Parking assistance apparatus and system

• US 10,562,396 B2
• Filed: 06/13/2016
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IHI Corporation
• Original Assignee: IHI Corporation
• Inventors: Tokura, Susumu
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Neel D
• Application Number:
  US15/180,182
• Publication Number:
  US 20160288657A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,345 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/12 Inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/122 Circuits or methods for driving the primary coil, e.g. supplying electric power to the coil
• 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 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 15/027 Parking aids, e.g. instruction means
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 5/2006 by influencing the self-induction of one or more coils G01D5/22 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 38/14 Inductive couplings for wireless supply or distribution of electric power using inductive coupling H02J50/10
• 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

A parking assistance system is provided which includes: a parking assistance apparatus that is installed along with a wireless power-supplying device and has a plurality of exciting coils installed around a power-supplying coil provided for the wireless power-supplying device and a plurality of resonators connected to the respective exciting coils and set to resonate due to leakage magnetic flux of the power-supplying coil; and a movable vehicle that detects magnetic flux generated by the exciting coils provided for the parking assistance apparatus, determines a position of the movable vehicle based on a result of the detection and displays the position on a display device.

Claims

1. A parking assistance apparatus that assists with parking of a movable vehicle in a parking area in which a power-supplying coil wirelessly supplying electric power to a power-receiving coil provided in the movable vehicle is installed, the parking assistance apparatus comprising:

a plurality of exciting coils installed in the parking area, the plurality of exciting coils having no connection with a power supply; and

a plurality of resonators connected to the respective exciting coils and set to resonate due to leakage magnetic flux of the power-supplying coil,

wherein the plurality of exciting coils generate, due to the leakage magnetic flux, magnetic fields whose magnitudes are different from one another.

2. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the exciting coils are set to mutually have different numbers of turns.

3. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the numbers of turns of the exciting coils are set so that generated magnetic flux gradually increases or decreases toward the power-supplying coil.

4. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the exciting coils are radially arranged around the power-supplying coil at a constant interval or are arranged in a circumferential direction of a concentric circle centered at the power-supplying coil at a constant interval.

5. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the exciting coils are radially arranged around the power-supplying coil at a constant interval or are arranged in a circumferential direction of a concentric circle centered at the power-supplying coil at a constant interval.

6. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the exciting coils are radially arranged around the power-supplying coil at a constant interval or are arranged in a circumferential direction of a concentric circle centered at the power-supplying coil at a constant interval.

7. A parking assistance system that assists with parking in a parking area in which a power-supplying coil wirelessly supplying electric power is installed, the parking assistance system comprising:

the parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1; and

the movable vehicle having a detector that detects magnetic flux generated by the exciting coils provided for the parking assistance apparatus, a position calculator that determines a position of the movable vehicle based on a detected result of the detector, and a display unit that displays the position determined by the position calculator.

8. The parking assistance system according to claim 7, wherein the movable vehicle includes the power-receiving coil that receives the electric power wirelessly supplied from the power-supplying coil.

9. The parking assistance system according to claim 8, wherein the power-receiving coil serves as the detector.

10. The parking assistance system according to claim 9, wherein the display unit displays a positional relationship between the power-supplying coil and the movable vehicle based on a calculated result of the position calculator.

11. The parking assistance system according to claim 7, wherein the display unit displays a positional relationship between the power-supplying coil and the movable vehicle based on a calculated result of the position calculator.

12. The parking assistance system according to claim 8, wherein the display unit displays a positional relationship between the power-supplying coil and the movable vehicle based on a calculated result of the position calculator.

13. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power-supplying coil and the plurality of exciting coils do not overlap when seen in a top view.

14. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of exciting coils is provided with a coil surface, and the coil surface of one of the plurality of exciting coils disposed closest to the power-supplying coil is substantially orthogonal to the leakage magnetic flux.

15. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of exciting coils and each of the plurality of resonators is respectively connected by a lead, and

at least part of the lead is substantially orthogonal to the leakage magnetic flux.

16. A parking assistance apparatus that assists with parking of a movable vehicle in a parking area in which a power-supplying coil wirelessly supplying electric power to a power-receiving coil provided in the movable vehicle is installed, the parking assistance apparatus comprising:

a plurality of exciting coils installed in the parking area, the plurality of exciting coils having no connection with a power supply; and

a plurality of resonators connected to the respective exciting coils,

wherein the plurality of exciting coils generate, due to leakage magnetic flux of the power-supplying coil, magnetic fields whose magnitudes are different from one another.

17. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the power-supplying coil and the plurality of exciting coils do not overlap when seen in a top view.

18. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 16, wherein each of the plurality of exciting coils is provided with a coil surface, and the coil surface of one of the plurality of exciting coils disposed closest to the power-supplying coil is substantially orthogonal to the leakage magnetic flux.

19. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 16, wherein each of the plurality of exciting coils and each of the plurality of resonators is respectively connected by a lead, and

at least part of the lead is substantially orthogonal to the leakage magnetic flux.

20. The parking assistance apparatus according to claim 16,

wherein the parking assistance apparatus assists with parking of a movable vehicle in a parking area for one vehicle, and

the plurality of exciting coils are installed per the parking area for one vehicle.