Patent Publication Number: US-2023137717-A1

Title: Electric battery cell discharge firewall

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to information handling systems and other battery-powered systems. More specifically, embodiments of the disclosure provide systems and methods for creating a firewall in an electrical battery array to reduce or eliminate a risk of fire in an information handling system or other battery-powered system. 
     BACKGROUND 
     As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems. 
     In many computing applications, an information handling system may include a rechargeable battery or other energy storage device that may serve as an energy source to power components of the information handling system in the event that a “main” power source (e.g., an alternating current power source or a direct current power source adapted from an alternating current power source) is removed or otherwise withdrawn from the information handling system. Other electric and/or electronic systems may include one or more batteries for use as a source of electrical energy for powering components of such electric and/or electronic systems. 
     Batteries for use in battery-powered systems often include lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries are commonly used for portable electronics and electric vehicles and are growing in popularity for military and aerospace applications. 
     One risk in the use of lithium-ion batteries is their use of a flammable electrolyte. Thus, a lithium-battery that is short-circuited, damaged, and/or overheated may lead to an explosion or fire. Even more risk may exist in an array of batteries, where charged batteries in an array proximate to a short-circuited, damaged, and/or overheated battery that catches fire may undesirably provide additional fuel to the fire. Accordingly, systems and methods for reducing or eliminating such risk of fire and explosions are desirable. 
     SUMMARY 
     In accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, the disadvantages and problems associated with the potential flammability of batteries have been substantially reduced or eliminated. 
     In accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, a battery module array for use in a battery-powered system may include a plurality of battery modules and a battery management unit configured to control operation of the plurality of battery modules, and further configured to, in response to a critical condition occurring with respect to an affected battery module of the plurality of battery modules: establish a discharge firewall comprising the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules of the plurality of battery modules proximate to the affected battery module and prioritize discharging of the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules over discharging of those of the plurality of battery modules outside of the discharge firewall. 
     In accordance with these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, a method may include, in a battery module array having a plurality of battery modules for use in a battery-powered system, in response to a critical condition occurring with respect to an affected battery module of the plurality of battery modules: establishing a discharge firewall comprising the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules of the plurality of battery modules proximate to the affected battery module and prioritizing discharging of the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules over discharging of those of the plurality of battery modules outside of the discharge firewall. 
     In accordance with these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, an article of manufacture may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium and computer-executable instructions carried on the computer readable medium, the instructions readable by a processor, the instructions, when read and executed, for causing the processor to, in a battery module array having a plurality of battery modules for use in a battery-powered system, and in response to a critical condition occurring with respect to an affected battery module of the plurality of battery modules: establish a discharge firewall comprising the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules of the plurality of battery modules proximate to the affected battery module and prioritize discharging of the affected battery module and one or more additional battery modules over discharging of those of the plurality of battery modules outside of the discharge firewall. 
     Technical advantages of the present disclosure may be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the figures, description and claims included herein. The objects and advantages of the embodiments will be realized and achieved at least by the elements, features, and combinations particularly pointed out in the claims. 
     It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are examples and explanatory and are not restrictive of the claims set forth in this disclosure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       A more complete understanding of the present embodiments and advantages thereof may be acquired by referring to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numbers indicate like features, and wherein: 
         FIG.  1    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system, in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  2    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system wherein battery modules of a discharge firewall discharge to a system load of the battery-powered system, in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  3    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system wherein battery modules of a discharge firewall discharge to a dump load of the battery-powered system, in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure; 
         FIG.  4    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system wherein battery modules of a discharge firewall discharge to battery modules outside of the discharge firewall, in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG.  5    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system wherein battery modules of a discharge firewall discharge to a system load of the battery-powered system, a dump load of the battery-powered system, and to battery modules outside of the discharge firewall, in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Preferred embodiments and their advantages are best understood by reference to  FIGS.  1  through  5   , wherein like numbers are used to indicate like and corresponding parts. 
     For the purposes of this disclosure, an information handling system may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, entertainment, or other purposes. For example, an information handling system may be a personal computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a consumer electronic device, a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The information handling system may include memory, one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic. Additional components of the information handling system may include one or more storage devices, one or more communications ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The information handling system may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communication between the various hardware components. 
