Vehicle

• US 10,384,547 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2017
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuribara, Fumiyoshi, Asano, Shigetaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Thai T
• Application Number:
  US15/811,996
• Publication Number:
  US 20180134163A1
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/007 Physical arrangements or structures of drive train converters specially adapted for the propulsion motors of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/14 Boost converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/14 Synchronous machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/26 Transition between different drive modes
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/64 Constructional details of batteries specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/00 Methods of charging batteries, specially adapted for electric vehicles; Charging stations or on-board charging equipment therefor; Exchange of energy storage elements in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/126 Methods for pairing a vehicle and a charging station, e.g. establishing a one-to-one relation between a wireless power transmitter and a wireless power receiver
• 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 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/51 Photovoltaic means
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 8/003 Converting light into electric energy, e.g. by using photo-voltaic systems
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/345 using capacitors as storage or buffering devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/35 with light sensitive cells
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 27/06 using dc to ac converters or inverters H02P27/05 takes precedence
• 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 10/92 : Energy efficient charging or discharging systems for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors specially adapted for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 : Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 : Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A vehicle is equipped with a power storage device configured to transmit electric power to and from a motor for driving, and a solar power generation system configured to generate electric power using sunlight and to perform solar charging that charges the power storage device with the generated electric power. The vehicle is configured to perform external charging that charges the power storage device with electric power from an external power supply apparatus. The vehicle prohibits the solar charging until a standby time has elapsed since an off operation of an ignition switch and permits the solar charging when the standby time has elapsed.

Claims

1. A vehicle, comprising:

a power storage device configured to transmit electric power to and from a motor for driving;

a solar power generation system configured to generate electric power using sunlight and to perform solar charging that charges the power storage device with the generated electric power; and

a control device configured to control the solar power generation system,

the vehicle being configured to perform external charging that charges the power storage device with electric power from an external power supply apparatus, wherein

the control device prohibits the solar charging until a standby time has elapsed since an off operation of an ignition switch and permits the solar charging when the standby time has elapsed, and the control device does not permit the solar charging during execution or during preparation of the external charging, even when the standby time has elapsed since an off operation of the ignition switch.

2. The vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein a shorter time period is set to the standby time when a parking position of the vehicle is not a location where the external charging is executable, compared with a time period set when the parking position of the vehicle is a location where the external charging is executable.

3. The vehicle according to claim 2, further comprising:

a vehicle-side connector connected with the power storage device and configured to be connectable with a power supply-side connector of the external power supply apparatus; and

a power receiving device connected with the power storage device and configured to receive electric power in a contactless manner from a power transmission device of the external power supply apparatus, wherein

a shorter time period is set to the standby time when the parking position of the vehicle is a location where connected external charging that is the external charging with connection between the power supply-side connector and the vehicle-side connector is not executable but contactless external charging that is the external charging with non-contact power receiving and power transmission between the power transmission device and the power receiving device is executable, compared with a time period set when the parking position of the vehicle is a location where the connected external charging is executable.

4. The vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein the control device immediately permits the solar charging when a parking position of the vehicle is not a location where the external charging is executable.

5. The vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle-side connector connected with an inverter-side of the power storage device on a power line with which an inverter configured to drive the motor, the power storage device and the solar power generation system are connected in this sequence, and configured to be connectable with a power supply-side connector of the external power supply apparatus;

a first relay provided between the power storage device and the inverter along with the vehicle-side connector on the power line; and

a second relay provided between the power storage device and the solar power generation system on the power line, wherein

the control device controls the first relay and the second relay.

6. The vehicle according to claim 5, further comprising:

a first capacitor mounted on an inverter along with vehicle-side connector-side of the first relay on the power line;

a second capacitor mounted on a solar power generation system-side of the second relay on the power line, wherein

the first relay includes a first positive electrode-side relay provided on a positive electrode-side line of the power line, a first negative electrode-side relay provided on a negative electrode-side line of the power line, and a first precharge circuit including a precharge resistance and a first precharge relay that are connected in series such as to bypass the first negative electrode-side relay, and

the second relay includes a second positive electrode-side relay provided on the positive electrode-side line, a second negative electrode-side relay provided on the negative electrode-side line, and a second precharge circuit including the precharge resistance shared with the first precharge circuit and a second precharge relay that are connected in series such as to bypass the second negative electrode-side relay, wherein

in a connection process to switch on the first relay, the control device switches on the first positive electrode-side relay and the first precharge relay to precharge the first capacitor and subsequently switches on the first negative electrode-side relay and switches off the first precharge relay, and

in a connection process to switch on the second relay, the control device switches on the second positive electrode-side relay and the second precharge relay to precharge the second capacitor and subsequently switches on the second negative electrode-side relay and switches off the second precharge relay.