Battery cell wear indicator
AssigneeLenovo (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.
InventorsJohn M Petersen, Bouziane Yebka, Gary D Cudak, Nathan Peterson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
One embodiment provides a method, including: monitoring, using a battery management unit, a condition of one or more cells within a block of a battery, wherein the monitoring comprises capturing, using a camera associated with the battery management unit, an image of an exterior of the one or more cells; determining, using a processor, that the condition of at least one of the one or more cells has fallen below a predetermined threshold, wherein the determining comprises identifying that the exterior of the at least one of the one or more cells has undergone a color change event; and providing, responsive to the determining, a notification. Other aspects are described and claimed.
Claims18
A method, comprising:
- monitoring, using a battery management unit, a condition of one or more cells within a block of a battery, wherein the monitoring comprises capturing, using a camera associated with the battery management unit, an image of an exterior of the one or more cells;
- determining, using a processor, that the condition of at least one of the one or more cells has fallen below a predetermined threshold, wherein the determining comprises identifying that the exterior of the at least one of the one or more cells has undergone a color change event;
- and
- providing, responsive to the determining, a notification, wherein the providing a notification comprises writing, using the battery management unit, information onto the exterior of the one or more cells.
An electronic device, comprising:
- a battery management unit;
- a processor;
- a memory device that stores instructions executable by the processor to:
- monitor, using the battery management unit, a condition of one or more cells within a block of a battery, wherein the monitoring comprises capturing, using a camera associated with the battery management unit, an image of an exterior of the one or more cells;
- determine that the condition of at least one of the one or more cells has fallen below a predetermined threshold, wherein the determining comprises identifying that the exterior of the at least one of the one or more cells has undergone a color change event;
- and
- provide, responsive to the determining, a notification, wherein the providing a notification comprises writing, using the battery management unit, information onto the exterior of the one or more cells.
A battery, comprising:
- at least one block comprising a plurality of cells;
- wherein an exterior of each of the plurality of cells is coated with a thermochromic material designed to undergo a color change event responsive to a cell condition falling below a predetermined threshold;
- wherein, upon a cell condition falling below the predetermined threshold, a battery management unit writes information onto the exterior of the one or more cells.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.