CHARGER FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE

• US 20140002022A1
• Filed: 06/27/2013
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LSIS Co. Ltd. (LS Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LSIS Co. Ltd. (LS Corporation)
• Inventors: CHOI, Seung Woo
• Granted Patent: US 9,178,379 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 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/04 Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H
• 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: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00309 Overheat or overtemperature protection
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/167 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

Disclosed is a charger for an electric vehicle. The charger includes a connector connected to the electric vehicle, a plug connected to an outlet of the commercial power source, a switching unit to selectively shut off the current according to a temperature of the charger, a display unit to display information about an operation of the charger, and a control unit to control the operation of the charger, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to display two kinds of mutually different information when the current is shut off because the battery is fully charged or the connector is separated from the electric vehicle and when the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle is shut off by the switching unit. The charger is prevented from being damaged due to overheat during the charging operation for the electric vehicle.

Claims

1. A charger to supply current from a commercial power source to a battery of an electric vehicle, the charger comprising:

a connector connected to the electric vehicle;

a plug connected to an outlet of the commercial power source to supply the current for charging the battery of the electric vehicle;

a switching unit to selectively shut off the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle according to a temperature of the charger;

a display unit to display information about an operation of the charger; and

a control unit to control the operation of the charger,

wherein the control unit controls the display unit to display two kinds of mutually different information when the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle is shut off because the battery is fully charged or the connector is separated from the electric vehicle and when the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle is shut off by the switching unit.

2. The charger of claim 1, wherein the switching unit allows the current to be supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle when the temperature of the charger is less than a predetermine safety temperature and shuts off the current when the temperature of the charger is equal to or higher than the predetermine safety temperature.

3. The charger of claim 1, wherein the switching unit comprises:

a first switching unit which is turned on or off by the control unit when a charging operation for the battery is started or completed; and

a second switching unit which is turned on when the temperature of the charger is less than a predetermined safety temperature and turned off when the temperature of the charger is equal to or higher than the predetermine safety temperature.

4. The charger of claim 3, wherein the second switching unit is thermally deformed according to the temperature of the charger.

5. The charger of claim 3, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to display two kinds of mutually different information when the first switching unit is turned off and when the second switching unit is turned off.

6. The charger of claim 3, further comprising a communication unit that receives information about the start and completion of the charging operation for the battery from the electric vehicle,

wherein the control unit turns off the first switching unit when the information about the completion of the charging operation for the battery is transmitted thereto from the electric vehicle.

7. A charger to supply current from a commercial power source to a battery of an electric vehicle, the charger comprising:

a connector connected to the electric vehicle;

a plug connected to an outlet of the commercial power source to supply the current for charging the battery of the electric vehicle;

a temperature sensor to sense a temperature of the charger;

a first switching unit to selectively shut off the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle and to adjust intensity of the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle;

a control unit to control an operation of the charger; and

a display unit to display information about the operation of the charger,

wherein the control unit controls the first switching unit to adjust a value of the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle or to shut off the current according to the temperature of the charger sensed by the temperature sensor, and

the display unit displays two kinds of mutually different information when the current is supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle and when the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle is shut off.

8. The charger of claim 7, wherein the controller controls the first switching unit to allow a predetermined first current to be applied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle when the temperature of the charger sensed by the temperature sensor is less than a predetermined first safety temperature and controls the first switching unit to allow a predetermined second current to be applied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle when the temperature of the charger sensed by the temperature sensor is equal to or higher than the predetermined first safety temperature and less than a predetermined second safety temperature.

9. The charger of claim 8, wherein a current value of the second current is smaller than a current value of the first current.

10. The charger of claim 9, wherein the current value of the second current is inversely proportional to the temperature of the charger sensed by the temperature sensor.

11. The charger of claim 8, wherein the control unit controls the first switching unit to shut off the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle when the temperature of the charger sensed by the temperature sensor is equal to or higher than the second safety temperature.

12. The charger of claim 7, wherein the control unit controls the first switching unit to shut off the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle when the battery is fully charged or the connector is separated from the electric vehicle.

13. The charger of claim 8, wherein the controller controls the display unit to emit a light having a predetermined color when the temperature of the charger is less than the predetermined first safety temperature and controls the display unit to emit a light having a color different from a color reproduced as the first current is applied when the temperature of the charger is equal to or higher than the predetermined first safety temperature and less than the predetermined second safety temperature.

14. The charger of claim 8, wherein the controller controls the first switching unit to allow the current of the commercial power source to be supplied to the electric vehicle via a separate resistor when the temperature of the charger is equal to or higher than the predetermined first safety temperature and less than the predetermined second safety temperature.

15. A charger to supply current from a commercial power source to a battery of an electric vehicle, the charger comprising:

a connector connected to the electric vehicle;

a plug connected to an outlet of the commercial power source to supply the current for charging the battery of the electric vehicle;

a temperature sensor to sense a temperature of the charger;

a first switching unit to selectively shut off the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle and to adjust intensity of the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle;

a control unit to control an operation of the charger; and

a display unit to display information about the operation of the charger,

wherein the control unit controls the first switching unit to adjust a value of the current supplied from the commercial power source to the electric vehicle or to shut off the current according to the temperature of the charger sensed by temperature sensor, and

the display unit displays mutually different information according to the value of the current supplied to the electric vehicle.

16. The charger of claim 15, wherein the display unit comprises a plurality of light emitting members that display mutually different information according to a charging operation.

17. The charger of claim 16, wherein the light emitting members emit lights having mutually different colors or a number of the light emitting members to be turned on is changed according to the charging operation.