Battery thermal management system and methods of use

Abstract

Set forth herein are systems and methods for determining battery heating conditions and pre-heating lead times of at least a minute or more, based on input parameters and sets of input parameters, to predictively and dynamically heat a secondary battery so that the battery has a specific power output and performance level when used in an electric or hybrid vehicle application.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A secondary battery thermal management system, the system comprising:
 at least one temperature sensor for determining a temperature of a battery in a vehicle, the battery being a secondary battery;   at least one receiver for receiving at least one of a plurality of input parameters;   a module configured to send control signals to either the battery or a heating device, wherein the signals result in heating of the battery to temperatures optimized for a predicted vehicle use;   wherein the module determines the temperatures optimized for the predicted vehicle use and a heating lead time of at least a minute or more based on the determined temperatures and at least one of the plurality of input parameters.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the battery is a lithium ion secondary battery. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the lithium ion secondary battery comprises a cathode comprising conversion chemistry active materials. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the lithium ion secondary battery comprises a cathode comprising lithium intercalation chemistry active materials. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the receiver is configured to receive wireless signals. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the wireless signals are selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth signals, cellular signals, Wi-Fi signals, wireless communication device signals, network towers signals, tablets signals, smartphones signals, home security system signals, 3G device transmissions, 4G device transmissions, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of:
 vehicle use information selected from the group consisting of statistical probability of drive starts as a function of previous drive start, drive times, time of drive starts, drive lengths, drive routes, geography of drives, driving pattern information, past battery warming conditions, past vehicle performance conditions, past battery performance conditions, feedback information, and combinations thereof,   location information selected from the group consisting of driver location, passenger location, driver location with respect to vehicle location, passenger location with respect to vehicle location, GPS location of user's smartphone, GPS/Wi-Fi/cellular location of fob, proximity of fob to vehicle, GPS/Wi-Fi/cellular location of vehicle key, proximity of vehicle key to vehicle, user's proximity to the vehicle, location of the vehicle, driver location with respect to home, driver location with respect to airport, driver location with respect to work place, driver location with respect to common drive locations, driver location with respect to preselected destinations, driver location with respect to saved destinations, and combinations thereof,   drive types selected from the group consisting of start location of drives, end location of drives, total distance of drives, average distance of drives, velocity of drives, average velocity of drives, traffic conditions of drives, and combinations thereof,   temperature information selected from the group consisting of battery temperature, ambient temperature, vehicle temperature, and combinations thereof,   heating device, battery, and/or vehicle information selected from the group consisting of battery energy capacity, state of charge of battery, battery self-discharge rate, a relationship between two or more of power of battery, temperature of battery, state of charge of battery, and age of battery, a thermal time constant for the battery, capacity of the heating device, efficiency of the heating device, powertrain of vehicle, thermal system configuration of vehicle, motor power of vehicle, powertrain efficiency of vehicle, vehicle minimum power output level for safe driving, and combinations thereof,   weather information selected from the group consisting of current weather conditions, weather forecast, temperature, precipitation, visibility, and combinations thereof,   driver inputs selected from the group consisting of immediate start instructions, delayed start instructions, start cancelation instructions, a user-specified performance level, and combinations thereof,   user information selected from the group consisting of driver's calendar information, passenger's calendar information, smartphone information, Google-Now information, historical use information, and combinations thereof,   external information selected from the group consisting of information acquired from emails on user's wireless communication device, information acquired from texts on user's smartphone, and combinations thereof,   traffic information selected from the group consisting of traffic conditions, road conditions, construction conditions, detour conditions, and combinations thereof,   calendar information selected from the group consisting of day of the week, month of the year, holiday information, and combinations thereof, optionally in combination with a user specified performance level,   charging equipment availability information selected from the group consisting of availability of charging equipment at vehicle's current location, availability of charging equipment at vehicle's expected destination, and combinations thereof, optionally in combination with a status of an additional transportation provider and/or a status of an additional transit option,   and combinations thereof.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of inputs that are personal to a user/vehicle, inputs that are generally applicable, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of inputs that are historical, inputs that are current, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of inputs that are sensed, inputs that are referenced, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of inputs that are historical personal inputs, current sensed personal inputs, current referenced personal inputs, historical general inputs, current general inputs, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the historical general inputs are selected from the group consisting of: historical traffic information, historical weather data, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the current general inputs are selected from the group consisting of: current traffic data, current weather data, general calendar data, electricity prices, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the historical personal inputs are selected from the group consisting of: past driving data for a user and/or vehicle, availability of charging equipment at past destinations, battery characteristics, battery warming characteristics, heating device characteristics, vehicle characteristics, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the current sensed personal inputs are selected from the group consisting of: the current temperature of a battery, the current state of charge of the battery, the current temperature of a vehicle, current ambient temperature, the current location of a vehicle, the current location of a user or users, the proximity of a user to a vehicle, the location of a user with respect to particular locations, the current availability of charging equipment, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the current referenced personal inputs are selected from the group consisting of: user instructions and/or preferences, a status of an additional transportation provider or transit option, a user's calendar/schedule, a user's upcoming commitments, and a user's email messages, text messages, similar communications, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of: data from a user's electronic device(s), device to vehicle communication, destination information, traffic information, weather information, customer preferences, customer input, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of input parameters include one or more signals from a user's electronic device. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the signals from a user's electronic device relate to information included in a text message, email, and/or Google Now account. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the user's electronic device(s) include one or more devices selected from the group consisting of a user's cellular phone, a user's computer, a user's laptop, a user's tablet, and a user's PDA. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the heating of the battery is dynamic such that the battery is heated to a temperature that enables a desired power level, the desired power level being dependent on one or more of the plurality of input parameters. 
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least two minutes. 
     
