Battery Charger Control for Transient Current Spike Suppression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Abrupt changes in charge control signals in battery charging systems cause transient spikes in current, exceeding safety thresholds and reducing battery life.
Innovation Solution
A controller temporarily de-asserts the charge enable signal before changing the charge control signal, allowing the battery power regulator to adjust internal circuitry and prevent transient spikes by maintaining the current at or near zero during the change, ensuring the charge signal remains below safety thresholds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the charge control signal is changed to adjust charging parameters, then the charging adaptability is improved, but transient current spikes occur that exceed safety thresholds
Solution Approach 1:
The charge enable signal is de-asserted before the charge control signal is changed, preparing the system in advance to prevent transient spikes. This preliminary action ensures that when the control signal changes, no harmful current spikes occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller applies a counter-action by de-asserting the charge enable signal to offset the potential harmful effect of transient current spikes that would otherwise occur when changing the charge control signal. This preliminary anti-action prevents the harmful factor before it can manifest.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the charge enable signal is temporarily de-asserted before changing charge control signal, then transient spikes are eliminated, but charging time increases due to the temporary interruption
Solution Approach 1:
The de-assertion of the charge enable signal is performed quickly and temporarily, just long enough to prevent transient spikes during control signal changes. The system rushes through this protective state and immediately re-asserts the enable signal, minimizing the time loss while still achieving the goal of eliminating harmful transients.
3Productivity
If the charge enable signal is continuously asserted, then charging efficiency is maximized, but any change in charge control signal causes transient spikes that damage the battery
Solution Approach 1:
Before making any changes to the charge control signal, the system preliminarily de-asserts the charge enable signal to put the charging circuit in a safe state. This preliminary protective action ensures that subsequent control signal changes will not cause transient spikes, maintaining battery reliability while allowing efficient charging to resume after the safe state is established.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery charger includes a battery power regulator configured to set a charge signal provided to a battery based on a charge control signal and charge enable signal. The battery charger also includes a controller configured to provide the charge control signal to the battery power regulator. The controller is also configured to temporarily de-assert the charge enable signal for a predetermined amount of time in response to determining that a change is needed in the charge control signal. The controller is further configured to re-assert the charge enable signal after the predetermined amount of time.