Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     The present application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-175721 filed on Jun. 14, 2004, with the Japanese Patent Office, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention generally relates to charging circuits used in battery packs for electronic apparatus, and also relates to such battery packs and electronic apparatus. The present invention particularly relates to a charge control circuit for controlling the charging of a battery in the battery pack of electronic apparatus, and also relates to such a battery pack and electronic apparatus.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     In portable apparatus such as notebook-type personal computers or the like, an internal power supply circuit for supplying electric power to core electronic circuitry is required to be small. The internal power supply circuit is also required to be operable with high efficiency in order to achieve a long battery-powered operating time.  
         [0006]     Notebook personal computers use a battery pack or an AC adapter receiving power from a commercial power supply as the source of electric power. A predetermined voltage (e.g., 16 V) supplied from this source of electric power is converted to other voltage levels by an internal power supply circuit, thereby supplying internal voltages needed by respective core electronic circuits. For example, CPU uses a voltage level of 0.9 V or 1.5 V, a hard-disc drive and CD-ROM drive using 5 V, an LSI using 3.3 V, and a memory using 2.5 V. In order to charge the battery pack, the 16-V voltage level output from the AC adapter is lowered to 12.6 V by a charger, and this lowered voltage is supplied to the battery pack such as a lithium-ion battery pack. When the commercial power supply is not used, the battery pack charged in this manner is used to supply electric power to the internal power supply circuit.  
         [0007]     As the circuit density of semiconductor integrated circuits increases, with resultant improvement in functionality and performance, the operating voltage of semiconductor integrated circuits is increasingly lowered. With such lowering of an operating voltage, an internal power supply circuit provided inside notebook personal computers or the like needs to make a significant voltage reduction to a predetermined voltage supplied from an AC adaptor in order to produce a stepped-down voltage that is to be supplied to core electronic circuitry.  
         [0008]     A DC-DC converter serving as the internal power supply circuit, however, has a problem in that efficiency drops as a difference between the input voltage and the output voltage widens. An on/off ratio of the output transistor of a DC-DC converter is determined according to a ratio of the output voltage to the input voltage. As a difference between the input voltage and the output voltage widens, therefore, the “on” period of the output transistor becomes extremely short. As a result, the time length of a rise and a fall of the output transistor ends up having a significant proportion relative to the time length of the “on” period, resulting in voltage conversion efficiency deteriorating. When the “on” period of the output transistor becomes extremely short, also, it becomes difficult to increase the frequency of a DC-DC converter. Because of this, there is no choice but to use the DC-DC converter at low operating frequency, which ends up requiring a bulky coil. This is not preferable when considering the miniaturization of a DC-DC converter.  
         [0009]     The above-stated problems are obviated if a difference between the input voltage and output voltage of a DC-DC converter is reduced. The output of an AC adaptor, which also serves as the source of electric power, cannot be lowered below a predetermined level (e.g., 16 V) because this output is also used to drive the display of the notebook personal computer. Against this background, proposals have been made to utilize a voltage level of 12.6 V output from the charger as described above as an input to a DC-DC converter.  
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of a system supplying the output of a charger to a DC-DC converter. In  FIG. 1 , an AC adapter  10  receives an alternating voltage (e.g., 100. V) from a commercial power supply or the like, and generates a direct-current voltage (e.g., 16 V) for provision to a charger  11 . The charger  11  generates a predetermined voltage (12.6 V) from the voltage supplied from the AC adapter  10 . The generated voltage is supplied as a charge voltage V+ to a battery pack  13  through a current detecting resistor  14 , which provides charging to be performed with a constant current. The predetermined voltage (12.6 V) output from the charger  11  is also supplied to a DC-DC converter  12  where it is converted to other voltage levels. Then, the stepped-down voltages (e.g., 0.9 V, 2.5 V, 3.3 V, 5.0 V) are supplied to respective internal electronic circuits.  
