METHOD FOR AN INTERACTION WITH AT LEAST ONE OPERATOR OF A BATTERY-POWERED PROCESSING DEVICE AND SYSTEM FOR EXECUTING THE METHOD

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for interaction with at least one operator of a battery-operated processing device and to a system for carrying out the method according to the preamble of the independent claims. State of the art

[0002] Battery-powered processing tools are offered in very different performance classes depending on their intended use. For example, there are hand tools in the lower performance classes that operate at 10.8 V (often nominally referred to as 12 V) or 14.4 V, while in the medium to higher performance classes, processing tools in voltage classes of 18 V, 36 V, 54 V or even 72 V are predominantly used. The voltage values ​​result from the wiring (parallel or series) of the battery cells used. The battery cells are preferably lithium-based battery cells, e.g. Li-Ion, Li-Po, Li-metal or similar, with a cell voltage of 3.6 V, whereby a battery cell is usually a cylindrical round cell whose cell poles are arranged at the ends of the cylinder shape.However, the following invention is not dependent on the type and design of the battery cells used, but can be used for any interchangeable battery packs and interchangeable batteries, e.g., in addition to round cells, also pouch cells or the like.

[0003] To ensure the longest possible operating times and shortest possible downtimes, especially in commercial applications, many battery-powered processing tools have become established with removable batteries or battery packs. These are connected to each other via appropriate interfaces on the removable battery packs and the electrical processing tools in a force- and / or form-fitting manner. A "removable connection" is understood in particular to mean a connection that can be removed and established without tools—i.e., by hand.

[0004] AU 2019200218 A1 discloses a battery-operated power tool having a control or regulating device for controlling or regulating an electric drive for an insert tool. The control or regulating device is designed such that it can communicate with a unit external to the device. In this way, a plurality of battery-operated power tools within the same network can communicate with one another, for example, to exchange data about the operation of the power tools and to set a uniform control or regulating behavior. Among other things, the data also contains information about weak and / or empty replaceable battery packs or replaceable batteries.

[0005] US 2013 / 098646 A1 discloses a battery-operated processing device that can be supplied with power via a removable battery pack. Alarm generation and display are provided if the processing device is operated under high load for a specific, first period of time. Furthermore, the power supply is interrupted if operation under high load continues for a second period that is longer than the first period. Similar approaches are also known from US 2014 / 151079 A1 and US 2013 / 255980.

[0006] Battery-powered processing tools for high-performance applications, in particular, require removable battery packs or batteries with correspondingly high power reserves and a very high power delivery capacity. If an operator uses such a processing tool in conjunction with a removable battery pack or battery with insufficient power delivery capacity, the battery-powered processing tool cannot fully utilize its performance, resulting in unsatisfactory work progress for the operator. Furthermore, the operator may get the impression that the battery-powered processing tool is defective.

[0007] The object of the invention is to improve the interaction of an operator with a battery-operated processing device in such a way that the operator is reliably informed if a performance limit of at least one replaceable battery pack or replaceable batteries used in conjunction with the battery-operated processing device is repeatedly exceeded. Advantages of the invention

[0008] The invention relates to a method for interaction with at least one operator of a battery-operated processing device that can be supplied with energy via at least one removable battery pack or rechargeable battery. To achieve the stated object, it is provided that, in one method step, a performance characteristic of the at least one removable battery pack or rechargeable battery is recorded at defined times during operation of the battery-operated processing device by means of a recording unit of the battery-operated processing device and / or the at least one removable battery pack or rechargeable battery. In a further method step, a frequency is calculated with which the at least one removable battery pack or rechargeable battery was operated at its performance limit.This is particularly advantageous for informing the operator about the reason for reduced performance of the battery-powered processing device and the need to use correspondingly powerful interchangeable battery packs or batteries. Manufacturers can thus reduce operator inquiries about limited performance of battery-powered processing devices, which helps save potential service costs associated with warranty or statutory guarantee claims.

