Battery management device and method

Abstract

The present invention provides a battery management technology that can efficiently diagnose a battery and thereby improve the performance and safety of the battery. A battery management device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a measurement module that measures state information of the battery, and a control module configured to compare the state information measured by the measurement module with a diagnostic criterion in a multi-level form and determine a diagnostic stage of the battery, and perform a processing operation corresponding to the determined diagnostic stage.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application claims priority based on Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0114042 filed on September 8, 2022, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0117881 filed on September 5, 2023, and all of the content disclosed in the specifications and drawings of the said applications is incorporated into this application.

[0002] The present invention relates to battery management technology, and more particularly, to a technology capable of efficiently diagnosing a battery and improving the performance or protection effect of the battery through the diagnosis.

Background Art

[0003] Currently, commercially available secondary batteries include nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, nickel-zinc batteries, lithium secondary batteries, etc. Among them, lithium secondary batteries have attracted attention because they have almost no memory effect compared to nickel-based secondary batteries, can be charged and discharged freely, have a very low self-discharge rate, and have a high energy density.

[0004] In recent years, batteries (secondary batteries) have been widely used for driving or energy storage in medium and large-sized devices such as automobiles such as electric two-wheelers and electric vehicles, or energy storage systems (ESS: Energy Storage System), etc. Therefore, the interest in batteries has further increased, and related research and development have been carried out more actively. Furthermore, in electric two-wheelers and electric vehicles, etc., commercialization or research on replaceable shared battery packs is also being actively carried out.

[0005] Lithium secondary batteries mainly use lithium-based oxides and carbon materials as the positive electrode active material and the negative electrode active material, respectively. And a lithium secondary battery includes an electrode assembly in which a positive electrode plate coated with such a positive electrode active material and a negative electrode plate coated with a negative electrode active material are arranged with a separator interposed therebetween, and an exterior material, for example, a battery case, for sealing and storing the electrode assembly together with an electrolytic solution.

[0006] Generally, lithium secondary batteries can be divided into can-type secondary batteries in which the electrode assembly is housed in a metal can and pouch-type secondary batteries in which the electrode assembly is housed in a pouch made of an aluminum laminate sheet according to the shape of the exterior material. And the can-type secondary batteries can be further divided into prismatic secondary batteries and cylindrical secondary batteries according to their shapes.

[0007] A battery module or a battery pack is configured in such a form that a plurality of secondary batteries are housed together inside a module case (module housing) or a pack case (pack housing) in an electrically connected state. At this time, each secondary battery included in the battery module or the battery pack can be referred to as a battery cell.

[0008] In order to guarantee stable performance for batteries in the form of battery cells, battery modules, battery packs, etc., and to protect devices equipped with such batteries and users who use such batteries, it is very important to diagnose the state of the battery and take appropriate measures. Therefore, as a typical technology, control devices such as a battery management system (BMS) are included in battery packs, ESS, etc., to diagnose the battery and take related measures.

[0009] However, conventionally, a single criterion for the measured values of diagnostic items is set, and the result of the diagnosis is judged dichotomously such as a normal state and a failure state, and a response routine is defined based on the judgment result. In this case, there is a disadvantage that it is difficult to grasp in advance the risks for each part of the battery before the diagnostic measurement value reaches the criterion corresponding to the failure state. And thereby, it is impossible to prevent or prepare in advance for the battery to reach a state where it becomes unusable or irreparable like a failure. Summary of the Invention Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0010] The present invention was devised to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a battery management device and method capable of efficiently diagnosing a battery and thereby improving the performance and safety of the battery, and an application device such as a battery pack including the same.

[0011] Other objects and advantages of the present invention can be understood from the following description and will become more apparent from the embodiments of the present invention. Further, the objects and advantages of the present invention can be realized by the means and combinations thereof shown in the claims.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0012] To achieve the above object, a battery management device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a measurement module that measures state information of a battery, and compares the state information measured by the measurement module with a diagnostic criterion in a multi-stage form to determine a diagnostic stage of the battery, and a control module configured to perform a processing operation corresponding to the determined diagnostic stage.

[0013] Here, the battery management device may further include a memory that stores the diagnostic criterion in the multi-stage form.

[0014] Further, the control module may be configured to classify the abnormal state of the battery into a plurality of diagnostic stages.

[0015] Further, the control module may be configured to determine the diagnostic stage for a plurality of diagnostic items.

[0016] Further, the battery is configured in the form of a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, and the control module may be configured to perform overvoltage diagnosis and undervoltage diagnosis on at least some of the plurality of battery cells or the entire battery pack as the plurality of diagnostic items.

[0017] Further, the control module may be configured to perform diagnosis including charging diagnosis and discharging diagnosis on at least one of the current and temperature of the battery as the plurality of diagnosis items.

[0018] Further, the control module may be configured to perform diagnosis including diagnosis of inter-cell voltage imbalance during charging and diagnosis of inter-cell voltage imbalance during rest as the plurality of diagnosis items.

[0019] Further, the control module may be configured to change the diagnosis criteria according to the diagnosis results of other diagnosis items for at least some of the plurality of diagnosis items.

[0020] Further, the measurement module may be configured to change the measurement timing of the state information of the battery according to the diagnosis results of other diagnosis items for at least some of the plurality of diagnosis items.

[0021] Further, the control module may be configured to classify the processing operations according to whether automatic release is possible for different diagnosis stages.

[0022] Further, the control module may be configured to classify the processing operations into output limitation of the battery and output cut-off of the battery for different diagnosis stages.

[0023] Further, the control module may be configured to classify the processing operations into provision of a warning signal and output adjustment for different diagnosis stages.

[0024] Further, a battery pack according to another aspect of the present invention includes a battery management device according to an aspect of the present invention.

[0025] Further, an automobile according to still another aspect of the present invention includes a battery management device according to an aspect of the present invention.

[0026] Furthermore, a battery supply system according to still another aspect of the present invention includes a battery management device according to one aspect of the present invention.

[0027] Also, a battery management method according to still another aspect of the present invention includes a step of measuring state information of a battery, a step of determining a diagnosis stage of the battery by comparing the measured state information with a diagnosis criterion in a multi-stage form, and a step of performing a processing operation corresponding to the diagnosis stage determined in the determining step.

Advantages of the Invention

[0028] According to one aspect of the present invention, more accurate diagnosis of a battery can be achieved through subdivision of the diagnosis criterion, and the monitoring function can be enhanced.

[0029] Also, according to one aspect of the present invention, the performance, safety, protection effect, etc. of the battery can be further improved through processing for each stage.

[0030] Also, according to one embodiment of the present invention, before the battery reaches a unusable or irreparable state such as fail, it is possible to take proactive measures through diagnosis such as a warning stage or a fault stage. Therefore, it is possible to suppress or delay the progress of risk factors such as defects or failures to the battery itself or a vehicle equipped with such a battery, or the spread or expansion to such a state.

[0031] In addition, according to many embodiments of the present invention, various other additional effects can be achieved. Such various effects of the present invention will be described in detail in each embodiment, but descriptions of effects that are easily understood by those skilled in the art will be omitted.

[0032] The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate the preferred embodiments of the present invention and serve to further understand the technical idea of the present invention together with the detailed description of the invention. Therefore, the present invention should not be construed as being limited only to the matters described in the drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

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Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0034] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, the terms and words used in this specification and the claims are not to be construed as limited to ordinary and dictionary meanings. The inventors themselves interpret them in accordance with the meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention in accordance with the principle that they can appropriately define the concept of the terms in order to explain the invention in the best way.

[0035] Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical ideas of the present invention. Therefore, there may be various equivalents and modifications that can replace them at the time of this application.

[0036] This specification includes various embodiments. However, when the description of other embodiments is applicable in the same or similar manner, the detailed description will be omitted, and the differences in each embodiment will be mainly described.

[0037] Also, in this specification, terms such as "module" are used, but this represents a logical constituent unit and does not represent a component that can be physically separated or should be physically separated.

[0038] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the functional configuration of a battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 1, the battery management device according to the present invention includes a measurement module 100 and a control module 200.

[0040] The measurement module 100 may be configured to measure the state information of the battery. Here, the battery may be a battery cell representing a single secondary battery, or a concept including a cell group, a battery module, a battery pack, or a battery rack including a plurality of such battery cells.

[0041] The state information of the battery may include the internal state and / or the external state of the battery. For example, the measurement module 100 may measure, as the internal state of the battery, information such as the voltage, current, temperature, SOC (State of Charge), internal resistance, SOH (State of Health), charge / discharge state, rest state, overvoltage or overcurrent state, and balancing state of the battery. Therefore, the measurement module 100 may be equipped with various sensors such as a voltage sensor and a current sensor. As another example, the measurement module 100 may measure, as the external state of the battery, state information such as the temperature, humidity, and smoke around the battery. Therefore, the measurement module 100 may be equipped with sensors such as a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, and a smoke sensor. From this aspect, the measurement module 100 may also be referred to as a sensor.

[0042] The measurement module 100 may measure voltage, current, temperature, etc. through sensors and primarily measure the state information of the battery. Also, the measurement module 100 may perform secondary processing such as calculation on the information obtained primarily in this way. For example, the measurement module 100 may calculate or estimate the state such as the SOC, internal resistance, SOH, and imbalance of the battery based on state information such as voltage, current, and temperature, and measure the state information of the battery.

