Battery charger having a battery charging terminal, an input terminal, and an output terminal
AssigneeMilwaukee Electric Tool Corporation
InventorsMatthew R. Polakowski, Gareth Mueckl, Justin D. Dorman, Patrick S. Lueck, Douglas G. Schwartz
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A battery connector, an electrical combination and methods. The electrical combination may include a battery connector including a housing with a support portion for a battery pack, and a circuit supported by the housing, the circuit including a universal serial bus (USB) input terminal connectable to a USB cable for receiving power, a charging terminal connectable to a pack terminal of the battery pack, and a battery charging portion operable to receive power from the USB input terminal and to output a charging current to the charging terminal to charge the battery pack.
Claims18
An electrical combination comprising:
- a battery connector including
- a housing with a support portion for a battery pack, and
- a circuit supported by the housing, the circuit including
- a universal serial bus (USB) input terminal connectable to a USB cable for receiving power,
- a charging terminal connectable to a pack terminal of the battery pack,
- an output terminal that includes at least one of a direct current (DC) output port or a USB power output port, wherein the output terminal is configured to output power from the battery pack to a powered device electrically connected to the output terminal,
- a battery charging portion operable to receive power from the USB input terminal and to output a charging current to the charging terminal to charge the battery pack, and
- an electronic controller configured to:
- determine that power is being received at the USB input terminal, and
- in response to determining that power is being received at the USB input terminal, prevent power output to the output terminal.
A method of charging a battery pack, the method comprising:
- providing a battery connector including a housing with a support portion for the battery pack and a circuit with a universal serial bus (USB) input terminal and a battery charging portion;
- supporting the battery pack on the support portion;
- electrically connecting the battery pack to the circuit of the battery connector;
- electrically connecting a USB cable between a power source and the USB input terminal of the battery connector;
- receiving, by the battery charging portion of the circuit, power from the USB input terminal;
- outputting a charging current from the battery charging portion to the battery pack to charge the battery pack;
- electrically connecting an output terminal that includes at least one of a direct current (DC) output port or a USB power output port to a powered device;
- outputting, with the output terminal, power from the battery pack to the powered device;
- determining, with an electronic controller of the circuit, that power is being received at the USB input terminal;
- and
- preventing, in response to determining that power is being received at the USB input terminal, with the electronic controller, power output to the output terminal of the circuit.
An electrical combination comprising:
- a battery connector separate from a powered device and including
- a housing with a support portion for a battery pack, and
- a circuit supported by the housing, the circuit including
- an input terminal connectable to a power source,
- a charging terminal connectable to a pack terminal of the battery pack,
- an output terminal electrically connectable to the powered device and operable to output power from the battery pack to the powered device,
- a battery charging portion operable to receive power from the input terminal and to output a charging current to the charging terminal to charge the battery pack, and
- an electronic controller configured to:
- determine that power is being received at the USB input terminal, and
- prevent, in response to determining that power is being received at the USB input terminal, power output to the output terminal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.