KR-20260062447-A - Battery pack low/over voltage detection and protection device

Abstract

The present invention relates to a battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device that detects overvoltage or undervoltage of a battery pack independently without being dependent on the control of a microcontroller (MCU) and performs circuit protection operations, thereby enabling protection operations to be performed when the protection function cannot be performed due to an abnormality of the microcontroller (MCU). The device comprises: a voltage setting unit for setting a voltage to detect overvoltage or undervoltage of the charging and discharging voltage of a battery pack; an overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit that detects overvoltage or undervoltage based on the difference between the set voltage and a reference voltage set to detect overvoltage or undervoltage; a microcontroller (MCU) that operates a protection circuit to block battery charging and discharging when overvoltage, undervoltage, or overtemperature of the battery pack is detected; and a reverse voltage inflow prevention unit that operates a protection circuit independently of the microcontroller when overvoltage or undervoltage is detected to respond to an abnormality of the microcontroller.

Inventors

• 이동준

Assignees

• 넥스콘테크놀러지 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20241029

Claims (5)

1. A voltage setting unit for setting a voltage to detect overvoltage or undervoltage of the charging and discharging voltage of a battery pack; An overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit that detects overvoltage or undervoltage based on the difference by comparing the set voltage of the above voltage setting unit with a reference voltage set to detect overvoltage or undervoltage; A power supply unit that supplies operating power to the above-mentioned overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit; A microcontroller (MCU) that activates a protection circuit to cut off battery charging and discharging when overvoltage, undervoltage, or overtemperature of the battery pack is detected; and A battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device characterized by including a reverse voltage inflow prevention unit that operates the protection circuit independently of the microcontroller when an overvoltage or undervoltage is detected by the overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit, thereby responding to an abnormality of the microcontroller.
2. In claim 1, the voltage setting unit, A first divider resistor that detects overvoltage by setting the voltage of the battery pack being charged lower than the reference voltage for overvoltage detection; A battery pack low voltage/overvoltage detection and protection device characterized by including a second distribution resistor that sets the voltage of a discharged battery pack higher than a reference voltage for low voltage detection to detect low voltage.
3. In claim 1, the overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit is, An overvoltage comparator that detects overvoltage by comparing the voltage of a battery pack being charged with a reference voltage for overvoltage detection and determining the difference; A battery pack low voltage/overvoltage detection and protection device characterized by including a low voltage comparator that compares the voltage of a discharged battery pack with a reference voltage for low voltage detection and detects the low voltage based on the difference.
4. In claim 3, the overvoltage comparator is, A battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device characterized by receiving the charging voltage of a battery pack being charged through a first divider resistor at the + terminal, comparing the charging voltage of the battery pack with a reference voltage for overvoltage detection input at the - terminal, and generating an overvoltage detection signal when the charging voltage of the battery pack is greater than the reference voltage.
5. In claim 3, the low-voltage comparator is, A battery pack low voltage/overvoltage detection and protection device characterized by receiving the discharge voltage of a discharged battery pack through a second distribution resistor at the negative terminal, comparing the discharge voltage of the battery pack with a reference voltage for low voltage detection input at the positive terminal, and generating a low voltage detection signal if the discharge voltage of the battery pack is lower than the reference voltage.

Description

Battery pack low/over voltage detection and protection device The present invention relates to battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection, and in particular, to a battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device that detects overvoltage or undervoltage of a battery pack independently without being dependent on the control of a microcontroller (MCU) and performs circuit protection operations, thereby enabling protection operations to be performed when the protection function cannot be performed due to an abnormality of the microcontroller (MCU). Generally, portable devices such as smartphones, laptops, and personal digital assistants (PDAs), as well as electric vehicles, use battery packs containing rechargeable batteries as energy storage devices. The battery pack, which is an energy storage device, includes a plurality of battery cell arrays in a single battery pack and is equipped with a Battery Management System (hereinafter referred to as "BMS") for monitoring and controlling status information such as voltage, current, and temperature to enable smooth operation of multiple battery cell arrays. The battery management system (BMS) operates the battery pack in various operating modes, such as active mode, sleep mode, deep sleep mode, and protection mode, depending on the state of the battery pack. In managing the battery in a battery management system, overvoltage, overcurrent, and overtemperature conditions are basically monitored, and the use of the battery is cut off in the event of overvoltage, overcurrent, or overtemperature conditions. Here, battery usage cutoff due to overvoltage, overcurrent, and overtemperature is pre-set through the battery manufacturer's specifications and is used for battery control. If the charging and discharging process of a battery continues for a long period, the battery's capacity gradually decreases depending on usage (charge/discharge cycles), and a fully charged state acts as a risk factor during long-term use of the battery. However, since the battery management system described above controls the battery's overvoltage, overcurrent, and overtemperature uniformly based only on the initial cutoff specifications of the battery manufacturer, regardless of whether the battery is used for a long period, there are limitations in controlling the safe use of long-term batteries. Therefore, technology is needed to vary the battery charging voltage control according to long-term use, enabling safe use even when the battery is aged. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a management system for a typical battery pack, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device according to the present invention. A battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings. The terms or words used in the present invention described below should not be interpreted as being limited to their ordinary or dictionary meanings, but should be interpreted in a meaning and concept consistent with the technical spirit of the present invention, based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concept of the terms to best describe his invention. Therefore, the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations illustrated in the drawings are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all technical concepts of the present invention; thus, it should be understood that various equivalents and modifications that can replace them may exist at the time of filing this application. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a battery pack undervoltage/overvoltage detection and protection device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and may include a battery pack (110), a voltage setting unit (120), a power supply unit (130), an overvoltage/undervoltage detection unit (140), a reverse voltage inflow prevention unit (150), a microcontroller (MCU) (160), a protection circuit (170), and a load or charging device (180). The battery pack (110) is composed of a plurality of battery cell arrays and serves to charge the voltage and discharge the charged voltage. The voltage setting unit (120) serves to set a voltage for detecting overvoltage or undervoltage of the charging and discharging voltage of the battery pack (110). The voltage setting unit (120) may include a first distribution resistor (121) that sets the voltage of the battery pack (110) being charged to a lower value than the reference voltage for overvoltage detection to detect overvoltage, and a second distribution resistor (122) that sets the voltage of the battery pack (110) being discharged to a higher value than the reference voltage for undervoltage detection to detect undervoltage. The power supply unit (130) supplies opera