         [0011]     The battery pack  13  includes a PMOS transistor  21 , a PMOS transistor  22 , an overcharge and over-discharge detecting circuit  23 , and a lithium-ion battery  24 . In this example, the lithium-ion battery  24  has a construction in which three batteries are connected in series. The overcharge and over-discharge detecting circuit  23  measures the voltage level of the lithium-ion battery  24  to detect whether it is in an overcharged state or in an over-discharged state. Upon detecting an overcharged stage, the overcharge and over-discharge detecting circuit  23  provides a HIGH overcharge detection signal to the gate of the PMOS transistor  21 . In response, the PMOS transistor  21  becomes nonconductive, thereby preventing further charging. If an over-discharged state is detected, the overcharge and over-discharge detecting circuit  23  provides a HIGH over-discharge detection signal to the gate of the PMOS transistor  22 . In response, the PMOS transistor  22  becomes nonconductive, thereby preventing further discharging.  
         [0012]     In the construction of  FIG. 1 , the input voltage supplied to the DC-DC converter  12  is not the output voltage (e.g., 16 V) of the AC adapter  10  but the stepped-down voltage (e.g., 12.6 V) lowered by the charger  11 . Since a difference between the output voltage and input voltage of the DC-DC converter  12  is not so large, advantage is gained in terms of voltage conversion efficiency and circuit size.  
         [0013]     (Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-10509  
         [0014]     In the construction of  FIG. 1 , the input voltage of the DC-DC converter  12  is clamped to the input voltage V+ of the battery pack  13 . When the input voltage V+ of the battery pack  13  drops in an over-discharged state, the input voltage of the DC-DC converter  12  also drops. If the voltage V+ falls below 5 V in the over-discharged stage, the DC-DC converter  12  cannot supply an output voltage of 5 V to the core electronic circuitry.  
         [0015]     Moreover, since the charger  11  is a DC-DC converter operating based on constant-current and constant-voltage control, its output voltage fluctuate (drops) if the electric-current load exceeds a specified level. If the load of the DC-DC converter  12  increases while the battery pack  13  is charged, the voltage V+ equal to the output of the charger  11  fluctuates (drops). This may cause a failure with respect to the operation of the DC-DC converter  12  and the charging of the battery pack  13 .  
         [0016]     Accordingly, there is a need for a charge control circuit that controls a charging process such as to keep constant the input voltage V+ of a battery pack of electronic apparatus. There is also a need for such a battery pack and electronic apparatus.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]     It is a general object of the present invention to provide a charge control circuit, a battery pack, and an electronic apparatus that substantially obviate one or more problems and drawbacks caused by the limitations and disadvantages of the related art.  
         [0018]     Features and advantages of the present invention will be presented in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent from the description and the accompanying drawings, or may be learned by practice of the invention according to the teachings provided in the description. Objects as well as other features and advantages of the present invention will be realized and attained by a charge control circuit, a battery pack, and an electronic apparatus particularly pointed out in the specification in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention.  
         [0019]     To achieve these and other advantages in accordance with the purpose of the invention, the invention provides a circuit for controlling charging, which includes a transistor provided on a charging path between a position of a charging terminal and a position of a battery, an input voltage detecting circuit configured to detect a potential of a point on the charging path coupled to the charging terminal&#39;s side of the transistor, and a drive circuit configured to control an ON resistance of the transistor between a conductive state and a nonconductive state in response to the potential detected by the input voltage detecting circuit.  
         [0020]     According to another aspect of the invention, a battery pack includes a charge control circuit and a battery configured to be charged through a charging path, wherein the charge control circuit includes a transistor provided on the charging path between a position of a charging terminal and a position of the battery, an input voltage detecting circuit configured to detect a potential of a point on the charging path coupled to the charging terminal&#39;s side of the transistor, and a drive circuit configured to control an ON resistance of the transistor between a conductive state and a nonconductive state in response to the potential detected by the input voltage detecting circuit.  
         [0021]     According to another aspect of the invention, an electronic apparatus includes a battery pack including a charge control circuit and a battery configured to be charged through a charging path, a charger having an input terminal receiving a direct-current voltage and an output terminal coupled to the battery pack, and configured step down the direct-current voltage received at the input terminal for output to the output terminal, a DC-DC converter coupled to the output terminal of the charger, and an electronic circuit coupled to an output of the DC-DC converter, wherein the charge control circuit includes a transistor provided on the charging path between a position of a charging terminal and a position of the battery, an input voltage detecting circuit configured to detect a potential of a point on the charging path coupled to the charging terminal&#39;s side of the transistor, and a drive circuit configured to control an ON resistance of the transistor between a conductive state and a nonconductive state in response to the potential detected by the input voltage detecting circuit.  