     In this disclosure, the term “information handling resource” may broadly refer to any component system, device or apparatus of an information handling system, including without limitation processors, buses, memories, input-output devices and/or interfaces, storage resources, network interfaces, motherboards, electro-mechanical devices (e.g., fans), displays, and power supplies. 
       FIG.  1    illustrates a block diagram of selected components of a battery-powered system  100 , in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. Battery-powered system  100  may include any system, device, or apparatus that includes one or more electric and/or electronic components powered in whole or in part by an electrical battery. For example, battery-powered system  100  may include, without limitation, an information handling system (e.g., a notebook, tablet, or laptop computer), a smart phone, a plug-in electric vehicle, a hybrid electric vehicle, a power bank, a telecommunications backup power system, and a grid scale power storage array. As shown in  FIG.  1   , battery-powered system  100  may include a battery module array  102 , a system load  108 , and a dump load  110 . 
     As depicted in  FIG.  1   , battery module array  102  may include a plurality of battery modules  104  and a battery management unit  106 . A battery module  104  may include any system, device, or apparatus configured to store electrochemical energy, and convert such electrochemical energy to electrical energy to discharge such battery module  104  and deliver such electrical energy to one or more electric and/or electronic components of battery-powered system  100 . Each battery module  104  may comprise a single cell battery, a multiple-cell battery, a laptop-computer-sized or briefcase-sized grouping of batteries, a cabinet drawer of a grouping of batteries, a cabinet including drawers of batteries, and/or a shipping container comprising cabinets of batteries. 
     For purposes of clarity and exposition,  FIG.  1    depicts battery module array  102  arranged in a two-dimensional array of battery modules  104 . However, in some embodiments, battery module array  102  may be arranged in a three-dimensional array of battery modules  104 . 
     Battery management unit  106  may comprise a microprocessor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, EEPROM, or any combination thereof, or any other device, system, or apparatus for controlling operation of battery modules  104 , including creation of a discharge firewall as described in greater detail below. As such, battery management unit  106  may comprise firmware, logic, and/or data for controlling functionality of battery modules  104 . 
     System load  108  may comprise one or more electric and/or electronic devices powered from battery modules  104  during normal operation of battery-powered system  100 . For example, for embodiments in which battery-powered system  100  comprises an information handling system (e.g., laptop, notebook, tablet, smartphone, etc.), system load  108  may comprise one or more processors, memories, input/output devices (e.g., keyboard, trackpads, displays, microphones, speakers, etc.), communications hardware (e.g., network interfaces, BLUETOOTH interfaces, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) interfaces, cellular interfaces, etc.), cooling fans, etc. As another example, for embodiments in which battery-powered system  100  comprises an electric vehicle or hybrid electric vehicle, system load  108  may comprise an electric motor, electronics (e.g., dashboard indicators, car audio system, etc.), heating/ventilation/air conditioning system, etc. 
     Dump load  110  may comprise one or more electrical impedances (e.g., high-power resistors) to facilitate discharging of battery modules  104  when a discharge firewall is created, as described in greater detail below. In some embodiments, a cooling subsystem (e.g., fans, blowers, and/or other air movers) integral or otherwise thermally coupled to dump load  110  may actively cool dump load  110  when battery modules  104  are discharged to dump load  110 , in order to prevent overheating of dump load  110 . 
     In operation, as shown in  FIG.  2   , a particular battery module  104 A may enter a critical condition for implementing a discharge firewall. In some embodiments, such critical condition may include a temperature within or proximate to battery module  104 A rising above a threshold temperature, which may indicate that battery module  104 A is overheating and may be susceptible to catching fire. In these and other embodiments, such critical condition may comprise battery module  104 A catching on fire. 
     In response to the critical condition, battery management unit  106  may halt charging to battery modules  104  and implement a discharge firewall comprising the critical-condition battery module  104 A and battery modules  104 B proximate to critical-condition battery module  104 A, as indicated by the thick rectangle surrounding battery module  104 A and battery modules  104 B as shown in  FIGS.  2 - 5   . Although  FIG.  2    depicts the discharge firewall comprising critical-condition battery module  104 A and battery modules  104 B immediately adjacent to critical-condition battery module  104 A, in some embodiments, additional battery modules  104  further away from critical-condition battery module  104 A (e.g., battery modules  104 C) may also be included within the discharge firewall. 
