Patent issued for battery-cell balancing system

O2Micro International announced that it was issued 20 claims under United States patent number 8,294,421 for its Cell Balancing system. This system balances battery cells in a battery pack to keep the battery cells in a desired range of voltages using active components. Such active battery cell balancing achieves higher efficiency by transferring energy rather than the conventional energy dissipation method. Bill Densham, strategic marketing director, O2Micro, remarked "O2Micro's patented system improves safety and reliability by reducing thermal energy dissipation in the battery pack compared to traditional cell balancing methods. Lower cell temperatures are critical to achieving higher safety." O2Micro International