Charging control method, charging circuit and battery module

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a charging control method, a charging circuit and a battery module, and the method comprises the steps: determining a charging stage of a target object, the target object comprising one of a single cell, a battery module, or a battery pack; controlling a pulse charging circuit to execute charging / discharging operation on the target object at a target charging / discharging rate based on the charging stage; wherein in different charging stages, the target charging multiplying powers configured for the pulse charging circuit are different.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of battery technology, and in particular to a charging control method, a charging circuit and a battery module. Background Art

[0002] Lithium-ion battery is a secondary battery (rechargeable battery) that mainly relies on the movement of lithium ions between the positive electrode and the negative electrode to work. During the charging and discharging process, lithium ions are embedded and deintercalated back and forth between the two electrodes: when charging, lithium ions are deintercalated from the positive electrode and embedded into the negative electrode through the electrolyte, and the negative electrode is in a lithium-rich state; the opposite is true during discharge. In the actual application of lithium-ion batteries, lithium precipitation may occur. Among them, lithium precipitation refers to the inability of lithium ions to be embedded in the negative electrode material, resulting in reduced battery performance and shortened battery life. Summary of the invention

[0003] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a charging control method, a charging circuit, a battery module, and an electronic device.

[0004] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a charging control method, including:

[0005] Determining a charging stage of a target object, wherein the target object includes one of a single battery cell, a battery module, or a battery pack;

[0006] Based on the charging stage, controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging / discharging operation on the target object at a target charging / discharging rate;

[0007] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

[0008] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a charging circuit for charging a battery cell, the charging circuit comprising:

[0009] A pulse charging circuit, used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell;

[0010] A control switch, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit and the battery cell;

[0011] A control chip, connected to the control switch and the pulse charging circuit signal, for controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell;

[0012] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

[0013] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a battery module, including:

[0014] Battery cells;

[0015] A pulse charging circuit, used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell;

[0016] A first charging circuit, used for charging the battery cell;

[0017] A control switch, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit and the battery cell, and to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the first charging circuit and the battery cell;

[0018] a control chip, connected to the control switch, the pulse charging circuit and the first charging circuit signal, for controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell, and / or controlling the first charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the battery cell;

[0019] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

[0020] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an electronic device, comprising the charging circuit as described in the second aspect, or comprising the charging module as described in the third aspect.

[0021] The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a charging control method, a charging circuit, a battery module and an electronic device. In the process of charging a target object, different target charging rates are configured to charge the target object in different charging stages, and the target object is discharged during the charging process, so that lithium ions are embedded more quickly and orderly by pulse charging, and the unidirectional polarization process in the battery is terminated during the discharge stage, and the polarization voltage is suppressed, which can ultimately alleviate the polarization effect of the target object (such as a battery), shorten the charging time, delay battery aging, and increase the service life. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] Figure 1 A flow chart of a charging control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 2 A charging pulse schematic diagram provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the charging and discharging process at different charging stages provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 4 A detailed flow chart of a charging control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a voltage curve and cycle performance of a target object during conventional charging and pulse charging provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0027] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of a charging circuit provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 1 ;

[0028] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a charging circuit provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 2 ;

[0029] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the structure of a battery module provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 1 ;

[0030] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of the structure of a battery module provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 2 ;

[0031] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of the composition structure of an electronic device including a battery module provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure. It is understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the relevant disclosure, rather than to limit the disclosure. It should also be noted that, for the convenience of description, only the parts related to the relevant disclosure are shown in the drawings.

[0033] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. The terms used herein are only for the purpose of describing the embodiments of the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the present disclosure.

[0034] In the following description, reference is made to “some embodiments”, which describe a subset of all possible embodiments, but it will be understood that “some embodiments” may be the same subset or different subsets of all possible embodiments and may be combined with each other without conflict.

[0035] It should be pointed out that the terms "first\second\third" involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure are merely used to distinguish similar objects and do not represent a specific ordering of the objects. It can be understood that "first\second\third" can be interchanged in a specific order or sequence where permitted, so that the embodiments of the present disclosure described here can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described here.

[0036] Before further describing the embodiments of the present disclosure in detail, the nouns and terms involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure are described first. The nouns and terms involved in the embodiments of the present disclosure are subject to the following interpretations:

[0037] Printed Circuit Board (PCB);

[0038] Alternating Current (AC);

[0039] Direct Current (DC);

[0040] Constant current (CC);

[0041] Milliseconds (ms);

[0042] State of Charge (SOC);

[0043] Positive channel Metal Oxide Semiconductor field effect transistor (PMOS tube);

[0044] N-type metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor (Negative channel Metal Oxide Semiconductor field effect transistor, NMOS tube).

[0045] Lithium plating can cause the performance of lithium-ion batteries to deteriorate and shorten the battery life.

[0046] Based on this, the embodiment of the present disclosure provides a charging control method. In the process of charging a target object, different target charging rates are configured to charge the target object in different charging stages, and the target object is discharged during the charging process, so that lithium ions are embedded more quickly and orderly by pulse charging, and the unidirectional polarization process in the battery is terminated through the discharge stage, and the polarization voltage is suppressed, which can ultimately improve the performance of the target object (such as a battery), shorten the charging time, delay aging, and increase the service life.

