Patent ID: 8547065

Claim:
An apparatus for managing a battery with a plurality of cells wherein each cell is defined as a battery unit, said apparatus for supplying an external load, said apparatus comprising: a master module having a battery monitoring circuit configured for monitoring at least one parameter associated with the battery, said master module having a master controller and a master communications port; a plurality of slave modules each having a charger, a cell monitoring circuit, a module disconnect switch, and a slave communications port, each one of said chargers configured to be electrically connected to an associated cell through said module disconnect switch, each one of said slave modules configured to be selectively powered by at least one of said associated cell and an external power source, each one of said slave modules electrically isolated from said external power source when said external power source is powering said corresponding slave module, each one of said slave communications ports configured to communicate with said master communications port; a transfer switch operatively connected to said master module, said transfer switch having a first state supplying power to said plurality of slave modules from said external power source, said transfer switch having a second state supplying power to said plurality of slave modules from the battery, said master controller causing said transfer switch to operate; and a load disconnect switch operatively connected to said master module, said load disconnect switch configured to be electrically connected to the external load to isolate the external load from the battery, said master module causing said load disconnect switch to isolate said load from the battery when any one of said associated cells has a first operating parameter with a first specified value as determined by said cell monitoring circuit.