         [0022]     According to at least one embodiment of the invention, the ON resistance of the transistor is controlled in response to the input voltage supplied to the charging terminal in such manner that the ON resistance takes any value between a fully conductive state and a fully non-conductive state. In the related-art construction, the control of a transistor uses only two states, i.e., an “on” state or an “off” state. In at least one embodiment of the invention, the control of the transistor is performed continuously between the “on” state and the “off” state. This makes it possible to achieve feedback control that stabilizes the input voltage at a predetermined voltage level.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0023]     Other objects and further features of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0024]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of a system supplying the output of a charger to a DC-DC converter;  
         [0025]      FIG. 2  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a first embodiment of a charge control circuit according to the present invention;  
         [0026]      FIG. 3  is a diagram for explaining the charging operation of the charge control circuit shown in  FIG. 2 ;  
         [0027]      FIG. 4  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a second embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention;  
         [0028]      FIG. 5  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a third embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention;  
         [0029]      FIG. 6  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a fourth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention;  
         [0030]      FIG. 7  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a fifth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention; and  
         [0031]      FIG. 8  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a sixth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0032]     In the following, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.  
         [0033]      FIG. 2  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a first embodiment of a charge control circuit according to the present invention. The charge control circuit of  FIG. 2  includes an input voltage detecting circuit  31  and a drive circuit  32  as main elements, and is provided in the battery pack  13  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0034]     The input voltage detecting circuit  31  includes resistors R 1  and R 2 , an amplifier  35 , and a reference-voltage source  36 . The drive circuit  32  includes an NMOS transistor  37 . In the input voltage detecting circuit  31 , the input voltage V+ of the battery pack  13  is divided by the resistors R 1  and R 2 , and a divided potential VA is supplied to the non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  35 . The inverted input terminal of the amplifier  35  receives a reference potential from the reference-voltage source  36 . The amplifier  35  generates an output responsive to a difference between the divided potential VA and the reference potential for provision to the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  of the drive circuit  32 . The drain node of the NMOS transistor  37  is connected to the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21 .  
         [0035]     With this provision, a potential at the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21  is controlled according to the level of the input voltage V+. As the input voltage V+ increases, the output potential of the amplifier  35  rises, resulting in a drop in the gate potential of the PMOS transistor  21 . This reduces the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21 . Since the charger  11  (see  FIG. 1 ) performs constant-current charging by use of the current detecting resistor  14 , a drop in the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  causes a drop in the input voltage V+. In this manner, the input voltage V+ is controlled to drop in response to an increase in the input voltage V+, thereby settling at a predetermined voltage.  
         [0036]     Conversely, a drop in the input voltage V+ results in a drop in the output potential of the amplifier  35 , thereby raising the gate potential of the PMOS transistor  21 . This increases the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21 . Since the charger  11  (see  FIG. 1 ) performs constant-current charging by use of the current detecting resistor  14 , an increase in the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  causes a rise in the input voltage V+. In this manner, the input voltage V+ is controlled to rise in response to a drop in the input voltage V+, thereby settling at a predetermined voltage.  
         [0037]     In this manner, the present invention controls the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  in response to the input voltage V+ such that the ON resistance takes any value between a fully conductive state and a fully non-conductive state. In the related-art construction shown in  FIG. 1 , the control of the PMOS transistor  21  uses only two states, i.e., an “on” state or an “off” state. In the present invention, the control of the PMOS transistor  21  is performed continuously between the “on” state and the “off” state. This makes it possible to achieve feedback control that stabilizes the input voltage V+ at a predetermined voltage level.  
         [0038]     At the time of overcharging, the overcharge detecting signal changes to HIGH, making the NMOS transistor  33  conductive. This makes the NMOS transistor  37  of the drive circuit  32  nonconductive, so that the gate of the PMOS transistor  21  coupled to the input voltage V+ through a resistor R 0  changes to HIGH. As a result, the PMOS transistor  21  becomes nonconductive, suspending charging. Although the PMOS transistor  21  for charge control is nonconductive at the time of overcharging, a parasitic diode  34  permits discharging.  