[0043] The measurement module 100 may transmit the thus-measured state information of the battery to the control module 200.

[0044] The control module 200 may receive the measured state information from the measurement module 100. And the control module 200 may perform battery diagnosis and / or control operations using the received state information.

[0045] In particular, the control module 200 may be configured to compare the state information measured by the measurement module 100 with diagnostic criteria. Then, the control module 200 may determine the diagnostic stage of the battery based on the comparison result between the measurement information and the diagnostic criteria. In particular, the control module 200 may determine the diagnostic stage of the battery as a plurality of diagnostic stages. That is, the control module 200 may diagnose the battery in multiple stages. This will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. 2.

[0046] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the multi-stage diagnostic configuration of the control module 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 2, the diagnostic stage is divided into five stages. More specifically, five levels (Level 1 to Level 5) and their corresponding diagnostic stages are classified as normal, warning 1, warning 2, fault, and fail. Here, normal, warning 1, warning 2, fault, and fail are respectively referred to or interpreted as normal, warning, danger, defect, and failure in order, but it is of course possible that such names and meanings can be modified into various other forms.

[0048] The control module 200 may determine which diagnostic stage among the plurality of diagnostic stages the battery to be diagnosed (target battery or diagnostic battery) belongs to. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the control module 200 may determine that the battery to be diagnosed is in the warning 1 (warning) stage of Level 2. Or, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the control module 200 may determine that the battery to be diagnosed is in the warning 2 (danger) stage of Level 3.

[0049] For multi-stage diagnosis of the battery, the diagnostic criteria may be configured in a multi-stage form. And through such multi-stage diagnostic criteria, multi-stage diagnosis of the battery can be performed.

[0050] In particular, the diagnostic criteria may have a plurality of reference values. For example, the diagnostic criteria may have two or more reference values. Further, the diagnostic criteria may have four or more reference values.

[0051] As a more specific example, as in the embodiment of FIG. 2, when the battery is diagnosed in five stages, four diagnostic criteria of R1 to R4 may be provided. Here, R1, R2, R3, and R4 are respectively between the normal stage and the warning 1 stage, between the warning 1 stage and the warning 2 stage, between the warning 2 stage and the fault stage, and between the fault stage and the fail stage. It can be a criterion for classification. At this time, each reference value (R1, R2, R3, and R4) can be a value indicating a specific numerical value or a value indicating a specific range.

[0052] When the diagnostic criteria have a plurality of reference values in such a multi-stage form, the diagnostic stages can be divided into three or more. That is, the number of diagnostic stages can be one more than the number of reference values. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, since there are four reference values, the diagnostic stages can be divided into five.

[0053] On the other hand, although the embodiment of FIG. 2 is shown in a form in which each diagnostic criterion divides two adjacent diagnostic stages, this is only an example, and the diagnostic criteria can be provided in other various forms. For example, the diagnostic criteria can be represented as the range of each diagnostic stage. As a more specific example, for specific state information, the diagnostic criteria can be set so that a value of 0 to 1 is level 1 (normal), a value of 1 to 2 is level 2 (warning 1), a value of 2 to 3 is level 3 (warning 2), a value of 3 to 4 is level 4 (fault), and 4 or more is level 5 (fail).

[0054] In the embodiment of FIG. 2, four diagnostic criteria and five diagnostic stages are shown, but the number of such diagnostic criteria or diagnostic stages can be realized in other various forms. For example, the control module 200 may perform multi-stage diagnosis in four diagnostic stages with three diagnostic criteria.

[0055] Once the diagnostic stage of the target battery is determined in this way, the control module 200 may be configured to perform a processing operation corresponding to the determined diagnostic stage. Here, the corresponding processing operation may be realized in various forms or in various ways.

[0056] For example, as a processing operation for the diagnostic stage of the target battery, the control module 200 may transmit or store information about the diagnostic stage of the target battery to other components. As an example, if the target battery is diagnosed to be in the warning 1 stage, the control module 200 may transmit information that the target battery is diagnosed to be in the warning 1 stage to other components.

[0057] Here, the other components may be components included inside the battery management device according to the present invention, or may be components included in other devices existing outside the battery management device. In particular, when the target battery is mounted on a vehicle such as a two-wheeled vehicle, the battery management device may transmit the diagnosed stage of the target battery to a higher-level control system on the vehicle side, such as a vehicle control unit (VCU) or an energy control unit (ECU).

[0058] The control module 200 may transmit the diagnostic signal of the target battery in various wired or wireless communication configurations or methods. For example, the control module 200 may use CAN (Controller Area Network) communication to transmit information about the diagnosed stage of the determined target battery to the control system on the vehicle side. The control module 200 may define and transmit such a diagnostic signal as a 4-bit signal. However, such a diagnostic signal may be defined or transmitted in other various ways.

[0059] As another example, the control module 200 may be configured to control the charging and discharging operations of the target battery as processing operations for the diagnostic stage of the target battery. At this time, the charge and discharge control for the target battery can be directly performed by the control module 200. Alternatively, the control module 200 can indirectly instruct or control other components located inside or outside the battery management device to perform charge and discharge control. In this case, the control module 200 can transmit information about the diagnostic stage to other components and control the corresponding components to perform charge and discharge control, etc., as in the above-described embodiments.

[0060] The control module 200 can perform processing operations for each of a plurality of diagnostic stages. At this time, the control module 200 can be configured such that different processing operations are performed for each diagnostic stage. Also, the control module 200 can perform at least partially the same processing operations for different diagnostic stages. Further, the processing operations by the control module 200 do not necessarily include only active operations, but may also include passive operations. In particular, the processing operations by the control module 200 can include those that do not perform any control or communication, etc.

[0061] Also, when the control module 200 directly performs the processing operation of the target battery, the control module 200 can transmit the performed processing result to other components.

[0062] According to this embodiment, more accurate diagnosis of the battery becomes possible. Therefore, based on such diagnosis, the performance of the battery can be more effectively exerted, and / or rapid measures can be taken before the battery deteriorates to a serious situation such as damage or inoperability. Furthermore, although in recent years, the interest in the safety of batteries has been increasing, according to the present invention, it is possible to contribute to the improvement of the safety of batteries.

[0063] Moreover, in the case of the present invention, not only can a single battery cell be diagnosed and managed, but also units containing a plurality of battery cells, such as cell assemblies, battery modules, battery packs, battery racks, and energy storage systems, can be diagnosed and managed.

[0064] In the battery management device according to the present invention, the control module 200 can perform related operations or functions by selectively including at least partially a processor, a controller, an ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit), other chip sets, logic circuits, registers, communication modems, data processing devices, etc. known in the art. Also, these operations can be implemented as software, and in this case, the program can be recorded in a built-in or external memory. From this aspect, the control module 200 can be replaced by terms such as a processor, a controller, or a chip set. Also, at least some functions of the measurement module 100 can also be implemented by such known components.

[0065] The control module 200 does not necessarily have to be in a physically integrated form or located in the same place. For example, some functions of the control module 200 can be performed on the battery pack side, and other functions of the control module 200 can be performed on the vehicle side.

[0066] More specifically, at least a part of the control module 200 can be implemented by a BMS included in a normal battery pack, ESS, etc. In this case, at least a part of the control module 200 can be implemented in a form included in the battery (battery pack). Or, at least a part of the control module 200 may be located outside the battery. For example, at least some functions of the control module 200 may be implemented by a control device mounted on an automobile, such as a VCU or an ECU. Also, the measurement module 100 can also be implemented by integrated or separated components or constituent elements.

[0067] The battery diagnostic device according to the present invention may further include a memory 300.

[0068] In particular, the memory 300 may pre-store diagnostic criteria in a multi-stage form. And the control module 200 can access such a memory 300 and read the stored diagnostic criteria. Also, the memory 300 can store various data and programs necessary for each component of the battery management device according to the present invention, such as the measurement module 100 and / or the control module 200 to execute its functions.

[0069] The memory 300 may be embodied in an integrated form with other components included in the battery management device, for example, a component that functions as the control module 200. For example, the memory 300 may be embodied in the form of an internal memory provided to a processor that functions as the control module 200.

[0070] The memory 300 is not particularly limited in its type as long as it is a storage medium capable of recording and erasing information. For example, the memory 300 may be embodied as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a register, a hard disk, an optical recording medium, or a magnetic recording medium.

[0071] On the other hand, the diagnostic criteria may be provided from a component existing outside the battery management device. For example, the diagnostic criteria may be provided to the control module 200 from a higher-level system of the battery management device, such as a vehicle side. As another example, the diagnostic criteria may be provided to the control module 200 from a battery supply system communicably connected to the battery management device, such as a battery charging system or a battery replacement system. Thus, when the diagnostic criteria are provided from outside the battery management device, the memory 300 can temporarily store the provided diagnostic criteria. At this time, as the memory 300, a volatile memory such as a RAM can be used.

[0072] In particular, the control module 200 may be configured to classify the abnormal state of the battery into a plurality of diagnostic stages. That is, the control module 200 diagnoses the battery as being in a normal state or an abnormal state, and for the abnormal state, it may be configured to further subdivide and diagnose it into two or more multi-stages.

