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. 29, 2014
Filed:
Jul. 26, 2011
James C. Gibbs, Brighton, MI (US);
Kurt M. Johnson, Brighton, MI (US);
James C. Gibbs, Brighton, MI (US);
Kurt M. Johnson, Brighton, MI (US);
GM Global Technology Operations LLC, Detroit, MI (US);
Abstract
A vehicle battery and charging method that may be used to balance cell voltages during a battery charging operation, and may do so in a way that protects the individual cells from over-charging and improves the overall efficiency of the operation. According to one example, the vehicle battery includes a number of cell-balancing current paths, each of which is connected in parallel to an individual battery cell and can shunt or bypass the corresponding cell when its voltage exceeds some maximum amount. This may enable under-charged battery cells to be charged at the same time that over-charged battery cells are bypassed. Each of the cell-balancing current paths may include a series-connected electronic switch and zener diode combination, where the electronic switch is controlled by a battery control module so that cell-balancing can be enabled during a battery charging operation and disabled at other times.