         [0039]      FIG. 3  is a diagram for explaining the charging operation of the charge control circuit shown in  FIG. 2 . In  FIG. 3 , the horizontal axis represents time t. As a charging operation continues, the battery voltage of the lithium-ion battery  24  gradually goes up. To cancel such a voltage rise, a charge control operation by the input voltage detecting circuit  31  and the drive circuit  32  lowers the gate voltage and ON resistance Ron of the PMOS transistor  21 . With this, the DS voltage that is a voltage between the drain and source of the PMOS transistor  21  gradually drops.  
         [0040]      FIG. 4  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a second embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. In  FIG. 4 , the same elements as those of  FIG. 2  are referred to by the same numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.  
         [0041]     A charge control circuit of  FIG. 4  includes an NMOS transistor  40  in addition to the construction of the charge control circuit of  FIG. 2 . The NMOS transistor  40  receives a standby signal at its gate node, and couples the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21  to a ground when a standby signal is HIGH. This standby signal becomes HIGH when the load of a power supply is small in an apparatus to which the battery pack  13  is attached. If the apparatus to which the battery pack  13  is attached is a notebook personal computer, for example, the load of a power supply is small in the standby mode of the notebook personal computer since operations are suspended in most of the core electronic circuits. In this standby mode, the standby signal becomes HIGH, thereby coupling the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21  to a ground and thus making the PMOS transistor  21  fully conductive.  
         [0042]     In the second embodiment shown in  FIG. 4 , the PMOS transistor  21  is fully turned on when the load of a power supply (i.e., the load of the charger  11 ) is small, thereby achieving a charging process with a massive current. This makes it possible to shorten a charge time.  
         [0043]      FIG. 5  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a third embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. In  FIG. 5 , the same elements as those of  FIG. 2  are referred to by the same numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.  
         [0044]     A charge control circuit of  FIG. 5  includes a current detecting resistor Rs and a current detector  50  in addition to the construction of the charge control circuit of  FIG. 2 . With the provision of the current detector  50 , the drive circuit  32  is changed to a drive circuit  32 A. Since the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  of the drive circuit  32 A is connected to the output of the current detector  50 , the output of the amplifier  35  of an input voltage detecting circuit  31 A is coupled to the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  via an NMOS transistor  38  intervening therebetween. Due to this change, further, the inverted input terminal and non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  35  are switched with each other.  
         [0045]     The current detector  50  includes an amplifier  51  and a reference-voltage source  52 . A voltage responsive to a current flowing through the lithium-ion battery  24  is generated as voltage VB at one end of the current detecting resistor Rs. This potential VB is supplied to an inverted input terminal of the amplifier  51 . The non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  51  receives a reference potential from the reference-voltage source  52 . The amplifier  51  generates an output responsive to a difference between the potential VB and the reference potential for provision to the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  of the drive circuit  32 A. The drain node of the NMOS transistor  37  is connected to the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21 . The gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  is further connected to the drain node of the NMOS transistor  38 .  
         [0046]     As a charge current increases, the voltage VB proportional to the charge current goes up, resulting in a drop in the output voltage of the amplifier  51 . In response, the gate potential of the PMOS transistor  21  rises, thereby increasing the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21 . This causes the charge current to decrease. In this manner the charge current is controlled to drop in response to an increase in the charge current, thereby settling at a predetermined current amount.  
         [0047]     As a charge current decreases, the voltage VB proportional to the charge current goes down, resulting in a rise in the output voltage of the amplifier  51 . In response, the gate potential of the PMOS transistor  21  falls, thereby decreasing the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21 . This causes the charge current to increase. In this manner the charge current is controlled to rise in response to a drop in the charge current, thereby settling at a predetermined current amount.  
         [0048]     In the embodiment describe above, the current detector  50  detects a charge current running through the lithium-ion battery  24 , and the drive circuit  32 A controls the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  in response to the detected charge current. This eliminates a need for the constant-current-based control of the charger  11 . Further, the input voltage detecting circuit  31 A detects the input voltage V+, and the drive circuit  32 A controls the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  in response to the detected input voltage V+. This makes it possible to keep constant the input voltage V+ as in the first embodiment.  
         [0049]      FIG. 6  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a fourth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. In  FIG. 6 , the same elements as those of  FIG. 2  are referred to by the same numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.  