[0047] The embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0048] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, see Figure 1 , which shows a flow chart of a charging control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1As shown, the method may include:

[0049] S101: Determine the charging stage of the target object.

[0050] The target object includes one of a single battery cell, a battery module, or a battery pack;

[0051] S102: Controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage.

[0052] Among them, in different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

[0053] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the target object may be a battery, a battery module, a battery pack, etc. comprising a single cell or multiple cells, such as a lithium-ion battery. The target object may be cyclically charged / discharged to suppress polarization voltage, improve lithium plating, increase charging speed, and improve battery life.

[0054] It should also be noted that the process of charging the target object includes multiple charging stages. In different charging stages, the target object is charged at a target charging rate corresponding to the current charging stage through a pulse charging circuit, and the target object is discharged at a target discharge rate corresponding to the current charging stage.

[0055] The disclosed embodiment can divide different charging stages according to the charging voltage or capacity of the battery cell. For example, charging the voltage of the battery cell from 0V to 4.2V is the first charging stage, and charging the voltage of the battery cell from 4.2V to 4.4V is the second charging stage; in the conventional charging method, the charging rates corresponding to the first charging stage and the second charging stage are 1.2C and 0.7C respectively; in the disclosed embodiment, the charging rate is raised, for example, the target charging rate of the first charging stage is set to 1.5C, and the target charging rate of the second charging stage is set to 1.2C, and the target discharge rate of the two charging stages is set to -0.5C (since the direction of discharge is opposite to the direction of charging, it is indicated by a negative sign). Among them, C represents the rated charging rate, which is relative to the battery cell capacity. For example, 1.5C means that the target object is charged with a constant current (or constant voltage) at a current (or voltage) 1.5 times the battery cell capacity. In this way, the embodiment of the present disclosure increases the charging rate of each charging stage and adds pulse discharge. Through this charging method beyond the specification, lithium ions are embedded more quickly and orderly, and the unidirectional polarization process in the battery is terminated through pulse discharge to suppress the polarization voltage, ultimately shortening the charging time and delaying battery aging.

[0056] Here, the two charging stages are only examples, and more detailed charging stages can be divided according to actual conditions. Alternatively, in other embodiments, it is also possible to consider dividing the charging into a constant current charging stage and a constant voltage charging stage, wherein fast charging is implemented in the constant current charging stage, and trickle charging is implemented in the constant voltage charging stage, until the target object is charged to the required target voltage.

[0057] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, for the constant current charging stage, the target charging rate may be greater than the rated charging rate of the battery; in the constant voltage charging stage, the target charging rate may be equal to the rated charging rate of the battery, but no specific limitation is made.

[0058] It should also be noted that if the target object is a single battery cell, the pulse charging circuit can be set on the input and output circuit of the single battery cell; if the target object is a battery module or battery pack, it can be directly set on the PCB corresponding to the battery cell to achieve pulse charging / discharging.

[0059] In some embodiments, for step S102, controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage may include:

[0060] Controlling operating parameters of a pulse charging circuit based on the charging stage of the target object;

[0061] Controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the operating parameters;

[0062] wherein the target charging rate is different from the rated charging rate of the target object at least in one charging stage;

[0063] and / or,

[0064] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured to charge / discharge the target object with the same or different charging / discharging pulse widths.

[0065] It should be noted that the working parameters of the pulse charging circuit when performing pulse charging / discharging may include: the positive pulse opening time width (i.e., charging pulse width, denoted as T+) and the negative pulse opening time width, i.e., discharge pulse width, denoted as T-). These two parameters determine the positive and negative duration of the pulse signal and can be adjusted within the full cycle to adapt to different charging strategies. For example, Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of charging pulse in a certain charging stage, such as Figure 2As shown, the horizontal axis is time t, the vertical axis is current I, I1 is the charging current during charging, and I2 is the discharge current during discharging. T+ is the charging pulse width, that is, the duration of the positive pulse, and T- is the discharge pulse width, that is, the duration of the negative pulse. In different charging stages, T+ can be the same or different, and T- can also be the same or different, and there is no specific limitation on this. Here, the negative pulse width can be set to be greater than the discharge duration required to eliminate or partially eliminate the polarization effect of the target object to ensure that the polarization effect can be improved.

[0066] The operating parameters of the pulse charging circuit may also include: forward current and voltage regulation, negative current and voltage regulation, which allow independent adjustment of the positive and negative current and voltage during the charging process to optimize charging efficiency and battery health.

[0067] It should also be noted that, at least in the constant current charging stage, the target charging rate and the rated charging rate of the target object are different. Furthermore, the constant current charging stage can be divided into at least one voltage interval, and different charging rates are used in each interval to achieve different voltages, gradually reaching the final voltage required in the constant current charging stage.

