Electric protection circuit

This application is a National Stage of International Application No. PCT/CN2019/123722, filed on Dec. 6, 2019, which claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 201811488440.0, filed on Dec. 6, 2018, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

The present application relates to the field of battery power, in particular to an electric protection circuit.

With the rapid development of new energy, more and more types of equipment can be powered by new energy. For example, battery modules, battery packs and the like can be used as power sources to provide power to new energy vehicles, new energy ships, new energy aircraft and so on.

There are electric circuits in new energy vehicles, new energy ships, new energy aircraft and other equipment, and battery modules, battery packs and the like supply power to electric loads through electric circuits. In the specific implementation process, a switch is arranged in the electric circuit to control the conduction of the electric circuit. There is various equivalent capacitance and equivalent inductance in the electric circuit. When the switch is turned off, the potential at both terminals of the switch will be adversely affected by the equivalent capacitors, the equivalent inductors, and the abnormal conditions that may happen to the electric load. For example, when the switch is turned off, an electrical breakdown may happen to the switch. The safety of the electric circuit is reduced.

The embodiments of the present application provide an electric protection circuit, which can improve the safety of the electric protection circuit.

The embodiments of the present application provide an electric protection circuit, where the electric protection circuit includes a battery pack, a main positive switch, a load device and a main negative switch connected in series, and the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch include at least one semiconductor switch; the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch in the electric protection circuit are connected in parallel to a protection module, and the protection module is configured to absorb electric energy across two terminals of the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch when the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch are turned off.

In the electric protection circuit of the embodiments of the present application, the protection module is provided, which is connected in parallel to the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch. The protection module can absorb the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch when the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch are turned off, which avoids that: when the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch are turned off, abnormalities of the other parts of the electric circuit cause the voltage across the two terminals of the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch to increase and a peak voltage is generated, thus leading to the breakdown of the main positive switch and/or the main negative switch or other circuit damage. Therefore, the safety of the electric protection circuit is improved.

The present application can be better understood from the following description of specific embodiments of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which same or similar reference numbers represent same or similar features.

FIG. 1 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to another embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to yet another embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to yet another embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a structural diagram of the electric protection circuit according to yet another embodiment of the present application.

The features and exemplary embodiments of various aspects of the present application will be described in detail below. In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present application. However, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the present application can be implemented without some of these specific details. The following description of the embodiments is merely for providing a better understanding of the present application by illustrating examples of the present application. The present application is by no means limited to any specific configuration and algorithm proposed below, but covers any modification, replacement, and improvement of the elements, components, and algorithms without departing from the spirit of the present application. In the accompanying drawings and the following description, well-known structures and techniques are not shown in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present application.

The embodiments of the present application provide an electric protection circuit, which can be applied in a scenario of electric energy of a battery pack being used to supply power to a load device. The battery pack includes at least one battery module or at least one battery unit, which will not be limited herein. The battery pack can be used in an electric vehicle as a power source for the electric vehicle. The load device may be an electric device in the electric vehicle, such as a motor, an on-board air conditioner, an on-board player, and the like.

FIG. 1 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1 , the electric protection circuit includes a battery pack P 1 , a main positive switch P 2 , a load device P 4 and a main negative switch P 3 connected in series.

The main positive switch P 2 is connected to a positive electrode of the battery pack P 1 . The main negative switch P 3 is connected to a negative electrode of the battery pack P 1 . The load device P 4 is a collection of electric appliances, where the number of the electric appliances may be one or more, which will not be limited herein. For ease of illustration, in the embodiment of the present application, all the electric appliances are equivalent to the one load device P 4 . The load device P 4 , in the embodiment of the present application, is equivalent to a load capacitor for ease of illustration.

In one example, as shown in FIG. 1 , the positive electrode of the battery pack P 1 is connected to a first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . A second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is connected to one terminal of the load device P 4 . The other terminal of the load device P 4 is connected to a first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . A second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 is connected to the negative terminal of the battery pack P 1 .

