VEHICLE BATTERY CHARGER

• US 20130134936A1
• Filed: 11/23/2012
• Published: 05/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Proterial Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Cable Limited (Proterial Ltd.)
• Inventors: KANEYASU, Masayoshi, YANAGISAWA, Hiroyuki, KAI, Takafumi, ITO, Hiroyuki
• Granted Patent: US 9,481,324 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/109
• 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 3/12 Recording operating variables ; Monitoring of operating variables
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/18 Cables specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/00 Electric or fluid circuits specially adapted for vehicles and not otherwise provided for; Arrangement of elements of electric or fluid circuits specially adapted for vehicles and not otherwise provided for devices for protecting vehicle occupants in case of accidents B60R21/00; safety belts B60R22/00; central door locking E05B49/00, E05B77/50
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

A vehicle battery charger for charging a vehicle that is operable to detect a disengagement of a connecter or a preparing operation of the disengagement of the connector by a change in an electric current value of an electric current output from a terminal of the connecter and to stop charging a storage battery of the vehicle upon the detection includes a charging device configured to charge the vehicle, and a simulation operation device configured to change the electric current value by switching a pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter in a state that the connecter is in engagement and the preparing operation of the disengagement of the connecter is not carried out so as to cause the vehicle to stop charging the storage battery.

Claims

1. A vehicle battery charger for charging a vehicle that is operable to detect a disengagement of a connecter or a preparing operation of the disengagement of the connector by a change in an electric current value of an electric current output from a terminal of the connecter and to stop charging a storage battery of the vehicle upon the detection, comprising:

a charging device configured to charge the vehicle; and

a simulation operation device configured to change the electric current value by switching a pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter in a state that the connecter is in engagement and the preparing operation of the disengagement of the connecter is not carried out so as to cause the vehicle to stop charging the storage battery.

2. The vehicle battery charger according to claim 1, wherein the simulation operation device is configured to cause the vehicle to detect the disengagement of the connecter by blocking the pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter.

3. The vehicle battery charger according to claim 1, wherein the simulation operation device is configured to cause the vehicle to detect the preparing operation of the disengagement of the connecter by switching the pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter such that the electric current value of the electric current is equal to the electric current value obtained when the preparing operation has been carried out.

4. The vehicle battery charger according to claim 1, wherein the simulation operation device is capable of selecting blocking the pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter, or switching the pathway of the electric current output from the terminal of the connecter such that the electric current value of the electric current is equal to the electric current value obtained when the preparing operation has been carried out.