Battery management system and method, computer storage medium, and program product

Abstract

The present application relates to a battery management system and method, a computer storage medium, and a program product, the battery management system comprising: an on-off switch configured to change a state in which a first battery of a vehicle supplies power to an on-board electric appliance; the first controller is configured to detect the current output voltage of the first storage battery when the vehicle is in a locked state; in response to the detection that the current output voltage of the first storage battery is smaller than a threshold output voltage, controlling the on-off switch to enter an off state from a closed state, so that the first storage battery stops supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electric appliance; and based on the received user input, the on-off switch is controlled to enter the closed state from the open state, so that the first storage battery recovers to supply power to the vehicle-mounted electric appliance, and the user input is generated through physical interaction between a user and the vehicle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to vehicle control, and more particularly, to a battery management system and method, a computer storage medium, and a program product. Background Art

[0002] On-vehicle electrical appliances in a vehicle may still maintain certain functions when the vehicle is not in use, such as cellular network communication, short-range wireless communication, etc. However, maintaining such functions continuously consumes the power of the battery, and its voltage may become too low, making it difficult for the user to even unlock the vehicle when there is a need to use the vehicle again.

[0003] It should be noted that the information disclosed in the above background art section is only used to enhance the understanding of the background of this application, and thus may include information that does not constitute the prior art known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this application provide a battery management system and method, a computer storage medium, and a program product. Based on the physical interaction between the user and the vehicle door, the vehicle door can still be wirelessly unlocked when the vehicle's battery stops supplying power to save power, without the user having to perform additional operations on their mobile device.

[0005] According to an aspect of this application, there is provided a battery management system, including: a switch, the switch being configured to change the state of power supply from a first battery of the vehicle to on-vehicle electrical appliances; and a first controller, the first controller being configured to: detect a current output voltage of the first battery when the vehicle is in a locked state; in response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery is less than a threshold output voltage, control the switch to change from a closed state to an open state, so that the first battery stops supplying power to the on-vehicle electrical appliances; and based on the received user input, control the switch to change from the open state to the closed state, so that the first battery resumes supplying power to the on-vehicle electrical appliances, wherein the user input is generated by the user's physical interaction with the vehicle.

[0006] In one or more embodiments of this application, optionally, the battery management system further includes a second controller, wherein the first controller is further configured to: when the first battery resumes supplying power to the on-vehicle electrical appliances, output a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery from a second battery to the second controller.

[0007] In one or more embodiments of this application, optionally, the vehicle includes a touch switch arranged at a door handle on the outside of the vehicle, and the physical interaction includes pressing the touch switch.

[0008] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the user input includes a level change signal caused by pressing the contact switch.

[0009] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance includes a keyless entry and keyless start system.

[0010] According to one aspect of the present application, there is provided a battery management method, including: detecting a current output voltage of a first battery of a vehicle when the vehicle is in a locked state; in response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery is less than a threshold output voltage, controlling a switch to change from a closed state to an open state, so that the first battery stops supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance; and based on the received user input, controlling the switch to change from the open state to the closed state, so that the first battery resumes supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance, where the user input is generated by a physical interaction between a user and the vehicle.

[0011] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the battery management method further includes: when the first battery resumes supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance, outputting a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery from a second battery.

[0012] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the vehicle includes a contact switch arranged at a door handle on the outside of the vehicle, and the physical interaction includes pressing the contact switch.

[0013] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the user input includes a level change signal caused by pressing the contact switch.

[0014] In one or more embodiments of the present application, optionally, the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance includes a keyless entry and keyless start system.

[0015] According to one aspect of the present application, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a processor, cause any one of the battery management methods described above to be implemented.

[0016] According to one aspect of the present application, there is provided a computer program product including computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement any one of the battery management methods described above.

[0017] According to one aspect of the present application, there is provided a vehicle including any one of the battery management systems described above. Description of the Drawings

[0018] The above and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present application will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like or similar elements are denoted by like reference numerals. It should be noted that the drawings in the present application are merely schematic and may not be drawn to scale or with specific quantities. In the drawings:

[0019] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for battery management according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0020] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a method for battery management according to some embodiments of the present application. Detailed Embodiments

[0021] The present application will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate schematic embodiments of the present application. In the following detailed description of the embodiments, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding of the disclosed content of the present application. However, in one or more embodiments, well-known features are not described in detail to avoid unnecessarily complicating the description. Where applicable, the embodiments of the present application and the features in the embodiments may also be combined with each other.

[0022] In the present application, terms such as "including", "comprising", "having", etc. indicate that the technical solutions described in the present application do not exclude the existence of other elements and steps that are not directly or explicitly stated, in addition to the elements and steps directly and explicitly stated in the description and claims.

[0023] Unless otherwise specified, terms such as "first" and "second" do not indicate the order of elements in terms of time, space, size, etc., nor are they intended to limit any element to only a single element, but are merely used to distinguish between elements.

