Slave BMS for diagnosing battery module errors and battery pack including the slave BMS

Abstract

The present invention provides a battery pack including a slave BMS for diagnosing an error of a battery module. The battery pack of the present invention includes a master BMS and a first slave BMS. When an error has occurred in a first battery module, the first slave BMS determines whether the error is serious. The first slave BMS communicates with the master BMS in a time period corresponding to an ID (identification) of the first slave BMS, changes the ID based on whether the error is serious, and outputs information about the error to the master BMS in a time period corresponding to the changed ID.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] The present invention claims priority from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0074768, filed on Jun. 19, 2020, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0004] The present invention relates to a battery pack and more particularly to a battery pack that changes an operation mode depending on whether an error occurring in a battery module is serious. Background Art

[0005] In recent years, secondary batteries have been actively studied and developed. Here, secondary batteries are batteries that can be charged and discharged, and include all traditional Ni / Cd batteries, Ni / MH batteries, etc. and the recent lithium-ion batteries. Among secondary batteries, lithium-ion batteries have the advantage that they have a much higher energy density than traditional Ni / Cd batteries, Ni / MH batteries, etc. Lithium-ion batteries can be made to be light and small in size, and are used as power sources for mobile devices. Specifically, lithium-ion batteries can be used as power sources for electric vehicles, and are receiving attention as the next generation of energy storage media.

[0006] Secondary batteries are generally used in battery module units in which multiple battery cells are connected in series and / or in parallel. The battery pack includes multiple slave BMSs (battery management systems), and a master BMS that manages multiple slave BMSs. The slave BMSs monitor the battery modules and notify the master BMS of information related to errors occurring in the battery modules. Each slave BMS can communicate with the master BMS at the allocated time. However, in this case, there is a problem in that even in the case of a serious error occurring in the battery module, the slave BMS cannot immediately transmit information about the error to the master BMS. Summary of the invention

[0007] Technical issues

[0008] An object of the present invention designed to solve the above-mentioned technical problems is to provide a slave BMS which determines a time to transmit error information to a master BMS according to the type of error occurring in a battery module.

[0009] Technical Solution

[0010] A battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a master BMS and a first slave BMS. When an error has occurred in a first battery module, the first slave BMS may determine whether the error is serious. The first slave BMS may communicate with the master BMS in a time period corresponding to an ID (identification) of the first slave BMS, change the ID based on whether the error is serious, and then output information about the error to the master BMS in a time period corresponding to the changed ID.

[0011] The first slave BMS communicating with the main BMS according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a communication unit and a control unit. The communication unit may communicate with the main BMS within a time period corresponding to the ID (identification) of the first slave BMS. In the case where an error has occurred in the battery module, the control module may determine whether the error is serious, and if the error is determined to be serious, the ID is changed from the first ID to the second ID. The first time period corresponding to the first ID may be a time period later than the second time period corresponding to the second ID, and the second time period may be a time period later than the time when the error has occurred. The communication unit may output information about the error to the main BMS in the second time period when the ID has been changed to the second ID.

[0012] Technical Effects

[0013] The slave BMS according to the present invention can change its ID according to the type of error occurring in the battery module. By changing its ID, the slave BMS can output information about the error at a time period earlier than the time period originally assigned to the ID. Therefore, the master BMS can receive information about the serious error in a timely manner. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating a battery pack including a slave BMS according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 2 is an example Figure 1 Block diagram of the components of a slave BMS.

[0016] Figure 3 Is used to describe Figure 2 Flowchart of the operation of the slave BMS.

[0017] Figure 4 Is used to describe Figure 1 Conceptual diagram of the operation of a BMS in normal mode.

[0018] Figure 5 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of one embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0019] Figure 6 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0020] Figure 7 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0021] Figure 8 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0022] Fig. 9 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of one embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0023] Fig.10 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a BMS according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this document, like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements in the accompanying drawings, and redundant descriptions of like elements will be omitted.