         [0050]     A charge control circuit of  FIG. 6  includes a differential amplification circuit  61 , a multiplication circuit  62 , a current monitoring circuit  63 , an amplifier  64 , an NMOS transistor  65 , and a current detecting resistor Rs in addition to the construction of the charge control circuit of  FIG. 2 . Further, an input voltage detecting circuit  31 A is provided in place of the input voltage detecting circuit  31 . In the input voltage detecting circuit  31 A, the inverted input terminal and non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  35  are switched with each other compared to the amplifier  35  of the input voltage detecting circuit  31 .  
         [0051]     The differential amplification circuit  61  includes resistors R 3  through R 6  and an amplifier  67 . The non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  67  receives a potential that is obtained by dividing the input voltage V+ of the battery pack  13  by the resistor R 5  and the resistor R 6 . The inverted input terminal of the amplifier  67  receives a potential responsive to the potential VB appearing at one end of the PMOS transistor  21 . The potential VB is a potential appearing on the opposite side to the V+ side among the source node and drain node of the PMOS transistor  21 . With this provision, the amplifier  67  outputs a potential responsive to a difference between V+ and VB, i.e., a potential responsive to a voltage drop across the PMOS transistor  21 . The output of the amplifier  67  is supplied to the multiplication circuit  62 .  
         [0052]     The multiplication circuit  62  includes resistors R 7  through R 10 , transistors Q 1  through Q 6 , voltage sources V 1  and V 2 , and a constant current source  68 . As described above, the potential responsive to a difference between V+ and VB is input into the multiplication circuit  62  from the amplifier  67  of the differential amplification circuit  61 . Further, the multiplication circuit  62  receives a potential responsive to a charge current IRS from the amplifier  69  of the current monitoring circuit  63 . The amplifier  69  detects a voltage drop produced by the charge current IRS flowing through the current detecting resistor Rs. The multiplication circuit  62  obtains a product of the charge current IRS and the potential difference between V+ and VB so as to calculate electric power consumed by the PMOS transistor  21 . An output VC of the multiplication circuit  62  indicative of this electric power is supplied to the inverted input terminal of the amplifier  64 . The non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  64  is connected to a reference-voltage source VTH 2 .  
         [0053]     As the electric power VC consumed at the PMOS transistor  21  increases, the output of the amplifier  64  drops, resulting in a rise in the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor  21 . Consequently, the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  increases, thereby decreasing the charge current. As the electric power VC consumed at the PMOS transistor  21  decreases, the output of the amplifier  64  rises, resulting in a drop in the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor  21 . Consequently, the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  decreases, thereby increasing the charge current.  
         [0054]     With this provision, it is possible to keep constant the electric power consumed at the PMOS transistor  21 , thereby suppressing excess heat generation at the PMOS transistor  21 . Further, the input voltage V+ is kept constant in the same manner as in the first embodiment shown in  FIG. 2 . In the fourth embodiment shown in  FIG. 6 , the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  of the drive circuit  32  is connected to the output of the amplifier  64 , the output of the amplifier  35  of the input voltage detecting circuit  31 A is coupled to the gate node of the NMOS transistor  37  via an NMOS transistor  65  intervening therebetween. Due to this change, further, the inverted input terminal and non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  35  are switched with each other.  
         [0055]     Moreover, the circuit construction of the multiplication circuit  62  is illustrated as an example, and is not intended to be limiting. Any circuit construction may be used as long as it achieves a multiplication function.  
         [0056]      FIG. 7  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a fifth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. In  FIG. 7 , the same elements as those of  FIG. 4  are referred to by the same numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.  
         [0057]     In addition to the construction of the charge control circuit of  FIG. 4 , a charge control circuit of  FIG. 7  includes a PMOS transistor  71 , a parasitic diode  72 , and resistors R 11  and R 12 . Moreover, the output of the drive circuit  32  is supplied to the gate node of the PMOS transistor  71  for the precharge purpose rather than to the gate node of the PMOS transistor  21 .  
