Abstract:
A notebook computer battery pack device charges an external electrical device and powers a notebook computer. The notebook computer battery pack device includes battery cells for converting chemical energy into direct current power, a first interface connector for transferring the direct current power to a notebook computer, a second interface connector for transferring the direct current power to the external electrical device, battery management circuitry for providing circuit protection, and charging circuitry for charging the external electrical device through the second interface connector.

Description:
Cross Reference To Related Applications 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/252,165, filed on Oct. 16, 2009 and entitled “DESIGNED MULTI-FUNCTIONAL NB BATTERY PACK,” the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to notebook battery devices, and more particularly to a multifunctional notebook battery device capable of recharging an electronic device. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Prior Art 
         [0005]    Notebook computers are a type of portable personal computer (PC) that operate with or without a power connection to an alternating current (AC) power grid. Notebook computers are able to provide portability due to inclusion of an internal power supply, e.g. a rechargeable battery pack that converts stored chemical energy into electrical energy. This makes notebook computers preferable for use when traveling, as an AC power outlet may not be available in every location at which a user of the notebook computer desires to operate the notebook computer. The rechargeable battery may be recharged by plugging an AC adapter of the notebook computer into a power socket, and inserting a power jack of the AC adapter into the notebook computer. The notebook computer may also be operated through power provided by the AC adapter. 
         [0006]    While the battery pack is immensely useful for powering the notebook computer for hours of use without needing to be recharged, many other types of portable consumer electronic devices, such as portable music players, can only be recharged by an external 5 Volt supply through a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. A number of portable battery packs have been produced for recharging portable devices. However, such portable battery devices are typically heavy, and require carrying both the portable battery device itself and an extra AC adapter, in addition to the portable consumer electronic device. Utilizing a USB port of the notebook computer directly may be an option for recharging the portable consumer electronic device as well. However, internal circuitry of the notebook computer must be turned on for the USB port of the notebook computer to function, thereby wasting a significant amount of power, and potentially depleting all power of the rechargeable battery pack without fully recharging the portable consumer electronic device. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    According to an embodiment of the present invention, a notebook computer battery pack device is utilized for charging an external electrical device. The notebook computer battery pack device comprises a plurality of battery cells, a first interface connector, a second interface connector, battery management circuitry, and charging circuitry. The plurality of battery cells convert chemical energy into direct current power at a first voltage level. The first interface connector is electrically connected to a positive terminal of the plurality of battery cells and a negative terminal of the plurality of battery cells for transferring the direct current power to a notebook computer. The second interface connector is for transferring the direct current power to the external electrical device. The battery management circuitry is electrically connected to the plurality of battery cells and the first interface connector for providing circuit protection. The charging circuitry is electrically connected to the plurality of battery cells, the battery management circuitry and the second interface connector for charging the external electrical device through the second interface connector. 
         [0008]    According to the above embodiment, a method of operating a notebook computer battery pack device is provided. The notebook computer battery pack device has a plurality of battery cells for providing DC power at a first voltage, and a first interface connector for connecting to a notebook computer. In the method, battery management circuitry of the notebook computer battery pack device detects connection of an external device to a second interface connector of the notebook computer battery pack device. The battery management circuitry enables charging circuitry of the notebook computer battery pack device upon detection of the external device being connected to the second interface connector. The charging circuitry charges the external device when the charging circuitry is enabled and the external device is connected to the second interface connector. The battery management circuitry performs circuit protection for the external device charged by the plurality of battery cells of the notebook computer battery pack device. 