[0073] For example, referring to the embodiment of FIG. 2, the control module 200 may be configured to diagnose the battery by classifying it into at least two of the warning stage 1, warning stage 2, fault stage, and fail stage as abnormal states other than the normal state. In a more specific embodiment, the control module 200 may diagnose the abnormal state of the battery by classifying it into four stages (warning 1 / warning 2 / fault / fail). As another example, the control module 200 may integrate the warning stage 1 and warning stage 2 in the embodiment of FIG. 2 into one warning stage, and be configured to diagnose the abnormal state of the battery by classifying it into a total of three stages (warning / fault / fail).

[0074] Furthermore, the plurality of abnormal stages classified and diagnosed by the control module 200 may be classified according to the degree of abnormality. Therefore, the diagnostic criteria in the multi-stage form may be arranged in the order from the normal state to the more serious abnormal situation.

[0075] For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the warning stage 1, warning stage 2, fault stage, and fail stage may all be diagnostic stages indicating the abnormal situation of the battery. At this time, the warning stage 1 may be located after the normal stage. Then, the warning stage 2, fault stage, and fail stage may be sequentially located following the warning stage 1. That is, the order arranged sequentially in the direction away from the normal state is the warning stage 1, warning stage 2, fault stage, and fail stage. In this case, it can be said that the warning stage 1 is the state with the weakest degree of abnormality of the battery, and the fail stage is the state with the most serious degree of abnormality of the battery.

[0076] In such an embodiment, the warning stage 1 and the warning stage 2 may be stages given when the situation exceeds the normal use range of the battery but is not serious. Also, the warning stage 1 indicates a state with a relatively lower degree of abnormality than the warning stage 2. That is, it can be said that the warning stage 1 indicates the earliest abnormal state among the multi-stage abnormal stages.

[0077] And the warning stage 2 is more severe in terms of abnormality than the warning stage 1, but is not in a serious situation that requires major measures such as output cut-off. For example, the warning stage 1 may be a diagnostic stage determined when there is a possibility of a defect occurring if the battery or related components continuously maintain the corresponding state. On the other hand, the warning stage 2 may be a diagnostic stage determined when there is a high possibility of a defect occurring if the battery or related components continuously maintain the corresponding state. From this aspect, the warning stage 1 can also be referred to as a warning stage, and the warning stage 2 can also be referred to as a dangerous stage.

[0078] Next, the fault stage and the fail stage are in a more severe abnormal state than the warning stage 1 and the warning stage 2. Here, the fault stage may be a diagnostic stage determined when a defect has already occurred in the battery or related components and the corresponding state is continuously maintained, and there is a very high possibility of a failure occurring in the battery or related devices or components.

[0079] In particular, the fail stage may be a diagnostic stage determined in the most serious situations, such as when a failure has already occurred in the battery or related components, when the battery or the like can no longer be used, when normal recovery is impossible, when immediate interruption of the use of the battery or the like is necessary, or when inspection by a service center is required. From this aspect, the fault stage can also be referred to as a defect stage, and the fail stage can also be referred to as a failure stage.

[0080] As in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the diagnostic criteria may include a plurality of reference values, namely a first reference value R1, a second reference value R2, a third reference value R3, and a fourth reference value R4. At this time, the first reference value R1, the second reference value R2, the third reference value R3, and the fourth reference value R4 may be reference values that respectively distinguish between the normal stage and the warning 1 stage, between the warning 1 stage and the warning 2 stage, between the warning 2 stage and the fault stage, and between the fault stage and the fail stage. And such first reference value R1, second reference value R2, third reference value R3, and fourth reference value R4 may be configured in a form in which the numerical values gradually increase or decrease. For example, the numerical values for each reference value may be configured such that R1 < R2 < R3 < R4, or may be configured such that R1 > R2 > R3 > R4.

[0081] FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a multi-stage diagnostic configuration of the control module 200 according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0082] Referring to FIG. 3, the abnormal state of the battery can be located in both directions with respect to the normal state. For example, in FIG. 3, a plurality of multi-stage diagnostic stages are arranged vertically. At this time, in the vertical direction, each diagnostic stage can be arranged according to the high or low numerical value. That is, it can mean that a specific numerical value is higher as going upward, and a specific numerical value is lower as going downward.

[0083] In this case, the warning 1 stage, the warning 2 stage, the fault stage, and the fail stage can be sequentially arranged on both sides of the normal (normal) stage. That is, the warning 1 stage, the warning 2 stage, the fault stage, and the fail stage can be arranged two by two around the normal stage.

[0084] On the one hand, for normal and abnormal states, specific numerical ranges can be set as diagnostic criteria. For example, referring to the embodiment of FIG. 2, the diagnostic criteria can be set in a form indicating a specific range, such as RN, R1’, R1”, R2’, R2”, R3’, R3”, R4’, R4”. At this time, R1’, R2’, R3’ and R4’ are ranges having numerical values lower than RN, and R1”, R2”, R3” and R4” can be ranges having numerical values higher than RN.

[0085] In such an embodiment, when the numerical value of a specific diagnostic item deviates from the range indicated by RN, the control module 200 may diagnose the corresponding battery as being in an abnormal state. And the control module 200 can diagnose by classifying which stage the abnormal state of the corresponding battery corresponds to.

[0086] As an example, when it is determined that the numerical value of a specific diagnostic item falls within the range indicated by R1’ or R1”, the control module 200 may diagnose that the corresponding battery is in the warning stage 1. As another example, when it is determined that the numerical value of a specific diagnostic item falls within the range indicated by R3’ or R3”, the control module 200 may diagnose that the corresponding battery is in the fault stage.

[0087] According to such an embodiment of the present invention, by performing multi-stage diagnosis according to the degree of abnormality of the battery, a more accurate and detailed diagnosis of the abnormal state of the battery becomes possible, and through this, more effective countermeasures can be taken. In particular, in the case of this embodiment, before reaching a serious failure state, such as the fail stage, the abnormal diagnosis of the battery is performed step by step, and preventive measures through such diagnosis are possible. Also, in this case, the abnormal situation of the battery can be continuously monitored, and through appropriate corresponding measures, it is possible to prevent, suppress or delay the battery from reaching a serious situation such as the fault stage or the fail stage.

[0088] The control module 200 may be configured to determine a diagnostic stage for a plurality of diagnostic items. This will be described more specifically with further reference to FIG. 4.

[0089] FIG. 4 is a table showing an example of diagnostic items by a battery management device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0090] Referring to FIG. 4, the control module 200 can perform battery diagnosis for a variety of many diagnostic items. For example, FIG. 4 includes 14 diagnostic items, and the control module 200 may be configured to perform battery diagnosis for all or part of such diagnostic items. In particular, the plurality of diagnostic items may include diagnoses related to battery voltage, current, temperature, balancing, and the like.

[0091] The control module 200 can perform multi-stage diagnosis for each of the plurality of diagnostic items. For example, for each of the battery voltage, current, and temperature, the diagnostic stage can be determined in multiple stages such as a warning stage 1, a warning stage 2, a fault stage, and a fail stage for abnormal situations.

[0092] Alternatively, the control module 200 can diagnose a part of the plurality of diagnostic items at a different number of stages from other diagnostic items. For example, for the diagnostic items related to battery voltage and current, the diagnostic stage of the abnormal state can be determined in 4 stages respectively, and for the diagnostic items related to battery temperature, the diagnostic stage of the abnormal state can be determined in 3 stages.

[0093] According to this embodiment, by diagnosing a plurality of abnormal states for each of many diagnostic items for determining the state of the battery, more accurate and effective diagnosis and response become possible. Furthermore, in this case, battery abnormal diagnosis and response can be performed more quickly and efficiently.

[0094] More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the diagnostic items may include cell overvoltage diagnosis. The cell overvoltage diagnosis can be performed in a form of diagnosing whether the voltage of one or more battery cells is higher than the steady state. In particular, when a plurality of battery cells are included in a battery module, a battery pack, a battery rack, etc., the voltage is measured for each of the plurality of battery cells, and the highest voltage among them can be selected as the maximum voltage. Then, cell overvoltage diagnosis can be performed by diagnosing whether the selected maximum voltage is in an overvoltage state higher than the normal voltage state (diagnostic criterion).

[0095] In addition, the diagnostic items may include cell undervoltage diagnosis. The cell undervoltage diagnosis can be performed in a form of diagnosing whether the voltage of one or more battery cells is lower than the steady state. In particular, when a plurality of battery cells are included, the voltage is measured for each of the plurality of battery cells, and the lowest voltage among them can be selected as the minimum voltage. Then, cell undervoltage diagnosis can be performed by diagnosing whether the selected minimum voltage is in an undervoltage state lower than the normal voltage state (diagnostic criterion).

[0096] In addition, the diagnostic items may include pack overvoltage diagnosis. The pack overvoltage diagnosis can be used to diagnose whether the voltage of a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells is higher than the steady state. Here, the voltage of the battery pack may mean the voltage on the pack terminal side of the battery pack, or may mean the average voltage of a plurality of battery cells included in the battery pack. For example, pack overvoltage diagnosis can be performed by calculating the average cell voltage for a plurality of battery cells and diagnosing whether the calculated average cell voltage is in an overvoltage state higher than the normal voltage state (diagnostic criterion). Such pack overvoltage diagnosis may also be referred to as cell average overvoltage diagnosis when overvoltage with respect to the average voltage of all battery cells is diagnosed.

