A vehicle includes: a low voltage battery constituted by a lithium-ion battery, the low voltage battery supplying an electric power to an electric component mounted to a vehicle; a high voltage battery constituted by a lithium-ion battery, the high voltage battery having an output voltage higher than an output voltage of the low voltage battery; a first rotating electrical machine that operates by an electric power supplied from the high voltage battery, the first rotating electrical machine generating a torque for driving the vehicle; and a second rotating electrical machine for starting the engine. The second rotating electrical machine operates by an electric power supplied from the high voltage battery.

A battery system for an electric vehicle is disclosed having a first battery connectable to a first electric drive; a second, redundant battery, connectable to a second, redundant electric drive; and an electronic power switch having a first input terminal, a second input terminal, and an output terminal, the first input terminal being electrically connected to the first battery, the second input terminal being electrically connected to the second battery, and the output terminal being electrically connectable to an electrical accessory, the electronic power switch being configured to selectively and electrically connect the output terminal to the first input terminal or the second input terminal to provide electrical power from the first battery or the second battery to the electrical accessory.

A vehicle control device configured to control charge and discharge of a battery mounted on a vehicle includes an obtaining unit configured to obtain a parking time of the vehicle, a setting unit configured to derive a charge voltage of the battery based on at least the parking time obtained by the obtaining unit, and a voltage control unit configured to control charge of the battery based on the charge voltage of the battery derived by the setting unit when the vehicle is traveling.

A conversion device is a conversion device that converts power supplied from a power supply device including a plurality of battery units, and includes a plurality of power conversion units. Each of the plurality of power conversion units is connected to the plurality of battery units such that a voltage within a range of a breakdown voltage of the power conversion unit is input.

An apparatus and a method capable of performing a power source switching process and a charging process without stopping electric power being supplied to a load are implemented. A configuration includes a first switch circuit provided between a first power source port and a load to be supplied with electric power; a second switch circuit provided between a second power source port and the load; and a controller that controls the first switch circuit and the second switch circuit. The controller performs, on each switch circuit, a process of switching between three states, that is, (a) an ON state, (b) an OFF state, and (c) a diode operating state, thereby performing a process of switching between power sources connected to the respective power source ports without stopping the electric power being supplied to the load. Further, the controller performs battery charging with a regenerative energy resulting from a rotation of a motor that is the load.

A battery charge control apparatus to be installed in a vehicle includes a current regulation circuit and a controller. The vehicle is provided with a first battery, a voltage converter, a second battery, and an onboard device. The voltage converter lowers an output voltage of the first battery. The second battery is electrically charged by an output from the voltage converter and outputs a voltage lower than an output voltage of the first battery. The onboard device is operated by an output from the second battery and an output from the voltage converter. The current regulation circuit is disposed between the voltage converter and the second battery and reduces an amount of a charging current to be delivered via the voltage converter to the second battery. The controller controls the current regulation circuit on the basis of an output current from the voltage converter.

The present invention is generally directed to a Sleep Manager Module (“SLM”). In one case, the present invention provides a stand-alone Sleep Manager Module. The Sleep Manager Module is capable of optimizing electric vehicle power consumption based on external temperature. It has one or more interfaces that are electrically connected to a microcontroller. The microcontroller is operably connected to memory, and the one or more interfaces is selected from a group of interfaces consisting of a fast charge connector, a level II Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment, and temperature/battery voltage sensors. The microcontroller is connected to a Vehicle Integration Manager through a Wake-Up line and Vehicle Communication Line.

In a vehicle drive system using a motor for cruising, the connection node of serially-connected first and second batteries is grounded. The operation of an inverter is controlled so that the motor drive voltage is higher than the output voltage of each of the first and second batteries. A battery unit is configured so that third and fourth batteries each in a form of a cartridge are removably loaded, and the loaded third battery is connected in parallel with the first battery and the loaded fourth battery is connected in parallel with the second battery.

A vehicle includes an inverter, a first battery, a first power line, a second battery, a second power line, and a voltage converter. Ranges of use with respect to open circuit voltages of the first battery and the second battery do not overlap each other, and ranges of use with respect to closed circuit voltages of the first and the second batteries overlap each other. When a regenerative power output from the inverter to the first power line is supplied to the second power line via the voltage converter, and the second battery is charged, an ECU calculates a maximum regenerative power with respect to the regenerative power output from the inverter to the first power line based on the open circuit voltage of the first battery and controls the inverter and the voltage converter such that the regenerative power does not exceed the maximum regenerative power.

A system comprising a high voltage (HV) bank section using capacitors arranged into two banks, a multifilar inductor coupling the HV bank to a service voltage (SV) bank section and load through a charging circuit charging the SV bank from a more fully charged bank until the charging bank is depleted, and a switch switching, from the depleted bank to the other bank of bank to charge the SV bank. The charging circuit then charging the depleted bank by a power supply as the other HV bank charges the SV bank. A supervisory controller controls the switch to repeat switching and charging between the two banks for a defined period. The capacitors may be supercapacitors having a capacitance on the order of 1 to 10 MegaJoules.