     
         23 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least five minutes. 
     
     
         24 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least ten minutes. 
     
     
         25 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least fifteen minutes. 
     
     
         26 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least thirty minutes. 
     
     
         27 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least thirty minutes but less than two hours. 
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of at least thirty minutes but less than one hour. 
     
     
         29 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the module determines a heating lead time of 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5, 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5, 8, 8.5, 9, 9.5, or 10 minutes. 
     
     
         30 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a heating device for heating the battery. 
     
     
         31 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a data storage device for storing information selected from the group consisting of vehicle use, battery heating characteristics, battery performance as a function of temperature, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         32 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a temperature sensor for determining the ambient temperature in proximity to the battery. 
     
     
         33 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the lead time is 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, or 4 minutes. 
     
     
         34 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the user proximity is determined by a device selected from the group consisting of a vehicle sensor, vehicle camera, GPS device, Wi-Fi device, cellular device, infrared radiation device, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         35 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a device for comparing and/or analyzing at least one of past predicted start times with respect to actual start times, predicted probability of start times with respect to actual probability of start times, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         36 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a device for comparing predicted drive locations with respect to actual drive locations. 
     
     
         37 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a device for comparing predicted heat power rating with respect to actual heat power ratings. 
     
     
         38 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the device for comparing is the same device as the module of  claim 1 . 
     
     
         39 . The system of  claim 38 , wherein the device for comparing (a) compares or analyzes past predicted start times with respect to actual start times, predicted probability of start times with respect to actual probability of start times, and combinations thereof, (b) compares predicted drive locations with respect to actual drive locations, and (c) compares predicted heat power rating with respect to actual heat power ratings. 
     
     
         40 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the signals cause a heat emitting element to emit heat so that the battery heats to the minimum heat level required for a performance level selected by the user. 
     
     
         41 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the receiver is a wireless communication interface. 
     
     
         42 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the group consisting of: the driver location, the passenger location, and the location of the vehicle. 
     
     
         43 . An apparatus for controllably pre-heating a vehicle battery device, comprising the system of  claim 1 . 
     
     
         44 . A method for secondary battery thermal management in a vehicle, the method comprising:
 determining a temperature of a battery and optionally the ambient air temperature;   analyzing a plurality of input parameters;   providing or determining a vehicle start time and a probability of correctness;   providing a control signal to either the battery, or a heating device, to heat the battery to temperatures optimized for a predicted vehicle use;   wherein the control signal comprises a heating power rating and a heating lead time of at least a minute or more based on the determined temperatures and at least one of a plurality of input parameters;   optionally comparing vehicle start time and probability of correctness with the actual vehicle start time, and adjusting an algorithm for providing the vehicle start time;   thereby providing thermal management for the battery.   
     
     
         45 . The method of  claim 44 , wherein the plurality of input parameters are selected from the plurality of input parameters in  claim 7 . 
     
     
         46 . The method of  claim 44 , wherein the step of providing a control signal to either the battery, or a heating device, to heat the battery to temperatures optimized for a predicted vehicle use comprises dynamically heating the battery. 
     
     
         47 . The system of  claim 35 , wherein the module is selected from a computer, a programmed chip, a battery management system, a controller in series with a potentiostat and a heater, a controller in series with a thermocouple, a resistive heater, a computer or electronic device which controls a resistive heater, an inductive heater, a computer or electronic device which controls an inductive heater, a convective heater, a computer or electronic device which controls a convective heater, or similar devices for heating a battery, the area or space in which a battery is housed, or the atmosphere in direct contact with the battery.