Switching circuit, switching method, protective device and battery pack
AssigneeSony Corporation
InventorsTamiji Nagai, Kazuo Yamazaki, Hitoshi Akiho, Takayuki Aita, Kenji Enomoto
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A solenoid type switch has at least two driving coils. The driving coils turn off a switch with a current for example an overcurrent that flows in the switch. The driving coils are magnetized or demagnetized by a driving circuit so as to turn on or off the switch. The driving circuit magnetizes or demagnetizes the driving coils in accordance with a control signal supplied from a controlling circuit. Thus, the switch can be turned off with the current that flows in the driving coils.
Claims19
A switching circuit, comprising:
- first and second coils;
- a switch connected in series with the first coil and having a movable magnetic substance;
- controlling means for controlling on/off states of the switch with a current that flows in the second coil;
- wherein when an overcurrent flows in the first coil, the first coil and the second coil are configured to turn off the switch;
- and
- wherein the controlling means toggles the states of the switch by toggling the direction of the current that flows in the second coil.
A protecting device, comprising:
- a first switch and a second switch connected in series;
- controlling means for controlling on/off states of the first switch and the second switch;
- operation state detecting means for detecting operation states of the first switch and the second switch;
- state determining means for determining whether or not control states of the first switch and the second switch match the operation states thereof,
- wherein when the determined result of the state determining means represents that the control states do not match the operation states, the first switch and the second switch are configured to be turned off;
- wherein the operation state detecting means is configured to detect electric charges stored in a capacitor disposed between a first path in which the first switch and the second switch are disposed and a second path that is different from the first path so as to detect the operation states of the first switch and the second switch.
A battery pack, comprising:
- a first battery block and a second battery block, each of which is composed of a plurality of secondary battery cells connected in series and in parallel;
- a first battery terminal to which first terminals of the first battery block and the second battery block are connected through first switching means and second switching means;
- a second battery terminal to which second terminals of the first battery block and the second battery block are connected;
- switching means for switching the first switching means and the second switching means when charging or discharging is performed;
- capacitance detecting means for detecting battery capacitances of the first battery block and the second battery block;
- and
- switching controlling means for controlling the switching means in accordance with the detected battery capacities,
- wherein when the first switch means and the second switch means are switched, after one of the first switch and the second switch is turned off and a predetermined time period elapses, the other of the first switch means and the second switch means is turned on.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.