Portable Agricultural Power Tool Battery Communication System
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable apparatuses for powering and controlling electrical equipment face issues with increased weight, encumbrance, and maintenance costs due to complex communication systems and inefficient battery management, particularly when used with devices having different operating parameters.
Innovation Solution
A portable apparatus with a simplified communication system using a single microcontroller for unidirectional information passage from the device to the battery, coupled with an electronic control system that includes active balancing for battery management, reducing the need for multiple electronic cards and enhancing reliability and efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a communication system with electronic cards is implemented in both the battery and device, then information exchange and adaptability are improved, but weight, encumbrance, and production costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the communication functionality from the device and relocates it entirely to the battery. The battery now contains both the communication system (electronic card) and the control system, while the device only has a simple identification code. This eliminates the need for electronic cards in the device, reducing its weight and complexity while maintaining full bidirectional communication capability through the battery's system.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery is designed to perform multiple functions: it serves as the power source, the communication hub, and the control center. By integrating the electronic card and control system into the battery, it becomes a universal interface that can communicate with and adapt to any device in the portfolio, eliminating the need for duplicate communication hardware in each device.
2Adaptability or versatility
If electronic cards are mounted on both battery and device, then communication capability is improved, but production and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the expensive electronic card from the device and consolidates it in the battery. This reduces the bill of materials for each device and simplifies assembly, while the battery's electronic card serves all devices in the portfolio, reducing overall production costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery's electronic card serves as a universal communication interface for all devices. This single card handles communication with any device in the portfolio, eliminating the need for multiple specialized communication modules and reducing overall component costs.
3Device complexity
If passive balancing with resistors is used for battery recharging, then simplicity is maintained, but energy efficiency and reliability deteriorate due to energy waste
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the passive electrical balancing system (resistors) with an active electronic control system. The control system in the battery manages cell balancing through intelligent electronic circuits that can transfer energy between cells or regulate charging currents, eliminating the need to dissipate energy as heat through resistors and significantly improving energy efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system continuously monitors the state of charge and voltage of individual battery cells and dynamically adjusts the charging process. This feedback mechanism allows the system to optimize energy distribution, balance cells efficiently, and prevent energy waste, while maintaining reliable operation under varying conditions.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
AI summary
A portable apparatus (11) for powering and controlling electrical equipment, particularly for agricultural use, that comprises a device (12), which is constituted by an electric motor (13) and by a tool (14), chosen from among a plurality of devices (12, 12a, 12b, 12c etc.), and a battery (16) for supplying power to the electric motor (13). Its peculiarity consists in that it comprises a communication system that enables the unidirectional passage of information from the device (12) to the battery (16), which is constituted by a microcontroller (17), which is provided with an identification means and is coupled to the device (12), and by an electronic control system (21) coupled to the battery (16), for identification of the device (12).