WIRELESS CHARGING MATS WITH MULTI-LAYER TRANSMITTER COIL ARRANGEMENTS

• US 20180090955A1
• Filed: 09/08/2017
• Published: 03/29/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Graham, Christopher S., Karanikos, Demetrios B., Jol, Eric S., Larsson, Karl Ruben F., Kowalski, Stefan A.
• Granted Patent: US 10,897,148 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/288 Shielding
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/325 Coil bobbins formers for coils in general H01F5/02
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 38/14 Inductive couplings for wireless supply or distribution of electric power using inductive coupling H02J50/10
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/402 the two or more transmitting or the two or more receiving devices being integrated in the same unit, e.g. power mats with several coils or antennas with several sub-antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/60 responsive to the presence of foreign objects, e.g. detection of living beings
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/70 involving the reduction of electric, magnetic or electromagnetic leakage fields
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0042 characterised by the mechanical construction
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/24 Inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/263 Multiple coils at either side
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 9/0007 Casings standardised racks H05K9/0062

Abstract

Embodiments describe a wireless charging device including: a housing having an outer perimeter and a charging surface within the outer perimeter, the housing including a first wall and a second wall that define an interior cavity; and a transmitter coil arrangement disposed within the interior cavity and below the planar charging surface. The transmitter coil arrangement includes: a plurality of transmitter coils arranged in different layers, each transmitter coil having a first termination end, a second termination end, and a coil of wire that winds from an inner diameter to an outer diameter between the first and second termination ends; where the first termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed within the inner diameter of its respective coil of wire and the second termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed outside the outer diameter of its respective coil of wire

Claims

1. A wireless charging device comprising:

a housing having an outer perimeter and a charging surface within the outer perimeter, the housing including a first wall and a second wall that define an interior cavity; and

a transmitter coil arrangement disposed within the interior cavity and below the planar charging surface, the transmitter coil arrangement comprising;

a plurality of transmitter coils arranged in different layers, each transmitter coil having a first termination end, a second termination end, and a coil of wire that winds from an inner diameter to an outer diameter between the first and second termination ends;

wherein the first termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed within the inner diameter of its respective coil of wire and the second termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed outside the outer diameter of its respective coil of wire.

2. The wireless charging device of claim 1, wherein the second termination end terminates in an inner diameter of another coil of wire for an adjacent transmitter coil.

3. The wireless charging device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of transmitter coils comprises a plurality of inner transmitter coils and a plurality of outer transmitter coils positioned around the inner transmitter coils.

4. The wireless charging device of claim 3, wherein the plurality of outer transmitter coils is arranged in a first radial arrangement and the plurality of inner transmitter coils is arranged in a second radial arrangement different than the first radial arrangement.

5. The wireless charging device of claim 4, wherein the first radial arrangement is such that the plurality of outer transmitter coils is oriented toward the outer perimeter of the wireless charging device.

6. The wireless charging device of claim 4, wherein the second radial arrangement is such that the plurality of inner transmitter coils is oriented in radial directions that are at an angular offset with each other.

7. The wireless charging device of claim 6, wherein the angular offset is between 50 to 70 degrees.

8. The wireless charging device of claim 1, wherein the transmitter coil arrangement includes a left-most transmitter coil and a right-most transmitter coil, and wherein the left-most transmitter coil and the right-most transmitter coil have smaller inner diameters than all other transmitter coils in the transmitter coil arrangement.

9. The wireless charging device of claim 1, wherein at least one transmitter coil is non-circular in shape, and wherein the at least one transmitter coil is in the shape of a letter “

D”

.

10. A wireless charging device comprising:

a housing having an outer perimeter and a planar charging surface within the outer perimeter of the wireless charging device, the housing including first and second shells defining an interior cavity;

a transmitter coil arrangement disposed within the interior cavity and below the planar charging surface, the transmitter coil arrangement comprising;

a plurality of transmitter coils arranged in different layers, each transmitter coil having a first region and a second region having more turns than the first region;

wherein the plurality of transmitter coils comprises a plurality of inner transmitter coils and a plurality of outer transmitter coils positioned around the inner transmitter coils;

and wherein the first regions of the outer transmitter coils are oriented toward the outer perimeter of the wireless charging device.

11. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein the first region has less turns than the second region.

12. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein the plurality of inner transmitter coils is oriented in radial directions that are at an angular offset with each other.

13. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein the angular offset is between 50 to 70 degrees.

14. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein the plurality of outer transmitter coils is a single line of transmitter coils positioned closest to the outer perimeter of the wireless charging device.

15. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein the transmitter coil arrangement includes a left-most transmitter coil and a right-most transmitter coil, and wherein the left-most transmitter coil and the right-most transmitter coil have smaller inner diameters than all other transmitter coils in the transmitter coil arrangement.

16. The wireless charging device of claim 10, wherein at least one transmitter coil is non-circular in shape, and wherein the at least one transmitter coil is in the shape of a letter “

D”

.

17. A wireless charging system, comprising:

an electrical device comprising a receiver coil configured to generate a current to charge a battery when exposed to a time-varying magnetic flux; and

a wireless charging mat configured to generate the time-varying magnetic flux to wirelessly charge the electronic device, the wireless charging mat comprising;

a housing having an outer perimeter and a charging surface within the outer perimeter, the housing including a first wall and a second wall that define an interior cavity; and

a transmitter coil arrangement disposed within the interior cavity and below the planar charging surface, the transmitter coil arrangement comprising;

a plurality of transmitter coils arranged in different layers, each transmitter coil having a first termination end, a second termination end, and a coil of wire that winds from an inner diameter to an outer diameter between the first and second termination ends;

wherein the first termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed within the inner diameter of its respective coil of wire and the second termination end of each transmitter coil is disposed outside the outer diameter of its respective coil of wire.

18. The wireless system of claim 17, wherein the second termination end terminates in an inner diameter of another coil of wire for an adjacent transmitter coil.

19. The wireless system of claim 17, wherein the plurality of transmitter coils comprises a plurality of inner transmitter coils and a plurality of outer transmitter coils positioned around the inner transmitter coils.

20. The wireless system of claim 19, wherein the plurality of outer transmitter coils is arranged in a first radial arrangement and the plurality of inner transmitter coils is arranged in a second radial arrangement different than the first radial arrangement.