[0025] For the various embodiments of the present invention disclosed herein, the specific structural or functional description is only exemplified for describing the embodiments of the present invention. The various embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in various forms and should not be interpreted as being limited to the embodiments described herein.

[0026] Expressions such as "first" or "second" used in various embodiments may describe various constituent elements without reference to order and / or importance, and do not limit these constituent elements. For example, a first constituent element may be designated as a second constituent element, and similarly, a second constituent element may be designated as a first constituent element instead, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0027] The terms used in the present invention are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of other embodiments. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, a singular expression may also include a plural expression.

[0028] Including technical or scientific terms, all terms used in this article may have the same meaning as those generally understood by those of ordinary skill in the technical field of the present invention. Generally, dictionary-defined terms may be interpreted as having the same or similar meaning as they have in the context of the relevant technology, and unless explicitly defined in this article, should not be interpreted as having an ideal or overly formal meaning. In any case, the terms defined in this article cannot be interpreted in a way that excludes embodiments of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating a battery pack including a slave BMS according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] The battery pack 1 may include battery modules 150, 250, 350, 450, 550, 650, slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, and a master BMS 10. In the following description, the battery pack 1 is described as including six battery modules and six slave BMSs, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0031] Each battery module 150, 250, 350, 450, 550, 650 may be composed of battery cells connected in series and / or in parallel. The battery modules 150, 250, 350, 450, 550, 650 may supply power to an external circuit outside the battery pack 1.

[0032] The slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 may monitor their respective battery modules 150, 250, 350, 450, 550, 650. The slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 may each have a different ID identification. The IDs of the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 may be assigned by the master BMS 10, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 may communicate with the master BMS 10 in a time period corresponding to their respective IDs. In the following description, it is assumed that the slave BMS100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS10 in sequence, while the initial ID of the slave BMS100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 remains unchanged. After the communication between the slave BMS 600 and the master BMS10 is completed, the slave BMS100 may communicate with the master BMS10 again. Below, the operation of the slave BMS 300 and the battery module 350 will be described in detail. The remaining slave BMS100, 200, 400, 500, 600 provide operations substantially the same as those of the slave BMS 300, and the remaining battery modules 150, 250, 450, 550, 650 provide operations substantially the same as those of the battery module 350.

[0033] The slave BMS 300 may detect an error occurring in the battery module 350. The slave BMS 300 may output information about the detected error to the master BMS 10. The master BMS 10 may take appropriate action on the battery module 350 based on the information provided by the slave BMS 300. According to an embodiment of the present invention, in the case where the error occurring in the battery module 350 is serious, the master BMS 10 is able to take action on the battery module 350 in a timely manner.

[0034] It can be detected from the BMS 300 whether an error occurring in the battery module 350 is serious. Below, "urgent error" refers to a serious error. "Urgent error" may refer to overvoltage, undervoltage, overtemperature, overcurrent, etc. Below, "normal error" refers to a non-serious error. "Normal error" may mean that the battery module 350 has a low SOC state of charge, or that some battery cells of the battery module 350 are not working. It is provided that the above classification is exemplary and non-limiting, and errors may be classified as "urgent error" or "normal error" using criteria different from the above classification.

[0035] In the case of determining that an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350, the slave BMS 300 may change its own ID in order to output information about the error more quickly. The slave BMS 300 may change its ID to the ID of another slave BMS. In this case, the time period corresponding to the ID of the other slave BMS may be the time period between the time when the error has occurred and the time period corresponding to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300. For example, in the case where an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350 while the slave BMS 100 is communicating with the master BMS 10, the slave BMS 300 may change its ID to the ID of the slave BMS 100 or the slave BMS 200. In another example, in the case where an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350 while the slave BMS 500 is communicating with the master BMS 10, the slave BMS 300 may change its ID to the ID of one of the slave BMSs 500, 600, 100, and 200.

[0036] Specifically, the slave BMS 300 may change its ID to the ID of the slave BMS 100 that is communicating with the master BMS 10 when the error occurs. Therefore, the slave BMS 300 can transmit information about the error to the master BMS 10 more quickly.