[0097] On the one hand, in this specification, the term "battery pack" conceptually includes not only a battery pack in a narrow sense in which a plurality of battery cells are housed in a pack housing, but also a battery module housed inside the battery pack, a battery rack in which a plurality of battery modules or battery packs are housed, etc. in a broad sense. In this specification, unless otherwise specified, "battery pack" can be interpreted in the above broad sense.

[0098] In addition, the diagnosis items may include pack low voltage diagnosis. The pack low voltage diagnosis may be to diagnose whether the voltage of a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells is lower than the steady state. As described above, the voltage of the battery pack may mean the voltage on the pack terminal side or the cell average voltage. Further, when it is diagnosed whether the cell average voltage is lower than the normal voltage range (diagnosis criterion), the pack low voltage diagnosis may also be referred to as cell average low voltage diagnosis.

[0099] In this embodiment, when overvoltage or low voltage is diagnosed based on the voltage, the measurement module 100 may include a voltage sensor. And the voltage information measured by the voltage sensor may be transmitted to the control module 200 as the state information of the battery. Then, the control module 200 may diagnose the overvoltage or low voltage state of the corresponding battery cell or battery pack based on the voltage information of the battery cell or battery pack transmitted from the voltage sensor.

[0100] In addition, the diagnostic items may include overcharge current diagnosis. The overcharge current diagnosis may diagnose whether the charging current is higher than the steady state in a situation where charging is performed on a battery cell or a battery pack. At this time, the charging current for which overcurrent is diagnosed may be the current flowing through one or more battery cells or the current flowing through the entire battery pack. For example, when charging a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, the maximum current among the currents of the respective battery cells is selected as the maximum charging current, and it may be diagnosed whether the maximum charging current is higher than the normal current range (diagnostic criterion).

[0101] In addition, the diagnostic items may include overdischarge current diagnosis. The overdischarge current diagnosis may diagnose whether the discharge current is higher than the steady state in a situation where discharging is performed on a battery cell or a battery pack. At this time, the discharge current for which overcurrent is diagnosed may be the current flowing through one or more battery cells or the current flowing through the entire battery pack. For example, when discharging a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, the maximum current among the currents of the respective battery cells is selected as the maximum discharge current, and it may be diagnosed whether the maximum discharge current is higher than the normal current range (diagnostic criterion).

[0102] In the present embodiment, when overcurrent is diagnosed based on the current, the measurement module 100 may include a current sensor. Then, the current information measured by the current sensor may be transmitted to the control module 200 as the state information of the battery. Then, the control module 200 may diagnose the overcurrent state for the corresponding battery cell or battery pack based on the current information of the cell or pack transmitted from the current sensor.

[0103] In addition, the diagnostic items may include overcharge temperature diagnosis. The overcharge temperature diagnosis may diagnose whether the temperature is higher than the steady state during charging of a battery cell or a battery pack.

[0104] Furthermore, when a plurality of battery cells are included in the battery pack, the temperatures of the plurality of battery cells may be measured during charging, and the highest temperature among the measured temperatures may be selected as the maximum temperature during charging. Then, the high-temperature charging diagnosis can be performed based on whether such a maximum temperature during charging is higher than the normal temperature range (diagnostic criterion).

[0105] Alternatively, the high-temperature charging diagnosis may be performed in such a manner that the temperatures of the plurality of battery cells are measured during charging, and the average value of the plurality of temperature measurement values is compared with the normal temperature range. Alternatively, the high-temperature charging diagnosis may be performed based on whether the highest temperature measurement value among the temperature measurement values measured at different times during charging is higher than the normal temperature range.

[0106] In addition, the diagnostic items may include a high-temperature discharging diagnosis. The high-temperature discharging diagnosis may be used to diagnose whether the temperature is higher than the steady state during discharging of a battery cell or a battery pack, etc.

[0107] Furthermore, when a plurality of battery cells are included in the battery pack, the temperatures of the plurality of battery cells may be measured during discharging, and the highest temperature among the measured temperatures may be selected as the maximum temperature during discharging. Then, the high-temperature discharging diagnosis can be performed based on whether such a maximum temperature during discharging is higher than the normal temperature range (diagnostic criterion).

[0108] Alternatively, the high-temperature discharging diagnosis may be performed in such a manner that the temperatures of the plurality of battery cells are measured during discharging, and the average value of the plurality of temperature measurement values is compared with the normal temperature range. Alternatively, the high-temperature discharging diagnosis may be performed based on whether the highest temperature measurement value among the temperature measurement values measured at different times during discharging is higher than the normal temperature range.

[0109] In addition, the diagnostic items may include a low-temperature charging diagnosis. The low-temperature charging diagnosis may be used to diagnose whether the temperature is lower than the steady state during charging of a battery cell or a battery pack, etc.

[0110] Furthermore, when the temperatures of a plurality of battery cells are measured during charging, the lowest temperature among the plurality of measured temperatures can be selected as the lowest temperature during charging. Then, the low-temperature diagnosis during charging can be performed based on whether such lowest temperature during charging is lower than the normal temperature range (diagnostic criterion).

[0111] Alternatively, the low-temperature diagnosis during charging may be performed in such a manner that the temperatures of a plurality of battery cells are measured during charging and the average value of the plurality of temperature measurement values is compared with the normal temperature range. Alternatively, the low-temperature diagnosis during charging may be performed based on whether the lowest temperature measurement value among the temperature measurement values measured at different times during charging is lower than the normal temperature range.

[0112] In addition, the diagnosis items may include a low-temperature diagnosis during discharging. The low-temperature diagnosis during discharging can be used to diagnose whether the temperature is lower than the steady state during discharging of a battery cell or a battery pack.

[0113] Furthermore, when the temperatures of a plurality of battery cells are measured during discharging, the lowest temperature among the plurality of measured temperatures can be selected as the lowest temperature during discharging. Then, the low-temperature diagnosis during discharging can be performed based on whether such lowest temperature during discharging is lower than the normal temperature range (diagnostic criterion).

[0114] Alternatively, the low-temperature diagnosis during discharging may be performed in such a manner that the temperatures of a plurality of battery cells are measured during discharging and the average value of the plurality of temperature measurement values is compared with the normal temperature range. Alternatively, the low-temperature diagnosis during discharging may be performed based on whether the lowest temperature measurement value among the temperature measurement values measured at different times during discharging is higher than the normal temperature range.

[0115] In this embodiment, when high temperature or low temperature is diagnosed based on temperature, the measurement module 100 may include a temperature sensor such as a thermistor. At this time, the temperature sensor is located on the outer surface or inner surface of a battery cell or a battery pack, or in an external or internal space, and can measure the ambient temperature.

[0116] The temperature information measured by the temperature sensor can be transmitted to the control module 200 as the state information of the battery. Then, the control module 200 can diagnose the high temperature / low temperature state of the corresponding battery cell or battery pack based on the temperature information of the battery cell or battery pack transmitted from the temperature sensor.

[0117] In addition, the diagnosis items may include the diagnosis of the voltage imbalance between cells during charging. The diagnosis of the voltage imbalance between cells during charging can be to diagnose whether there is an imbalance in the voltages between a plurality of battery cells when charging is performed in a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells.

[0118] In addition, the diagnosis items may include the diagnosis of the voltage imbalance between cells during rest. The diagnosis of the voltage imbalance between cells during rest can be to diagnose whether there is an imbalance in the voltages between a plurality of battery cells during a rest period when charging or discharging is not performed in a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells.

[0119] The diagnosis of such voltage imbalance between cells during charging or rest can be performed in such a way that the control module 200 compares the voltages of a plurality of battery cells based on the voltage measurement information transmitted from the voltage sensor. For example, the control module 200 can calculate the voltage difference between a plurality of battery cells, and determine whether the calculated voltage difference deviates from the reference voltage difference that is the diagnosis criterion or the degree of deviation, and can diagnose the voltage imbalance state between cells.

[0120] In addition, the diagnosis items may include the diagnosis of the temperature imbalance between cells. The diagnosis of the temperature imbalance between cells can be to diagnose whether there is a temperature imbalance between battery cells during the operation of a battery pack in a configuration where a plurality of battery cells are included in the battery pack.

[0121] In such an embodiment, the measurement module 100 is provided with a temperature sensor, and the temperatures of a plurality of battery cells can be measured. Then, the temperature information of each measured cell can be transmitted to the control module 200 as battery state information. And the control module 200 can compare the temperatures of the transmitted cells and diagnose a temperature imbalance state. For example, the control module 200 can calculate the temperature difference between a plurality of battery cells, and determine whether the calculated temperature difference deviates from a reference temperature difference which is a diagnosis criterion or the degree of deviation, etc., and can diagnose the temperature imbalance state between cells.

[0122] Also, the diagnosis items may include diagnosis of SOC imbalance between cells. The diagnosis of SOC imbalance between cells can be a diagnosis of whether an SOC imbalance occurs between battery cells during the operation of a battery pack in a configuration including a plurality of battery cells such as a battery pack.