[0024] In-vehicle electrical appliances (e.g., T-Box, radio frequency transceiver, etc.) may still continuously consume power from the vehicle battery (e.g., a typical 12V lead-acid battery or a lithium-ion battery) when the vehicle is in a locked state (e.g., the vehicle is stationary and its power system has stopped operating), entering a sleep state for maintaining network connection, performing firmware and / or software upgrades, etc. However, when an error that causes abnormal power consumption occurs in the firmware or software of the in-vehicle electrical appliance, for example, the power of the battery may be consumed too quickly and the output voltage will continue to decrease. At this time, since the vehicle is locked, its engine (if any) stops operating, and an additional battery (e.g., a 48V or other voltage battery) may have been powered off, making it impossible for the battery to obtain any power replenishment from the vehicle. In such cases, it is noted that when the output voltage is detected to be too low, the power can be reserved by disconnecting the power supply from the battery to the above-mentioned in-vehicle electrical appliance, and a passive switch can also be arranged outside the vehicle, for example, to restore the power supply from the battery to the in-vehicle electrical appliance when the passive switch is closed by the user, so that the user can unlock the door, for example.

[0025] Figure 1 FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a system 100 for battery management according to some embodiments of the present application. Figure 1 In FIG. 4, the lines for communication are shown as relatively thin connecting lines, while the lines for providing power are shown as relatively thick connecting lines, and not all lines are shown to avoid redundancy.

[0026] The system 100 can be integrated into a vehicle (e.g., an electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle, a fuel vehicle, etc.), and may include a first controller 110. The first controller 110 can control the on-off switch 130 (e.g., MOSFET, IGBT) to close or open via a communication line. When the on-off switch 130 is closed or opened, correspondingly, the first battery 120 can supply power to the in-vehicle electrical appliance 140 (e.g., the power input of the in-vehicle electrical appliance 140) or stop supplying power via the on-off switch 130. The in-vehicle electrical appliance 140 can be other in-vehicle electronic devices except the first controller. Specifically, it can include a circuit associated with the vehicle door lock function.

[0027] The system 100 may further include a second controller 150. The second controller 150 communicates with a converter circuit 160 (e.g., a DC-DC converter and its peripheral circuits), and can send a control signal to the converter circuit 160 and receive a battery state feedback signal from the converter circuit 160. When operating according to the control signal from the second controller 150, the converter circuit 160 can convert the output voltage of the second battery 170 into a charging voltage provided to the first battery 120 to charge the first battery 120 and / or supply power to the in-vehicle electrical appliance 140 via the on-off switch 130.

[0028] The first controller 110 and the second controller 150 can be, for example, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, an electronic control unit (ECU), or any other suitable computing device, or one or more combinations thereof. The first controller 110 and the second controller 150 can communicate with each other. For example, the first controller 110 can instruct the second controller 150 to send an enabling signal to the converter circuit 160 so that the converter circuit 160 operates. In another example, the second controller 150 can output other control signals based on the data received from the first controller 110, such as drive signals input to the display in the passenger compartment.

[0029] In some embodiments, the first controller 110 can be constantly powered by the first battery 120, and the second controller 150 can also be powered by the first battery 120 and power down together with the vehicle-mounted electrical appliances 140 when the first battery 120 stops powering.

[0030] In some embodiments, the first controller 110 can continuously detect the output voltage of the first battery 120. For example, when the vehicle is in a locked state, the first controller 110 obtains the output voltage of the first battery 120 via a voltage sensor that can be integrated in the first controller 110, and compares the obtained voltage with a threshold output voltage (e.g., 10V) that can be read by the first controller 110. The threshold output voltage can be stored in a memory (such as RAM, ROM, EPROM, E2PROM) and indicates the output voltage when the first battery 120 reaches a discharged or nearly discharged state due to power supply.

[0031] In some embodiments, in response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery 120 is less than the threshold output voltage, the first controller 110 can instruct the on-off switch 130 to disconnect, so that the first battery 120 stops powering the vehicle-mounted electrical appliances 140. For example, the first controller 110 can stop outputting the control level for driving the on-off switch 130 to close, so that the on-off switch 130 disconnects. Here, in the case where charging from the second battery 170 via the converter circuit 160 is not possible, the first battery 120 is decoupled from the circuit by disconnecting the on-off switch 130, so that the first battery 120 maintains the remaining voltage and power.

[0032] In some embodiments, the first controller 110 may also receive user input and control the on / off state of the on / off switch 130 based on the user input. For example, when the first battery 120 stops supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance 140 due to the on / off switch 130 being turned off, the first controller 110 may output a control level for driving the on / off switch 130 to close in response to the received user input, so that the first battery 120 resumes supplying power to the vehicle-mounted electrical appliance 140 (and may also supply power to the second controller 150 in some examples) according to the user's demand.