[0009] In the context of the invention, battery-operated processing devices are understood to mean, for example, power tools for processing workpieces using an electrically driven tool. The power tool can be designed both as an electric hand tool and as a stationary power tool. Typical power tools in this context are hand-held or pillar drills, high-performance screwdrivers, impact drills, hammer drills, planers, angle grinders, orbital sanders, polishers, circular saws, table saws, miter saws, and jigsaws, or the like. Garden tools such as lawn mowers, grass trimmers, pruning saws, and the like can also be considered as battery-operated processing devices. Furthermore, the invention can also be used for interchangeable battery packs or rechargeable batteries of battery-operated household appliances, such as vacuum cleaners, blenders, etc.

[0010] The battery voltage of a removable battery pack is generally a multiple of the voltage of a single battery cell and results from the connection (parallel or series) of the individual battery cells. A battery cell is typically designed as a galvanic cell with a structure in which one cell pole is located at one end and another cell pole at the opposite end. In particular, the battery cell has a positive cell pole at one end and a negative cell pole at the opposite end. The battery cells are preferably designed as lithium-based battery cells, e.g., Li-Ion, Li-Po, Li-Metal, or the like. However, the invention is also applicable to removable battery packs with Ni-Cd, Ni-MH cells, or other suitable cell types. For common Li-Ion battery cells with a cell voltage of 3.6 V, voltage classes of 3.6 V, 7.2 V, 10.8 V, 14.4 V, 18 V, 36 V, etc., result.Preferably, a battery cell is designed as an at least substantially cylindrical round cell, with the cell poles arranged at the ends of the cylinder. However, the invention is not dependent on the type and design of the battery cells used, but can be applied to any interchangeable battery packs and batteries, e.g., in addition to round cells, also pouch cells or the like.

[0011] It should also be noted that the design of the electromechanical interfaces of the battery-operated processing devices and the associated receptacles for the force- and / or form-locking detachable connection of the interchangeable battery packs are not intended to be the subject of this invention. A person skilled in the art will select a suitable embodiment for the interface depending on the power or voltage class of the battery-operated processing device and / or the interchangeable battery packs.

[0012] For data transmission, the battery-operated processing device has a communication device with which it sends the data to a communication device of a device-external unit, in particular a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, a cloud server or another computing unit. In a further method step, the device-external unit generates a note for the use of a more powerful interchangeable battery pack or batteries on the basis of the data containing the calculated frequency. This note can be displayed to the at least one operator in a further method step with a text, image and / or voice message, in particular as a push message. In this way, the operator can be quickly, transparently and efficiently informed about the problems in connection with the interchangeable battery packs or batteries he is using.Replaceable batteries should be pointed out and the cause eliminated by purchasing more powerful replaceable battery packs or replaceable batteries.

[0013] A device-external unit is understood to mean anything that can communicate with the battery-operated processing device via a corresponding communication device, and that can be operated in an energy-autonomous and mechanically decoupled manner from the battery-operated processing device, in particular.

[0014] The communication device of the battery-operated processing device can be designed, in particular, as a radio module, for example, as a Bluetooth or Bluetooth Low Energy module, as a WLAN, infrared, LoRa, NFC module, or as another wireless communication device deemed appropriate by a person skilled in the art. The communication device is preferably arranged in a fixed location in a housing of the battery-operated processing device, and in particular can only be removed from the housing and / or other components of the battery-operated processing device using tools. The communication device of the device-external unit has the same radio technology as the communication device of the battery-operated processing device. Since corresponding communication devices are known to those skilled in the art, they will not be discussed further here.

[0015] Alternatively or additionally, it is provided that the battery-operated processing device has an internal computing unit which, based on the calculated frequency, generates a notification for the use of a more powerful interchangeable battery pack or batteries in a further method step. The notification can be displayed visually, acoustically and / or haptically to at least one operator via a display unit of the battery-operated processing device. In a particularly advantageous manner, the indication of a possibly insufficiently powerful interchangeable battery pack or battery is thus provided directly by the battery-operated processing device, so that the operator is already informed of the problem while a workpiece is being processed. A visual indication can be provided via lighting devices (e.g. a multi-color LED or a multi-stage LED display) and / or a display (e.g. LCD, OLED, ePaper or the like).