[0123] In such an embodiment, the measurement module 100 is provided with a voltage sensor and / or a current sensor, and the voltage or current for a plurality of battery cells can be measured and transmitted to the control module 200. Then, the control module 200 can calculate the SOC of each cell based on the transmitted voltage or current information. Also, the control module 200 can compare the SOCs of each cell calculated in this way and diagnose the SOC imbalance state between cells. For example, the control module 200 can calculate the SOC difference between a plurality of battery cells, and determine whether the calculated SOC difference deviates from a reference SOC difference which is a diagnosis criterion or the degree of deviation, etc., and can diagnose the SOC imbalance state between cells.

[0124] The control module 200 can perform a diagnosis on all or at least one of a plurality of diagnosis items as shown in FIG. 4.

[0125] In particular, when the battery is configured in the form of a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, the control module 200 may be configured to perform overvoltage diagnosis and undervoltage diagnosis on at least some of the plurality of battery cells or the entire battery pack as a plurality of diagnostic items. For example, the control module 200 may perform at least cell overvoltage diagnosis, cell undervoltage diagnosis, pack overvoltage diagnosis, and pack undervoltage diagnosis among the plurality of diagnostic items shown in FIG. 4.

[0126] In such an embodiment, the measurement module 100 may include a voltage sensor to measure the voltages of the battery cells and the battery pack, and transmit the measured voltage information to the control module 200. Then, the control module 200 may diagnose all overvoltage states and undervoltage states of the battery cells and the battery pack based on the voltage information transmitted from the measurement module 100.

[0127] Also, the control module 200 may perform corresponding operations based on the results of such diagnosis. For example, when overvoltage or undervoltage of a battery cell or a battery pack is diagnosed, the control module 200 may transmit a diagnostic signal including diagnostic information to a higher-level system on the vehicle side.

[0128] In addition, the control module 200 may be configured to perform charging diagnosis and discharging diagnosis on at least one of the current and temperature of the battery as a plurality of diagnostic items.

[0129] For example, the control module 200 may perform at least charging overcurrent diagnosis and discharging overcurrent diagnosis among the plurality of diagnostic items shown in FIG. 4. Also, the control module 200 may perform charging high-temperature diagnosis, discharging high-temperature diagnosis, charging low-temperature diagnosis, and discharging low-temperature diagnosis among the plurality of diagnostic items shown in FIG. 4.

[0130] In such an embodiment, the measurement module 100 includes a current sensor and / or a temperature sensor, and can transmit the measured current information or temperature information to the control module 200. Then, based on the current information or temperature information transmitted from the measurement module 100, the control module 200 can diagnose overcurrent states, high-temperature states, low-temperature states, etc. for the battery cell or battery pack.

[0131] In particular, the control module 200 can perform all diagnoses during charging and during discharging in the diagnosis of overcurrent states, high-temperature states, low-temperature states, etc. In such an embodiment, the control module 200 can perform a comprehensive state diagnosis by considering all the diagnosis results during charging and during discharging, enabling more accurate and detailed battery diagnosis.

[0132] Also, the control module 200 can be configured to perform diagnoses including diagnosis of voltage imbalance between cells during charging and diagnosis of voltage imbalance between cells during rest as multiple diagnosis items. For example, the control module 200 can perform at least diagnosis of voltage imbalance between cells during charging and diagnosis of voltage imbalance between cells during rest among the multiple diagnosis items shown in FIG. 4.

[0133] In such an embodiment, the measurement module 100 includes a voltage sensor or a current sensor and can measure the voltages or currents of multiple battery cells. In particular, such measurements can be performed in all charging and rest situations of the battery pack. Then, the measurement information is transmitted to the control module 200, and the control module 200 can diagnose the voltage imbalance state between cells during charging and during rest respectively. Also, the control module 200 can transmit a diagnosis signal including such diagnosis information to the upper system side such as a vehicle.

[0134] Also, in addition to or instead of many of the items described above with reference to FIG. 4, other items can be additionally included in the diagnosis items.

[0135] The control module 200 can determine the diagnostic stage in multiple levels for at least one of a plurality of diagnostic items. Then, the control module 200 can perform corresponding control operations according to the diagnostic results for the diagnostic items. This will be described more specifically with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0136] FIGS. 5 and 6 are graphs showing voltage measurement results during charging by different diagnoses and controls for the same type of battery. In particular, FIG. 6 is example data to which the battery management technology according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied, and FIG. 5 is comparative example data in which the battery management technology according to the present invention is not applied for comparison. Further, FIGS. 5 and 6 may be the results of performing cell overvoltage diagnosis.

[0137] In the graphs of FIGS. 5 and 6, the vertical axis is the voltage axis with a unit of mV, and the horizontal axis is the measurement sequence number. The horizontal axis can also be replaced with time, SOC, charge capacity, etc.

[0138] First, looking at FIG. 5 according to the comparative example, only one reference value is set for the voltage measurement value as indicated by RA. Such a reference value is set to about 4250 mV and may be used to distinguish the fail (fault) state.

[0139] In the configuration of FIG. 5 like this, only whether the battery is in a fault state can be determined through the single reference value RA. Therefore, when the measured voltage of the battery exceeds 4250 mV, it is diagnosed as the fault state of the battery, and when the measured voltage of the battery does not exceed 4250 mV, it can be diagnosed as the normal state of the battery. In such a configuration, no measures are taken until the measured voltage reaches 4250 mV which is the fault state. For example, when the measured voltage of the battery is 4230 mV, since the battery is diagnosed as the normal state, no measures are taken. Therefore, in the case of such a configuration, the fault of the battery cannot be prevented or suppressed in advance.

[0140] On the one hand, referring to FIG. 6 according to an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of reference values are set for overvoltage diagnosis of the battery. For example, as shown by RB1, RB2, RB3, and RB4 in FIG. 6, four reference values can be set. Here, the four reference values can have different values as diagnostic criteria for diagnosing the abnormal state of the battery. In particular, they can have gradually higher values from RB1 to RB4. In this case, it can be said that the diagnostic levels for the abnormal state of the battery are composed of four levels.

[0141] In such an embodiment, in the case of RB4, it can be set to about 4250 mV similar to the reference value set by RA in FIG. 5. That is, RB4 can be a diagnostic criterion for distinguishing the fail (fault) state of the battery. And in the case of RB3, it has a value lower than RB4, for example, a value of 4200 mV, and can be a diagnostic criterion for distinguishing the fault (defect) state before the battery fails. Also, in the case of RB2, it has a value lower than RB3, and can be a diagnostic criterion for distinguishing Warning 2 (danger) before the battery has a defect. And in the case of RB1, it has a value lower than RB2, and can be a diagnostic criterion for distinguishing Warning 1 (warning) before the battery is in danger.

[0142] The plurality of diagnostic criteria for multi-stage diagnosis as shown in FIG. 6 can be reflected through, for example, modifying the source code for the diagnostic part in the software of the control module 200. And after the multi-stage diagnosis, the control module 200 can perform a processing routine for each stage.

[0143] For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 6, when the measured voltage reaches RB1 during battery charging, as shown in the part indicated by P1, the control module 200 may transmit a warning signal to the upper system or notify the user as a corresponding processing operation. Thereafter, if the battery charging continues and the measured voltage reaches RB2 as shown by P2, the control module 200 may, as a corresponding processing operation, limit or decrease the charging current for the corresponding battery to suppress an increase in the voltage of the corresponding battery. Therefore, the voltage of the corresponding battery is prevented from reaching not only the failure stage indicated by RB4 but also the defective stage indicated by RB3. Therefore, in this case, it is possible to prevent the battery state from deteriorating to the stage of battery failure or a stage close thereto or delay the speed thereof.

[0144] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment in which multi-stage (four-stage) diagnosis for cell overvoltage is performed. However, such multi-stage diagnosis and processing operations for each stage can also be performed for other various diagnosis items. For example, the control module 200 can perform such multi-stage diagnosis and processing operations for the whole or at least two of the plurality of diagnosis items shown in FIG. 4.

[0145] In addition, the control module 200 may be provided with a display unit or provide relevant data to an external display device in order to provide the diagnosis result to the user. For example, the control module 200 can transmit the diagnosis result to the vehicle-side system, and the vehicle side can provide such a diagnosis result to the passengers through the vehicle monitor.

[0146] The control module 200 may be configured to change the diagnosis criteria provided for multi-stage diagnosis. In particular, when the control module performs diagnosis and control according to a plurality of diagnosis criteria, the range or numerical value of the whole or part of the plurality of diagnosis criteria can be changed. Such an embodiment will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. 7 and the like.

[0147] FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating a change configuration of diagnostic criteria according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7, the vertical axis represents temperature, and the horizontal axis may represent the measurement sequence, time, etc. as in FIG. 6.

[0148] Referring to FIG. 7, four diagnostic criteria RC1, RC2, RC3, and RC4 may be provided for diagnosing the temperature of the battery. For example, FIG. 7 may show the diagnostic criteria related to the charging high-temperature diagnosis among the diagnostic items in FIG. 4. Here, RC4 may have the highest temperature value, and RC1 may have the lowest temperature value. At this time, the control module 200 may change one or more of the four diagnostic criteria.

[0149] For example, the control module 200 may change three of the four diagnostic criteria, namely RC1, RC2, and RC3. More specifically, the control module 200 may change the first diagnostic criterion RC1 that divides the warning 1 (warning) stage downward as indicated by the arrow a1 to change it to a new diagnostic criterion RC1'. Also, the control module 200 may change the second diagnostic criterion RC2 that divides the warning 2 (danger) stage downward as indicated by the arrow a2 to change it to a new diagnostic criterion RC2'. And the control module 200 may change the third diagnostic criterion RC3 that divides the fault (defect) stage downward as indicated by the arrow a3 to change it to a new diagnostic criterion RC3'.