[0068] For example, the constant current charging stage is the charging stage from 0V to 4.2V, with a target charging rate of 1.5C, a target discharge rate of -0.5C, a charging pulse width of 990ms, and a discharge pulse width of 10ms. The target charging rate (also called the pulse charging rate) of this charging stage is higher than the rated charging rate. The constant voltage charging stage is the charging stage from 4.2V to 4.4V, with a target charging rate of 1.0C, a target discharge rate of -0.5C, a charging pulse width of 990ms, and a discharge pulse width of 10ms. The target charging rate of this charging stage is equal to the rated charging rate.

[0069] In some embodiments, the operating parameters of the pulse charging circuit are controlled based on the charging stage of the target object, which may specifically include but are not limited to one or more of the following methods, which are described below.

[0070] Method 1: Based on the charging stage of the target object, the pulse charging circuit is configured to perform a charge / discharge pulse width and / or a target charge / discharge rate for the charge / discharge operation.

[0071] For example, working parameters such as charging pulse width, discharging pulse width, target charging rate, target discharging rate, etc. are determined according to whether the target object is in a constant current charging stage or a constant voltage charging stage, or the voltage range in which it is located. If the sum of the duration of a charging pulse and the duration of a discharging pulse is taken as a charge and discharge cycle, the charge / discharge pulse width can be determined according to the proportion of the charge / discharge duration in a charge and discharge cycle. The target charge rate and the target discharge rate determine the size of the charge / discharge current. Here, the working parameters of different charging stages can be pre-set. During the charging process, when charging to the working stage, the working parameters are directly adjusted to the preset values.

[0072] Mode 2: Based on the charging stage of the target object and the attribute parameters of the target object, the charge / discharge pulse width and / or the target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for the charge / discharge operation are configured.

[0073] For example, the attribute parameters may include but are not limited to one or more of the following: (1) Specification parameters and electrochemical parameters of the battery or battery cell, such as voltage, capacity, internal resistance, life, etc.; (2) Battery electromotive force and open circuit voltage: Battery electromotive force refers to the voltage provided by the battery in the circuit, while the open circuit voltage is the voltage between the two poles after the battery disconnects the circuit. These two parameters are directly related to the performance and service life of the battery. (3) Capacity: The capacity of a battery refers to the amount of electricity stored in the battery, usually expressed in ampere hours (Ah) or milliampere hours (mAh). The larger the capacity, the longer the battery can be used. (4) Internal resistance: The battery internal resistance includes ohmic internal resistance and polarization internal resistance, among which polarization internal resistance includes electrochemical polarization and concentration polarization. The smaller the internal resistance, the higher the output power of the battery. (5) Cycle life: The battery undergoes a charge and discharge (referring to the battery being fully charged and exhausted, which is different from the aforementioned pulse charge and discharge) is called a cycle. Under certain discharge conditions, the number of cycles that a battery can withstand before reaching the specified capacity is called the cycle life. The longer the cycle life, the longer the service life of the battery. (6) Energy: The energy of a battery refers to the amount of electrical energy that a battery can provide under a certain discharge regime, usually expressed in watt-hours (Wh). The greater the energy, the longer the battery can be used. (7) Storage performance: During storage, due to the presence of impurities in the battery, such as positive electrode metal ions, these impurities can form micro-batteries with the negative electrode active material, causing the dissolution of the negative electrode metal and the precipitation of hydrogen. (8) Physical dimensions: Including the length, width and thickness of the battery, usually expressed in millimeters (mm). (9) Weight: Indicates the mass of the battery in grams (g). The weight of lithium batteries with different chemical compositions and capacities varies. (10) Safety performance information: Including overcharge protection voltage, over-discharge protection voltage, operating temperature range, etc., is an important indicator that must be paid attention to when purchasing and using lithium batteries. (11) Charge and discharge performance information: Including rated charge rate, rated discharge rate, charge rate, etc., is an important parameter for evaluating battery performance. (12) Other information: Such as brand, packaging type, warranty period, certification standards, etc., mainly for the convenience of user selection and post-purchase rights protection.

[0074] Since the property parameters of batteries from different manufacturers and specifications are different, the performance often varies greatly, and the target charge / discharge rate, charge / discharge current, etc. that can be tolerated may also vary. Therefore, the embodiments of the present disclosure can also configure the charge / discharge current and / or charge / discharge pulse width (i.e., charge / discharge duration) at each charging stage in combination with the property parameters of the battery cell or battery.

[0075] Mode 3: Based on the charging stage of the target object and the historical usage data of the target object, the charge / discharge pulse width and / or the target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for the charge / discharge operation are configured.

[0076] It should be noted that based on the historical usage data, it can be determined whether the battery or battery cell is mainly used in light-load scenarios or heavy-load scenarios, whether the user is a light, moderate, or heavy user (mainly looking at the degree of discharge), and the life and aging degree of the battery or battery cell based on the historical usage data, etc., thereby determining what kind of charge / discharge current and / or charge / discharge pulse width to use for charging in this charging stage of the current charging process.

