# US 12,009,679 B2 · Method for operating an electrical energy store

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,009,679 B2
- Document ID: US12009679B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/296,740
- Filed: 2019-11-20
- Published: 2021-12-23
- Granted: 2024-06-11
- Earliest claimed: 2018-11-26
- Assignees: Robert Bosch GmbH
- Applicants: Robert Bosch GmbH
- Inventors: Frank Gottwald; Rainer Heinrich Hoerlein; Thomas Dufaux
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12009679B2

## CPC

- H02J 7/62: against overcurrent
- B60L 3/00: Electric devices on electrically-propelled vehicles for safety purposes; Monitoring operating variables, e.g. speed, deceleration or energy consumption (methods or circuit arrangements for monitoring or controlling batteries or fuel cells B60L58/00)
- B60L 3/0007: {Measures or means for preventing or attenuating collisions}
- B60L 3/0046: {relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors}
- B60L 3/04: Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions (protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H)
- B60L 3/12: Recording operating variables {; Monitoring of operating variables}
- B60L 58/10: for monitoring or controlling batteries
- H02J 7/80: including monitoring or indicating arrangements
- H02H 3/087: for DC applications
- Y02E 60/10: Energy storage using batteries
- Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
- H02J: ELECTRIC POWER NETWORKS; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS OR SYSTEMS FOR SUPPLYING OR DISTRIBUTING ELECTRIC POWER; SYSTEMS FOR STORING ELECTRIC ENERGY
- B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
- H02H: EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS (indicating or signalling undesired working conditions G01R, e.g. G01R31/00, G08B; locating faults along lines G01R31/08; emergency protective devices H01H)
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION

## Abstract

The invention relates to a method for operating an electrical energy store, comprising a storage cell for storing electrical energy and a control unit, wherein a safety switch is provided which is designed to interrupt an electrical line of the electrical energy store, wherein a current flowing through the electrical line is detected and an actuation of the safety switch only occurs if the current is below a predefinable threshold value.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method for operating an electrical energy store (12), which comprises a storage cell (14) for storing electrical energy and a control unit (15), the method comprising:
detecting a current (24) flowing through an electrical line of the electrical energy store (12);
estimating an exceedance time once the current (24) exceeds a pre-threshold value (23);
interrupting, via a safety switch (16), the electrical line of the electrical energy store (12) when the current (24) flowing through the electrical line is below a predefined threshold value (22), wherein the pre-threshold value (23) is smaller than the predefined threshold value (22); and
activating the safety switch (16) when the estimated exceedance time, in which the current (24) is above the predefined threshold value (22), exceeds a predefined tolerance time, wherein the exceedance time is not longer than the tolerance time.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the threshold value (22) corresponds to a maximum current of the safety switch (16).

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein an activation signal that is intended to bring about the activation of the safety switch (16) is suppressed until the current (24) falls below the predefined threshold value (22).

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the exceedance time is estimated once the current (24) exceeds the predefined threshold value (22) and the safety switch (16) is activated when the estimated exceedance time exceeds the tolerance time.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

A device, configured to carry out each step of the method as claimed in claim 1.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

An electrical energy store, which comprises the device as claimed in claim 5.

### Claim 7

A non-transitory, computer-readable medium containing instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to control an electrical energy store (12) having a storage cell (14) by:
determining a current (24) flowing through an electrical line of the electrical energy store (12);
estimating an exceedance time when the current (24) exceeds a pre-threshold value (23);
interrupting, via a safety switch (16), the electrical line of the electrical energy store (12) when the current (24) flowing through the electrical line is below a predefined threshold value (22) program is run on a computation unit, wherein the pre-threshold value (23) is smaller than the predefined threshold value (22); and
activating the safety switch (16) when the estimated exceedance time, in which the current (24) is above the predefined threshold value (22), exceeds a predefined tolerance time, wherein the exceedance time is not longer than the tolerance time.