         [0009]    These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a diagram of a notebook battery pack device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  is a flowchart diagram of an operation process of the notebook battery pack device of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0012]    Please refer to  FIG. 1 , which is a block diagram of a notebook battery pack device  10  according to an embodiment of the present invention. The notebook battery pack device  10  may be installed in a housing, and may be electrically connected to a notebook computer for powering internal circuits and electrical devices, such as a hard disk drive and a liquid crystal display (LCD), of the notebook computer. The notebook battery pack device  10  may comprise a plurality of battery cells  100 , a battery management integrated circuit (IC)  110 , and a notebook charger connector  120  installed in the housing. The notebook charger connector  120  may be electrically connected to a positive terminal (+) and a negative terminal (−) of the plurality of battery cells  100 . The notebook charger connector  120  may be electrically connected to the positive terminal of the plurality of battery cells  100  through a fuse  130  and a switch  140 , and may be electrically connected to the negative terminal of the plurality of battery cells  100  through a current sensing resistor  150 . Gas gauge and status messages may be transferred between the battery management IC  110  and the notebook charger connector  120  through a System Management Bus (SMBus)  160 . The plurality of battery cells  100  may provide direct current (DC) power to the notebook computer at a voltage level ranging from 16 Volts to 18 Volts, though higher or lower voltages may also provided by the plurality of battery cells  100  for powering the notebook computer. The plurality of battery cells  100  may be arranged in any combination of series and parallel connections. For example, as shown in  FIG. 1 , the plurality of battery cells  100  may comprise four individual battery cells arranged in series. The battery management IC  110  may control the fuse  130  and the switch  140  for preventing overcurrent and/or overvoltage events from damaging the notebook computer. The switch  140  may be a transistor having a control terminal electrically connected to the battery management IC  110 . The battery management IC  110  may also be electrically connected to first and second terminals of the current sensing resistor  150  for detecting the overcurrent event. The battery management IC  110  may have a terminal electrically connected to a thermister  190  for regulating output of the DC power in response to temperature variations detected through the thermister  190 . The battery management IC  110  may also control a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs)  195  for providing battery status messages to a user of the notebook computer. The plurality of LEDs  195  may be visible through the housing. 
         [0013]    To provide a charging function for recharging battery packs of other portable consumer electronic devices, such as portable music players, the notebook battery pack device  10  further comprises a DC/DC (direct current to direct current) converter  170  for converting the DC power provided by the plurality of battery cells  100  at the voltage level to a second voltage level, such as from 16-18 Volts down to 5 Volts, compatible with a port interface connector  180  of a standard or proprietary interface, such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. The DC/DC converter  170  may comprise a first power terminal electrically connected to a terminal of the switch  140  and a pin of the notebook charger connector  120 , and a second power terminal electrically connected to the first terminal of the current sensing resistor  150 . The DC/DC converter  170  may further comprise an enable terminal electrically connected to the battery management IC  110  for receiving an enable/disable signal from the battery management IC  110  for enabling or disabling DC/DC conversion functions of the DC/DC converter  170 . The DC/DC converter  170  may further comprise power and ground terminals electrically connected to power and ground pins of the port interface connector  180  for supplying the DC power at the second voltage level to a connected portable consumer electronic device. The battery management IC  110  may further be electrically connected to the port interface connector  180  for receiving a detection signal indicating whether or not a portable consumer electronic device is connected to the port interface connector  180 . If the portable consumer electronic device is connected to the port interface connector  180 , the battery management IC  110  may enable the DC/DC converter  170  for providing the DC power at the second voltage level to the portable consumer electronic device for recharging the portable consumer electronic device. If no device is connected to the port interface connector  180 , e.g. if the portable consumer electronic device is disconnected from the port interface connector  180 , the battery management IC  110  may disable the DC/DC converter  170 . A second switch  175  may be electrically connected between the battery management IC  110  and the port interface connector  180 . The second switch  175  may be a manually operated switch for keeping the DC/DC converter  170  turned off by the battery management IC  110  regardless of whether or not a device is connected to the port interface connector  180 . The second switch  175  may be opened for disallowing reception of the detection signal from the port interface connector  180  by the battery management IC  110 , so that the battery management IC  110  may disable the DC/DC converter  170 . The second switch  175  may be closed for allowing reception of the detection signal from the port interface connector  180  by the battery management IC  110 , so that the battery management IC  110  may selectively disable or enable the DC/DC converter  170  based on the detection signal received from the port interface connector  180 . The second switch  175  may be a physical switch protruding through a housing of the notebook computer battery pack device. When the plurality of battery cells  100  are charging the portable consumer electronic device, the notebook computer need not be turned on, or even connected to the notebook charger connector  120 , and the battery management IC  110  may provide overcurrent and/or overvoltage protection for protecting the portable consumer electronic device being charged from any overcurrent and/or overvoltage events. 