[0077] For example, for the battery in a mobile phone, historical usage data may include but is not limited to the following: power consumption, which can be the average amount of power used per day over a period of time; screen-on time: which can be the average screen-on time of the mobile phone per day / per hour over a period of time. At the same time, relevant power thresholds and time thresholds can be set. When the power consumption is greater than the power threshold and / or the screen-on time is greater than the time threshold, it is considered to be in a heavy-load scenario, otherwise it is considered to be in a light-load scenario. In different scenarios, the appropriate charge / discharge current and / or charge / discharge pulse width can be set based on the actual performance of the battery for considerations such as battery protection or charging speed.

[0078] Method 4: Based on the device information and / or power supply parameters of the power supply device, and the charging stage of the target object, configure the charge / discharge pulse width and / or target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for charging / discharging operations. The power supply device is a device used to provide power output to the target object.

[0079] It should be noted that the power supply device can be a socket (or charger adapter) that provides AC power, or an electronic device that can supply power to the outside; the device information can characterize whether the power supply device provides an AC socket (or charger) or an electronic device (notebook, display, chassis, etc.) that provides DC, as well as the output power, current, voltage and other parameters that can be supplied to the outside. Here, based on the information of the power supply device, it can be considered to determine the charge / discharge current (such as determining the target charge / discharge rate) and / or charge / discharge pulse width in different charging stages in combination with the type of power supply device, the output power or output current that the power supply device can provide, etc.

[0080] For example, the power supply device is a socket that provides AC power and can provide a long-term stable high voltage, or the power supply device is a mobile power supply with a limited voltage. For different power supply devices, appropriate charge / discharge current and / or charge / discharge pulse width can be set in combination with their stability, output voltage, power, etc. to speed up the charging speed or charge slowly but stably.

[0081] Mode 5: Based on the load parameters of the powered device and the charging stage of the target object, the charge / discharge pulse width and / or target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for charging / discharging operation is configured, and the powered device is a device that relies on the target object to provide power output.

[0082] It should be noted that the parameters of the battery or battery cell that need to supply power to the outside are mainly considered here, that is, the possible scenarios that need to supply power to the outside at the same time, or the urgency of the external power supply are mainly considered to determine the charge / discharge current (target charge / discharge rate) and / or charge / discharge time (charge / discharge pulse width) to achieve fast charging or charging time adjustment. For example, the target object is integrated in a mobile power supply, and the powered device is a mobile phone.

[0083] In some embodiments, controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on a target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the operating parameters may include:

[0084] Step A: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the target object at a first charging rate based on the configured first charging pulse width;

[0085] Step B: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a discharge operation on the target object at a first discharge rate based on the configured first discharge pulse width;

[0086] Repeating step A and step B until the target object has a first voltage;

[0087] The first charging pulse width is greater than the first discharging pulse width.

[0088] The method may further include controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the working parameters:

[0089] Step C: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the target object at a second charging rate based on the configured second charging pulse width;

[0090] Step D: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a discharge operation on the target object at a second discharge rate based on the configured second discharge pulse width;

[0091] Repeating step C and step D until the target object has a second voltage;

[0092] Among them, the second voltage is greater than the first voltage, the second charging rate is less than the first charging rate; and / or the second charging pulse width is less than or equal to the first charging pulse width, and the second discharge pulse width is the same as or different from the first discharge pulse width.

[0093] Here, the second discharge pulse width is generally equal to or smaller than the first charge pulse width.

[0094] Exemplarily, the charging stage corresponding to step A and step B is recorded as the first charging stage, and the charging stage corresponding to step C and step D is recorded as the second charging stage. Figure 3, where (a) is a schematic diagram of the charging and discharging process corresponding to the first charging stage, and (b) is a schematic diagram of the charging and discharging process corresponding to the second charging stage.

[0095] like Figure 3 As shown in (a), it is assumed that the working parameters corresponding to the first charging stage are: corresponding to step A, the first charging pulse width = T1+ = 990ms (only for example, it can also be other durations), the first charging rate = 1.5C (only for example, it can also be other rates, for example, the larger the battery capacity, the larger the charging rate in the first charging stage can be considered); corresponding to step B, the first discharge pulse width = T- = 10ms (only for example, it can also be other durations), the first discharge current converted from the first discharge rate = -0.5A (only for example, it can also be other rates or currents); the target voltage of the first charging stage = the first voltage (for example, 4.2V). According to these set parameters, step A and step B are alternately executed in a cycle to perform positive pulse charging and negative pulse discharging on the target object until the target object is charged to the first voltage.

[0096] After the first charging stage is completed, the second charging stage begins. Figure 3 As shown in (b), it is assumed that the working parameters corresponding to the second charging stage are: corresponding to step C, the second charging pulse width = T2+ = 800ms (only for example, it can also be other durations, such as the same as T2+, also 990ms), the second charging rate = rated charging rate = 1.0C (only for example, it can also be other values, such as 1.2C); corresponding to step D, the second discharge pulse width = first discharge pulse width = T- = 10ms (here the example is the same for the two stages, but it can also be different in practice, such as 11ms or 9ms, etc.), the second discharge current converted from the second discharge rate = -0.5A (here the example is the same for the two stages, but it can also be different in practice); the target voltage of the second charging stage = the second voltage (for example, 4.4V). According to these set parameters, step C and step D are alternately executed in a cycle to perform positive pulse charging and negative pulse discharging on the target object until the target object is charged to the second voltage.