[0016] An internal processing unit is understood, in particular, to be a unit comprising a processor and a memory, as well as an operating program stored in the memory. Preferably, the internal processing unit is at least partially configured as a microcontroller or comprises at least one microcontroller with computing power that enables operation of a real-time operating system.

[0017] The at least one operator can deactivate the display of the message in a further process step. Alternatively or additionally, it is also possible for the display of the message to be deactivated after a defined number of repetitions in a further process step. On the one hand, this suggests that the at least one operator deliberately ignored the message in order to be able to continue working with the battery-operated processing device despite reduced performance. On the other hand, actively deactivating the message also ensures that the at least one operator does not find too frequent notifications annoying. It can also be provided that the message is automatically displayed again after a defined period of time in which it was not displayed and / or that the message can be forwarded to other operators of the battery-operated processing device.This is particularly advantageous when several operators use the same battery-powered processing device.

[0018] It can also be provided that the at least one operator can set the battery-operated processing device such that, at least for a defined period of time, it can only be operated at a reduced power level adjusted to the performance limit of the at least one interchangeable battery pack or batteries. In this way, the operator can adapt the power consumption of the battery-operated device to the interchangeable battery pack used. Furthermore, this can prevent the interchangeable battery pack or batteries from permanently losing their maximum charging capacity, for example, due to overheating.

[0019] The invention further relates to a system with a battery-operated processing device and a removable battery pack or removable battery for carrying out the method according to the invention, wherein a detection unit of the battery-operated processing device and / or of the at least one removable battery pack or removable battery detects a performance characteristic of the at least one removable battery pack or removable battery at defined times during operation of the battery-operated processing device and a computing unit of the battery-operated processing device calculates a frequency with which the at least one removable battery pack or removable battery was operated at its performance limit.

[0020] In conjunction with a device-external unit, in particular a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, a cloud server, or another computing unit, it can be provided that individual method steps of the method are carried out on the device-external unit. The latter allows, on the one hand, the use of battery-operated devices without a complex and expensive internal computing unit and, on the other hand, the simple processing and forwarding of information by a corresponding backend, even when the battery-operated processing device is switched off. In addition, in this way, several operators of the battery-operated processing device can be quickly and efficiently informed about the calculated frequency with which the at least one removable battery pack or removable battery was operated at its performance limit. Examples of implementation drawing

[0021] The invention is described below with reference to Figures 1 and 2explained by way of example, whereby the same reference numerals in the figures indicate the same components with the same functionality.

[0022] It shows Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of a system according to the invention for carrying out the method according to the invention for interaction with at least one operator of a battery-operated processing device, and Fig. 2 is a flowchart of the method according to the invention for interaction with at least one operator of a battery-operated processing device. Description of the embodiments

[0023] In Figure 1A system 10 is shown comprising a battery-operated processing device 14 designed as a cordless hammer drill 12, a first device-external unit 18 designed as a smartphone 16, and a second device-external unit 18 designed as an IoT or cloud server 20. However, other configurations of the system 10 are also conceivable, particularly in terms of the type and number of battery-operated processing devices 14 and the device-external units 18.

[0024] The cordless hammer drill 12 is supplied with energy via at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24. The interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 is a conventional interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery with a housing 30, which has an electromechanical interface (not shown in detail) on a first side wall for detachable connection to a battery interface (likewise not shown in detail) of the cordless hammer drill 12 and to a charger (not shown). In conjunction with the cordless hammer drill 12, the electromechanical interface of the at least one interchangeable battery pack 24 serves for discharging, while in conjunction with the charger it enables charging of the at least one interchangeable battery pack 24. Alternatively or additionally, charging can also take place directly via the battery interface of the cordless hammer drill 12.The precise design of the electromechanical interface and the battery interface depends on various factors, such as the voltage class of the interchangeable battery packs 24 or various manufacturer specifications. For example, two or more electrical contacts can be provided for energy and / or data transmission between the at least one interchangeable battery pack 24 and the cordless hammer drill 12 or the charger. Mechanical coding is also conceivable, so that the at least one interchangeable battery pack 24 can only be operated on certain battery-operated processing devices 14. Since the precise design of the electromechanical interface is irrelevant to the invention, it will not be discussed in further detail here. Both a person skilled in the art and an operator of the battery-operated processing device 14 will make the appropriate selection in this regard.