In the embodiment of the present application, parasitic inductors existing in the electric protection circuit are taken as an example for illustration. There is a parasitic inductor between the positive electrode of the battery pack P 1 and the main positive switch P 2 . There is a parasitic inductor between the main positive switch P 2 and the load device P 4 . There is a parasitic inductor between load device P 4 and main negative switch P 3 . There is a parasitic inductor between the main negative switch P 3 and the battery pack P 1 . When the main positive switch P 2 is changed from being turned on to being turned off, the parasitic inductor at the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 will generate induced electromotive force, which will increase a voltage across the two sides of the main positive switch P 2 , and a peak voltage is formed. Also, according to the characteristics of inductive current and inductive voltage, the higher a switching frequency of the main positive switch P 2 is, the greater a current passing through the main positive switch P 2 is (when the main positive switch P 2 is turned on), and the greater the induced electromotive force generated at the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 is. Similarly, induced electromotive force will be generated by the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 when the main negative switch P 3 is turned off. For ease of understanding, the equivalent parasitic inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 and L 4 are shown in FIG. 1 .

The main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 include at least one semiconductor switch. For example, the main positive switch P 2 and the main negative switch P 3 are both semiconductor switches. For another example, the main positive switch P 2 is a relay, and the main negative switch P 3 is a semiconductor switch. For yet another example, the main positive switch P 2 is a semiconductor switch, and the main negative switch P 3 is a relay.

In some examples, the semiconductor switch may include a metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) or an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT). It should be noted that the MOSFET has a gate electrode, a source electrode and a drain electrode. There is a parasitic diode between the source electrode and drain electrode of the MOSEFT, that is, there is a diode whose conduction direction is from the source electrode to the drain electrode. The IGBT may also be provided with a diode whose conduction direction is from the source electrode to the drain electrode. Also, the IGBT may not be provided with any diode, which will not be limited herein.

The main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 in the electric protection circuit are connected in parallel to a protection module. Specifically, in some examples, a protection module connected in parallel to the main positive switch P 2 may be provided for the main positive switch P 2 , a protection module connected in parallel to the main negative switch P 3 may be provided for the main negative switch P 3 , and protection modules connected in parallel to the main positive switch P 2 and the main negative switch P 3 respectively may be provided at the same time. The protection module is configured to absorb the electric energy across both terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 when the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 are turned off.

It should be noted that the protection modules connected in parallel to the main positive switch P 2 and the main negative switch P 3 respectively may be modules of different structures composed of different elements, or modules of a same structure composed of the same device, which will not be limited herein. For example, the main positive switch P 2 is connected in parallel to a first protection module p 51 , and the main negative switch P 3 is connected in parallel to a second protection module P 52 .

In practical operation, when the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 are turned off, various equivalent capacitance (such as parasitic capacitance), equivalent inductance (parasitic inductance) and potential abnormal states of the electric load in the electrical protection circuit may cause adverse effects on the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 , or the entire electrical protection circuit, which causes the voltage across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 to increase. The protection module can absorb the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 , thereby reducing and stabilizing the voltage across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 .

For example, it is assumed that the main positive switch P 2 and the main negative switch P 3 in FIG. 1 are both semiconductor switches. As shown in FIG. 1 , the protection modules include the first protection module p 51 and the second protection module P 52 . The main positive switch P 2 is connected in parallel to the first protection module p 51 , and the main negative switch P 3 is connected in parallel to the second protection module P 52 .

In the electric protection circuit according to the embodiment of the present application, the protection module is provided, which is connected in parallel to the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 . When the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 are turned off, the protection module can absorb the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 , which avoids that: when the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 are turned off, abnormalities of the other parts of the electric circuit cause the voltage across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 to increase and a peak voltage is generated, thus leading to the breakdown of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 or other circuit damage. Therefore, the safety of the electric protection circuit is improved. Moreover, since the protection module absorbs the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 , the switching frequency of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 is no longer limited by the abnormalities of other parts of the electric circuit, thus the switching efficiency of the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 in the electric circuit can be increased.

