POWER TRANSMITTING APPARATUS, POWER RECEIVING APPARATUS, CONTROL APPARATUS, AND WIRELESS POWER TRANSFER SYSTEM

• US 20170170690A1
• Filed: 02/15/2017
• Published: 06/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: OODACHI, Noriaki, OBAYASHI, Shuichi, OTAKA, Shoji, SHOKI, Hiroki, SHIJO, Tetsu, YAMADA, Akiko, ONIZUKA, Kohei, MORITSUKA, Fumi, ISHIHARA, Hiroaki, OGAWA, Kenichirou, KUDO, Hiroki
• Granted Patent: US 10,992,181 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/36 Temperature of vehicle components or parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• 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 53/124 Detection or removal of foreign bodies
• 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 53/37 using optical position determination, e.g. using cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 4/00 Circuit arrangements for mains or distribution networks not specified as ac or dc
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer
• 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 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• 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 power transmitting apparatus including a power supply to generate AC power; a power transmitting inductor to transfer the AC power to a power receiving apparatus through magnetic coupling with a power receiving inductor in the power receiving apparatus; a mutual coupling adjusting unit to adjust a relative position between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor; and a control unit to control the mutual coupling adjusting unit based on a mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor. The control unit controls the mutual coupling adjusting unit so that the mutual coupling coefficient falls within a predetermined range and an upper limit of the predetermined range is a value less than a maximum of the mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor.

Claims

1. A power transmitting apparatus comprising:

a power supply to generate AC power;

a power transmitting inductor to transfer the AC power to a power receiving apparatus through magnetic coupling with a power receiving inductor in the power receiving apparatus;

a mutual coupling adjusting unit to adjust a relative position between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor; and

a control unit to control the mutual coupling adjusting unit based on a mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor,

wherein the control unit controls the mutual coupling adjusting unit so that the mutual coupling coefficient falls within a predetermined range and an upper limit of the predetermined range is a value less than a maximum of the mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor.

2. The power transmitting apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a communicating unit to communicate with the power receiving apparatus to obtain information on a received voltage and a received current in the power receiving apparatus,

Wherein the control unit computes the mutual coupling coefficient, based on the received voltage and the received current in the power receiving apparatus and a transmitted voltage and a transmitted current in the power transmitting apparatus.

3. A power receiving apparatus comprising:

a power receiving inductor to receive AC power through magnetic coupling with a power transmitting inductor in a power transmitting apparatus;

an adjustment circuit to supply the AC power received by the power receiving inductor, to a load;

a mutual coupling adjusting unit to adjust a relative position between the power receiving inductor and the power transmitting inductor; and

a control unit to control the mutual coupling adjusting unit, based on a mutual coupling coefficient between the power receiving inductor and the power transmitting inductor,

wherein the control unit controls the mutual coupling adjusting unit so that the mutual coupling coefficient falls within a predetermined range and an upper limit of the predetermined range is a value less than a maximum of the mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor.

4. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a communicating unit to communicate with the power transmitting apparatus to obtain information on a transmitted voltage and a transmitted current in the power transmitting apparatus,

wherein the control unit computes the mutual coupling coefficient, based on a received voltage and a received current in the power receiving apparatus and the transmitted voltage and the transmitted current in the power transmitting apparatus.

5. A control apparatus that controls a power transmitting apparatus including a power transmitting inductor, and a power receiving apparatus including a power receiving inductor to receive AC power through magnetic coupling with the power transmitting inductor, the power receiving apparatus being capable of supplying the AC power to a load, the control apparatus comprising:

a mutual coupling adjusting unit to adjust a relative position between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor; and

a control unit to control the mutual coupling adjusting unit, based on a mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor,

wherein the control unit controls the mutual coupling adjusting unit so that the mutual coupling coefficient falls within a predetermined range and an upper limit of the predetermined range is a value less than a maximum of the mutual coupling coefficient between the power transmitting inductor and the power receiving inductor.

6. The control apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control unit computes the mutual coupling coefficient, based on a received voltage and a received current in the power receiving apparatus and a transmitted voltage and a transmitted current in the power transmitting apparatus.