[0037] In a time period corresponding to the changed ID, the slave BMS 300 may transmit a first notification signal indicating that its ID has been changed to the master BMS 10. The master BMS 10 may output a second notification signal indicating that the ID of the slave BMS 300 has been changed to the remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 based on the first notification signal. The remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 may change their respective IDs based on the second notification signal so that communication with the master BMS 10 may be performed unimpeded. Here, the method by which the remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 change their IDs may follow a rule that has been input into the battery pack 1. For example, the rule may be that in the case where the slave BMS 300 has changed its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100, the slave BMS 100 changes its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300. In another example, in the case where the slave BMS 300 has changed its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100, the rule may be that the slave BMS 200 changes its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300, and the slave BMS 100 changes its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 200. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various rules may be used to adjust the communication time periods of the slave BMSs so that they do not overlap.

[0038] The master BMS 10 may take appropriate actions on the battery modules 150 ˜ 650 and the slave BMSs 100 ˜ 600 upon receiving information on the emergency error from the slave BMS 300 .

[0039] In the case where it is determined that an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350, the slave BMS 300 may temporarily change its ID to the ID of the slave BMS that is communicating with the BMS10. After changing its ID, the slave BMS 300 may output a notification signal to the master BMS10 indicating that a normal error has occurred. The time taken to output the notification signal may be shorter than the time taken to output information about the error. The slave BMS 300 may change its changed ID back to the initial ID after the notification signal has been output. Therefore, in the case where a normal error has occurred, unlike the case where an emergency error has occurred, the remaining slave BMS100, 200, 400, 500, 600 do not need to change their IDs. In the time period corresponding to the changed ID, the slave BMS300 may transmit information about a normal error to the master BMS10.

[0040] Based on the notification signal, the master BMS 10 may be aware that a normal error has occurred in the battery module 350. The master BMS 10 may take appropriate actions on the battery modules 150-650 and the slave BMSs 100-600 in the case where the information about the emergency error is received from the slave BMS 300. It is assumed that the master BMS 10 may take appropriate actions on the battery modules 150-650 and the slave BMSs 100-600 when necessary even before the information about the normal error has been received.

[0041] Figure 2 is an example Figure 1 A block diagram of the components of a slave BMS 300.

[0042] As described above, since the remaining slave BMSs 100 , 200 , 400 , 500 , 600 have substantially the same configuration as the slave BMS 300 , descriptions of the remaining slave BMSs 100 , 200 , 400 , 500 , 600 will be omitted.

[0043] The slave BMS 300 may include a sensing unit 310 , an MCU microcontroller unit 320 , and a communication unit 330 .

[0044] The sensing unit 310 may acquire status data regarding the status of the battery module 350 from the battery module 350. For example, the sensing unit 310 may measure the voltage, current, temperature, etc. of the battery module 350.

[0045] The MCU 320 may receive status data of the battery module 350 from the sensing unit 310. The MCU 320 may detect an error that has occurred in the battery module 350 based on the status data. The MCU 320 may determine whether the error that has occurred in the battery module 350 is an emergency error or a normal error based on the status data. The MCU 320 may determine a timing for changing the ID of the slave BMS 300 according to the type of error that has occurred in the battery module 350. The MCU 320 may control the communication unit 320 so that the communication unit 330 may output information about the error in a time period corresponding to the changed ID. Figures 3 to 9 A method in which the MCU 320 changes the ID of the slave BMS 300 is described in detail.

[0046] The communication unit 330 may, under the control of the MCU 320, send a signal to the slave BMS 300 during a time period corresponding to the ID of the slave BMS 300. Figure 1 The master BMS 10 outputs information about the error.

[0047] As reference Figure 1 and Figure 2As described, the slave BMS 300 of the present invention can change its ID according to the type of error that has occurred in the battery module. The slave BMS 300, by changing its ID, can output information about the error in a time period earlier than the time period originally assigned to its initial ID. Therefore, the master BMS 10 can quickly receive information about the error that has occurred in the battery module 350.