In another embodiment, the electric protection circuit electric protection circuit may also include an anti-reverse switch P 7 . For ease of illustration, exemplarily, the main positive switch P 2 , the main negative switch P 3 and the anti-reverse switch P 7 are all semiconductor switches, where the semiconductor switches are MOSFETs. FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to another embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2 , on the basis of FIG. 1 , the electric protection circuit may also include the anti-reverse switch P 7 , a voltage stabilizing module P 6 and a voltage clamping module P 8 .

A first terminal of the anti-reverse switch P 7 is connected to the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 , and a second terminal of the anti-reverse switch P 7 is connected to one terminal of load device P 4 . In a situation where the main negative switch is shared by the charging process and the discharging process in the electric protection circuit, the anti-reverse switch P 7 may be used as the main negative control switch in the electric protection circuit during the charging process.

During the discharging process of the battery pack P 1 , the anti-reverse switch P 7 , the main negative switch P 3 and the main positive switch P 2 are all turned-on. If the circuit needs to be turned off in case of emergency, the anti-reverse switch P 7 and the main positive switch P 2 may be connected, and the control main negative switch P 3 is turned off.

One terminal of the voltage stabilizing module P 6 is connected to the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 , and the other terminal of the voltage stabilizing module P 6 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The voltage stabilizing module P 6 is configured to stabilize an electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The voltage stabilizing module P 6 has a function of storing electric energy, so that when the main positive switch P 2 and/or the main negative switch P 3 are turned off, the large current generated instantly is absorbed, thus stabilizing the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 within a standard range.

The voltage clamping module P 8 is connected in parallel to the load device P 4 . The voltage clamping module P 8 is configured to stabilize the voltage across the two terminals of the load device P 4 . If the induced electromotive force generated by the parasitic capacitance of the load device P 4 causes the electric potential difference across the two terminals of the load device P 4 to be overly large, the voltage clamping module P 8 is configured to reduce the electric potential difference across the two terminals of the load device P 4 , so that the electric potential difference across the two terminals of the load device P 4 is stable within a standard range.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the first protection module p 51 connected in parallel to the main positive switch P 2 may specifically include the first energy storage unit P 511 , the first slow charging branch P 512 and the first fast charging branch P 513 .

One terminal of the first energy storage unit P 511 is connected to the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . The other terminal of the first energy storage unit P 511 is connected to one terminal of the first slow charging branch P 512 and one terminal of the first fast charging branch P 513 . The first energy storage unit P 511 is configured to store the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 .

The other terminal of the first slow charging branch P 512 is connected to the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . The first slow charging branch P 512 is configured to transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 . The first slow charging branch P 512 is further configured to transfer the electric energy released by the first energy storage unit P 511 when the main positive switch P 2 is turned on. That is, when the main positive switch P 2 is turned on, the first energy storage unit P 511 releases the electric energy through the first slow charging branch P 512 .

The other terminal of the first fast charging branch P 513 is connected to the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . The first fast charging branch P 513 is configured to: transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 , if the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is higher than or equal to a potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging.

It should be noted that when the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is lower than the potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging, the first slow charging branch P 512 transfers the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 . When the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is higher than or equal to the potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging, the first slow charging branch P 512 and the first fast charging branch P 513 jointly transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 .

In some examples, a speed at which the first slow charging branch P 512 transfers the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 is slower than a speed at which the first fast charging branch P 513 transfers the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 to the first energy storage unit P 511 .

According to the electric potential difference across the first terminal and the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 , the first slow charging branch P 512 and the first fast charging branch P 513 are turned on to transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 , and the electric potential difference across the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 is stabilized.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the first protection module p 51 connected in parallel to the main negative switch P 3 may specifically include the second energy storage unit P 521 , the second slow charging branch P 522 and the second fast charging branch P 523 .

One terminal of the second energy storage unit P 521 is connected to the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The other terminal of the second energy storage unit P 521 is connected to one terminal of the second slow charging branch P 522 and one terminal of the second fast charging branch P 523 . The second energy storage unit P 521 is configured to store the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 .