[0097] In this way, the target object is charged by alternating positive pulse charging and negative pulse instantaneous discharge, so that the unidirectional polarization process in the battery is terminated to suppress the polarization power supply, and ultimately the charging time can be shortened and the battery aging is delayed.

[0098] In some embodiments, the method may further include:

[0099] After the target object has the second voltage, the target object is charged by the first charging circuit until the target object has a third voltage, and the third voltage is greater than the second voltage. The first charging circuit and the pulse charging circuit are arranged in parallel, and a charging loop is formed between them and the target object respectively.

[0100] It should be noted that the first charging circuit can be considered as a charging circuit inherent to the target object, which is used to perform constant voltage charging after pulse charging to the full charge cut-off voltage or full charge cut-off current stage. Among them, the third voltage can be regarded as the full charge cut-off voltage. For example, if the second voltage is 4.4V, the third voltage can be 4.5V or 4.6V, or the rated voltage or maximum voltage of the battery, etc.

[0101] In some embodiments, the method may further include:

[0102] In the case where the target object is not unique, in response to the first object reaching the fourth voltage, the pulse charging circuit is controlled to adjust the target charging rate of the non-unique target object from the third charging rate to the fourth charging rate;

[0103] The fourth charging rate is smaller than the third charging rate, and the third charging rate is a charging rate configured to charge the target object to a fourth voltage.

[0104] It should be noted that in the disclosed embodiment, multiple target objects can also be charged simultaneously, and the fourth voltage is the target voltage corresponding to a certain charging stage or the final target voltage that needs to be reached during the entire charging process. In this charging stage, if a certain target object reaches the fourth voltage first (the target object is recorded as the first object), at this time, the charging rate is appropriately reduced. For example, the third charging rate is 1.5C. At this time, it can be adjusted to the fourth charging rate (such as 1.4C, 1.3C, etc.) to ensure that all target objects can reach the fourth voltage and avoid overcharging the target object that reaches the fourth voltage first.

[0105] That is to say, when charging multiple target objects (such as battery cells) at the same time, if one of them reaches the specified voltage first, the charging rate of the entire charging circuit is adjusted. In addition, the same applies to the target discharge rate. For example, in response to the first object reaching the fourth voltage, the control pulse charging circuit adjusts the target discharge rate of the non-unique target object from the third discharge rate to the fourth discharge rate; wherein the fourth discharge rate is less than the third discharge rate, and the third charge rate is the discharge rate configured to charge the target object to the fourth voltage.

[0106] In addition, in some other embodiments, when the target object is not unique, in response to the first object reaching the fourth voltage, the charging stage may be directly ended and the next charging stage may be entered.

[0107] Based on the above embodiments, see Figure 4 , which shows a detailed flow chart of a charging control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4 As shown, after charging starts, the working parameters of the current charging stage are adjusted first, for example, the target charging rate is adjusted to 1.5C CC (i.e., constant current charging at 1.5 times the rated charging current), the discharge current is adjusted to -0.5A, the charging pulse width is adjusted to 990ms, the discharge pulse width is adjusted to 10ms, the target voltage is 4.2V, etc., and then the battery is charged and discharged in a constant current charging cycle at a charging current of 1.5C for 900ms, and then discharged at a discharge current of -0.5A for 10ms. During the charging process, the voltage of each cell in the battery is monitored. If the voltage value of the cell with the largest voltage (Max Cell) reaches 4.2V, the charging stage is ended and the next charging stage is entered.

[0108] After entering the next charging stage, adjust the working parameters of this charging stage, for example, adjust the target charging rate to 1.0C CC, the discharge current is still -0.5A, the charging pulse width is still 990ms, the discharge pulse width is still 10ms, the target voltage is 4.4V, etc., and then charge and discharge at a constant current of 1.0C for 900ms, and then discharge at a discharge current of -0.5A for 10ms in a charge and discharge cycle. During the charging process, monitor the voltage of each cell in the battery. If the voltage value of the cell with the largest voltage (Max Cell) reaches 4.4V, end the charging stage and enter the final trickle charging stage.

[0109] In the final trickle charge stage, the charge rate can be adjusted to 0.05C until charging is completed.

[0110] See also Figure 5 , where (a) and (b) respectively show the voltage curve and cycle performance diagram of the target object during normal charge (normal charge) and pulse charge (pulse charge, i.e., the charging control method provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure). Wherein, the horizontal axis of (a) is the charging time, and the vertical axis is the voltage; the horizontal axis of (b) is the cycle index (Cycle_Index, i.e., the number of cycles of charging and discharging with full charge and exhaustion), and the vertical axis is the capacity retention rate (CapacityRetention). Table 1 compares the time required to charge to 50% and 100% for the two charging methods:

[0111] Table 1

[0112] Charging method Time taken to reach 50% SOC 100% SOC time Regular charging 50min 155min Pulse charging 30min (reduced to 20min) 120min (reduced by 35min)

[0113] Combination Figure 5 It can be seen from Table 1 that the speed of pulse charging is faster than conventional charging, and there is no obvious difference in the attenuation of battery capacity.