         [0014]    Please refer to  FIG. 2 , which is a flowchart diagram of an operation process  20  of the notebook battery pack device  10  of  FIG. 1 . The operation process  20  may be performed by the battery management IC  110  of the notebook battery pack device  10 , and may comprise the following steps: 
         [0015]    Step  200 : Start; 
         [0016]    Step  202 : Perform gas gauge and protection functions for monitoring stored power and regulating DC power outputted by the notebook battery pack device; 
         [0017]    Step  204 : Is an external device connected to a port interface connector of the notebook battery pack device? If yes, proceed to Step  206 ; if no, proceed to Step  208 ; 
         [0018]    Step  206 : Enable a DC/DC converter for providing the DC power to the external device, and return to Step  202 ; and 
         [0019]    Step  208 : Disable the DC/DC converter, and return to Step  202 . 
         [0020]    In Step  202 , as described above in the description of  FIG. 1 , the battery management IC  110  may provide gas gauge and protection functions for the plurality of battery cells  100 . The gas gauge function may indicate a percentage of stored power remaining in the plurality of battery cells  100 , and may also indicate time remaining before total depletion of the plurality of battery cells  100  according to electric current consumption of the external device and/or the notebook computer. The protection functions may include overcurrent protection and/or overvoltage protection. In Step  204 , the external device may be a portable multimedia player, a cellular phone, a personal navigation device, a personal data assistant, or any other portable device comprising a rechargeable battery pack. If any such device is connected to the port interface connector  180  of the notebook battery pack device  10 , Step  206  is performed to enable the DC/DC converter  170  for providing the DC power to the device for charging the rechargeable battery pack thereof. If no such device is connected to the port interface connector  180 , the DC/DC converter  170  is disabled (Step  208 ), keeping the power and ground pins of the port interface connector  180  floating, and saving power by not operating the DC/DC converter  170 . Please note that the battery management IC  110  may allow simultaneous power output through the notebook charger connector  120  and the port interface connector  180 . However, in another embodiment, the battery management IC  110  may disable power output to either the notebook charger connector  120  or the port interface connector  180  if one or the other is in use. For example, if the external device is connected to the port interface connector  180 , and the user attempts to utilize the notebook battery pack device  10  to power the notebook computer, the battery management IC  110  may disable powering of the notebook computer by the plurality of battery cells  100  unless the user disconnects the external device from the port interface connector  180 . In another example, if the notebook computer is being powered by the plurality of battery cells  100  as managed by the battery management IC  110 , the DC/DC converter  170  may be disabled by the battery management IC  110  until the notebook computer stops drawing power from the notebook battery pack device  10 . 
         [0021]    In the above, please note that the notebook battery pack device  10  may be removable from a housing of the notebook computer, or may be an internal component of the notebook computer. The port interface connector  180  may be a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector, or the port interface connector  180  may be a connector of a different interface, such as IEEE 1394 (FireWire), or a proprietary connector. 
         [0022]    The above embodiments of the notebook battery pack device provide plug and play operation, an international standard port interface, and high-speed power source transmission. Thus, the notebook battery pack device is able to provide recharging of portable consumer electronic devices through a simple USB cable even while the notebook computer is turned off. Use of the optional manual switch allows for selective enabling or disabling of the recharging function of the notebook battery pack device. 
         [0023]    Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.