The other terminal of the second slow charging branch P 522 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The second slow charging branch P 522 is configured to transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 . The second slow charging branch P 522 is further configured to transfer the electric energy released by the second energy storage unit P 521 when the main negative switch P 3 is turned on. When the main negative switch P 3 is turned on, the second energy storage unit P 521 releases the electric energy through the second slow charging branch P 522 .

The other terminal of the second fast charging branch P 523 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The second fast charging branch P 523 is configured to: transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 , if the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 is higher than or equal to the potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging.

It should be noted that when the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 is lower than the potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging, the second slow charging branch P 522 transfers the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 . When the electric potential difference across the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 is higher than or equal to the potential difference threshold for enabling fast charging, the second slow charging branch P 522 and the second fast charging branch P 523 jointly transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 .

In some examples, a speed of the second slow charging branch P 522 transferring the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 is slower than a speed of the second fast charging branch P 523 transferring the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 to the second energy storage unit P 521 .

According to the electric potential difference across the first terminal and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 , the second slow charging branch P 522 and the second fast charging branch P 523 are turned on to transfer the electric energy across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 , and the electric potential difference across the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 is stabilized.

Exemplarily, the main positive switch P 2 , the main negative switch P 3 and the anti-reverse switch P 7 are all the main positive switch P 2 , and the main positive switch P 2 is a MOSFET. FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to yet another embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 3 , the first energy storage unit P 511 in the above embodiment includes a first capacitor C 1 . The first slow charging branch P 512 includes a first resistor set R 1 . The first fast charging branch P 513 includes a first diode D 1 and a second resistor set R 2 . The second energy storage unit P 521 includes a second capacitor C 2 . The second slow charging branch P 512 includes a third resistor set R 3 . The second fast charging branch P 523 includes a second diode D 2 and a fourth resistor set R 4 . The voltage stabilizing module P 6 includes a third capacitor C 3 . The voltage clamping module P 8 includes a third diode D 3 . The load device P 4 in FIG. 3 is represented as a load capacitor.

One terminal of the first capacitor C 1 is connected to the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . The other terminal of the first capacitor C 1 is connected to one terminal of the first slow charging branch P 512 and one terminal of the first fast charging branch P 513 .

One terminal of the first resistor set R 1 is connected to the other terminal of the first energy storage unit P 511 and one terminal of the first fast charging branch P 513 . The other terminal of the first resistor set R 1 is connected to the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 . The first resistor set R 1 as shown include at least one resistor.

An anode of the first diode D 1 is connected to one terminal of the first resistor set R 1 and the other terminal of the first energy storage unit P 511 . A cathode of the first diode D 1 is connected to one terminal of the second resistor set R 2 . The other terminal of the second resistor set R 2 is connected to the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 and the other terminal of the first resistor set R 1 . The second resistor set R 2 as shown includes at least one resistor.

The second energy storage unit P 521 in the above embodiment includes the first capacitor C 1 . The second slow charging branch P 522 includes the third resistor set R 3 . The second fast charging branch P 523 includes the second diode D 2 and the fourth resistor set R 4 . The voltage stabilizing module P 6 includes the second capacitor C 2 . The voltage clamping module P 8 includes the second diode D 2 . The load device P 4 in FIG. 3 is represented as a load capacitor.

One terminal of the first capacitor C 1 is connected to the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The other terminal of the first capacitor C 1 is connected to one terminal of the second slow charging branch P 522 and one terminal of the second fast charging branch P 523 .

One terminal of the third resistor set R 3 is connected to the other terminal of the second energy storage unit P 521 and one terminal of the second fast charging branch P 523 . The other terminal of the third resistor set R 3 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 . The third resistor set R 3 as shown includes at least one resistor.

An anode of the second diode D 2 is connected to one terminal of the third resistor set R 3 and the other terminal of the second energy storage unit P 521 . A cathode of the second diode D 2 is connected to one terminal of the fourth resistor set R 4 . The other terminal of the fourth resistor set R 4 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the other terminal of the third resistor set R 3 . The fourth resistor set R 4 as shown includes at least one resistor.