[0114] The disclosed embodiment provides a charging control method, which introduces negative pulse charging during constant current charging and raises the charging current during constant current charging. After raising the charging rate, the battery capacity fading, cell swelling and aging life are consistent with the normal ones. The negative pulse can compensate for the lithium deposition caused by excessive charging rate and achieve over-specification use (i.e., the pulse charging method can make the battery use beyond its own specifications, for example, the original constant CC of the battery is only 4.8A, but after pulse charging, it can reach 6A, thereby achieving accelerated charging).

[0115] Since pulse charging can embed lithium ions more quickly and orderly, the discharge phase after charging stops will terminate the unidirectional polarization process in the battery, and the polarization voltage will be suppressed, thereby suppressing the polarization of the battery cell caused by high-rate charging through the short discharge process in pulse charging. Ultimately, by introducing staged pulse charging, the polarization effect of lithium batteries can be alleviated, the charging time can be shortened, and battery aging can be delayed.

[0116] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a charging circuit is provided. Figure 6 As shown, the charging circuit 60 may include:

[0117] The pulse charging circuit 601 is used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell 70;

[0118] A control switch 602, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit and the battery cell 70;

[0119] The control chip 603 is connected to the control switch 602 and the pulse charging circuit 601 by signal, and is used to control the pulse charging circuit 601 to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell 70 at a target charging / discharging rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell 70;

[0120] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit 601 is configured with different target charging rates.

[0121] It should be noted that, as an example, when the battery cell 70 needs to be pulse charged, the control chip 603 sends a charging instruction to the control switch 602 to turn on the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70. At the same time, the control chip 70 controls the pulse charging circuit 601 to charge the battery cell 70 with the working parameters corresponding to the current charging stage; when the battery cell 70 needs to be pulse discharged, the control chip 603 sends a discharge instruction to the control switch 602 to turn on the discharge circuit between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70. At the same time, the control chip 70 controls the pulse charging circuit 601 to discharge the battery cell 70 with the working parameters corresponding to the current charging stage.

[0122] It should also be noted that the control chip also monitors the voltage state, charge / discharge time, etc. of the battery cell 70 to control the charge / discharge process according to the corresponding settings.

[0123] exist Figure 6 On the basis of Figure 7 The schematic diagram of the structure of a charging circuit 60 provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 2 In some embodiments, Figure 7 As shown, the pulse charging circuit 501 includes: a discharge resistor 6014, a first switch 6011, a second switch 6012 and a third switch 6013; the first switch 6011 is connected to the control chip 603, the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013 respectively; the second switch 6012 is also connected to the control switch 602; one end of the discharge resistor 6014 is connected to the positive electrode of the battery cell 70 and the control switch 6014, and the other end is connected to the third switch 6013; the third switch 6013 is also connected to the negative electrode of the battery cell 70;

[0124] The first switch 6011 is used to control the working states of the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013 in response to the control of the control chip 603 , so as to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell 70 .

[0125] It should be noted that Figure 7 This is a simplified structural diagram of the charging circuit 60. The actual structure often includes more control circuits and is relatively complex. The simplified circuit here is only used to briefly illustrate the brief process of pulse charging / discharging of the charging circuit 60.

[0126] like Figure 7 As shown, the discharge direction indicates the discharge direction of the battery cell 70 supplying power to the mainboard 71, rather than the pulse discharge direction during the charging process.

[0127] During the charging process of the battery cell 70, the battery cell 70 is connected to the power source through the power connection device 604. The power connection device 604 can transmit the power from the power source to the battery cell 70 (see Figure 7The power from the battery cell 70 can also be transmitted to the main board 71 to power the main board (see Figure 7 Here, charging the battery cell 70 or discharging to the mainboard 71 and pulse discharge can all be controlled by the control switch 602. That is, the control switch 602 can be considered as a switch control aggregate of multiple paths, and charging and discharging can be performed simultaneously, for example, charging a computer / mobile phone while performing various operations in the computer / mobile phone.

[0128] like Figure 7 As shown, the embodiment of the present disclosure can also selectively turn on or off the pulse charging function (for example, when the battery power reaches a certain threshold, the pulse charging function is turned on, and after the battery power reaches the threshold, the pulse charging function is turned off to charge the battery cell 70 with a constant current). When the pulse charging function is turned off, the control switch 602 is only controlled by the control chip 603 to turn on or off the charging path between the power supply and the battery cell 70 and the power supply path between the battery cell 70 and the mainboard 71.

[0129] When the pulse charging function is turned on, the control chip 603 also controls the working state of the first switch 6011. In response to the control of the control chip 603, if pulse charging is performed (for example, the aforementioned step A), the first switch 6011 disconnects both the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013. At the same time, under the control of the control chip 603, the charging channel inside the control switch 602 is turned on, thereby realizing the charging path between the power supply and the battery cell 70 (that is, the charging path between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70 is turned on, although from Figure 6 In the figure, at this time, there is no direct connection between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70, but the charging process controlled by the pulse charging circuit 601 is also powered by the power supply); if pulse discharge is performed (for example, the aforementioned step B), the first switch 6011 turns on both the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013, and at the same time, under the control of the control chip 603 and / or the second switch 6012, the charging channel inside the control switch 602 is closed, thereby disconnecting the charging path between the power supply and the battery cell 70, and the pulse discharge circuit composed of the positive electrode (+) of the battery cell 70, the discharge resistor 6014, the third switch 6013 and the negative electrode (-) of the battery cell 70 is turned on to achieve pulse discharge.

