FIELD: electricity.
SUBSTANCE: invention relates to the field of electrical equipment and may be used for monitoring condition of accumulator sources of supply, both separate accumulators and batteries comprising n serially connected elements. The invention concept is as follows: reference points are numbered in sequence. Currents are scaled from each element of the accumulator battery with scaling ratio from each reference point proportionally to the number of the reference point i. The limit voltage value UΣlim is calculated, which corresponds to the case, when all elements of the controlled accumulator battery are faultless 
Currents from each reference point are summed in a summing point and sent via a communication channel into an organ of information processing, where the summary current is converted into proportional voltage UΣ, and this voltage is subtracted from the limit value of voltage UΣlim. Based on the value of the resulting voltage UΣlim - UΣ, the number of the element is identified in the accumulator battery, where the short circuit has occurred.
EFFECT: process automation, realisation of element-by-element control in entire range of operation modes.
3 cl, 1 dwg