One terminal of the third capacitor C 3 is connected to the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 , and the other terminal of the third capacitor C 3 is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 .

The third diode D 3 is connected in parallel to the load device P 4 , specifically, an anode of the third diode D 3 is connected to one terminal of the load device P 4 , and a cathode of the third diode D 3 is connected to the other terminal of the load device P 4 .

In the following, that the parasitic inductors in the electric protection circuit causes voltage rise between the two terminals of the semiconductor switch is taken as an example for illustration. If the main positive switch P 2 is turned off, the current in the circuit of the electric protection circuit will decrease, and the parasitic inductors will each generate induced electromotive force opposite to the direction of the battery pack P 1 . The equivalent parasitic inductors in FIG. 3 include L 1 , L 2 , L 3 and L 4 . The induced electromotive force of parasitic of the inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 and L 4 is denoted as E 1 , E 2 , E 3 and E 4 respectively. The “+” and “−” marked on the parasitic inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 and L 4 indicate the positive and negative electrode of the induced electromotive force respectively.

For ease of illustration, the first terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is denoted as a point E, the second terminal of the main positive switch P 2 is denoted as a point A, the connection point between the first terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the first terminal of the anti-reverse switch P 7 is denoted as a point C, and the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 is denoted as a point D. The second terminal of the anti-reverse switch P 7 is marked as a point B.

The voltage stored in the capacitor equivalent to the load device P 4 is V_C_Load, the electric potential at the positive electrode of the battery pack P 1 is V_PACK, and the induced electromotive force generated by the parasitic inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 and L 4 is E 1 , E 2 , E 3 and E 4 , respectively. The direction of the induced electromotive force generated by the parasitic inductors L 1 , L 2 , L 3 , and L 4 is opposite to the direction of the current when the battery pack P 1 is discharged.

According to FIG. 3 , if the main positive switch P 2 is turned off, the electric potential at the point A is VA=V_C_Load−E 4 −E 3 −E 2 . The electric potential at the point E is VE=V_PACK+E 1 . If VE−VA is less than the forward conduction voltage VF 1 of the first diode D 1 in the first protection module p 51 , the first diode D 1 in the first protection module p 51 is cut off, and the first fast charging branch P 513 in the first protection module p 51 is cut off, that is, the first fast charging branch P 513 in the first protection module p 51 is not turned on. The first slow charging branch P 512 in the first protection module p 51 may be turned on. The first capacitor C 1 in the first protection module P 5 can be charged slowly through the first slow charging branch P 512 . If VE−VA is greater than or equal to the forward conduction voltage VF 1 of the first diode D 1 , the first diode D 1 in the first protection module p 51 is turned on, the first fast charging branch P 513 in the first protection module p 51 is turned on, and the first slow charging branch P 512 in the first protection module p 51 is turned on. The first capacitor C 1 in the first protection module p 51 can be quickly charged through the first fast charging branch P 513 and the first slow charging branch P 512 in the first protection module p 51 . The fast charging here is a concept relative to the slow charging. The first capacitor C 1 in the first protection module p 51 is charged so that the electric potentials of the point A and point E tend to be the same.

In some examples, a total resistance value of the first resistor set R 1 is greater than a total resistance of the second resistor set R 2 . A charging speed of the first capacitor C 1 in the first protection module p 51 through the first fast charging branch P 513 is faster than a charging speed of the first capacitor C 1 in the first protection module p 51 through the first slow charging branch P 512 .

If the main positive switch P 2 is turned off, the electric potential of the point A is VA=V_C_Load−E 4 −E 3 −E 2 . The electric potential of the point B is VB=−E 2 . If the electric potential difference across the point B and the point A VB−VA is greater than the forward conduction voltage VF 3 of the third diode D 3 , the third diode D 3 is turned on, which ensures that the electric potential difference across the point B and the point A is stable at VF 3 , avoiding that a large electric potential difference is generated across the point B and the point A.

