# US 9,519,027 B2 · Battery monitoring device and battery system monitoring device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,519,027 B2 - Document ID: US9519027B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/397,308 - Filed: 2012-04-27 - Published: 2015-03-12 - Granted: 2016-12-13 - Earliest claimed: 2012-04-27 - Assignees: Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd. - Applicants: Akihiko Kudo; Mutsumi Kikuchi; Tomonori Kanai; Tatsumi Yamauchi; Akihiro Machida - Inventors: Akihiko Kudo; Mutsumi Kikuchi; Tomonori Kanai; Tatsumi Yamauchi; Akihiro Machida - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9519027B2 ## CPC - G01R 31/3835: involving only voltage measurements - B60L 58/15: Preventing overcharging - G01R 31/396: Acquisition or processing of data for testing or for monitoring individual cells or groups of cells within a battery - G01R 35/00: Testing or calibrating of apparatus covered by the other groups of this subclass - H01M 10/482: {for several batteries or cells simultaneously or sequentially} - H03M 1/38: sequentially only, e.g. successive approximation type (converting more than one bit per step H03M1/14) - H01M 2220/20: Batteries in motive systems, e.g. vehicle, ship, plane - Y02E 60/10: Energy storage using batteries - Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries - G01R: MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES (indicating correct tuning of resonant circuits H03J3/12) - 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 - H01M: PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY - H03M: CODING; DECODING; CODE CONVERSION IN GENERAL (using fluidic means F15C4/00; optical analogue/digital converters G02F7/00; coding, decoding or code conversion, specially adapted for particular applications, see the relevant subclasses, e.g. G01D, G01R, G06F, G06T, G09G, G10L, G11B, G11C, H04B, H04L, H04M, H04N; ciphering or deciphering for cryptography or other purposes involving the need for secrecy G09C) - Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION ## Abstract A battery monitoring device for monitoring a cell group made by connecting a plurality of single battery cells in series including a first switching circuit configured to select, as a measurement target voltage, a type of voltage a differential amplifier circuit including a first input terminal and a second input terminal, configured to convert the measurement target voltage, which is selected by the first switching circuit and input between the first input terminal and the second input terminal, into a voltage in a predetermined range by performing differential amplification, and an AD converter configured to measure the measurement target voltage selected by the first switching circuit and converted by the differential amplifier circuit, and output a digital signal according to the measurement result, wherein an abnormality detection voltage, is output to the AD converter. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A battery monitoring device for monitoring a cell group made by connecting a plurality of single battery cells in series, comprising: a first switching circuit configured to select, as a measurement target voltage, any one of a plurality of types of voltages including the cell voltages of the single battery cells in the cell group; a differential amplifier circuit including a first input terminal and a second input terminal, and configured to convert the measurement target voltage, which is selected by the first switching circuit and input to between the first input terminal and the second input terminal, into a voltage in a predetermined range by performing differential amplification; an AD converter configured to measure the measurement target voltage which is selected by the first switching circuit and converted by the differential amplifier circuit, and output a digital signal according to the measurement result; and a first voltage reference connected to a positive electrode-side or a negative electrode-side of a single battery cell of the single battery cells of the cell group except the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential in the cell group, and configured to generate a first reference voltage using the potential of the positive electrode-side or the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell as a reference, wherein by causing the first switching circuit to select the first reference voltage, the first reference voltage converted by the differential amplifier circuit is output to the AD converter as an abnormality detection voltage, with which abnormality in a differential amplification characteristic of the differential amplifier circuit is detected. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The battery monitoring device according to claim 1 further comprising a second voltage reference connected to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential, and configured to generate a second reference voltage using the potential of the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential as a reference, wherein an output voltage from the differential amplifier circuit, which is obtained when the first switching circuit connects both of the first input terminal and the second input terminal to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential so as to short-circuit the first input terminal and the second input terminal, is output to the AD converter as an offset error voltage with which an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured, and by causing the first switching circuit to select the second reference voltage, the second reference voltage converted by the differential amplifier circuit is output to the AD converter as a gain error voltage with which a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The battery monitoring device according to claim 1 further comprising: a voltage dividing circuit connected between the positive electrode-side of the single battery cell of the highest potential in the cell group and the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential therein and configured to output a divided voltage according to the cell group voltage; and a second switching circuit configured to output, to the AD converter, any one of the divided voltage which is output from the voltage dividing circuit and an output voltage from the differential amplifier circuit, wherein by causing the second switching circuit to select the divided voltage, the divided voltage which is output without passing through the differential amplifier circuit is output to the AD converter as the abnormality detection voltage. