US 11,698,416 B2
Methods and systems for in-situ leakage current testing of cells in multi-cell battery packs
Rainer Johannes Fasching, Mill Valley, CA (US); Georgy Zerkalov, Santa Clara, CA (US); Arnaud Devie, Hawthorne, CA (US); Seth Marshall Kahn, San Francisco, CA (US); Anthony John Stratakos, San Anselmo, CA (US); Corrado Cammi, Sunnyvale, CA (US); Anderson Rennie John, Santa Clara, CA (US); and Yoosok Saw, Seoul (KR)
Assigned to Element Energy, Inc., Menlo Park, CA (US)
Filed by Element Energy, Inc., San Francisco, CA (US)
Filed on Aug. 13, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/401,820.
Application 17/401,820 is a continuation of application No. 16/996,501, filed on Aug. 18, 2020, granted, now 11,131,717.
Prior Publication US 2022/0057455 A1, Feb. 24, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G01R 31/396 (2019.01); G01R 31/52 (2020.01); H01M 10/42 (2006.01); H02J 7/00 (2006.01)
CPC G01R 31/396 (2019.01) [G01R 31/52 (2020.01); H01M 10/4228 (2013.01); H02J 7/0048 (2020.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for on-demand in-situ testing of selected battery cells in a battery pack, the method comprising:
changing a current through a first battery cell of a first battery node using a first node controller from an external test current to a test current, wherein:
the first battery cell is selected from multiple battery cells in the battery pack for purposes of determining leakage current,
the first node controller is connected with one or more additional node controllers of the battery pack,
the one or more additional node controllers control operation of one or more additional cells in the battery pack, and
the one or more additional cells continue to charge or discharge while the current through the first battery cell is changed and such that the power output of the battery pack remains substantially unchanged while changing the current through the first battery cell;
obtaining cell data from the first battery cell using the first node controller while the one or more additional cells continue to charge or discharge according to a power compensation profile to ensure that the power output of the battery pack is substantially unchanged while changing the current through the first battery cell;
determining one or more characteristics of the first battery cell based on the cell data; and
changing the current through the first battery cell from the test current to the external test current, using the first node controller, while switching the one or more additional cells back from the power compensation profile, using the one or more additional node controllers, such that the power output of the battery pack remains substantially unchanged while changing the current through the first battery cell.