Patent Application
20250159608
The present application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0156518, filed on Nov. 13, 2023 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Aspects of embodiments of the present invention relate to a wake-up apparatus and method for a wireless battery management system (BMS).
Generally, a battery management system (BMS) is a device that monitors a status of a battery pack and controls a battery to operate safely and efficiently.
The BMS tracks important parameters, such as a power level, a temperature, and a state of charge, and uses this information to extend the overall lifetime of the battery and reduce the risks of overheating, overcharging, and over-discharging of the battery.
Battery packs may be used in a variety of applications, such as electric vehicles, renewable energy storage systems, wireless power tools, and drones.
In these applications, the BMS plays a critical role and secures an efficient and safe battery operation.
A BMS may communicate with a battery set through wired communication, but the wired communication is complicated to install and maintain and has a limitation in reliability and flexibility of the BMS. Thus, a wireless BMS is recently getting attention.
However, it is important to consider power consumption optimization in the wireless BMS, and slave nodes in the wireless BMS have a disadvantage of consuming power because the slave nodes should periodically monitor a wake-up signal from a master node even in a standby state.
Thus, there is a need for a method of reducing power consumption even when the slave nodes of the wireless BMS are in a standby state.
The above-described information disclosed in the technology that forms the background of the present invention is intended to improve understanding of the background of the present invention, and thus may include information that does not constitute the related art.
According to an aspect of embodiments of the present invention, a wake-up apparatus and method for a wireless battery management system (BMS), which can wake-up a slave node of a wireless BMS in a standby state using a sound wave, are provided.
According to another aspect of embodiments of the present invention, a wake-up apparatus and method for a wireless BMS, which can improve a power consumption optimization function of a wireless BMS through a low-power wake-up using a sound wave are provided.
However, technical aspects and objects to be achieved by the present invention are not limited to the above-described aspects and objects, and other aspects and objects that are not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description of some embodiments of the present invention.
According to one or more embodiments of the present invention, a wake-up apparatus for a wireless BMS includes a master radio frequency (RF) node configured to output a resonant sound wave with a specified frequency and a specified digital signal pattern, and a slave RF node which wakes up upon receiving the resonant sound wave output from the master RF node.
According to one or more embodiments of the present invention, a wake-up method of a wireless BMS includes outputting, by a master radio frequency (RF) node of a wireless battery management system, a resonant sound wave with a specified frequency and a specified digital signal pattern, and receiving, by a slave RF node, the resonant sound wave output from the master RF node to wake up.
The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate some embodiments of the present disclosure, and further describe aspects and features of the present disclosure together with the detailed description of the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure should not be construed as being limited to the drawings:
Herein, some example embodiments of the present disclosure will be described, in further detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings. The terms or words used in this specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to the usual or dictionary meaning and should be interpreted as having a meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present disclosure based on the principle that the inventor can be his/her own lexicographer to appropriately define the concept of the term to explain his/her invention in the best way.
The embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are some example embodiments of the present disclosure and do not represent all of the technical ideas, aspects, and features of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it is to be understood that there may be various equivalents and modifications that can replace or modify the embodiments described herein at the time of filing this application.
It is to be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, connected, or coupled to the other element or layer, or one or more intervening elements or layers may also be present. When an element or layer is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layers present. For example, when a first element is described as being “coupled” or “connected” to a second element, the first element may be directly coupled or connected to the second element, or the first element may be indirectly coupled or connected to the second element via one or more intervening elements.
In the figures, dimensions of the various elements, layers, etc. may be exaggerated for clarity of illustration. The same reference numerals designate the same elements. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Further, the use of “may” when describing embodiments of the present disclosure relates to “one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.” Expressions such as “at least one of” and “any one of,” when preceding a list of elements, modify the entire list of elements and do not modify the individual elements of the list. When phrases such as “at least one of A, B, and C, “at least one of A, B, or C,” “at least one selected from a group of A, B, and C,” or “at least one selected from among A, B, and C” are used to designate a list of elements A, B, and C, the phrase may refer to any and all suitable combinations or a subset of A, B, and C, such as A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C. As used herein, the terms “use,” “using,” and “used” may be considered synonymous with the terms “utilize,” “utilizing,” and “utilized,” respectively. As used herein, the terms “substantially,” “about,” and similar terms are used as terms of approximation and not as terms of degree, and are intended to account for the inherent variations in measured or calculated values that would be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art.