[0150] When the diagnostic criteria change in this way, the abnormal diagnostic result for the temperature may change. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 7, when the measured temperature of the battery corresponds to P3, before changing the diagnostic criteria, since it has a value smaller than the first diagnostic criterion RC1, the control module 200 may determine that the result of the high-temperature diagnosis of the corresponding battery is in a normal state. However, after changing the diagnostic criteria, the first diagnostic criterion is changed to RC1', and the measured temperature P3 has a value higher than this. Therefore, the control module 200 may diagnose the result of the charging high-temperature diagnosis of the corresponding battery as being in the warning 1 (warning) stage, which is one of the abnormal states.

[0151] In particular, when the control module 200 performs diagnoses for a plurality of diagnostic items, for at least some of the diagnostic items, it can change the diagnostic criteria according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items. Further, when other diagnostic items are diagnosed as a specific abnormal stage, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria for the corresponding diagnostic item.

[0152] For example, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria for the high-temperature diagnostic item shown in FIG. 7 according to the diagnostic result for the overvoltage diagnostic item as shown in FIG. 6. As a more specific example, when a cell overvoltage diagnosis for a specific battery cell is diagnosed as the warning 2 (dangerous) stage, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria for the high-temperature diagnosis, which is another diagnostic item for the corresponding battery cell, as shown in FIG. 7.

[0153] When changing the diagnostic criteria, the control module 200 can change the reference value upward or downward.

[0154] In particular, for items diagnosed as abnormal when the measured value is higher than the diagnostic criteria, when the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items are abnormal, as shown in FIG. 7, the reference value serving as the diagnostic criteria can be lowered. For example, diagnostic items such as cell overvoltage diagnosis, pack overvoltage diagnosis, charge / discharge overcurrent diagnosis, and charge / discharge high-temperature diagnosis fall under this category.

[0155] Also, for items diagnosed as abnormal when the measured value is lower than the diagnostic criteria, such as diagnostic items like cell low voltage, pack low voltage, and charge / discharge low temperature, when the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items are abnormal, the reference value serving as the diagnostic criteria can be increased.

[0156] According to such an embodiment of the present invention, when an abnormal diagnosis is received for other diagnostic items, the abnormal diagnosis criteria for a specific diagnostic item are lowered or relaxed to enable a quicker diagnosis and proactive treatment for the abnormal situation. In particular, when an abnormality occurs in the battery, it is highly likely that an abnormal state will be diagnosed in many diagnostic items. For example, diagnostic items related to voltage, current, and temperature are highly correlated with each other. Therefore, if any one of them is diagnosed as abnormal, it is highly likely that the other items will also be diagnosed as abnormal.

[0157] However, there may be a time difference in the abnormal diagnosis for such a large number of diagnostic items. According to this embodiment, when an abnormality is diagnosed in a specific diagnostic item, the status of other diagnostic items with a high probability of abnormality can be grasped more quickly. Therefore, in this case, the relevant response can be carried out more quickly.

[0158] For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 7, when the measured temperature of the battery corresponds to P4, before changing the diagnosis criteria, although it is higher than the second diagnosis criterion RC2 but lower than the third diagnosis criterion RC3, the corresponding battery is only diagnosed as the warning 2 (dangerous) stage. However, when at least one of the abnormal stages is diagnosed in other diagnostic items, for example, the overcharge current diagnostic item, and the charging high temperature diagnosis criteria are adjusted downward as indicated by arrows a1 to a3 in FIG. 7, the measured temperature P4 becomes higher than the new third diagnosis criterion RC3'. Therefore, the control module 200 can diagnose the charging high temperature item of the corresponding battery as the fault (defect) stage and perform a more actively enhanced response operation. Therefore, in this case, a more proactive and rapid measure for the charging high temperature item can be enabled.

[0159] On the other hand, in the embodiment of FIG. 7, the embodiment applied to the charging high temperature diagnosis or the discharging high temperature diagnosis has been mainly described. However, such a change in the diagnosis criteria can also be applied to many other diagnostic items. For example, the diagnosis criteria can be changed for the entire 14 diagnostic items shown in FIG. 4.

[0160] As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 7 and the like, when changing the diagnostic criteria, the control module 200 can consider the diagnostic results of not only one diagnostic item but also many diagnostic items. For example, when diagnosing cell overvoltage, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria in consideration of the results of pack overvoltage diagnosis, charge overcurrent diagnosis, charge high temperature diagnosis, and the like. As another example, when diagnosing cell low voltage, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria in consideration of the results of pack low voltage diagnosis, discharge low temperature diagnosis, and the like together.

[0161] On the other hand, although FIG. 7 shows an embodiment in which each diagnostic criterion changes only once, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. In particular, the control module 200 can change at least one diagnostic criterion in two or more steps. This will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. 8 and the like.

[0162] FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing a change configuration of diagnostic criteria according to another embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the vertical axis represents current, and the horizontal axis can represent the measurement cycle number, time, etc. as in FIG. 6.

[0163] Referring to FIG. 8, for the diagnosis of the battery current, for example, for charge overcurrent diagnosis, three diagnostic criteria RD1, RD2, and RD3 can be provided. In this case, the overcurrent diagnosis of the battery can diagnose the abnormal state by dividing it into three levels. Here, RD3 is the highest current value and can be a diagnostic criterion for dividing the fail (fault) stage. And RD2 is a diagnostic criterion for dividing the fault (defect) stage, and RD1 is a diagnostic criterion for dividing the integrated warning stage, respectively.

[0164] For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 8, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criterion RD3 to RD3' or RD3" according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items. Or, the control module 200 can first change RD3 to RD3' according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items, and then, if a certain condition is satisfied, change it to RD3" secondarily.

[0165] In an embodiment where the diagnostic criteria can be changed to multiple levels as shown in FIG. 8, the change level of the diagnostic criteria can be determined in consideration of the abnormal levels in other diagnostic items. Further, the control module 200 can be configured to further increase the change level of the diagnostic criteria when the abnormal states of other diagnostic items are relatively more serious.

[0166] For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, when the cell overvoltage diagnosis is diagnosed at the warning 2 (dangerous) level, the control module 200 can lower the diagnostic criteria RD2 and RD3 for fault (defect) and fail (malfunction) to RD2' and RD3' for the charging overcurrent diagnosis shown in FIG. 8. On the other hand, when the diagnosis for the cell overvoltage diagnosis item in FIG. 6 is changed from the warning 2 (dangerous) level to the fault (defect) level, the control module 200 can further lower the diagnostic criteria RD2' and RD3' to RD2'' and RD3'' for the charging overcurrent diagnosis in FIG. 8. Such final changed diagnostic criteria RD2'' and RD3'' are two levels lower than the initial diagnostic criteria RD2 and RD3, and can be changed to a higher level compared to RD2' and RD3'.

[0167] Also, in the cell overvoltage diagnosis in FIG. 6, the fault (defect) level can be directly diagnosed without going through the warning 2 (dangerous) level. In this case, the control module 200 can directly lower the diagnostic criteria from RD2 and RD3 to RD2'' and RD3'' for the charging overcurrent diagnosis item in FIG. 8. That is, each diagnostic criterion can be changed to many levels, but the control module 200 may change the diagnostic criteria sequentially according to the levels, or may skip a specific level and change.

[0168] As another example, in an embodiment where the diagnostic criteria are changed to many levels as shown in FIG. 8, the change level can be determined by considering together the diagnostic results of a plurality of other diagnostic items. For example, when diagnosing the charging overcurrent in FIG. 8, the diagnostic criteria can be changed by considering together a plurality of other diagnostic items such as the cell overvoltage diagnosis item, the pack overvoltage diagnosis item, the charging high temperature diagnosis item, and the cell - to - cell voltage imbalance diagnosis item during charging.

[0169] In particular, the control module 200 can determine the change level of the diagnostic criteria for the charging overcurrent diagnostic item in FIG. 8 according to the number of items diagnosed as abnormal among a plurality of other diagnostic items. As a more specific example, among a plurality of other diagnostic items, if an abnormal diagnosis of warning level 1 (warning) or higher is received for two or fewer diagnostic items, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria for the fault (defect) and fail (fault) stages in FIG. 8 from RD2 and RD3 to RD2' and RD3', respectively. On the other hand, among a plurality of other diagnostic items, if an abnormal diagnosis of warning level or higher is received for more than three diagnostic items, the control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria for the fault (defect) and fail (fault) stages in FIG. 8 from RD2 and RD3 or RD2' and RD3' to RD2'' and RD3'', respectively.

[0170] Also, when certain conditions are met, the control module 200 can restore the diagnostic criteria to the previous level. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 8, after the diagnostic criteria for the fault (defect) and fail (fault) stages are changed from RD2' and RD3' to RD2'' and RD3'', if the abnormal states for other diagnostic items are released or alleviated, the control module 200 can revert the diagnostic criteria from RD2'' and RD3'' to RD2' and RD3'.

[0171] According to such an embodiment of the present invention, by adaptively changing the diagnostic criteria according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items, more accurate and efficient diagnosis and response to the abnormal situation of the battery can be achieved.