[0048] Figure 3 Is used to describe Figure 2 Flowchart of the operation of the slave BMS.

[0049] In step S110 , the slave BMS 300 may be reset by a user, or may be reset by control of the master BMS 10 .

[0050] In step S120, the slave BMS 300 may operate in a normal mode immediately after the reset. In the normal mode, the slave BMS 300 may monitor the battery module 350. The slave BMS 300 may acquire status data about the battery module 350. Figure 4 The operation of the slave BMS 300 in the normal mode is described in detail.

[0051] In step S130 , the slave BMS 300 may determine whether an error has occurred in the battery module 350 based on the status data.

[0052] If no error occurs, step S120 is performed again.

[0053] In the case where an error has occurred, step S140 is performed. In step S140, the slave BMS 300 may diagnose an error that has occurred in the battery module 350.

[0054] In step S150 , the slave BMS 300 may determine whether an error that has occurred in the battery module 350 is serious.

[0055] In the case of a serious error, step S160 is executed. In step S160, the BMS 300 may switch the operation mode from the normal mode to the emergency fault mode. Figures 5 to 8 The operation of the slave BMS 300 in the emergency fault mode is described in detail.

[0056] If the error is not serious, step S170 is executed. In step S170, the BMS 300 may switch the operation mode from the normal mode to the common fault mode. Fig. 9 The operation of the slave BMS 300 in a normal fault mode is described in detail.

[0057] Figure 4 Is used to describe Figure 1Conceptual diagram of the operation of a BMS in normal mode.

[0058] As reference Figure 1 As described, slave BMS100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 can communicate with the master BMS10 in the time period corresponding to their respective IDs. In the case where the initial IDs of the slave BMS100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 remain unchanged, it is assumed that the slave BMS100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS10 in sequence. In normal mode, the slave BMS300 may not change its ID. Therefore, the slave BMS 300 can communicate with the master BMS10 in the time period t4-t5 assigned to the initial ID. After the communication between the slave BMS 600 and the master BMS10 is completed, the slave BMS100 can communicate with the master BMS10 again.

[0059] Hereinafter, the method of each slave BMS 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicating with the master BMS 10 will be described in detail. The slave BMS 100 can communicate with the master BMS 10 in the time period t0-t3. The time period t0-t3 may include a preparation section t0-t1, an information transmission section t1-t2, and a retransmission section t2-t3.

[0060] The preparation section t0-t1 may be a section in which the slave BMS 100 starts to communicate with the master BMS 10 to output the status data of the battery module 150 to the master BMS 10. In the preparation section t0-t1, the slave BMS 100 may transmit a preparation signal to the master BMS 10. Based on the preparation signal, the master BMS 10 may prepare to receive the status data from the slave BMS 100.

[0061] The information transmission sections T1 ˜ T2 may be sections in which the status data on the battery module 150 is output from the BMS 100 to the master BMS 10 . The status data on the battery module 150 may include data on an error that has occurred in the battery module 150 .

[0062] The retransmission section t2-t3 may be a section for retransmitting the status data about the battery module 150 from the BMS 100 to the master BMS 10. The slave BMS 100 retransmits the status data in the retransmission section t2-t3 in order to more surely transfer the status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS 10. It is assumed that the status data output in the retransmission section t2-t3 may be data of some information that has been omitted from the status data output in the information transmission section t1-t2. That is, the retransmission section t2-t3 may be shorter than the information transmission section t1-t2.

[0063] The other slave BMSs 200, 300, 400, 500, and 600 can communicate with the master BMS 10 using the same method as the slave BMS 100. Figure 4 It is omitted, but the time periods corresponding to the other slave BMSs 200 , 300 , 400 , 500 , 600 may also include a preparation section, an information transmission section, and a retransmission section, respectively.

[0064] Figure 5 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of one embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0065] In reference Figure 5 In the description of , it is assumed that at time 't11', an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350. The time 't11' may correspond to Figure 1 In addition, it is assumed that the slave BMSs 100 , 200 , 300 , 400 , 500 , and 600 sequentially communicate with the master BMS 10 , when the initial IDs of the slave BMSs 100 , 200 , 300 , 400 , 500 , and 600 are not changed.