It is to be understood that, although the terms “first,” “second,” “third,” etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers, and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers, and/or sections are not to be limited by these terms. These terms are used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer, or section from another element, component, region, layer, or section. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer, or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer, or section without departing from the teachings of example embodiments.
Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It is to be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” or “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the term “below” may encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations), and the spatially relative descriptors used herein should be interpreted accordingly.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing embodiments of the present disclosure and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure. As used herein, the singular forms “a” and “an” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It is to be further understood that the terms “includes,” “including,” “comprises,” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Also, any numerical range disclosed and/or recited herein is intended to include all subranges of the same numerical precision subsumed within the recited range. For example, a range of “1.0 to 10.0” is intended to include all subranges between (and including) the recited minimum value of 1.0 and the recited maximum value of 10.0, that is, having a minimum value equal to or greater than 1.0 and a maximum value equal to or less than 10.0, such as, for example, 2.4 to 7.6. Any maximum numerical limitation recited herein is intended to include all lower numerical limitations subsumed therein, and any minimum numerical limitation recited in this specification is intended to include all higher numerical limitations subsumed therein. Accordingly, Applicant reserves the right to amend this specification, including the claims, to expressly recite any subrange subsumed within the ranges expressly recited herein. All such ranges are intended to be inherently described in this specification such that amending to expressly recite any such subranges would comply with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. § 112(a) and 35 U.S.C. § 132(a).
References to two compared elements, features, etc. as being “the same” may mean that they are the same or substantially the same. Thus, the phrase “same” or “substantially the same” may include a case having a deviation that is considered low in the art, for example, a deviation of 5% or less. In addition, when a certain parameter is referred to as being uniform in a given region, it may mean that it is uniform in terms of an average.
Throughout the specification, unless otherwise stated, each element may be singular or plural.
When an arbitrary element is referred to as being disposed (or located or positioned) on the “above (or below)” or “on (or under)” a component, it may mean that the arbitrary element is placed in contact with the upper (or lower) surface of the component and may also mean that one or more other components may be interposed between the component and any arbitrary element disposed (or located or positioned) on (or under) the component.
In addition, it is to be understood that when an element is referred to as being “coupled,” “linked,” or “connected” to another element, the elements may be directly “coupled,” “linked,” or “connected” to each other, or one or more intervening elements may be present therebetween, through which the element may be “coupled,” “linked,” or “connected” to another element. In addition, when a part is referred to as being “electrically coupled” to another part, the part may be directly connected to another part or one or more intervening parts may be present therebetween such that the part and another part are indirectly connected to each other.
Throughout the specification, when “A and/or B” is stated, it means A, B, or A and B, unless otherwise stated. That is, “and/or” includes any or all combinations of a plurality of items enumerated. When “C to D” is stated, it means C or more and D or less, unless otherwise specified.
Referring to
For example, the master RF node 100 and the plurality of slave RF nodes 200 may be implemented in a battery pack case made of an aluminum alloy.
The master RF node 100 may include a sound wave output module 110, a first processor 120, and a first RF module 130.
The slave RF node 200 may include a sound wave reception module 210, a second processor 220, and a second RF module 230.
The sound wave output module 110 outputs (emits) a resonant sound wave with a specified frequency and a specified digital signal pattern under the control of the first processor 120.
For example, the sound wave output module 110 of the master RF node 100 may output (emit) a resonant sound wave with a frequency of 40 KHz and a specified digital pattern. In this case, the specified frequency and the specified digital signal pattern, which are applied to the sound wave (resonant sound wave) output from the sound wave output module 110, have an effect of providing robustness by distinguishing the sound wave (resonant sound wave) from a naturally occurring sound wave (i.e., external noise).
