions.

Because the BCC control power budget adjustment is a soft limit, the deviation curve does not cause the battery management module to cut the battery power hard.

Embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure have the following characteristics: (1) When the battery is in a low capacity state and cannot provide sufficient output power, the method allows the device to calculate the maximum allowable power consumption, and to use the priority order level of the function, peak power Occasionally, the power of the surge, and the offset power to determine whether a new function can be started or whether the function should be terminated; (2) The maximum allowable output estimated by this method can quantify the battery in a low-capacity state. The maximum allowable rate is consumed, and the device can use the remaining power in the battery by controlling the execution of the function; and (3) can be applied to any device driven by the battery.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer readable recording medium for storing one or more programs is provided. One or more programs make one The processing unit performs the method of the present disclosure.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a power management apparatus includes a processing unit and a memory. The processing unit is configured to perform the steps described in the above embodiments.

Another embodiment of the present disclosure provides a power management chip including one or more integrated circuits configured to process the functions described in the above embodiments.

The above is only the embodiment according to the disclosure, and the scope of the disclosure is not limited thereto. That is, the equivalent changes and modifications made by the scope of the patent application should remain within the scope of the disclosure.

301‧‧‧Get battery information

302‧‧‧ by detecting the change in voltage with respect to current and updating a battery characteristic curve (BCC)

303‧‧‧ Use this BCC curve as the power budget to control the on/off of the device function

304‧‧‧ Determine whether a minimum battery capacity and a control limit are reached

305‧‧‧ Turn off the battery with a normal shutdown procedure

Claims (13)

A power management method for adapting an electronic device to a plurality of electrochemical cells in a low-capacity state, the electronic device capable of performing a plurality of functions, and at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells having a minimum capacity The method includes: obtaining a plurality of battery information, where the plurality of battery information includes a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power when the at least one electrochemical battery is in the low capacity state; and updating by detecting a change in voltage with respect to current a battery characteristic curve; determining, by the battery characteristic curve, whether any one of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and controlling to terminate or continue the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the The minimum battery capacity, and without any of the functions being terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned. The method of claim 1, wherein the power consumption of each function of the plurality of functions is represented by a function peak power, at least one occasional surge power, and an offset power; wherein The peak power of the function is a highest power usage when the function is executed, and the at least one occasional surge power refers to at least one occasional peak occurring when the function is executed, and the offset power is a reference to stop performing the function. A power offset of the time. The method of claim 1, wherein the battery characteristic curve is expressed in a voltage versus discharge capacity domain, a current versus discharge capacity domain, and a power versus discharge capacity domain. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of functions has a priority level, and the method releases the power by terminating a running function having a lower priority level To initiate a function with a higher priority level. The method of claim 1, wherein the battery characteristic curve is used to determine whether any one of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and the control terminates or continues to execute the plurality of functions on the electronic device. The step of the function further includes: determining whether a current power capacity is sufficient to initiate a first function with a priority level, and when a current power capacity is sufficient, starting the first function, otherwise, the search has The first function lowers a second function of the priority level and terminates the second function to release power; and repeats the previous step until the current power capacity is sufficient to activate the first function or is lower than All functions of the priority level of the first function have been terminated. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of updating the battery characteristic curve by detecting a change in voltage with respect to the current further comprises finding a knee point, wherein the finding the knee point further comprises: at a current Looking for a current in an intermediate capacity region of the discharge process a change in voltage; and finding a corresponding point at which the voltage change with respect to the current exceeds a threshold, wherein the corresponding point becomes a knee point that is currently found. The method of claim 6, wherein the intermediate capacity region is between 20% and 80% of a fully charged state of the battery. The method of claim 6, wherein the threshold is at least 10% of a fully charged state of the battery. The method of claim 6, wherein the currently found knee point is connected to a previously discovered knee point for updating the battery characteristic curve to successively control the plurality of functions. The method of claim 9, wherein the current budget is determined based on the battery characteristic curve connecting the currently found knee point to the previously found knee point. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium for storing one or more programs, the one or more programs causing a processing unit to perform: acquiring a plurality of batteries of at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells Information, the plurality of battery information includes a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power when the at least one electrochemical cell is in a low capacity state, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; Updating a battery characteristic curve with respect to a change in current; determining, by the battery characteristic curve, whether any one of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and controlling to terminate or continue the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device Function; and When the minimum battery capacity is reached and no function can be terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned. A power management device includes a processing unit and a memory, the processing unit configured to: acquire a plurality of battery information of at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells, the plurality of battery information including when the at least one The electrochemical cell has a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power in a low capacity state, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; and a battery characteristic curve is updated by detecting a change in voltage with respect to the current; Using the battery characteristic curve, determining whether any of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and controlling to terminate or continue the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached, and When no function can be terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned. A power management chip, comprising one or more integrated circuits, the one or more integrated circuits configured to: obtain a plurality of battery information of at least one of the plurality of electrochemical cells, the plurality of battery information The method includes a maximum allowable current and a maximum allowable power when the at least one electrochemical cell is in a low capacity state, and the at least one electrochemical cell has a minimum battery capacity; and is updated by detecting a change in voltage with respect to current a battery characteristic curve; Using the battery characteristic curve, determining whether any of the plurality of functions can be terminated, and controlling to terminate or continue the plurality of functions performed on the electronic device; and when the minimum battery capacity is reached, and When no function can be terminated, the at least one electrochemical cell is turned off; otherwise, the step of obtaining the plurality of battery information is returned.