[0066] In the event that it is determined that an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350, the slave BMS 300 may output information about the emergency error to the master BMS 10. Here, the slave BMS 300 may output information about the emergency error in a time period t11 to t14 that is earlier than the time period t15 to t16 corresponding to its initial ID. In order to output information about the emergency error in the time period t11 to t14, the slave BMS 300 may change its initial ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100. The slave BMS 100 may be the slave BMS 10 that is communicating with the master BMS at time “t11” when the emergency error occurs. The time period t10 to t14 may be a time period corresponding to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100, and may correspond to Figure 4 The time period is t0 to t3.

[0067] In the information transmission section t12-t13, the slave BMS 300 may output information about the emergency error to the master BMS 10. In the information transmission section t12-t13, the slave BMS 300 may output a first notification signal indicating that its ID has been changed to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100 to the master BMS 10.

[0068] The master BMS10 may output a second notification signal to the remaining slave BMS100, 200, 400, 500, 600 based on the first notification signal, the second notification signal indicating that the ID of the slave BMS 300 has been changed to the initial ID of the slave BMS100. The remaining slave BMS100, 200, 400, 500, 600 may change their respective IDs according to prescribed rules based on the second notification signal. In the case where the slave BMS100 has been unable to transmit status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS10 due to the slave BMS 300, once the communication between the slave BMS 300 and the master BMS10 is completed, the slave BMS100 may output status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS10. In this case, for example, the slave BMS100 may change its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300. Therefore, if Figure 5 As shown, in the time period t15-t16 assigned to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300, the slave BMS 100 may transmit status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS 10. In this case, the order in which the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 may be 300->200->100->400->500->600. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 may change their IDs in various ways to reconstruct the order in which they communicate with the master BMS 10. Referring to Figure 6 and Figure 7 Various implementations are described.

[0069] Figure 6 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of the operation of the slave BMS in an emergency failure mode. For further description, reference will also be made to Figure 5 .

[0070] Figure 6 The times t10 to t19 marked in the figure correspond to Figure 5 The time t10 to t19 marked in the figure. Figure 6 , Description and Reference Figure 5 The method described is different from the method of changing the respective IDs of the remaining BMSs 100 , 200 , 400 , 500 , 600 , and a redundant description will be omitted.

[0071] When the ID of the slave BMS 300 in which the emergency error has occurred is changed, the remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 may change their respective IDs so that the original order in which the slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 is not changed. In this case, the order in which the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 may be 300->100->200->400->500->600.

[0072] As an embodiment, a method of changing the ID of the slave BMS 200 among the remaining slave BMSs 100 , 200 , 400 , 500 , 600 will be described. The slave BMS 200 may change its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300 . Figure 5 The time period t15-t16 corresponding to the initial ID of the slave BMS may be immediately after Figure 5 The initial ID of the slave BMS 200 corresponds to the time period after the time period t14 to t15.

[0073] Figure 7 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of the operation of the slave BMS in an emergency failure mode. For ease of description, reference will also be made to Figure 5 .

[0074] Figure 7 The times t10 to t19 marked in the figure correspond to Figure 5 The time t10 to t19 marked in the figure. Figure 7 , the rest of the methods from 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 change their IDs to their initial IDs after one cycle is completed (ie, after time "t18").

[0075] In this case, in the period t10 to t18 where an emergency error has occurred, the slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, and 600 may follow the reference Figure 5 However, the present invention is not limited thereto. In the period t10 to t18 where an emergency error has occurred, the slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, and 600 may change their respective IDs in the same manner as described in the reference. Figure 6The method described above changes their respective IDs in the same way. When the period t10 to t18 in which the emergency error has occurred is completed, the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 may change their IDs back to their initial IDs. In this case, the order in which the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 may be 100->200->300->400->500->600.