The first processor 120 may control the sound wave output module 110 to periodically or non-periodically output (emit) a resonant sound wave (or a designated resonant sound wave) with a specified frequency and a specified digital signal pattern.
The first RF module 130 may perform RF communication with the plurality of slave RF nodes 200. The first RF module 130 may be activated only when performing the RF communication with any one of the plurality of slave RF nodes 200 or may be activated always, or continuously.
The sound wave reception module 210 of the slave RF node 200 receives the resonant sound wave output (emitted) from the sound wave output module 110 of the master RF node 100.
The sound wave reception module 210 includes a sensor (e.g., piezo sensor) capable of receiving sound waves. For example, the sensor capable of receiving sound waves (e.g., piezo sensor) detects a sound wave (or resonant sound wave) output (emitted) from the sound wave output module 110 of the master RF node 100, converts the detected sound wave into an electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal.
The second processor 220 analyzes whether the signal output from the sound wave reception module 210 (i.e., the electrical signal converted from the detected sound wave) is a wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200.
For example, as shown in
However, it is noted that the form of the wake-up signal (or command) as shown in
When analyzing the signal output from the sound wave reception module 210 (i.e., the electrical signal converted from the detected sound wave), in a low-power state, the second processor 220 monitors the signal pattern of a first period (wake period) of the electrical signal converted from the received sound wave, and when the signal pattern is recognized as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern, the low-power state is changed.
Here, the concept of the low-power state includes a low-power mode operating state of the second processor 220 or an operating state using a low-power core.
Then, when the second processor 220 monitors the signal pattern of a second period (validation period) of the electrical signal converted from the received sound wave and recognizes the signal pattern as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern, the second processor 220 determines the signal to be a wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200.
As the result of analyzing the signal output from the sound wave reception module 210 (i.e., the electrical signal converted from the detected sound wave), when it is determined that the signal is the wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200, the second processor 220 wakes up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200.
Referring to
For example, when assuming that the signal pattern of the first period (wake period) is “11110000” (for convenience, a binary code “F” is expressed in ASCII) and the signal pattern of the second period (validation period) is “110011001011101111001011” (for convenience, a binary code “CBE” is expressed in ASCII), the entire signal pattern becomes “11110000110011001011101111001011.”
However, as described above, the form of the wake-up signal (or command) as shown in
Thus, in the low-power state, the second processor 220 monitors only the signal pattern (e.g., 11110000) of the first period (wake period) of the electrical signal converted from the received sound wave, and when the signal pattern is recognized as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern, the low-power state is initiated.
Then, when the second processor 220 monitors the signal pattern of the second period (validation period) of the electrical signal converted from the received sound wave and recognizes the signal pattern as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern (e.g., 110011001011101111001011), the second processor 220 determines the signal to be a wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200 and wakes up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200.
Thus, in an embodiment, the recognition accuracy of the wake-up signal (or command) can be improved while reducing or optimizing power consumption of the second processor 220 (or the slave RF node).
Referring to
The second processor 220 of the slave RF node 200 receives the sound wave (resonant sound wave) output (emitted) from the master RF node 100 through the sound wave reception module 210 (S102).
The sound wave reception module 210 of the slave RF node 200 converts the received sound wave (resonant sound wave) into an electrical signal (S103). The electrical signal converted by the sound wave reception module 210 is output to the second processor 220.
When the signal output from the sound wave reception module 210 (i.e., the electrical signal converted from the detected sound wave) is a wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200, the second processor 220 of the slave RF node 200 wakes up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200 (S104).
In a low-power state, the second processor 220 of the slave RF node 200 monitors a signal pattern of a first period (wake period) of the signal output through the sound wave reception module 210 (i.e., the electrical signal converted from the detected sound wave) (S201).
As a result of the monitoring (S201), when the signal pattern of the first period (wake period) is recognized as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern (Y in S202), the second processor 220 releases the low-power state and monitors a signal pattern of a second period (validation period) of the electrical signal converted from the received sound wave (S203).