[0172] The control module 200 can change the diagnostic criteria according to the change rate of the battery state information measured by the measurement module 100. In particular, when the change rate of the battery state information is at a certain level or higher, the control module 200 can strengthen the diagnostic criteria. Here, "strengthening the diagnostic criteria" means lowering the diagnostic criteria for abnormal states so that the same measurement results are more likely to be diagnosed as abnormal states.

[0173] For example, in the charging high temperature diagnosis item of FIG. 7, when lowering the three diagnosis criteria RC1, RC2, and RC3 to RC1', RC2', and RC3', it can be said that the diagnosis criteria are strengthened. Therefore, before strengthening the diagnosis criteria, the P3 position is diagnosed as normal, but after strengthening the diagnosis criteria, the P3 position is diagnosed as abnormal (warning stage).

[0174] In such an embodiment, the control module 200 may consider the change rate of the corresponding diagnosis item, or may consider the change rate of other diagnosis items. For example, in the process of performing charging high temperature diagnosis as in the embodiment of FIG. 7, the control module 200 can measure the temperature of the battery being charged every time, and calculate the change rate of the temperature according to time. At this time, when the change rate of the temperature, particularly the temperature rise rate, is above a certain level, the control module 200 can lower the three diagnosis criteria RC1, RC2, and RC3 as indicated by arrows a1, a2, and a3.

[0175] Furthermore, the change of the diagnosis criteria according to the change rate of such battery state information may be performed in multiple stages. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 8, the control module 200 can change the diagnosis criterion RD2 to RD2' or RD2" according to the change rate of the battery state information, such as the current rise rate.

[0176] In particular, the control module 200 can compare the current rise rate with two reference current rates. For example, the two reference current rates can be VR1 and VR2 (VR1 < VR2). At this time, if the current rise rate is greater than the first current rate reference value VR1 and less than the second current rate reference value VR2, the control module 200 can relatively slightly change the diagnosis criteria, such as lowering RD2 to RD2'. On the other hand, if the current rise rate is greater than the second current rate reference value VR2, the control module 200 can relatively greatly change the diagnosis criteria, such as lowering RD2 to RD2".

[0177] According to such an embodiment of the present invention, more efficient diagnosis and processing can be achieved according to the change rate of battery state information. In particular, the faster the battery state information changes, the more serious the abnormal state of the battery is or the higher the possibility of deterioration in a short period. According to this embodiment, it is possible to respond quickly and effectively to such a situation.

[0178] The measurement module 100 can change the measurement timing in the measurement of the battery state information. For example, the measurement module 100 can measure the voltage, current, temperature, etc. of the battery, and such measurements can be performed at specific predetermined times. The measurement module 100 can change the timing of measuring such state information. Further, the measurement module 100 can periodically measure specific state information of the battery, and in this case, can change the measurement period.

[0179] Furthermore, when diagnoses are performed on a plurality of diagnosis items, the measurement module 100 can be configured to change the measurement timing of the battery state information according to the diagnosis results of other diagnosis items for at least some of the diagnosis items. In particular, when the diagnosis results of other diagnosis items are diagnosed as abnormal states, the measurement module 100 can shorten the information measurement timing compared to when the states are normal.

[0180] For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 4, for the cell overvoltage diagnosis item, the measurement module 100 can periodically measure the voltage of the battery cell as the battery state information. In such a situation, when other diagnosis items, such as the pack overvoltage diagnosis or the charging overcurrent diagnosis item, are diagnosed as abnormal states such as Warning 2 (dangerous) or Fault (defect), the measurement module 100 can shorten the voltage measurement period for the cell overvoltage diagnosis.

[0181] In an embodiment where the measurement module 100 changes the information measurement timing in consideration of the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items, the measurement module 100 may receive the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items from the control module 200. Then, the measurement module 100 may change the measurement timing of the battery state information according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items received from the control module 200 in this way.

[0182] Alternatively, the change in the measurement timing of the measurement module 100 may be performed under the control of the control module 200. For example, the control module 200 may transmit a control signal to the measurement module 100 to change the measurement timing of the state information for a specific diagnostic item in consideration of the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items. Then, the measurement module 100 may change the measurement timing of the state information according to the control signal transmitted from the control module 200.

[0183] As a more specific example, the measurement module 100 may measure the voltage of the battery cell every 0.02 seconds (s) for cell overvoltage diagnosis. That is, the cell voltage measurement period may be 0.02 seconds. However, information indicating that it is at least one abnormal stage among warning / danger / fault / failure stages for other diagnostic items other than cell overvoltage diagnosis, such as pack overvoltage diagnosis or charge overcurrent diagnosis, may be transmitted to the measurement module 100 from the control module 200. In this case, the measurement module 100 may shorten the voltage measurement period of the battery cell.

[0184] In particular, the measurement module 100 may change the measurement timing differently according to the diagnostic stages of other diagnostic items. Furthermore, as the abnormal state of other diagnostic items worsens, the measurement timing may be further shortened.

[0185] For example, when receiving a diagnosis at the warning 1 level in the pack overvoltage diagnosis item, the measurement module 100 can shorten the voltage measurement period for cell overvoltage diagnosis from 0.02 seconds to about 0.018 seconds, a reduction of about 0.002 seconds. As another example, when receiving a diagnosis at the warning 2 (dangerous) level in the pack overvoltage diagnosis item, the measurement module 100 can further significantly shorten the voltage measurement period for cell overvoltage diagnosis from 0.02 seconds to 0.015 seconds, a reduction of about 0.005 seconds.

[0186] In addition, the measurement module 100 can change the measurement timing of the state information in consideration of the number of diagnosis items diagnosed as abnormal states. In particular, when the number of diagnosis items diagnosed as abnormal states is large, the measurement module 100 can further shorten the measurement timing compared to when the number is small.

[0187] For example, when diagnosed as an abnormal state in more than the reference number of diagnosis items among a plurality of other diagnosis items (such as pack overvoltage diagnosis, charge overcurrent diagnosis, charge high temperature diagnosis, etc.), compared to when diagnosed as an abnormal state in less than the reference number of diagnosis items, the measurement module 100 can shorten the voltage measurement timing. As a more specific example, when receiving a diagnosis at the warning level or above in less than 3 other diagnosis items, the measurement module 100 can shorten the voltage measurement period for cell overvoltage diagnosis from 0.02 seconds to 0.015 seconds, a reduction of about 0.005 seconds. On the other hand, when receiving a diagnosis at the warning level or above in 3 or more other diagnosis items, the measurement module 100 can further significantly shorten the voltage measurement period for cell overvoltage diagnosis from 0.02 seconds to 0.01 seconds, a reduction of about 0.01 seconds.

[0188] According to such an embodiment of the present invention, since the measurement timing of the battery state information changes in consideration of the diagnosis results of other diagnosis items, more efficient diagnosis and countermeasures become possible. In particular, in normal situations, the measurement frequency is reduced to reduce the consumption of resources due to measurement, and in abnormal situations or situations with a high probability of occurrence or deepening of abnormal situations, the measurement frequency is increased to enable more rapid measurement. Furthermore, when diagnosed as abnormal in other diagnosis items, it is highly likely that an abnormal diagnosis will also be made in other related items, so the measurement frequency or cycle, etc., can be changed to diagnose and take countermeasures more quickly.

[0189] On the one hand, in this embodiment, a configuration for changing the measurement timing of the state information for a specific diagnostic item in consideration of the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items has been described. However, the measurement module 100 may change the measurement timing according to the diagnostic result of the corresponding diagnostic item. In particular, when the abnormal state of the corresponding diagnostic item further deteriorates, the measurement module 100 can shorten the voltage measurement timing and period.

[0190] For example, basically, the voltage measurement period for the cell overvoltage diagnostic item may be 0.02 seconds. However, when it is diagnosed that the cell overvoltage diagnostic item is at the warning 1 (warning) stage, the voltage measurement period by the measurement module 100 can be shortened to 0.017 seconds. And when it is diagnosed that the cell overvoltage diagnostic item is at the warning 2 (danger) stage, the voltage measurement period by the measurement module 100 can be significantly shortened to 0.014 seconds. Furthermore, when it is diagnosed that the cell overvoltage diagnostic item is at the fault (defect) stage, the voltage measurement period by the measurement module 100 can be further significantly shortened to 0.010 seconds.

[0191] According to such an embodiment, before the situation progresses to a serious one such as a fault diagnosis for the corresponding diagnostic item, diagnosis and response can be made as quickly and accurately as possible.

[0192] The control module 200 may be configured to classify the processing operations according to whether automatic cancellation is possible for different diagnostic stages. Here, automatic cancellation may mean that after the control module 200 determines the diagnostic stage, the control module 200 itself changes the diagnostic stage.

[0193] In particular, the control module 200 can diagnose the abnormal state for a specific diagnostic item in multiple stages. At this time, the control module 200 can be configured such that automatic cancellation is possible for some diagnostic stages and impossible for other diagnostic stages.