         [0058]     During a normal charging process, the PMOS transistor  21  is in a nonconductive state. In this case, the input voltage detecting circuit  31  and the drive circuit  32  control the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  71  in such manner that the ON resistance may take any value between the conductive state and the nonconductive state, thereby charging the lithium-ion battery  24  while keeping the input voltage V+ constant. When the load of the power supply is small, i.e., when the load of the charger  11  is small (as in the cases of current-consumption saving mode), the standby signal is changed to HIGH so as to perform charging with a massive current. This shortens the charge time.  
         [0059]     In the construction described above, the PMOS transistor  21  that can only be set to either a fully conductive state or a fully nonconductive state is provided separately from the MOS transistor  71  that can be set to any state in a range between a fully conductive state and a fully nonconductive state. This makes it possible to use an MOS transistor suitable for a desired operation. If only the PMOS transistor  21  is provided, the turning on of the PMOS transistor  21  when the voltage of the lithium-ion battery  24  is very low causes an excessive current to flow, which may destroy the PMOS transistor  21 . In the construction of  FIG. 7 , the presence of the PMOS transistor  71  provides a function to precharge the lithium-ion battery  24  before the PMOS transistor  21  is turned on. This provides an advantage in that excessive heating of the PMOS transistor  21  is prevented. That is, the PMOS transistor  71  provides dual functions, i.e., the function to stabilize the input voltage V+ according to the invention and the function to precharge the lithium-ion battery  24 .  
         [0060]      FIG. 8  is a circuit diagram showing the construction of a sixth embodiment of the charge control circuit according to the present invention. In  FIG. 8 , the same elements as those of  FIG. 5  are referred to by the same numerals, and a description thereof will be omitted.  
         [0061]     In a charge control circuit of  FIG. 8 , a current monitoring circuit  80  is provided in place of the current detector  50 , compared with the construction of the charge control circuit of  FIG. 5 . The current monitoring circuit  80  receives voltages appearing at opposite ends of the current detecting resistor Rs and a voltage VD appearing at one end of a thermistor  81 . The thermistor  81  and a resistor R 15  are connected in series, and are situated between a voltage VTH 3  and a ground potential. The thermistor  81  has such characteristics that its resistance decreases at high temperature, and increases at low temperature. As the PMOS transistor  21  generates heat by consuming electric power, the resistance of the thermistor  81  changes, causing a change in the voltage VD.  
         [0062]     The current monitoring circuit  80  includes amplifiers  82  and  83  and a reference-voltage source  84 . The amplifier  83  detects a voltage drop produced by the charge current flowing through the current detecting resistor Rs, and supplies a potential VE responsive to the amount of the charge current to the inversed input terminal of the amplifier  82 . A first non-inverted input terminal of the amplifier  82  receives a reference voltage from the reference-voltage source  84 , and a second non-inverted input terminal receives the potential VD responsive to the resistance of the thermistor  81 . Among the two non-inverted inputs of the amplifier  82 , one having a lower potential is given priority for comparison with VE. That is, VD is compared with VE if VD is smaller than the reference potential, and the reference potential is compared with VE if the reference potential is smaller than VD.  
         [0063]     At low temperature the resistance of the thermistor  81  is large, so that the potential VD is higher than the reference potential. In this case, VE is compared with the reference potential, resulting in the same operation as in the case of the construction shown in  FIG. 5 . The charge current can thus be kept constant. Also, control by the input voltage detecting circuit  31 A and the drive circuit  32 A keeps the input voltage V+ constant.  
         [0064]     As the PMOS transistor  21  generates heat and becomes high temperature, the resistance of the thermistor  81  drops, resulting in the potential VD being lower than the reference potential. In this case, VE is compared with VD. As VD becomes lower than VE due to a temperature rise, the output of the amplifier  82  drops, which increases the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor  21 . Consequently, the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  becomes large, with a resultant decrease in the charge current. Conversely, as VD becomes higher than VE due to a temperature drop, the output of the amplifier  82  rises, which decreases the gate voltage of the PMOS transistor  21 . Consequently, the ON resistance of the PMOS transistor  21  becomes small, with a resultant increase in the charge current. In this manner, the charge current is decreased in response to a temperature rise, and is increased in response to a temperature drop. This makes it possible to ensure a sufficient charge current while keeping the heat generation of the PMOS transistor  21  below a predetermined temperature.  
         [0065]     Further, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, but various variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Technology Category: h