2 The Role of MCU in Smart Battery System

The MCU allows SBS capabilities to be expanded where the MCU can configure advanced features of chargers. The MCU can translate between different communication protocols of components, allowing different SBS configurations to work regardless of communication compatibilities of individual devices. The MCU can also allow the user to implement charging algorithms beyond what is offered by chargers and smart battery packs. For most BMS systems, having an MCU act as the controller provides ease of use, more flexibility, more control, and facilitate troubleshooting.

The MCU for Smart Battery BMS system receives information from the gauge and transmits that data to the charger, or performs data modifications based on system need before transmission to the charger. In SBS, there is a broadcast mode where the gauge can transmit data to the charger without a host. In broadcast mode, the gauge transmits ChargingVoltage(), CharingCurrent(), and AlarmWarning() to the charger, but this is not always an option if there is a difference in communication protocols between charger and gauge. As a result, translation of the gauge data based on the communication protocol and charger properties is necessary. For this application note, the MCU polls the gauge to read ChargingVoltage() and ChargingCurrent(). Before translating from SMBus to I²C, translation of gauge data is then performed by the MCU. Finally, the MCU transmits data to program the charger by I²C.