As a result of the monitoring (S203), when the signal pattern of the second period (validation period) is recognized as a normal (i.e., specified) pattern (Y in S204), the second processor 220 determines the received sound wave to be a wake-up signal (or command) for waking up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200 and wakes up the second RF module 230 of the slave RF node 200 (S205).
Therefore, in the present embodiment, a sum of power consumed by the second processor 220 and the sound wave reception module 210 is at a level of several microwatts (μW) such that the power consumption can be significantly reduced compared to an existing level of several milliwatts (mW).
For example, in the present embodiment, by using the sound wave reception module 210 (e.g., a piezo sensor), a simplified circuit configuration is possible compared to existing RF transmission/reception circuits, and since complicated modulation/demodulation processes such as RF transmitting/receiving circuits are not present, power consumption is low, and communication is performed over a short distance using the characteristics of sound waves such that power consumption is low, and the sound wave is converted into electrical energy using a vibration or pressure change such that a separate power supply is not needed (or only a very small amount of power is needed). In addition, since the electrical signal converted from a sound wave can be read immediately, there is an advantage that a signal processing process consuming a lot of power is unnecessary. Thus, while power of several mW is consumed for wake-up using an existing RF communication, in the present embodiment, the recognition accuracy of the wake-up signal (or command) can be improved while consuming power of only several μW.
Herein, an effect of the present invention will be described in further detail compared to the existing wake-up method through RF communication.
First, the existing wake-up method requires the slave RF node to periodically monitor the RF signal from the master RF node such that there is a problem of requiring constant power consumption even in a standby state. However, in embodiments of the present invention, when the master node outputs (emits) a resonant sound wave with a specific frequency and a specific digital pattern, the wake-up signal (or command) is monitored using the electrical signal generated by the sound wave reception module 210 (e.g., a piezo sensor), and, thus, the slave RF nodes can monitor the wake-up signal (or command) even in a low-power states such that there is an effect capable of significantly reducing power consumption, extending the lifetime of the battery, and improving the overall efficiency of the system.
In addition, the existing wake-up method using RF signals has a problem of being significantly affected by an external environment change due to the characteristics of the RF signals and being disturbed by internal noise. However, in embodiments of the present invention, since a resonant sound wave with a specified frequency and a specified digital pattern is used, the resonant sound wave has a clear difference from a natural analog pattern such that there is a robust effect against noise and the external environment change.
In addition, a low-power period is not present in the existing wake-up method using RF signals, but in embodiments of the present invention, by implementing the sound wave signal pattern in a form including a “wake” period and a “validation” period, in a low-power state, only a signal pattern of the “wake” period is monitored, and when the corresponding signal pattern is detected, the low-power state is changed to recognize a signal pattern of the “validation” period such that there is an effect capable of improving the power efficiency of the entire system by reducing the power consumption of the processor.
Implementations described herein may also be implemented by, for example, a method or process, an apparatus, a software program, a data stream, or a signal. Even when discussed in the context in a single form of implementation (e.g., discussed only as a method), the implementation of features discussed may also be implemented in other forms (e.g., an apparatus or program). The apparatus may be implemented in suitable hardware, software, and firmware. The method may be implemented in an apparatus such as a processor, which is generally referred to as a processing device including, for example, a computer, a microprocessor, an integrated circuit, or a programmable logic device. Examples of the processor also include communication devices, such as computers, cellular phones, portable/personal digital assistants (“PDAs”), and other devices that facilitate information communication between end-users.
In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, it is possible to wake up a slave node of a wireless battery management system (BMS) in a standby state using a sound wave.
In addition, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, a power consumption optimization function of the wireless BMS can be improved through low-power wake-up using a sound wave.
However, the aspects and effects obtainable through the present invention are not limited to the above aspects and effects, and other technical aspects and effects that are not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the above description of the present invention.
While the present invention has been described with reference to some embodiments, these embodiments are merely illustrative and it is to be understood that various modifications and other equivalent embodiments can be derived by those skilled in the art on the basis of the described embodiments. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention should be defined by the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2023-0156518 | Nov 2023 | KR | national |
