THERMAL WALL PLUG SENSING AND CONTROL

• US 20120212179A1
• Filed: 04/01/2011
• Published: 08/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Inventors: Nathan, John F., Hein, David A., Sallam, Faisal K., Mueller, Mark Anthony
• Granted Patent: US 8,729,856 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/109
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/36 Temperature of vehicle components or parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/529 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/00 Electric devices on electrically-propelled vehicles for safety purposes; Monitoring operating variables, e.g. speed, deceleration or energy consumption methods or circuit arrangements for monitoring or controlling batteries or fuel cells B60L58/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/16 Connectors, e.g. plugs or sockets, specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 11/00 Individual connecting elements providing two or more spaced connecting locations for conductive members which are, or may be, thereby interconnected, e.g. end pieces for wires or cables supported by the wire or cable and having means for facilitating electrical connection to some other wire, terminal, or conductive member, blocks of binding posts
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6683 with built-in sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2201/26 for vehicles
• 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 90/10 Technologies relating to charging of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A system and method operable to facilitate thermal wall plug sensing and control may include an ability to control current drawn by a charging system or other load according to a temperature determined at an interface between the charging system and an energy source used to provided energy to the charging system. A temperature sensed with a temperature sensor included in a plug assembly or other housing or cord used to connect the charging system to the energy source may be used to implement the temperature regulated current control.

Claims

1. A plug assembly operable for connecting a vehicle cordset used to facilitate powering a vehicle charging system to a wall outlet, the plug assembly comprising:

a positive connector configured to facilitate carrying current from the wall outlet to the vehicle charging system;

a neutral connector configured to facilitate returning current from the vehicle charging system to the wall outlet;

a ground connector configured to facilitate connecting the vehicle charging system to earth ground; and

a temperature sensor operable to detect a temperature at the wall outlet.

2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein a resistance of the temperature sensor approximates the temperature at the wall outlet.

3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the temperature sensor is one of a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) device, a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) device, and a thermistor.

4. The assembly of claim 1 further comprising a housing shaped to enclose the temperature sensor and to support the positive, neutral, and ground connectors such that at least a portion of each of the positive, neutral, and ground connectors extend exterior to the housing to be inserted within corresponding receptacles of the wall outlet.

5. The assembly of claim 4 wherein the housing is injection molded over the temperature sensor, positive connector, neutral connector, and ground connector and comprised of non-conducting, at least semi-rigid material.

6. The assembly of claim 5 further comprising a positive wire, a neutral wire, a ground wire, and a temperature wire respectively connected to the positive connector, the neutral connection, the ground connector, and the temperature sensor, each wire separately extending exterior to the housing within an insulated enclosure for receipt within a receptacle of the vehicle charging system.

7. The assembly of claim 6 wherein a voltage of the temperature wire is measured by the vehicle charging system to determine the temperature.

8. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the vehicle charging system is operable to control current flow through the positive connector as a function of the temperature.

9. The assembly of claim 8 wherein the current flow is controlled according to a schedule where an amount of current flow is decreased in proportion to an increase in the temperature.

10. The assembly of claim 9 wherein the amount of current flow is set by the vehicle charging system to a first level and the schedule specifies:

decreasing current flow from the first level to a second level in the event the increase in temperature is greater than a first amount and less than a second amount; and

decreasing current flow from the first level to a third level in the event the increase in temperature is greater than the second amount, the third level being less than the second level.

11. The assembly of claim 10 wherein the schedule specifies ceasing current flow in the event the increase in temperature is greater than a third amount.

12. The assembly of claim 9 wherein a rate at which the amount of current flow is decreased is proportional to a rate at which the temperature increases such that the amount of current flow is decreased more quickly as the rate of temperature increases more quickly.

13. A method of facilitate control of a vehicle charging system based on a temperature at an connection exterior to the vehicle used to deliver current to the vehicle charging system, the method comprising:

determining an first temperature at the connection prior to providing current to the vehicle charging system;

determining a first amount of current required of the vehicle charging system to support a charging operation;

determining a second temperature at the connection while the first amount of current is being delivered through the connection to the vehicle charging system; and

determining whether to allow continued delivery of current through the connection to the vehicle charging system at the first amount in the event a temperature delta between the first and second temperatures is less than a predefined value.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising a controller of the vehicle charging system determining whether to allow continued delivery of current through the connection to the vehicle charging system at the first amount, the controller decreasing current delivered through the connection from the first amount to at least a second amount in the event the temperature delta exceeds the predefined value.

15. The method of claim 13 further comprising determining the temperature delta to be equal to the second temperature minus the first temperature.

16. The method of claim 13 further comprising determining the temperature delta to be equal to a rate change from the first temperature to the second temperature.

17. The method of claim 13 further comprising determining the predefined value to be a first value based on one of the first temperature being less than a first threshold, a current geographical region, and a time of day and to be a second value based on one of the first temperature exceeding the first threshold, the current geographical region, and the time of day, the second value being less than the first value.

18. A charging system comprising:

a controller operable to control a charging system used to electrically charge an storage element;

a temperature sensor operable to determine a temperature proximate an interface between the charging system and an energy source, the charging system using energy sourced from the energy source to charge the storage element; and

wherein the controller adjusts current drawn by the charging system through the interface based on the temperature.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the controller decreases current being drawn by the charging system in the event a temperature delta of the temperature as measured over time is greater than a predefined value.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein the temperature sensor is one of a negative temperature coefficient (NTC) device, a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) device, and a thermistor enclosed within a plug assembly of the charging system.