[0033] In some embodiments, the user input may come from the user's physical interaction with the outside of the vehicle (such as the vehicle door). For example, it may be difficult for the user to wirelessly unlock the vehicle door (such as based on the communication between the vehicle and a smart phone, electronic key, etc.) after not using the vehicle for a long time, because the power supply circuit from the first battery 120 to the corresponding communication component of the vehicle is disconnected and the vehicle cannot perform wireless transceiver. However, in some cases, the user may only carry their mobile device (such as a smart phone, electronic key) when expecting to enter the vehicle and not carry a mechanical key, for example, for opening the vehicle door when the first battery 120 is not powered. Facing such a situation, the system 100 of the present application provides a vehicle unlocking method based on the user's physical interaction with the vehicle door, enabling the vehicle door to be wirelessly unlocked even when the first battery 120 of the vehicle stops supplying power to save power, without the user having to perform additional operations on their mobile device.

[0034] Specifically, one input / output pin (GPIO) of the first controller 110 may be maintained at a high level (such as 3.3V) state through pull-up and may be connected to one end of a contact switch located on the vehicle door. The contact switch is a passive switch, the other end of which may be connected to the reference ground (such as the vehicle body via a pull-down resistor) and maintained in a normally open state, and is closed through physical interaction with the user (such as pressing), causing the above input / output pin to be pulled down to a low level (such as 0V). In response to detecting the voltage change of this pin from high level to low level, the first controller 110 may control the on / off switch 130 to change from the off state to the on state, so that the first battery 120 resumes supplying power to the vehicle-mounted circuit associated with the vehicle door locking function, and the user can then continue to perform wireless communication with the vehicle through their mobile device (such as a smart phone) to unlock the vehicle door.

[0035] In some embodiments, the contact switch may be a button on the door handle located outside the vehicle door, and the button can be used for a Passive Entry & Passive Start (PEPS) system. For example, when a user approaches the vehicle (e.g., within a few meters of the vehicle) and presses the button, the PEPS system can verify the user to determine whether to unlock the vehicle door for the user. In some other embodiments, the above contact switch may be integrated into the door handle outside the vehicle door, and the same function of the contact switch can be generated by reusing the existing structure of the door handle. For example, pulling the door handle down causes the above input / output pins to be pulled down to a low level. In this way, the existing vehicle structure can be utilized. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make corresponding changes to the form and details of the contact switch as appropriate, which are not limited herein. Thus, with the system 100 provided in this application, the PEPS function of the vehicle can be enabled based on the physical interaction between the user and the vehicle door, so that the vehicle door can still be wirelessly unlocked in the user's usual manner without causing any perception or inconvenience to the user when the first battery 120 of the vehicle stops supplying power to save electricity.

[0036] In some embodiments, when the first battery 120 resumes power supply to the in-vehicle electrical appliances 140 and the second controller 150, the first controller 110 may send a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery 120 from the second battery 170 to the second controller 150, and the signal may include battery state parameters such as the current voltage and power. Based on the received signal, the second controller 150 controls the converter circuit 160 to convert the output voltage of the second battery 170 into a charging voltage provided to the first battery 120 to charge the first battery 120 and / or supply power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances 140 via the on-off switch 130.

[0037] In some embodiments, after the vehicle is started (e.g., the brake pedal is depressed), the second controller 150 may output a signal indicating the battery state parameters received from the first controller 110 to a display in the vehicle cabin. The second controller 150 may also obtain a feedback signal related to the state of the second battery 170 from the converter circuit 160 so as to present the battery state parameters of the second battery 170 on the display in the vehicle cabin.

[0038] It should be noted that Figure 1 The various elements shown above in

[0039] Figure 2Schematic diagram of a method 200 for battery management according to some embodiments of the present application. The method 200 includes steps 210 to 230, and these steps can be implemented by the first and second controllers, the first and second batteries, in-vehicle electrical appliances, a converter circuit, a switch, etc. described above with the help of Figure 1 described first and second controllers, first and second batteries, in-vehicle electrical appliances, a converter circuit, a switch, etc.

[0040] In step 210, the current output voltage of the first battery can be detected. For example, when the vehicle is in a locked state, the output voltage of the first battery can be obtained via a voltage sensor, and a user input that may come from a physical interaction between the user and the outside of the vehicle (such as a car door) can also be received. Optionally, the vehicle includes a contact switch arranged on the door handle, and the physical interaction includes pressing the contact switch. Optionally, the user input includes a level change signal caused by pressing the contact switch.

[0041] In step 220, in response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery is less than the threshold output voltage, the switch can be controlled to change from the closed state to the open state, so that the first battery stops supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances. For example, the control level for driving the switch to close can be stopped, so that the switch disconnects. Optionally, the in-vehicle electrical appliances include a keyless entry and start system.