     Having identified the battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall, battery management unit  106  may prioritize discharging of battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall in order to deplete energy from such battery modules  104 , which may reduce fuel available to any fire that may be caused by overheating of critical-condition battery module  104 A. For example, as shown in  FIG.  2   , battery management unit  106  may prioritize the battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall to discharge to one or more components of system load  108 . As another example, as shown in  FIG.  3   , battery management unit  106  may cause battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall to discharge to dump load  110 . 
     In some embodiments, battery management unit  106  may cause battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall to discharge to system load  108  and/or dump load  110  at their maximum discharge rates. However, discharging of battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall may cause such battery modules  104  to heat up, and thus in some embodiments, battery management unit  106  may be configured to limit discharge rates to balance the urgency of discharging battery modules  104  with the need to maintain temperatures of such battery modules  104  below temperatures at which a fire or explosion may occur. 
     In these and other embodiments, battery management unit  106  may be configured to, once battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall are depleted of charge, extend the discharge firewall to additional battery modules  104  proximate to the existing discharge firewall. For example, in the approaches depicted in  FIGS.  2  and  3   , once battery modules  104 A and  104 B are fully discharged, battery management unit  106  may next prioritize discharge of battery modules  104 C, then prioritize discharge of battery modules  104 D once battery modules  104 C are fully discharged. 
     In these and other embodiments, battery management unit  106  may prioritize some battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall to have a faster discharge rate over other battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall. For example, if a discharge firewall includes battery modules  104 A,  104 B, and  104 C, battery management unit  106  may cause battery module  104 A to have a faster discharge rate than battery modules  104 B, and cause battery modules  104 B to have a faster discharge rate than battery modules  104 C. 
     As a further example, as shown in  FIG.  4   , battery management unit  106  may cause battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall to discharge to battery modules  104  outside of the discharge firewall. Such an approach may be useful if system load  108  is not active and no dump load  110  is available. To illustrate, if battery modules  104  outside of the discharge firewall are not fully charged, energy from battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall may be redistributed to battery modules  104  outside of the discharge firewall. In some embodiments, battery management unit  106  may cause such energy transfer to occur at the maximum rates supported by the various battery modules  104 . In these and other embodiments, battery management unit  106  may also prioritize the transfer of energy to battery modules  104  which are more distant to critical condition battery module  104 A (e.g., prioritize energy transfer to battery modules  104 D over battery modules  104 C). 
     In some embodiments, battery management unit  106  may use two or more of the approaches described with respect to  FIGS.  2 ,  3 , and  3    in order to discharge battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall. For example,  FIG.  5    depicts discharging of battery modules  104  within the discharge firewall using all three approaches depicted with respect to  FIGS.  2 ,  3 , and  4   . 
     In addition to the approaches described above, in situations in which system load  108  is inactive and no dump load is available, in some embodiments, battery management unit  106  may be able to create a dump load using inactive components of system load  108 . For example, in an information handling system having air movers for cooling, battery management unit  106  may create a dump load by setting such air movers to their maximum speed (e.g., provided that such air movers are not already at maximum speed). As another example, in an information handling system, battery management unit  106  may create a dump load by setting a display to its maximum brightness and/or playing white noise or noise at inaudible frequencies through speakers of the information handling system. 
     For grid scale storage it may be possible for battery management unit  106  to create a dump load by setting a zero or negative energy price, in effect paying customers to take energy from battery-powered system  100 , especially where the cost of such payment is less than the cost of possible damage of not discharging battery module array  102 . 
     A parked electric vehicle may not have a dump load available. For grid-integrated vehicles coupled to a charge station, it may be possible to set a zero or negative energy price as described above. In addition or alternatively, in an electric vehicle, battery management unit  106  may cause the electric vehicle to turn on all lights, the heating/ventilation/air conditioning system, audio system (e.g., to play white noise or noise at inaudible frequencies) and/or other components that may dissipate energy. In addition or alternatively, battery management unit  106  may cause oscillating power signals to be sent to the electric motor such that the electric motor does not rotate but still uses up energy. 
