Battery Charging Voltage Adjustment via Ambient Temperature

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

The high cost and energy consumption associated with controlling ambient temperature to extend the life of lithium-ion secondary batteries, as seen in existing techniques, present significant challenges.

Innovation Solution

A charging apparatus that measures ambient temperature and adjusts the charging voltage based on pre-correlated temperature and voltage values, using a storage device to determine the optimal charging voltage value for the battery, thereby extending battery life without excessive energy expenditure.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Duration of action of stationary object

If ambient temperature is controlled using a Peltier element to extend battery life, then battery service life is improved, but energy consumption and cost increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvebattery service lifeVSAvoidenergy consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Duration of action of stationary objectVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the charging voltage parameter based on ambient temperature measurements. The controller adjusts the charging voltage to be lower when temperature is high and higher when temperature is low, optimizing battery charging conditions without active temperature control. This resolves the contradiction by achieving battery life extension through electrical parameter adjustment rather than thermal management, avoiding the high energy consumption of Peltier elements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Duration of action of stationary object

If ambient temperature is controlled using a Peltier element to extend battery life, then battery service life is improved, but cost increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvebattery service lifeVSAvoidcost
Core Design Contradiction:
Duration of action of stationary objectVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a cost-effective solution by using simple temperature sensing and voltage adjustment through software control rather than expensive active cooling hardware. The controller reads temperature data and automatically adjusts charging voltage parameters, eliminating the need for Peltier elements and associated high costs while still extending battery service life through optimized charging conditions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical/thermal system (Peltier element-based active cooling) with an electrical control system that adjusts charging voltage based on temperature readings. This substitution eliminates complex thermal management hardware and reduces cost while achieving the same goal of battery life extension through a simpler, more economical approach.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Data Source

PatentEP3457520B1Charging apparatus
Publication Date: 2020.06.24 ENVISION AESC JAPAN LTD
  • EP3457520B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3457520B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3457520B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A controller (130) reads out a voltage value correlated with the ambient temperature of a battery (200) measured by a temperature measurer (110) from a storage device (120), so that a charger (140) charges the battery (200) at the voltage value read out by the controller (130).