Milwaukee Electric Tool Corporation

Abb Inc.

Abb Automation Gmbh

Donald J Truettner

Jeffrey M Brozek

Cameron R Schulz

Kyle C Fassbender

Steven T Sommerfeld

Matthew J Mergener

Timothy Ryan Obermann

Burtrom Lee Stampfl

Jacob N Zimmerman

Kyle J Radovich

Lance D Lamont

Babacar J Diop

John Gordon Marx

Kalyan P Gokhale

Wyatt R Silha

Vasil Zhmendak

Douglas W Karraker

Seyed Ahmad Hamidi

Joseph Marco

Dennis Tyczkowski

Allen Lukowitz

Charles J Dubats

Kari A Tikkanen

Timothy Nowak

Steven Zipparro

Caleb Nathaniel Hille

Jeffrey A Brunner

Samuel Feldner

Sean Roberts

Seyed A Hamidi

A battery pack, an electrical combination and a method of operating a battery pack. The battery pack may include a housing; a plurality of battery cells supported by the housing; a plurality of terminals including a positive power terminal, a negative power terminal, and a low power terminal; a low power circuit connecting the plurality of battery cells to the low power terminal and the negative terminal to output a first voltage; and a power circuit connecting the plurality of battery cells to the positive power terminal and the negative terminal to output a second voltage, the second voltage being greater than the first voltage. A terminal block for one of a battery pack and an electrical device may include a terminal with a terminal blade, and a terminal support portion.

Terminal configuration for a battery pack

A system for charging a rechargeable power tool battery pack. The system includes a housing having a first port, a second port, and a power bus. The first port is configured to receive at least one selected from a power supply and a charging module. The second port is configured to receive the other of the at least one selected from the power supply and the charging module. Wherein the power supply is configured to supply a charging voltage, and wherein the charging module includes a battery receptacle configured to receive the rechargeable power tool battery pack, the rechargeable power tool battery pack having a first battery characteristic. The power bus is within the housing. The power bus is configured to provide an electrical connection between the first port and the second port and distribute the charging voltage.

Modular battery pack charging system and method of operating the same

Various modular systems including a power unit are shown. In one example, a power unit includes a solar panel, a power storage device and one or more power outlet interfaces. One of the surfaces of the power unit includes a coupling mechanism that permits that power unit to couple with modular storage units. In one embodiment, the modular system includes a frame and wheels coupled to the frame to permit the power unit to be more easily transported.

Modular device with solar power supply

A battery pack charger that includes a housing and a plurality of battery receptacles supported by the housing that are configured to receive a battery pack. The charger includes a plurality of charging circuits connected to the battery receptacles and configured to transmit power to the plurality of battery receptacles. The charger includes at least one sensor to sense available power from a power source. The charger includes a controller operable to receive a signal from the at least one sensor indicative of the available power from the power source, receive signals from the plurality of charging circuits indicative of an amount of power needed by the charging circuits to charge the battery packs, and reduce a charging power to at least one of the plurality of charging circuits when the amount of power needed by the charging circuits is greater than the available power from the power source.

Multi-bay charger with power monitoring based on available power from a power source

A battery charger and a method of operating a battery charger. The charger may include a housing defining an air inlet and an air outlet; a charging circuit operable to output a charging current to charge a battery couplable to the battery charger; a tubular heat sink; and a fan operable to cause air flow from the air inlet to the air outlet and along the heat sink. The charger may include a first switch operable to electrically connect the charging circuit to a power source when the battery engages the charger; and a second switch operable to electrically connect the charging circuit to a battery terminal after the charger terminal is electrically connected to the battery terminal. The charging current or a fan speed may be adjusted based on at least one of the temperature of the charger or a temperature of the battery.

Battery pack, charger and disconnect system

Battery charger

A battery charger includes a housing having support structure for simultaneously supporting at least two batteries of different types for charging including a first battery of a first type and a second batter of a second type. The battery charger further includes charger electronics supported by the housing and operable to output charging current to charge the first battery and charging current to charge the second battery. A fan is operable to cause air flow through the housing. A fan speed of the fan is adjustable based on a temperature of the battery charger (i) while at least one of the at least two batteries is coupled to the battery charger for charging and (ii) while no batteries are coupled to the battery charger for charging.

A battery pack charger includes a first circuit region, a second circuit region, an input voltage measuring circuit, a temperature measurement device, and a controller. The controller is configured to measure an input voltage to the charger using the input voltage measuring circuit, measure a temperature of the second circuit region using the temperature measurement device, and estimate a temperature of the first circuit region based on the input voltage to the charger and the measured temperature of the second circuit region. The controller is further configured to select one of a plurality of correlations between the temperature of the second circuit region and the temperature of the first circuit region based on the input voltage to the charger to estimate the temperature of the first circuit region. After the temperature of the first circuit region has been estimated, one or more control operations associated with the charger can be performed.

Temperature estimation and control systems, methods, and devices for a battery pack charger

A photovoltaic power circuit is provided and includes a plurality of strings of connected photovoltaic panels operable to generate DC current from solar radiation. Each of the strings is connected to a solar inverter by a pair of fuses. A detection circuit is provided that is operable to detect when one of the fuses opens as a result of a fault, regardless whether the fault is temporary or continuing.

Open fuse detection system for a solar inverter

In a neutral-point-clamped power inverter, gate drive circuit comprises four drive blocks providing bipolar DC signals to control switch gates. The first and third drive blocks are bootstrapped to the second and fourth. Inverter's neutral bus is commonly connected to the positive and negative DC buses through clamping capacitors. An arm of four serially-stacked-switches bridges DC buses. The switch arm midpoint is an output of the inverter. A first clamping diode connects the neutral bus to the first switch emitter; a second clamping diode connects the neutral bus to the third switch emitter. In one embodiment, a second switch arm mirrors the first, providing a second output; a second gate drive circuit mirrors the first. A bias circuit provides two reference voltages for the gate drive circuits. Three isolated DC sources provide signals that, when used by the gate drive circuit, result in seven isolated bipolar DC signals.

Bootstrap gate drive for full bridge neutral point clamped inverter

A motor bypass is controlled by a digital signal processor (DSP) with embedded control software that allows fault detection and annunciation, serial communications between both a variable frequency drive (VFD) and a bypass controller and the bypass controller and a host computer. The use of the DSP and embedded control software further allows for contactor coil control to provide fault tolerant operation as well as fault condition detection and annunciation to the user.

AC motor bypass with fault annunciation, serial communication and fault tolerant coil control

A man machine interface for an A-C motor bypass has a membrane keypad with a multiplicity of pushbuttons connected to a micro-controller. The micro-controller controls the flow of current to the coil of each of the drive and bypass contactors to thereby open or close those contactors depending on if the motor is to be driven and how it is to be driven. The micro-controller includes code that simulates a first state machine that determines the operating condition of the drive and bypass contactors and if it is desired to open that one of the two contactors which is presently open and close that one of the two contactors when is presently open. The micro-controller includes code which simulates a second state machine which is active only when the inverter contactor is open. This state machine determines if the motor is to run or stop and closes or opens the bypass contactor accordingly. The micro-controller includes a non-volatile memory that is used to store the last operating mode of the bypass operating condition if that mode was either automatic operation of the motor, that is, the motor is connected to an A-C source through the inverter in the bypass, or off.

Man machine interface for an A-C motor bypass

Growing community of inventors

Waukesha, WI, United States of America

Donald J Truettner