Patent ID: 8866442

Claim:
A method for charging rechargeable batteries, in which at least one voltage supply supplies electrical energy to a consumer and is connected with at least one of the cells of a rechargeable battery that is divided into multiple similar cells that can be brought into a charging state or a discharging state independent of one another, wherein at most precisely one cell is charged at any point in time and charging of another cell does not start until after completion of this charging process, wherein the voltage supply is regularly disconnected from a cell only after the cell has been completely charged, whereby in the case that sufficient voltage for continuing the charging process is no longer available on the part of the voltage supply, this process is continued via connecting the cell with at least one of the other cells, and wherein a cell gives off the energy stored in the cell to the consumer only after the cell has been charged completely, unless neither the voltage supply nor another cell is available for providing electrical energy to the consumer.