Patent ID: 7825627

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a battery gauge circuitry implemented on an integrated circuit, comprising: a plurality of switches each associated with a respective one of a plurality of battery cells, wherein each of said plurality of switches is configured to receive a respective voltage signal representative of a voltage on an associated battery cell and each of said plurality of switches is configured to be biased by said voltage on said associated battery cell such that each of said plurality of switches is configured to individually open in response to a voltage reduction on said associated battery cell; a logic device concurrently receiving plurality of voltages each associated with a respective one of said battery cells and configured to determine if at least one of the switches is open; a register configured to store data that indicates if at least one switch is open; and a controller configured to initiate halting power delivery to a load if at least one of the switches is open, wherein the controller is further configured to identify the open switch.