[0130] The first switch 6011 may be an NMOS transistor, and the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013 may both be PMOS transistors. The gate of the first switch 6011 is connected to the control chip 603, one of the source and the drain of the first switch 6011 is grounded, and the other is connected to the gates of the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013; one of the source and the drain of the second switch 6012 is connected to the control power supply, and the other is connected to the control switch 602; one of the source and the drain of the third switch 6013 is connected to the discharge resistor 6014, and the other is connected to the negative electrode (-) of the battery cell 70. Under the control of the control chip 603, if the first switch 6011 is turned on, the ground signal is transmitted to the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013, and the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013 are turned on, and the second switch 6012 transmits the signal provided by the control power supply to the control switch 602, and the signal can close the charging path in the control switch 602, thereby stopping charging, and the battery cell 70 self-discharges (pulse discharge). Under the control of the control chip 603, if the first switch 6011 is disconnected, the second switch 6012 and the third switch 6013 are disconnected, and the charging path in the control switch 602 is turned on and works normally, and the battery cell 70 can be charged normally.

[0131] In some embodiments, corresponding to the scenario where the target object is not unique, the number of the battery cells 70 is multiple. The control chip 603 is also used to control the pulse charging circuit 601 to adjust the target charging rate of the non-unique target object from the third charging rate to the fourth charging rate when the first object reaches the fourth voltage. Alternatively, it can also directly control to enter the next charging stage.

[0132] See also Figure 8 , which shows a schematic diagram of the composition structure of a battery module 80 provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8 As shown, the battery module 80 includes:

[0133] Battery cell 70;

[0134] The pulse charging circuit 601 is used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell 70;

[0135] A first charging circuit 605, used to perform a charging operation on the battery cell 70;

[0136] A control switch 602, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70, and to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the first charging circuit 605 and the battery cell 70;

[0137] The control chip 603 is signal-connected to the control switch 602, the pulse charging circuit 601, and the first charging circuit 605, and is used to control the pulse charging circuit 601 to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell 70 at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell 70, and / or control the first charging circuit 605 to perform a charging operation on the battery cell 70;

[0138] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit 601 is configured with different charging rates.

[0139] Exemplarily, the pulse charging circuit 601 may be used to charge to the second voltage, and then the first charging circuit 605 may be enabled to charge. The specific setting may be made in combination with the actual usage scenario.

[0140] In some embodiments, Fig. 9 As shown, the control switch 602 may include a pulse control switch 6021 and a first control switch 6022; the pulse control switch 6021 is connected between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70, and is connected to the control chip 603; the first control switch 6022 is connected between the first charging circuit 605 and the battery cell 70, and is connected to the control chip 603. Wherein:

[0141] The control chip 603 is also used to control the working state of the pulse control switch 6021 to control the connection state of the charging circuit and the discharging circuit between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70;

[0142] The control chip 603 is further used to control the working state of the first control switch 6022 to control the connection state of the charging circuit and the discharging circuit between the first charging circuit 605 and the battery cell 70 .

[0143] The disclosed embodiment provides a charging circuit and a battery module, which adopts a pulse charging method in the process of charging the battery cell, that is, a cyclic charging and discharging scheme combining positive and negative pulses is provided, and the positive pulse part is enhanced (that is, higher than the designed rated charging rate), the strength of the positive pulse is enhanced, thereby improving the polarization phenomenon and improving the performance and life of the battery.

[0144] In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided, comprising the charging circuit 60 or the charging module 80 in the aforementioned embodiment.

[0145] For example Fig.10 As shown, the electronic device 90 includes a host system 901 and the aforementioned charging module 80, and the charging module 80 is used to supply power to the host system 901 to achieve normal operation of the electronic device. Figure 8 or Fig. 9 As shown, the battery module 80 includes:

[0146] Battery cell 70;

[0147] The pulse charging circuit 601 is used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell 70;

[0148] A first charging circuit 605, used to perform a charging operation on the battery cell 70;

[0149] A control switch 602, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit 601 and the battery cell 70, and to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the first charging circuit 605 and the battery cell 70;

[0150] The control chip 603 is signal-connected to the control switch 602, the pulse charging circuit 601, and the first charging circuit 605, and is used to control the pulse charging circuit 601 to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell 70 at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell 70, and / or control the first charging circuit 605 to perform a charging operation on the battery cell 70;

[0151] In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit 601 is configured with different charging rates.

[0152] It should be noted that the electronic device can be a server, a switch, a router, a mobile phone, a computer, etc., which is not specifically limited. The specific composition structure and working mode of the charging circuit 60 and the charging module 80 can be understood by referring to the description of the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0153] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure and is not intended to limit the protection scope of the present disclosure.