[0076] Figure 8 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of another embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0077] In reference Figure 8 In the description of , it is assumed that at time "t22", an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350. The time "t22" may correspond to Figure 1 In addition, it is assumed that the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 in sequence when the initial IDs of the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 are not changed. Figure 5 The differences in the methods described are described Figure 8 .

[0078] and Figure 5 Different, in Figure 8 In the embodiment, the slave BMS 100 may transmit the status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS 10 once before the communication is interrupted by the slave BMS 300. In this case, after the information transmission of the slave BMS 300 has been completed, the slave BMS 100 may not retransmit the status data about the battery module 150 to the master BMS 10. That is, the slave BMS 100 may not change its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 300.

[0079] Fig. 9 Is used to describe Figure 1 A conceptual diagram of one embodiment of operation of a slave BMS in an emergency failure mode.

[0080] In reference Fig. 9 In the description of FIG. 1 , it is assumed that at time “t31”, an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350. The time “t31” may correspond to Figure 1 In addition, it is assumed that the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 communicate with the master BMS 10 in sequence when the initial IDs of the slave BMSs 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 are not changed. Figure 5 The differences in the methods described are described Figure 8 .

[0081] In the case where it is determined that an emergency error has occurred in the battery module 350, the slave BMS 300 may output a notification signal to the master BMS 10 to notify that an error has occurred in the battery module 350. Unlike the emergency failure mode, it is assumed that the slave BMS 300 may transmit the notification signal after the state data about the battery module 150 has been output once from the slave BMS 100 that is communicating with the master BMS 10. The notification signal may be output in a time period t32 to t33, and the time period t32 to t33 may correspond to Figure 1 The time period t2 to t3 in the output notification signal can be compared to the time period t32 to t33. Figure 5 The time period t11 to t14 may be a time period required to output information about an error.

[0082] After the slave BMS 100 has output the status data about the battery module 150 once (i.e., after time "t32"), the slave BMS 300 may change its ID to the initial ID of the slave BMS 100. The slave BMS 300 may change its changed ID back to the initial ID after having output the notification signal (i.e., after time "t33"). In a time period t34-t35 corresponding to the changed ID, the slave BMS 300 may transmit information about a common error to the master BMS 10. The time period t34-t35 may correspond to Figure 4 In addition, since the slave BMS 300 temporarily changes its ID in the normal failure mode, the remaining slave BMSs 100, 200, 400, 500, 600 may not change their IDs.

[0083] Fig.10 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a BMS according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0084] Reference Fig.10 , BMS1000 may include a microcontroller (MCU) 810 that controls various processes and corresponding elements; a memory 1020 on which an operating system program and various other programs (e.g., a battery diagnosis program, a voltage approximation formula generation program, etc.) are recorded; an input / output interface 1030 that provides an input interface and an output interface with a battery cell module and / or a semiconductor switching element; and a communication interface 1040 that enables external communication through a wired or wireless communication network. In this way, the computer program according to the present invention can be recorded on the memory 1020 and processed by the microcontroller 1010 to implement, for example, Figure 2The various functional blocks shown are implemented in the form of modules.

[0085] The specific embodiments for implementing the present invention have been described above. The present invention includes not only the above-mentioned embodiments, but also other embodiments that can be easily implemented by simple design modifications. In addition, the present invention also includes technologies that can be easily implemented in a modified form using the embodiments. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and is limited not only by the attached claims, but also by their equivalents.

Claims

1. A battery pack, comprising: Main BMS; as well as a first slave BMS that determines whether an error is serious when the error has occurred in the first battery module, The first slave BMS is configured to communicate with the master BMS during a time period corresponding to an ID of the first slave BMS, change the ID based on whether the error is serious, and then output information about the error to the master BMS during a time period corresponding to the changed ID.

2. The battery pack according to claim 1, further comprising a second slave BMS that monitors a second battery module, and wherein: If the error is serious, the first slave BMS changes the ID from the first ID to the second ID of the second slave BMS, A first time period corresponding to the first ID is a time period after a second time period corresponding to the second ID, And the second time period is a time period after a time when the error has occurred.

