Apparatus for battery balancing and battery pack including same

An apparatus for balancing a plurality of battery cells, comprising:

• a monitoring unit configured to detect a voltage of each of the plurality of battery cells;
• a balancing unit including a first common resistor element and a switching module, the first common resistor element connected between a first common node and a second common node;
• wherein the first common resistor is connected to each of the plurality of batter cells;
• and
• a control unit operably coupled to the monitoring unit and the switching module,
• wherein the switching module is configured to:
• selectively connect a positive electrode terminal of each battery cell to the first common node, and
• selectively connect a negative electrode terminal of each battery cell to the second common node,
• wherein the control unit is configured to:
• determine a balancing target including at least one of the plurality of battery cells based on the voltage of each of the plurality of battery cells,
• control the switching module to form a current channel between the first common resistor element and the balancing target, and
• determine a maximum number of battery cells that can be included in the balancing target based on resistance of the first common resistor element and the voltage of each of the plurality of battery cells, and
• wherein the maximum number is at least two separable cell units and the balancing target cells are discharged at the same time.