DETECTING DEVICE, DETECTING SYSTEM, POWER TRANSMITTING DEVICE, NONCONTACT POWER TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, AND DETECTING METHOD

• US 20130176023A1
• Filed: 12/14/2012
• Published: 07/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Komiyama, Shinji
• Granted Patent: US 10,330,743 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/258
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 27/2688 Measuring quality factor or dielectric loss, e.g. loss angle, or power factor power factor related to power measurements G01R21/006; testing capacitors G01R31/016
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/028 Electrodynamic magnetometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/0283 in which a current or voltage is generated due to relative movement of conductor and magnetic field
• CPC Class Codes: G01V 3/12 operating with electromagnetic waves operating with millimetre waves G01V8/005
• 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 detecting device includes a reading coil configured to read a magnetic flux generated by a detecting coil for detecting a magnetic field of an electromagnetic wave output from an exciting coil according to the magnetic field. The detecting device further includes a Q-value measuring section configured to measure a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil.

Claims

1. A detecting device comprising:

a reading coil configured to read a magnetic flux generated by a detecting coil for detecting a magnetic field of an electromagnetic wave output from an exciting coil according to the magnetic field; and

a Q-value measuring section configured to measure a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil.

2. The detecting device according to claim 1,

wherein the Q-value measuring section measures the Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a voltage value at a first time of the voltage obtained in the reading coil and a voltage value at a second time of the voltage obtained in the reading coil after passage of a predetermined time from the first time.

3. The detecting device according to claim 2,

wherein letting f be a frequency of the electromagnetic wave, letting V₁ be the voltage value at the first time (t₁), and letting V₂ be the voltage value at the second time (t₂), the Q-value is obtained by a following equation:

Q=π

f·

(t₂−

t₁)/ln(V₁/V₂)

4. The detecting device according to claim 3, further comprising

a determining section configured to determine a state of electromagnetic coupling between the exciting coil and the detecting coil by comparing the Q-value measured by the Q-value measuring section with a reference value set in advance.

5. The detecting device according to claim 4,

wherein the state of electromagnetic coupling between the exciting coil and the detecting coil, the state being determined by the determining section, is presence or absence of a circuit including a conductor or an arbitrary coil between the two coils.

6. The detecting device according to claim 1, further comprising

the exciting coil.

7. The detecting device according to claim 6, further comprising:

one coil serving both as the exciting coil and as the reading coil; and

a switching section configured to switch between a mode of using the coil as the exciting coil and a mode of using the coil as the reading coil,

wherein when the electromagnetic wave is output from the coil, the coil is used as the exciting coil by switching the switching section, and

when the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil is read on a noncontact basis, the coil is used as the reading coil by switching the switching section.

8. The detecting device according to claim 1,

wherein the reading coil detects the magnetic flux generated by a resonant circuit including the detecting coil resonating with the magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave output from a resonant circuit including the exciting coil according to the resonance.

9. A detecting system comprising:

a detecting coil configured to detect a magnetic field of an electromagnetic wave output from an exciting coil;

a reading coil configured to read a magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil according to the magnetic field; and

a Q-value measuring section configured to measure a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil.

10. The detecting system according to claim 9, further comprising

the exciting coil.

11. The detecting system according to claim 10, further comprising:

one coil serving both as the exciting coil and as the reading coil; and

a switching section configured to switch between a mode of using the coil as the exciting coil and a mode of using the coil as the reading coil;

wherein when the electromagnetic wave is output from the coil, the coil is used as the exciting coil by switching the switching section, and

when the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil is read on a noncontact basis, the coil is used as the reading coil by switching the switching section.

12. A power transmitting device comprising:

a power transmitting coil configured to output a power transmission signal used for noncontact power transmission to an outside by radio;

a power transmitting section configured to supply the power transmission signal to the power transmitting coil;

a reading coil configured to read a magnetic flux generated by a detecting coil for detecting a magnetic field of an electromagnetic wave output from the power transmitting coil according to the magnetic field; and

a Q-value measuring section configured to measure a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil.

13. The power transmitting device according to claim 12, further comprising

an exciting coil,

wherein the detecting coil detects the magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave output from the exciting coil.

14. The power transmitting device according to claim 13,

wherein one coil serves as the power transmitting coil and the exciting coil, or as the exciting coil and the reading coil, or as the power transmitting coil, the exciting coil and the reading coil.

15. A noncontact power transmission system comprising:

a power transmitting device; and

a power receiving device configured to receive power transmitted from the power transmitting device by radio,

the power transmitting device including

a power transmitting coil configured to output a power transmission signal used for noncontact power transmission to an outside by radio,

a power transmitting section configured to supply the power transmission signal to the power transmitting coil,

a reading coil configured to read a magnetic flux generated by a detecting coil for detecting a magnetic field of an electromagnetic wave output from the power transmitting coil according to the magnetic field, and

a Q-value measuring section configured to measure a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil, and

the power receiving device including

a power receiving coil used to receive the power transmission signal output from the power transmitting device, and

the detecting coil configured to receive the magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave output from the power transmitting device, and generate the magnetic flux according to the magnetic field.

16. The noncontact power transmission system according to claim 15, further comprising

an exciting coil,

wherein the detecting coil detects the magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave output from the exciting coil.

17. The noncontact power transmission system according to claim 16,

wherein in the power transmitting device, one coil serves as the power transmitting coil and the exciting coil, or as the exciting coil and the reading coil, or as the power transmitting coil, the exciting coil and the reading coil, and

in the power receiving device, one coil serves as the power receiving coil and the detecting coil.

18. A detecting method comprising:

outputting an electromagnetic wave from an exciting coil;

reading a magnetic flux generated by a detecting coil for detecting a magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave output from the exciting coil according to the magnetic field by a reading coil; and

measuring a Q-value of the detecting coil on a basis of a temporal transition of oscillation of a voltage obtained in the reading coil according to the magnetic flux generated by the detecting coil by a Q-value measuring section.