Battery Charge Estimation via Cross-Device Resource Coordination

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional remaining battery charge estimation systems do not effectively utilize the resources available in both the battery pack and connected devices, leading to inaccurate estimates.

Innovation Solution

A system that includes a connection detector, device identification component, storage component, and resource determination component to combine resources from both the battery pack and connected device for improved estimation, using calculation resources, measurement resources, and algorithms to determine the optimal combination for accurate charge estimation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If conventional single-source estimation methods are used, then the system complexity is low, but the measurement precision of battery remaining charge is insufficient

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveremaining charge estimation accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple estimation methods (amperometric method using current integration, voltametric method using voltage measurement, and impedance method using impedance measurement) into a unified estimation system. The battery management ECU integrates results from these different methods to produce a final remaining charge estimate, thereby improving measurement precision through method fusion while managing system complexity through centralized control.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The battery management ECU performs multiple functions: it manages not only the amperometric estimation but also the voltametric and impedance estimations, and coordinates resource allocation between the battery pack and connected device. This multi-functional design allows a single control unit to handle diverse estimation tasks, improving accuracy without proportionally increasing system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Measurement precision

If resources from both battery pack and connected device are combined, then the measurement precision improves, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveremaining charge estimation accuracyVSAvoidresource coordination complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The battery management ECU acts as an intermediary that coordinates resources between the battery pack and the connected device. It manages the allocation and integration of estimation resources from both sides, facilitating cooperative estimation without requiring direct complex interactions between the battery pack and connected device components. This mediator role simplifies the overall system architecture while enabling enhanced estimation accuracy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The estimation system is segmented into distinct functional components: amperometric estimation module, voltametric estimation module, impedance estimation module, and resource coordination module. Each component handles a specific aspect of the estimation process, allowing for modular development and maintenance. This segmentation reduces complexity by breaking down the overall complex task into manageable, independent segments that can be developed and tested separately.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

3Measurement precision

If multiple estimation methods are integrated, then the measurement precision increases, but the loss of information increases due to data integration challenges

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveremaining charge estimation accuracyVSAvoiddata integration loss
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where the battery management ECU continuously monitors the outputs from different estimation methods and adjusts the integration strategy accordingly. By using feedback from the performance and consistency of individual method results, the system can optimize the weighting and combination of different estimation sources, minimizing information loss during integration while maintaining high measurement precision.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP3386062B1Battery residual capacity estimating system and battery residual capacity estimating method
Publication Date: 2022.06.08 OMRON CORP
  • EP3386062B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3386062B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3386062B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A remaining battery charge estimation system (1) comprises a connection detector (15), a connected device identification component (17), a memory (16), and a remaining battery charge estimation and resource determination component (18). The connection detector (15) detects connection between a battery pack (10) and a charging device (30). The connected device identification component (17) identifies the connected device. The memory (16) stores information related to a sensor (11) and a CPU (12) used for estimating the remaining battery charge of the battery pack (10), information related to a sensor (31) and a CPU (32) used for estimating the remaining battery charge of the charging device (30). The remaining battery charge estimation and resource determination component (18) determines the sensor (11, 31) and CPU (12, 32) to be used for estimating the remaining battery charge, stored in the memory (16), on the basis of information related to the connected device identified by the connected device identification component (17).