Battery Charging Monitoring for Swelling Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumer demand for thinner battery-powered electronics necessitates tighter spatial specifications for LiION batteries while maintaining competitive performance, which is compromised by swelling due to overcharge and excessive temperature conditions, leading to reduced performance and potential damage to nearby components.
Innovation Solution
A battery swelling monitoring system that tracks battery charging behavior to detect overcharge and temperature conditions, triggering user notifications and altering charging routines to prevent swelling, utilizing both local and cloud-based services to monitor and manage battery health across a fleet of devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If LiION batteries are made thinner to meet spatial specifications, then the electronics become thinner and more compact, but the batteries become more susceptible to swelling from overcharge and temperature conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary monitoring of charging behavior and temperature conditions before swelling occurs. By tracking charging patterns and detecting hazardous conditions in advance, the system can alert users and adjust charging routines proactively, preventing swelling before it compromises the thin battery structure
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors battery charging behavior and temperature, providing feedback to users through notifications and to the charging system through routine adjustments. This closed-loop feedback mechanism enables real-time adaptation to prevent swelling conditions in thin batteries
2Ease of operation
If users keep devices plugged in and powered on for long periods, then convenience is improved, but overcharge conditions and excessive temperatures cause battery swelling
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables batteries to self-monitor their own charging behavior and temperature conditions. By autonomously detecting hazardous patterns and triggering protective measures, the battery serves itself without requiring user intervention, allowing users to maintain convenient usage patterns while preventing swelling
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies preliminary counter-actions to prevent swelling by detecting early signs of hazardous charging behavior and temperature conditions. Before swelling can occur, the system alerts users and modifies charging routines to counteract the developing harmful conditions
3Reliability
If battery swelling is detected late, then performance degradation occurs and nearby components may be damaged, but early detection requires continuous monitoring of charging behavior
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring system performs multiple functions using a unified approach: it tracks charging behavior, monitors temperature conditions, detects hazardous patterns, and triggers protective measures. This multi-functional system prevents swelling while managing complexity through integrated monitoring rather than separate specialized systems
Data Source
AI summary
Examples are described herein for monitoring power source usage of a computing device, including a battery and another power source, over time. In various examples, time periods of this monitored time may be added to a time count based on their immediately previous or immediately subsequent time periods satisfying a condition. The time count may be used to track periods of time during which certain power source usage factors are present that may lead to or may indicate the presence of battery swelling. After a time period is added to the time count, the updated time count can be compared to a time count threshold, and a user of the computing device may be warned based on the comparison. The threshold and warning may be selected to warn a user of potential present or future swelling of the battery.