[0025] The individual components of the system 10 each have a communication device 26, which is provided for data transmission 28 within the system 10, in particular between the battery-operated processing device 14, the first device-external unit 18, and the second device-external unit 18. The communication devices 26 can, for example, be designed for transmitting WLAN and / or Bluetooth protocols. Thus, it is conceivable that data is exchanged between the battery-operated processing device 14 and the first device-external unit 18, designed as a smartphone 16, via Bluetooth, while the first and second device-external units 18 communicate with each other via their respective communication devices 26 via WLAN or via a wired Ethernet connection.Other configurations of the communication devices 26 are also conceivable, for example, for data transmission via LoRa, NFC, or the like, or also via optical or acoustic coupling. Furthermore, it is conceivable for the first and second device-external units 18 to communicate via an internet connection. This is the case, for example, if the second device-external unit 18 is configured as a remotely positioned cloud server 20. The various and diverse configuration options for the first and second device-external units 18 are known to those skilled in the art, so they will not be discussed further here.

[0026] The cordless hammer drill 12 comprises a detection unit 32 which detects a performance parameter P of the at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 at defined times during operation of the cordless hammer drill 12. The detection unit 32 can have at least one sensor element for this purpose, which is not shown in detail in the figures. The sensor element is designed, for example, as a shunt resistor or another sensor element suitable for detecting the performance parameter P of the at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 for current, voltage and / or temperature measurement. A performance limit PT of the interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 generally results from its maximum current delivery capacity while adhering to the temperature limit values. In addition, the interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 can have its performance limit PT and, if applicable,Further battery-specific parameters are transmitted to the cordless hammer drill 12 via a coding resistor or other suitable means via its electromechanical interface and the battery interface of the cordless hammer drill 12. Alternatively or additionally, it is also possible for the performance parameter P to be recorded within the interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 using a corresponding recording unit 32. Furthermore, the cordless hammer drill 12 comprises an internal computing unit 34 for calculating or recording a frequency. F, with which at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 was operated at its performance limit PT.

[0027] At least one of the device-external units 18 and / or the battery-operated processing device 14 has a display unit 36 ​​for outputting optical, acoustic, and / or haptic signals. Optical output can be provided via lighting (e.g., a multi-color LED or a multi-level LED display) and / or a display (e.g., LCD, OLED, ePaper, or the like), while a loudspeaker, for example, serves for acoustic output, and a vibration motor for haptic output.

[0028] In Figure 2An exemplary sequence of the method according to the invention for interaction with at least one operator of the cordless hammer drill 12 by means of the system 10 is shown. The right-hand side shows the processing of the individual method steps in the device-external unit 18, and the left-hand side shows the processing of the corresponding method steps in the cordless hammer drill 12 or in the battery-operated processing device 10. In a method step 38, a performance parameter P of the at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 is recorded at defined times during operation of the hammer drill 12 by means of the recording unit 32 of the hammer drill 12 and / or the at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24. The performance parameter P is then transmitted by means of the communication device 26 of the cordless hammer drill 12 to the communication device 26 of the at least one device-external unit 18, for example the smartphone 16.In a further method step 40, the frequency F with which the at least one interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 was operated at its power limit PT is then calculated. "At its power limit" can be interpreted as reaching or exceeding the power limit (P >= PT ) or as simply exceeding the power limit (P > P 7 ). It is also conceivable to define an approximate reaching of the power limit with F(P ≅ PT ) as the threshold value for the frequency F. Alternatively or additionally, it can also be provided that the frequency F is calculated in a method step 42 by the computing unit 34 integrated in the cordless hammer drill 12. The power limit PT of the interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 connected to the cordless hammer drill 12 can for this purpose have been transmitted to the cordless hammer drill 12 by the interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 in the manner described.In addition, the cordless hammer drill 12 can send this value to the device-external unit 18 via its communication device 26.