     In a hybrid electric vehicle, battery management unit  106  may cause the internal combustion engine to rotate with the engine fuel disconnected. 
     For a battery backup system, battery management unit  106  may cause a load of the battery backup system to switch from grid-powered to battery-powered as if there was a grid outage. 
     In the case of a data center, battery management unit  106  may cause servers within such data center to create extra load, assuming they are not already at full capacity. For example, a battery backup system may be switched from grid-powered to battery-powered, and the servers may be configured to execute programs, in addition to their normal loads, designed to exercise the processors to consume power with their air movers at maximum speed to both use power and carry the heat away. 
     In a smartphone, battery management unit  106  may cause the brightness of a display to be maximized and/or turn on a camera flash light-emitting diode to its maximum brightness (e.g., flashlight/torch mode). In addition or alternatively, battery management unit  106  may cause transmission of cellular, BLUETOOTH, and/or Wi-Fi signals to non-existent destinations, assuming there is no service or such modes of transmission are not otherwise in use. In addition or alternatively, battery management unit  106  may cause white noise or inaudible noise to be played to speaker(s) of the smartphone. 
     In the case of an autonomous electric vehicle, the vehicle may be able to provide extra firewalling by being programmed to automatically re-locate in the event a discharge firewall is created, in order to mitigate damage in the event of a fire. For example, an autonomous electric vehicle in a crowded part of a parking lot may be programmed to move to a less crowed portion of the parking lot, potentially reducing risk to nearby vehicles and people. In a full parking lot, the autonomous electric vehicle may be programmed to relocate to an edge or a corner of the parking lot, to reduce the number of directly adjacent vehicles. 
     An autonomous electric vehicle with an overheating battery parked inside a residential garage may be able to be programmed to open a garage door and exit the garage, thus reducing the risk to the garage and any attached house. In the event that such autonomous electric vehicle is unable to automatically open the garage door, it may be beneficial that the autonomous electric vehicle is programmed to push through the garage door because damage to the garage door may be preferable to the risk of losing the garage and any attached house. 
     As used herein, when two or more elements are referred to as “coupled” to one another, such term indicates that such two or more elements are in electronic communication or mechanical communication, as applicable, whether connected indirectly or directly, with or without intervening elements. 
     This disclosure encompasses all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodiments herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. Similarly, where appropriate, the appended claims encompass all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodiments herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. Moreover, reference in the appended claims to an apparatus or system or a component of an apparatus or system being adapted to, arranged to, capable of, configured to, enabled to, operable to, or operative to perform a particular function encompasses that apparatus, system, or component, whether or not it or that particular function is activated, turned on, or unlocked, as long as that apparatus, system, or component is so adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or operative. Accordingly, modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to the systems, apparatuses, and methods described herein without departing from the scope of the disclosure. For example, the components of the systems and apparatuses may be integrated or separated. Moreover, the operations of the systems and apparatuses disclosed herein may be performed by more, fewer, or other components and the methods described may include more, fewer, or other steps. Additionally, steps may be performed in any suitable order. As used in this document, “each” refers to each member of a set or each member of a subset of a set. 
     Although exemplary embodiments are illustrated in the figures and described below, the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented using any number of techniques, whether currently known or not. The present disclosure should in no way be limited to the exemplary implementations and techniques illustrated in the drawings and described above. 
     Unless otherwise specifically noted, articles depicted in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. 
     All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical objects to aid the reader in understanding the disclosure and the concepts contributed by the inventor to furthering the art, and are construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions, and alterations could be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. 
     Although specific advantages have been enumerated above, various embodiments may include some, none, or all of the enumerated advantages. Additionally, other technical advantages may become readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after review of the foregoing figures and description. 
     To aid the Patent Office and any readers of any patent issued on this application in interpreting the claims appended hereto, applicants wish to note that they do not intend any of the appended claims or claim elements to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) unless the words “means for” or “step for” are explicitly used in the particular claim.