Patent attributes
In an embodiment, an energy storage system includes one or more storage cells, charge/discharge circuitry, and charger wakeup circuitry. After the storage cells become depleted below an energy level threshold, the charge/discharge circuitry disconnects the storage cells from a main circuit associated with the storage system. The charger wakeup circuitry allows a limited amount of current to bypass the charge/discharge circuitry in order to present a current-limited voltage from the storage cells at the terminals. The voltage presented at the terminals is pulsed on and off when an external device is connected across the terminals. The voltage presented to the terminals is detected by the external device. After detecting the voltage, the external device performs an operation in response to detecting the condition.