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The battery monitoring device according to claim 3 further comprising a voltage reference connected to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential, and configured to generate a reference voltage using the potential of the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential as a reference, wherein an output voltage from the differential amplifier circuit, which is obtained when the first switching circuit connects both of the first input terminal and the second input terminal to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential so as to short-circuit the first input terminal and the second input terminal, is output to the AD converter as an offset error voltage with which an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured, and by causing the first switching circuit to select the reference voltage, the reference voltage converted by the differential amplifier circuit is output to the AD converter as a gain error voltage with which a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The battery monitoring device according to claim 1, wherein the output voltage from the differential amplifier circuit obtained when the first switching circuit connects both of the first input terminal and the second input terminal to a positive electrode-side or a negative electrode-side of a single battery cell of the single battery cells of the cell group except the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential in the cell group to short-circuit the first input terminal and the second input terminal is output to the AD converter as the abnormality detection voltage. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The battery monitoring device according to claim 5 further comprising a voltage reference connected to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential, and configured to generate a reference voltage using the potential of the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential as a reference, wherein an output voltage from the differential amplifier circuit, which is obtained when the first switching circuit connects both of the first input terminal and the second input terminal to the negative electrode-side of the single battery cell of the lowest potential so as to short-circuit the first input terminal and the second input terminal, is output to the AD converter as an offset error voltage with which an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured, and by causing the first switching circuit to select the reference voltage, the reference voltage converted by the differential amplifier circuit is output to the AD converter as a gain error voltage with which a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter is measured. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) A battery system monitoring device, comprising: the battery monitoring device according to claim 1; and a battery controller configured to receive, from the battery monitoring device, measurement information according to a digital signal which is output from an AD converter of the battery monitoring device, wherein the battery controller detects abnormality in a differential amplification characteristic of the differential amplifier circuit on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the abnormality detection voltage. ### Claim 8 (depends on 2) A battery system monitoring device, comprising: the battery monitoring device according to claim 2; and a battery controller configured to receive, from the battery monitoring device, measurement information according to a digital signal which is output from an AD converter of the battery monitoring device, wherein the battery controller measures an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the offset error voltage, the battery controller measures a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the gain error voltage, and when the offset error is within a predetermined first error range, and the gain error is within a predetermined second error range, and the value of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the abnormality detection voltage is out of a predetermined range, the battery controller determines that the differential amplification characteristic of the differential amplifier circuit is abnormal. ### Claim 9 (depends on 4) A battery system monitoring device, comprising: the battery monitoring device according to claim 4; and a battery controller configured to receive, from the battery monitoring device, measurement information according to a digital signal which is output from an AD converter of the battery monitoring device, wherein the battery controller measures an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the offset error voltage, the battery controller measures a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the gain error voltage, and when the offset error is within a predetermined first error range, and the gain error is within a predetermined second error range, and the value of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the abnormality detection voltage is out of a predetermined range, the battery controller determines that the differential amplification characteristic of the differential amplifier circuit is abnormal. ### Claim 10 (depends on 6) A battery system monitoring system, comprising: the battery monitoring device according to claim 6; and a battery controller configured to receive, from the battery monitoring device, measurement information according to a digital signal which is output from an AD converter of the battery monitoring device, wherein the battery controller measures an offset error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the offset error voltage, the battery controller measures a gain error of the differential amplifier circuit and the AD converter on the basis of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the gain error voltage, and when the offset error is within a predetermined first error range, and the gain error is within a predetermined second error range, and the value of the measurement information obtained when the AD converter measures the abnormality detection voltage is out of a predetermined range, the battery controller determines that the differential amplification characteristic of the differential amplifier circuit is abnormal.