[0194] For example, when diagnosis is performed in four levels of warning / danger / fault / failure for cell overvoltage diagnosis items as shown in FIG. 6, the control module 200 may be configured to be automatically releasable for the warning and danger levels. At this time, although the measured value or calculated value exceeds the corresponding diagnosis criteria and is diagnosed as the warning level or danger level, if the measured value or calculated value drops below the diagnosis criteria again, the control module 200 may automatically release the warning level or danger level itself. As a more specific example, for charging high temperature diagnosis, even if it is diagnosed as the warning level or danger level, if the temperature drops, the control module 200 may release the warning level or danger level, convert to the normal level, or lower the abnormal level to the warning level.

[0195] On the other hand, the control module 200 may be configured not to be automatically releasable for the fault (defect) and fail (failure) levels. That is, when the measured value or calculated value exceeds the corresponding diagnosis criteria and is diagnosed as the defect level or failure level, the control module 200 may be configured not to be automatically releasable for the diagnosis of the defect level or failure level even if the related measured value or calculated value drops below the diagnosis criteria. In such a case, the diagnosis status of the defect level or failure level may be released by another device or system outside the battery management device according to the present invention. For example, when diagnosed as the defect level, it can be released only upon the request of a higher-level system such as an ECU or VCU. Further, when diagnosed as the failure level, it cannot be released even upon the request of a higher-level system, and can be released only after the battery, battery management device, etc. are inspected at a service center or the like.

[0196] In addition, the control module 200 may be configured to distinguish the processing operations into output limitation and output cut-off for the battery for different diagnosis levels. Here, the output limitation may mean that charging and discharging of the battery are possible, but reducing the charging and discharging voltage or current magnitude, or shortening the charging and discharging time, etc. And the output cut-off may mean cutting off the charging and discharging itself.

[0197] For example, the control module 200 can perform output limitation for the warning stage and the danger stage, and perform output cut-off for the defect stage and the failure stage. Further, the control module 200 may vary the degree of output limitation for the warning stage and the danger stage. For example, the control module 200 can further limit the output more in the danger stage than in the warning stage.

[0198] In particular, the control module 200 can perform output limitation and / or output cut-off control using switching elements such as FETs (Field Effect Transistors) and relays. Also, for output limitation and / or output cut-off, all operations may be performed by the control module 200, or at least part of the operations may be shared by a higher-level system such as a vehicle-side system.

[0199] Also, even for abnormal stages at the same level, the control module 200 can perform different processing operations for different diagnostic items. For example, when diagnosed as a defect stage for the cell overvoltage item, the control module 200 can cut off the charging for the corresponding battery cell. As another example, when diagnosed as a defect stage for the cell low voltage item, the control module 200 can cut off the discharging for the corresponding battery cell.

[0200] Also, the control module 200 can be configured to classify processing operations into providing a warning signal and adjusting the output for different diagnostic stages. Here, output adjustment can mean or include output limitation and / or output cut-off. That is, the control module 200 can output a warning signal for some diagnostic stages and adjust the output for some other diagnostic stages.

[0201] For example, when diagnosed as a warning stage or a danger stage for the discharge high temperature diagnosis, the control module 200 can transmit only a warning message to the higher-level system or the user side without performing separate output limitation or cut-off for charging and discharging. On the other hand, when diagnosed as a defect stage or a failure stage for the discharge high temperature diagnosis, the control module 200 can perform output limitation or output cut-off for charging and discharging.

[0202] When the control module 200 performs diagnoses for a plurality of diagnostic items, it can perform a comprehensive diagnosis by considering the diagnosis results for the plurality of diagnostic items together. For example, the control module 200 can perform a comprehensive diagnosis as an overall evaluation result for the battery. At this time, the comprehensive diagnosis result can also be provided in multiple stages, for example, in 4 stages (warning / danger / fault / failure).

[0203] The battery pack according to the present invention includes the battery management device according to the present invention described above. In addition to the battery management device according to the present invention, the battery pack according to the present invention may further include components usually included in a battery pack, such as battery cells, a pack housing, fuses, relays, and electrical components such as a BMS. Furthermore, at least some functions, configurations, operations, etc. of the battery management device according to the present invention can be implemented by a BMS and various sensors included in the battery pack.

[0204] Also, the battery pack according to the present invention can be a replaceable shared battery pack for an automobile, particularly an electric two-wheeler. And the battery management device according to the present invention can be mounted on such a replaceable shared battery pack for an electric two-wheeler.

[0205] Also, the automobile according to the present invention includes the battery management device according to the present invention or the battery pack according to the present invention. Furthermore, the automobile according to the present invention is driven by electricity and may include a driving battery pack. At this time, all of the battery management devices according to the present invention can be provided on the battery pack side. Or, the battery management device according to the present invention may be in a form in which some functions and configurations are shared between the battery pack and the automobile side. For example, the operations and functions of the control module 200 are mostly performed by the BMS of the battery pack, but some operations and functions can be implemented by an upper system on the automobile side, such as an ECU or a VCU.

[0206] In addition to the battery management device and the battery pack, the vehicle according to the present invention may further include other components generally applied to the vehicle. In particular, the vehicle according to the present invention can be an electric two-wheeler.

[0207] Further, the battery supply system according to the present invention includes the battery management device according to the present invention. Here, the battery supply system can be a concept including a battery charging system that provides a charging service for a discharged battery, or a battery replacement system that provides a service for replacing a discharged battery with a charged battery. Further, the battery supply system may also include a battery inspection and repair system such as a service center for repairing or inspecting the battery. Further, the battery supply system may also include a battery sales system where the battery can be purchased.

[0208] FIG. 9 is a flowchart schematically showing a battery management method according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 9, the execution entity at each stage can be a component of the battery management device according to the present invention.

[0209] Referring to FIG. 9, the battery management method according to the present invention includes a state information measurement step S110, a diagnosis stage determination step S120, and a corresponding processing operation execution step S130.

[0210] First, the state information measurement step S110 can be a step of measuring the state information of the battery. The S110 step can be performed by the measurement module 100. And for the S110 step, many explanations such as the functions and operations of the above-described measurement module 100 can be applied.

[0211] Next, the diagnosis stage determination step S120 can be a step of determining the diagnosis stage for the battery by comparing the state information of the battery measured in the step S110 with a diagnosis criterion in a multi-stage form. Such a step S120 can be performed by the control module 200 of the battery management device. Also, for the step S120, many various explanations about the diagnosis configuration of the above-described control module 200 can be applied.

[0212] Then, the corresponding processing operation execution step S130 can be a step of executing a processing operation corresponding to the diagnosis stage determined in the step S120. The step S130 can also be performed by the control module 200. Therefore, for the step S130, many various explanations about the processing operation execution configuration of the above-described control module 200 can be applied. Or, at least a part of the operations of the step S130 may be performed by the measurement module 100. For example, in the step S130, the measurement timing of the state information of the battery can be changed as the corresponding processing operation.

[0213] In addition, for the battery management method according to the present invention, since the content about the battery management device according to the present invention described in detail above can be applied identically or similarly, detailed description is omitted.

[0214] As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to limited embodiments and drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to these, and it goes without saying that various modifications and variations can be made within the equivalent scope of the technical idea and claims of the present invention by those having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention belongs.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0215] 100: Measurement module 200: Control module 300: Memory

Claims

1. A measurement module that measures the state information of a battery, A control module configured to compare the state information measured by the measurement module with a diagnostic criterion in a multi-level form and determine the diagnostic stage of the battery, and perform a processing operation corresponding to the determined diagnostic stage. A battery management device including:

2. The battery management device according to claim 1, further including a memory that stores the diagnostic criterion in the multi-level form.

3. The battery management device according to claim 1, wherein the control module is configured to classify the abnormal state of the battery into a plurality of diagnostic stages.

4. The battery management device according to claim 1, wherein the control module is configured to determine the diagnostic stage for a plurality of diagnostic items.

5. The battery is configured in the form of a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells, The battery management device according to claim 4, wherein the control module is configured to perform, as the plurality of diagnostic items, overvoltage diagnosis and undervoltage diagnosis on at least some of the plurality of battery cells or the entire battery pack.

6. The battery management device according to claim 4, wherein the control module is configured to perform, as the plurality of diagnostic items, diagnosis during charging and diagnosis during discharging on at least one of the current and temperature of the battery.

7. The battery management device according to claim 4, wherein the control module is configured to perform, as the plurality of diagnostic items, diagnosis of inter-cell voltage imbalance during charging and diagnosis of inter-cell voltage imbalance during rest.

8. The battery management device according to claim 4, wherein the control module is configured to change the diagnostic criterion according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items for at least some of the plurality of diagnostic items.

9. The battery management device according to claim 4, wherein the measurement module is configured to change the measurement timing of the state information of the battery according to the diagnostic results of other diagnostic items for at least some of the plurality of diagnostic items.

10. The battery management device according to claim 1, wherein the control module is configured to classify the processing operation based on whether automatic release is possible for different diagnostic stages.

11. The battery management device according to claim 1, wherein the control module is configured to classify the processing operation into output limitation of the battery and output cut-off of the battery for different diagnostic stages.

12. The battery management device according to claim 1, wherein the control module is configured to classify the processing operation into provision of a warning signal and output adjustment for different diagnostic stages.

13. A battery pack including the battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

14. An automobile including the battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

15. A battery supply system including the battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

16. Measuring state information of a battery; Determining a diagnostic stage of the battery by comparing the measured state information with diagnostic criteria in a multi-stage form; Performing a processing operation corresponding to the diagnostic stage determined in the determining step. A battery management method including:

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