3. The battery pack according to claim 2, wherein: The second slave BMS is a slave BMS that communicates with the master BMS at a time when the error has occurred.

4. The battery pack according to claim 2, wherein: In a case where the ID of the first slave BMS has been changed, the master BMS outputs a notification signal to the second slave BMS, and The second slave BMS changes the ID of the second slave BMS based on the notification signal.

5. The battery pack according to claim 4, wherein: The second slave BMS changes the ID of the second slave BMS from the second ID to the first ID based on the notification signal.

6. The battery pack according to claim 5, wherein: The second slave BMS communicates with the master BMS during the first time period, and then changes the ID of the second slave BMS from the first ID back to the second ID, And the first slave BMS, after the communication between the second slave BMS and the master BMS is completed in the first time period, changes the ID of the first slave BMS from the second ID back to the first ID.

7. The battery pack according to claim 5, wherein: The second slave BMS communicates with the master BMS during the first time period, and then maintains the ID of the second slave BMS as the first ID, And the first slave BMS maintains the ID of the first slave BMS as the second ID.

8. The battery pack according to claim 4, wherein: The second slave BMS transmits status information about the second battery module to the master BMS in a status information transmission segment, and then retransmits the status information to the master BMS in a retransmission segment after the status information transmission segment, in a case where the communication with the master BMS has been interrupted by the first slave BMS in the status information transmission section, transmitting the status information to the master BMS after the information about the error has been transmitted to the master BMS, and In a case where the communication with the master BMS has been interrupted by the first slave BMS in the retransmission section, the state information is not transmitted to the master BMS after the information about the error has been transmitted to the master BMS.

9. The battery pack according to claim 2, wherein: in a case where the ID of the first slave BMS has been changed, the master BMS outputs a notification signal to a slave BMS having an ID corresponding to a time period between the first time period to a time when the error has occurred, And the slave BMSs change the respective IDs of the slave BMSs based on the notification signal.

10. The battery pack according to claim 9, wherein: one of the slave BMSs changes the ID of the one slave BMS from the third ID to the fourth ID based on the notification signal, And the time period corresponding to the fourth ID is a time period immediately after the time period corresponding to the third ID.

11. The battery pack according to claim 1, further comprising a second slave BMS that monitors a second battery module, and wherein: If the error is not serious, the first slave BMS changes the ID of the first slave BMS from the first ID to the second ID of the second slave BMS after the status data about the second battery module is output from the second slave BMS that is communicating with the master BMS, A first time period corresponding to the first ID is a time period after a second time period corresponding to the second ID, And the second time period is a time period after a time when the error has occurred.

12. The battery pack according to claim 11, wherein: the first slave BMS outputs a notification signal indicating that the error has occurred in a retransmission section in which the second slave BMS retransmits status data about the second battery module, and then changes the ID from the second ID to the first ID after outputting the notification signal, and outputs information about the error in the first time period, The retransmission segment is a segment within the second time period.

13. A first slave BMS, the first slave BMS communicating with a master BMS, the first slave BMS comprising: a communication unit configured to communicate with the master BMS during a time period corresponding to the ID of the first slave BMS; as well as a control module that, in the event that an error has occurred in the battery module, determines whether the error is serious, and if the error is determined to be serious, changes the ID from the first ID to the second ID, and wherein: A first time period corresponding to the first ID is a time period after a second time period corresponding to the second ID, The second time period is a time period after the time at which the error has occurred, and The communication unit outputs information about the error to the master BMS in the second period if the ID is changed to the second ID.

14. The first slave BMS according to claim 13, wherein: The second ID is an ID of a second slave BMS that is communicating with the master BMS at the time when the error has occurred.

15. The first slave BMS according to claim 13, wherein: The control module changes the ID from the first ID to the second ID when the error is determined to be not serious, and outputs a notification signal indicating that the error has occurred during the second time period, and after outputting the notification signal, changes the ID from the second ID back to the first ID, and outputs information about the error during the first time period.

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