Circuit for causing a voltage step in a multi-cell battery

摘要

A circuit for causing a voltage step in a battery of a plurality of serially-connected cells is provided. The circuit causes one or more of the cells to discharge through a resistor at a higher rate than the other cells, thus producing a voltage step when the faster discharging cell dies before the other cells. A reverse-biased diode is connected in parallel to the faster discharging cell to cause the current to bypass the faster discharging cell after it has died, thus preventing it from reverse charging. This circuit may be controlled to adjust the higher rate of discharge, and thus the time of occurrence of the voltage step.