[0154] It should be noted that in the present disclosure, the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also includes other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "includes a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0155] The serial numbers of the above-mentioned embodiments of the present disclosure are only for description and do not represent the advantages or disadvantages of the embodiments.

[0156] The methods disclosed in several method embodiments provided in the present disclosure can be arbitrarily combined without conflict to obtain new method embodiments.

[0157] The features disclosed in several product embodiments provided in the present disclosure can be arbitrarily combined without conflict to obtain new product embodiments.

[0158] The features disclosed in several method or device embodiments provided in the present disclosure may be arbitrarily combined without conflict to obtain new method embodiments or device embodiments.

[0159] The above is only a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, but the protection scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure, which should be included in the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A charging control method, comprising: Determining a charging stage of a target object, wherein the target object includes one of a single battery cell, a battery module, or a battery pack; Based on the charging stage, controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging / discharging operation on the target object at a target charging / discharging rate; In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Controlling a pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage includes: Controlling operating parameters of a pulse charging circuit based on the charging stage of the target object; Controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the operating parameter; Wherein, the target charging rate is different from the rated charging rate of the target object at least in one charging stage; and / or, In different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured to have the same or different charging / discharging pulse widths for charging / discharging the target object.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: Controlling the operating parameters of the pulse charging circuit based on the charging stage of the target object includes at least one of the following: Based on the charging stage of the target object, configure the charge / discharge pulse width and / or target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for the charge / discharge operation; Based on the charging stage of the target object and the attribute parameters of the target object, the charge / discharge pulse width and / or the target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for the charge / discharge operation are configured; Based on the charging stage of the target object and the historical usage data of the target object, configure the charge / discharge pulse width and / or target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for the charge / discharge operation; Based on device information and / or power supply parameters of a power supply device and the charging stage of the target object, configuring a charge / discharge pulse width and / or a target charge / discharge rate for the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation, wherein the power supply device is a device for providing power output to the target object; The charge / discharge pulse width and / or target charge / discharge rate of the pulse charging circuit for charge / discharge operation are configured based on the load parameters of the power receiving device and the charging stage of the target object, and the power receiving device is a device that relies on the target object to provide power output.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein: Controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the target object at a target charge / discharge rate based on the operating parameter includes: Step A: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the target object at a first charging rate based on a configured first charging pulse width; Step B: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a discharge operation on the target object at a first discharge rate based on the configured first discharge pulse width; Repeating step A and step B until the target object has a first voltage; Wherein, the first charging pulse width is greater than the first discharging pulse width.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: Also includes: Step C: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the target object at a second charging rate based on the configured second charging pulse width; Step D: controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a discharge operation on the target object at a second discharge rate based on the configured second discharge pulse width; Repeating step C and step D until the target object has a second voltage; Wherein, the second voltage is greater than the first voltage, and the second charging rate is less than the first charging rate; and / or, The second charging pulse width is less than or equal to the first charging pulse width, and the second discharging pulse width is the same as or different from the first discharging pulse width.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein: Also includes: After the target object has the second voltage, the target object is charged by using the first charging circuit until the target object has a third voltage, and the third voltage is greater than the second voltage. The first charging circuit is arranged in parallel with the pulse charging circuit, and a charging circuit is formed between them and the target object respectively.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: In the case where the target object is not unique, in response to a first object therein reaching a fourth voltage, controlling the pulse charging circuit to adjust the target charging rate of the non-unique target object from a third charging rate to a fourth charging rate; The fourth charging rate is smaller than the third charging rate, and the third charging rate is a charging rate configured to charge the target object to the fourth voltage.

8. A charging circuit for charging a battery cell, the charging circuit comprising: A pulse charging circuit, used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell; A control switch, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit and the battery cell; A control chip, connected to the control switch and the pulse charging circuit signal, for controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell; Wherein, in different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

9. The charging circuit according to claim 8, wherein: The pulse charging circuit comprises: A discharge resistor, a first switch, a second switch and a third switch; the first switch is respectively connected to the control chip, the second switch and the third switch; the second switch is also connected to the control switch; one end of the discharge resistor is connected to the positive electrode of the battery cell and the control switch, and the other end is connected to the third switch; the third switch is also connected to the negative electrode of the battery cell; The first switch is used to control the working states of the second switch and the third switch in response to the control of the control chip, so as to perform the charge / discharge operation on the battery cell.

10. A battery module, comprising: Battery cells; A pulse charging circuit, used to perform charging / discharging operations on the battery cell; A first charging circuit, used for charging the battery cell; A control switch, used to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the pulse charging circuit and the battery cell, and to control the connection state of the charging circuit between the first charging circuit and the battery cell; a control chip, connected to the control switch, the pulse charging circuit and the first charging circuit signal, for controlling the pulse charging circuit to perform a charge / discharge operation on the battery cell at a target charge / discharge rate based on the charging stage of the battery cell, and / or controlling the first charging circuit to perform a charging operation on the battery cell; Wherein, in different charging stages, the pulse charging circuit is configured with different target charging rates.

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