Wireless charging system with object detection

• US 10,511,197 B2
• Filed: 01/31/2018
• Issued: 12/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Guillermo, Jerald Polestico, Nair, Previn D., De Jesus, Mikhal S., Russell, Antoin J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kessie, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US15/885,411
• Publication Number:
  US 20180219431A1
• Time in Patent Office: 685 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/60 responsive to the presence of foreign objects, e.g. detection of living beings

Abstract

A wireless power transmitting device transmits wireless power signals to a wireless power receiving device. The wireless power receiving device has a wireless power receiving coil in a resonant circuit that resonates at a wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency. The wireless power transmitting device has coils. The coils are supplied with a drive signal in bursts to detect external objects. Measurement circuitry includes an oscillator for supplying the drive signals and a peak detector and analog-to-digital converter for gathering measurements on the coils to which the drive signals have been supplied. Rate-based-filtering is applied to output signals from the analog-to-digital converter to distinguish between temperature drift effects and object placement effects. The frequency of the drive signals is slightly greater than the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency.

Claims

1. A wireless power transmitting device, comprising:

a coil;

wireless power transmitting circuitry coupled to the coil and configured to transmit wireless power signals to a wireless power receiving device with a receiving coil in a wireless power receiving circuit that is configured to resonate at a wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency;

control circuitry configured to control transmission of the wireless power signals;

an oscillator coupled to the coil that is configured to apply a probe signal to the coil at a probe frequency; and

an analog-to-digital converter configured to measure signals at the probe frequency, wherein the control circuitry is configured to;

in a standby mode, determine whether an external object is present by directing the oscillator to supply the probe signal to the coil in bursts separated by respective periods of time in which no probe signals are supplied to the coil by the oscillator, wherein the probe frequency of the probe signal is the same during each of the bursts, wherein the probe frequency is equal to 101% to 150% of the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency, wherein each burst has a first duration greater than 0.5 milliseconds, and wherein each period of time in which no probe signals are supplied to the coil by the oscillator has a second duration greater than 100 milliseconds.

2. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 1 wherein the probe frequency is between 1 MHz and 1.5 MHz.

3. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 1 wherein the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency is 1 MHz and the probe frequency is at least 1 MHz.

4. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 1, wherein the control circuitry is configured to:

determine that the external object is present in response to the analog-to-digital converter detecting a voltage drop at a node between the oscillator and the coil.

5. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 4, wherein the control circuitry is configured to:

in response to determining that the external object is present, obtain measurements to determine whether the external object is the wireless power receiving device with the receiving coil or a foreign object.

6. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 5, wherein the control circuitry is configured to:

in response to determining that the external object is the wireless power receiving device, transmit wireless power signals to the wireless power receiving device.

7. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 5, wherein obtaining measurements to determine whether the external object is the wireless power receiving device with the receiving coil or the foreign object comprises:

using impulse response measurement circuitry, measuring decay of an impulse response signal that is produced in response to a pulse being applied to the coil.

8. The wireless power transmitting device of claim 1, wherein the first duration is between 0.5 milliseconds and 2 milliseconds and wherein the second duration is greater than 800 milliseconds.

9. A wireless power transmitting device, comprising:

a coil;

wireless power transmitting circuitry coupled to the coil and configured to transmit wireless power signals to a wireless power receiving device with a receiving coil in a wireless power receiving circuit that is configured to resonate at a wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency;

control circuitry configured to control transmission of the wireless power signals; and

measurement circuitry coupled to the coil that is used by the control circuitry to detect external objects, wherein the measurement circuitry includes an oscillator configured to apply a probe signal at a probe frequency that is larger than the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency and includes an analog-to-digital converter configured to measure signals at the probe frequency, wherein the probe frequency is equal to 101% to 150% of the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency, and wherein the control circuitry is configured to process output from the analog-to-digital converter to distinguish between temperature drift effects and object placement effects.

10. A method of using a wireless power transmitting device having wireless power transmitting circuitry that transmits wireless power signals to a wireless power receiving device using a coil, wherein the wireless power receiving device has a wireless power receiving circuit with an associated wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency, the method comprising:

in a standby mode, monitoring the coil for presence of an external object by periodically supplying, with an oscillator, a probe signal to the coil at a probe frequency equal to 101% to 150% of the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency;

in response to detecting the external object, obtaining measurements to determine whether the external object is the wireless power receiving device; and

in response to determining that the external object is the wireless power receiving device, wirelessly transmitting power from the coil to the wireless power receiving device.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency is between 0.9 MHz and 1.1 MHz and wherein monitoring the coil for presence of an external object comprises supplying the probe signal at a probe signal of less than 1.5 MHz.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the oscillator is configured to supply the probe signal to a node coupled to the coil and wherein the wireless power transmitting device includes an analog-to-digital converter configured to measure voltages on the node, the method further comprising processing output from the analog-to-digital converter to distinguish between thermal drift effects and object placement effects.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the coil is one of a plurality of coils and wherein monitoring the coil comprises supplying the probe signal to each of the plurality of coils in sequence.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising supplying the probe signal to the plurality of coils in bursts separated by at least 50 milliseconds, wherein during each burst the oscillator supplies the probe signal to each of the plurality of coils in sequence.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein processing the output from the analog-to-digital converter to distinguish between the thermal drift effects and the object placement effects comprises comparing output signals from the analog-to-digital converter within a time window.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein processing the output from the analog-to-digital converter to distinguish between the thermal drift effects and the object placement effects comprises applying rate-of-change filtering to the output.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein monitoring the coil for presence of the external object comprises measuring a voltage of a node between the oscillator and the coil.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein detecting the external object comprises detecting a drop in the voltage of the node between the oscillator and the coil.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein obtaining the measurements to determine whether the external object is the wireless power receiving device comprises:

using impulse response measurement circuitry, measuring decay of an impulse response signal that is produced in response to a pulse being applied to the coil.

20. The method of claim 10, wherein monitoring the coil for presence of the external object by periodically supplying, with the oscillator, the probe signal to the coil at a probe frequency equal to 101% to 150% of the wireless power receiving circuit resonant frequency comprises periodically supplying, with the oscillator, the probe signal to the coil at a single probe frequency.