The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 05, 1994
Filed:
Jul. 22, 1992
Fred J Dietrich, Palo Alto, CA (US);
John C Hall, Saratoga, CA (US);
Space Systems/Loral, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Abstract
An electrochemical energy cell for use in a satellite or other environment where failure of the cell can cause great harm or inconvenience is disclosed in which the cell operates within a sealed pressure vessel in which a gas is maintained under high pressure and which is subject to bombardment by meteorites which can cause holes or cracks in the pressure vessel, thereby rendering the cell incapable of conducting an electric current therethrough, which in turn renders a battery of such cells useless. To prevent this, a pressure sensitive switch is provided in each cell which is connected in a circuit which by-passes the current generating discs of the cell when the switch is closed. The switch is normally maintained open by the pressure within the vessel, and is biased to close in the event that the pressure in the vessel drops below a predetermined minimum, so that the damaged cell will still conduct current therethrough to maintain the integrity of the entire battery.