[0029] As long as a defined minimum frequency F min has not been exceeded or reached, the performance parameter P continues to be recorded according to steps 44 or 46. If the minimum frequency is exceeded or reached by the calculated frequency (F >= F min ), a note for the use of a more powerful interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 is generated in steps 48 or 50. This note can be displayed to the at least one operator in a further method step 52 with a text, image and / or voice message, in particular as a push message, on the device-external unit 18. In this way, the operator can be quickly, transparently and efficiently informed about the reason for reduced performance of the cordless hammer drill 12 and about the use of correspondingly powerful interchangeable battery packs or interchangeable batteries 24.For the manufacturer of the cordless hammer drill, this also results in a reduction in the number of potential operator complaints about the limited performance of the corresponding cordless tools 114 due to the use of insufficiently powerful interchangeable battery packs or batteries. This saves any service costs associated with warranty or statutory guarantee claims.

[0030] Based on the recorded frequency F, the internal computing unit 34 of the cordless hammer drill 12 can also generate a notification for the use of a more powerful interchangeable battery pack or interchangeable battery 24 in a further method step 54. This notification can be provided to the at least one operator visually, acoustically, and / or haptically, for example, via the display unit 36 ​​of the cordless hammer drill 12.

[0031] The at least one operator can deactivate the display of the message in a further method step 56. Alternatively or additionally, it is also possible for the display of the message to be deactivated after a defined maximum number of repetitions W max in a further method step 60. This gives the operator the option of deliberately suppressing the message or its regular repetition W in order to be able to continue working with the cordless hammer drill 12 despite reduced performance. In addition, it can be provided that the message is automatically displayed again after a defined period of time in which it was not displayed and / or forwarded to other operators of the cordless hammer drill 12. This is particularly advantageous if several operators use the cordless hammer drill alternately.

[0032] Finally, the method according to the invention can provide that the at least one operator can adjust the cordless hammer drill 12 in a further method step 62 such that it can be operated, at least for a defined period of time, only with reduced power adjusted to the power limit PT of the at least one removable battery pack or removable batteries 24. In this way, the operator can adjust the power consumption of the cordless hammer drill 12 to the removable battery pack 24 used in order to avoid permanent damage to the latter.

Claims

1. Method for interacting with at least one user of a rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14), which is able to be supplied with energy by means of at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24), wherein in one method step (38) a power characteristic variable (P) of the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) is sensed by means of a sensing unit (32) of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) and / or of the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) at defined points in time during the operation of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14), and wherein in a further method step (40, 42) a frequency (F) with which the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) has been operated at its power limit (PT) is calculated.

2. Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) comprises a communication device (26), by way of which said tool transmits, in particular wirelessly, data to a communication device (26) of a tool-external unit (18), in particular of a smartphone (16), of a tablet, of a computer, of a cloud server (20) or of some other computing unit, wherein in a further method step (48) the tool-external unit (18) generates advice for the use of a more powerful exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) on the basis of the data containing the calculated frequency (F).

3. Method according to Claim 2, characterized in that the advice is indicated to the at least one user in a further method step (52) by way of a text, image and / or voice message, in particular as a push message.

4. Method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) comprises an internal computing unit (34), which generates advice for the use of a more powerful exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) on the basis of the calculated frequency (F) in a further method step (50).

5. Method according to any of the preceding Claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the at least one piece of advice is indicated to the at least one user visually, acoustically and / or haptically by means of an indicator unit (36) of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14).

6. Method according to either of the preceding Claims 3 and 5, characterized in that the at least one user can deactivate the indication of the advice in a further method step (56).

7. Method according to any of the preceding Claims 3, 5 and 6, characterized in that the indication of the advice is deactivated after a defined number of repetitions (W) in a further method step (60).

8. Method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the at least one user can set the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) in a further method step (62) in such a way that said tool is operable at least for a defined time period only with reduced power adapted to the power limit (PT) of the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24).

9. System (10) comprising a rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) and an exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) for carrying out the method according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a sensing unit (32) of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) and / or of the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) senses a power characteristic variable (P) of the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) at defined points in time during the operation of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14), and a computing unit (34) of the rechargeable-battery-operated machining tool (14) calculates a frequency (F) with which the at least one exchangeable rechargeable battery pack or exchangeable rechargeable battery (24) has been operated at its power limit (PT).