If the main positive switch P 2 is turned off and the main negative switch P 3 is not turned off, the electric potential at the point C is equal to the electric potential at the point D, and the electric potentials at the two terminals of the main negative switch P 3 do not change.

It should be noted that the first fast charging branch p 53 corresponding to the main positive switch P 2 includes the first diode D 1 . Due to the function of the first diode D 1 , the first fast charging branch P 513 in the first protection module p 51 is no longer turned on when the main positive switch P 2 is turned on. Therefore, the first energy storage unit P 511 in the first protection module p 51 releases the electric energy through the first slow charging branch P 512 in the first protection module p 51 .

Similarly, if the main negative switch P 3 is turned off, the electric potential of the point B VB is equal to the electric potential of the point C VC, VB=VC=V_PACK+E 1 +E 3 −V_C_Load+E 4 . The electric potential at the point D is VD=−E 2 . If VC−VD is less than the forward conduction voltage VF 2 of the second diode D 2 in the second protection module P 52 , the second diode D 2 in the second protection module P 52 is cut off, and the second fast charging branch P 523 in the second protection module P 52 is cut off, that is, the second fast charging branch P 523 in the second protection module P 52 is not turned on. The second slow charging branch P 522 in the second protection module P 52 may be turned on. The second capacitor C 2 in the second protection module P 52 can be charged slowly through the second slow charging branch P 522 . If VC−VD is greater than or equal to the forward conduction voltage VF 2 of the second diode D 2 in the second protection module P 52 , the second diode D 2 in the second protection module P 52 is turned on, the second fast charging branch P 523 in the second protection module P 52 is turned on, and the second slow charging branch P 522 in the second protection module P 52 is turned on. The second capacitor C 2 in the second protection module P 52 can be quickly charged through the second fast charging branch P 523 and the second slow charging branch P 522 in the second protection module P 52 . The fast charging here is a concept relative to the slow charging. The second capacitor C 2 in the second protection module P 52 is charged so that the electric potentials at the point C and the point D tend to be the same.

In some examples, a total resistance value of the third resistor set R 1 is greater than a total resistance value of the fourth resistor set R 2 . A charging speed of the second capacitor C 2 in the second protection module P 52 through the second fast charging branch P 523 is faster than a charging speed of the second capacitor C 2 in the second protection module P 52 through the second slow charging branch P 522 .

If the main negative switch P 3 is turned off, the electric potential at the point A is VA=V_PACK+E 1 . The electric potential at the point B is VB=V_PACK+E 1 +E 3 −V_C_Load+E 4 . If the electric potential difference across the point B and the point A VB−VA is greater than the forward conduction voltage VF 3 of the third diode D 3 , the third diode D 3 is turned on, which ensures that the potential difference across the point B and the point A is stable at VF 3 , avoiding that a large electric potential difference is generated across the point B and the point A.

If the main negative switch P 3 is turned off and the main positive switch P 2 is not turned off, the electric potential at the point A is equal to the electric potential at the point E, and the electric potentials at the two terminals of the main positive switch P 2 do not change.

It should be noted that the second fast charging branch P 523 includes a second diode D 2 . Due to the function of the second diode D 2 , the second fast charging branch P 523 in the second protection module P 52 is no longer turned on when the main positive switch P 2 is turned on. Therefore, the second energy storage unit P 521 in the second protection module P 52 releases the electric energy through the second slow charging branch P 522 in the second protection module P 52 .

It is worth mentioning that a shunt resistor Ra may also be set between the battery pack P 1 and the main negative switch P 3 , which may be configured to sample the current in the circuit of the electric protection circuit. Specifically, one terminal of the shunt resistor Ra is connected to the negative electrode of the battery pack P 1 , and the other terminal of the shunt resistor RA is connected to the second terminal of the main negative switch P 3 .

FIG. 4 is a structural diagram of an electric protection circuit according to another embodiment of the present application. The difference between FIG. 4 and FIG. 3 is that the main positive switch P 2 is a relay. Then the main positive switch P 2 does not need to be connected in parallel to the first protection module p 51 .

