Automatic power supply system, automatic power supply device, and autonomous moving system

• US 10,023,060 B2
• Filed: 02/24/2016
• Issued: 07/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Murai, Ryosuke, Kinoshita, Shintaro, Uematsu, Hiroyuki, Sakai, Tatsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Zanelli, Michael J
• Application Number:
  US15/549,665
• Publication Number:
  US 20180029487A1
• Time in Patent Office: 874 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/60 using power supplied by batteries in combination with fuel cells B60L50/75
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/16 Connectors, e.g. plugs or sockets, specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/35 Means for automatic or assisted adjustment of the relative position of charging devices and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/37 using optical position determination, e.g. using cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/02 Control of position or course in two dimensions
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0212 with means for defining a desired trajectory involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0042 characterised by the mechanical construction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

Provided is an automatic power supply device which enables to perform an automatic power supply with a simple configuration, with respect to a moving body. The automatic power supply device that includes a terminal for a power supply, and supplies power to a rechargeable battery which is placed in the moving body through a power receiver which is disposed in the moving body, the automatic power supply device includes a mechanism that drives a power supplier including the power supply terminal, and a mechanism that automatically charges the moving body. The automatic power supply device includes a cavity in a portion of a housing shape of the automatic power supply device, in a measurement area of an environment recognition sensor which is included in the moving body.

Claims

1. An autonomous moving system comprising:

an autonomous moving device including

an environment information obtaining sensor that obtains peripheral environment information, and

a controller that causes movement to a spot having a predetermined distance from a current spot, based on the environment information; and

an automatic power supply device including

a housing that includes a cavity unit or a groove unit in a portion of the housing,

wherein a safety stop area is set in a portion of the environment information obtaining sensor, and

a depth of the cavity unit is larger than a distance obtained by subtracting a distance between a tip of the autonomous moving device and the automatic power supply device, when the autonomous moving device arrives at the automatic power supply device, from a distance which is from the tip of the autonomous moving device to a tip of the safety stop area.

2. The autonomous moving system of claim 1,

wherein a protrusion is included in a portion of the cavity unit.

3. The autonomous moving system of claim 1,

wherein a shape of the cavity unit is a rectangular shape.

4. The autonomous moving system of claim 1,

wherein a shape of the cavity unit is a fan shape.

5. The autonomous moving system of claim 1,

wherein a plurality of the automatic power supply devices are disposed, and

the plurality of automatic power supply devices have a plurality of the cavity units having shapes different from each other.