[0042] In step 230, based on the received user input, the switch can be controlled to change from the open state to the closed state, so that the first battery resumes supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances. For example, in response to the received user input, a control level for driving the switch to close can be output. Optionally, when the first battery resumes power supply, a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery from the second battery is output.

[0043] Although Figure 2 the steps in are presented and described in sequence, those skilled in the art will appreciate that some or all of the steps can be combined or omitted, and some or all of the steps can be executed in parallel, and additional steps can be further executed. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure should not be considered limited to the Figure 2 specific arrangement of the steps shown in.

[0044] According to one aspect of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, on which instructions are stored, and when the instructions are executed by a processor, one or more steps or operations included in the method described above with the help of Figure 2 can be implemented.

[0045] According to another aspect of the present application, a computer program product is further provided, and the computer program product includes computer instructions, and when the computer instructions are executed by a processor, one or more steps or operations included in the method described above with the help of Figure 2One or more steps or operations included in the described method.

[0046] The processor referred to in this application may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. In the implementation process, as described above Figure 2 One or more steps or operations included in the described method can be completed by the integrated logic circuit in hardware in the processor or by instructions in software form. The above-mentioned processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmable gate array or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may also be any conventional processor, etc.

[0047] The computer-readable storage medium referred to in this application includes various types of computer storage media, which can be any available medium accessible by a general or special-purpose computer. For example, the computer-readable storage medium may include RAM, ROM, EPROM, E2PROM, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROM or other optical disk memories, magnetic disk memories or other magnetic storage devices, or any other temporary or non-temporary medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code units in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer or a general or special-purpose processor. The above combinations should also be included in the protection scope of the computer-readable storage medium. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor so that the processor can read / write information from / to the storage medium. In an alternative, the storage medium may be integrated into the processor.

[0048] Note that the embodiments described in this application are intended to make the disclosure herein comprehensive and complete, and are not intended to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Those skilled in the art can think of other feasible changes or substitutions based on the technical scope disclosed in this application, and such changes or substitutions are all covered by the protection scope of this application. Those skilled in the art will know that the above description and examples are provided only for ease of illustration and example, and the described description and examples are not intended to cover all aspects of this application or limit this application to the precise form disclosed. The technical solutions described in this application can be implemented in different forms without departing from the spirit and scope of this application.

Claims

1. A battery management system, comprising: An on-off switch configured to change the state of power supply from a first battery of a vehicle to in-vehicle electrical appliances; And A first controller configured to: Detect a current output voltage of the first battery when the vehicle is in a locked state; In response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery is less than a threshold output voltage, control the on-off switch to change from a closed state to an open state, so that the first battery stops supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances; And Based on a received user input, control the on-off switch to change from the open state to the closed state, so that the first battery resumes supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances, wherein the user input is generated by a user's physical interaction with the vehicle.

2. The battery management system according to claim 1 further includes a second controller, wherein, The first controller is further configured to: When the first battery resumes supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances, output a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery from a second battery.

3. The battery management system according to claim 1, wherein, The vehicle includes a touch switch arranged at a door handle on the outer side of the vehicle, and the physical interaction includes pressing the touch switch.

4. The battery management system according to claim 3, wherein, The user input includes a level change signal caused by pressing the touch switch.

5. The battery management system according to claim 1, wherein, The in-vehicle electrical appliances include a keyless entry and start system.

6. A battery management method, comprising: Detecting a current output voltage of a first battery of a vehicle when the vehicle is in a locked state; In response to detecting that the current output voltage of the first battery is less than a threshold output voltage, controlling an on-off switch to change from a closed state to an open state, so that the first battery stops supplying power to in-vehicle electrical appliances; And Based on a received user input, controlling the on-off switch to change from the open state to the closed state, so that the first battery resumes supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances, wherein the user input is generated by a user's physical interaction with the vehicle.

7. The battery management method according to claim 6, further comprising: When the first battery resumes supplying power to the in-vehicle electrical appliances, outputting a signal indicating a request to charge the first battery from a second battery.

8. The battery management method according to claim 6, wherein, The vehicle includes a touch switch arranged at a door handle on the outer side of the vehicle, and the physical interaction includes pressing the touch switch.

9. The battery management method according to claim 8, wherein, The user input includes a level change signal caused by pressing the touch switch.

10. The battery management method according to claim 6, wherein, The in-vehicle electrical appliances include a keyless entry and start system.

11. A computer-readable storage medium storing instructions therein, characterized in that, When executed by a processor, the instructions cause the battery management method according to any one of claims 6 to 10 to be implemented.

12. A computer program product, the computer program product comprising computer instructions, characterized in that, When executed by a processor, the computer instructions implement the battery management method according to any one of claims 6 to 10.

13. A vehicle, characterized in that, The vehicle includes the battery management system according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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