Although the switching frequency of the semiconductor switch is high, the heat loss caused by the conduction of the semiconductor switch is also high. Considering the switching frequency and heat loss, the main positive switch P 2 may be set as a relay, so as to reduce the heat loss of the entire electric protection circuit. Moreover, because the cost of the relay is lower than that of the semiconductor switch, the cost of protection circuit can also be reduced.

The connection manner and the functions of other parts in FIG. 4 are the same as those in FIG. 3 , which will not be repeated here.

FIG. 5 is a structural diagram of the electric protection circuit according to another embodiment of the present application. The difference between FIG. 5 and FIG. 3 is that the electric protection circuit may further include a controller P 9 , a switch driving module P 10 and a sensor. The controller P 9 may be a micro controller unit (MCU) or the like.

The controller P 9 is connected to the switch driving module P 10 . The switch driving module P 10 is connected to main positive switch P 2 and main negative switch P 3 . If the electric protection circuit includes the anti-reverse switch P 7 , the switch driving module P 10 may also be connected to the anti-reverse switch P 7 . Specifically, the switch driving module P 10 may be connected to the control terminal of the main positive switch P 2 , the control terminal of the main negative switch P 3 and the control terminal of the anti-reverse switch P 7 . The number of the switch driving module P 10 may be one or more. The switch driving module P 10 may drive one switch or multiple switches, which will not be limited herein.

The controller P 9 is configured to transmit a control instruction to the switch driving module P 10 .

The switch driving module P 10 is configured to transmit driving signals to the main positive switch P 2 and the main negative switch P 3 according to the control instruction.

The driving signals include an ON signal or an OFF signal. The ON signal drives the switch to turn on. The OFF signal drives the switch to turn off.

The sensor may be connected to the controller P 9 . The sensor may be configured to collect a safety parameter and transmit the control instruction to the switch driving module P 10 if the safety parameter exceeds the safety threshold range, and the control switch driving module P 10 transmits the signal of turning off to the target switch.

In some examples, the above safety parameter includes one or more of: a voltage across the two terminals of the target switch, a temperature of the target switch, and a current flowing through the target switch. The target switch includes one or more of: the main positive switch P 2 , the main negative switch P 3 and the anti-reverse switch P 7 .

For example, the safety parameters include the voltage across the two terminals of the target switch, the temperature of the target switch and the current flowing through the target switch. If at least one of the three safety parameters exceeds the safety threshold range corresponding to that safety parameter, the control instruction is transmitted to the switch driving module, and the control switch driving module transmits the signal of turning off to the target switch, so as to turn off the target switch, which avoids the damage of the electric protection circuit, and improves the safety of the electric protection circuit.

It should be noted that in the above embodiment, if the switch is a semiconductor switch, and the semiconductor switch is a MOSFET or an IGBT. Then the first terminal of the semiconductor switch is the drain electrode, the second terminal of the semiconductor switch is the source electrode, and the control terminal of the semiconductor switch is the gate electrode. However, the scheme of changing the type of semiconductor switch and adjusting the direction of semiconductor switch according to the embodiments of the present application also falls into the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

It should be clear that the respective embodiments in the specification are described in a progressive way, and the same or similar parts of each embodiment can be referred to each other. Each embodiment focuses on the differences with other embodiments. The present application is not limited to the specific structures described above and shown in the drawings. Those skilled in the art can make various changes, modifications and additions after understanding the spirit of the present application.

Those skilled in the art should understand that the above-mentioned embodiments are all exemplary instead of restrictive. Different technical features appearing in different embodiments can be combined to obtain beneficial effects. Those skilled in the art should be able to understand and implement other modified embodiments of the disclosed embodiments on the basis of studying the drawings, the description, and the claims. In the claims, the term “comprising” does not exclude other devices or steps; the indefinite article “a” does not exclude a plurality; the terms “first” and “second” are used to indicate names and not to indicate any particular order. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection. The functions of several parts appearing in the claims can be realized by a single hardware or software module. The presence of certain technical features in different dependent claims does not mean that these technical features cannot be combined to obtain beneficial effects.