Vehicle charging equipment

• US 9,248,749 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2014
• Issued: 02/02/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Metals (Thailand) Ltd.
• Inventors: Kaneyasu, Masayoshi, Kai, Takafumi, Yanagisawa, Hiroyuki, Ito, Hiroyuki, Futatsumori, Takahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): DIAO, M BAYE
• Application Number:
  US14/151,685
• Publication Number:
  US 20140197791A1
• Time in Patent Office: 754 Days
• Field of Search: 320/109
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0023 Detecting, eliminating, remedying or compensating for drive train abnormalities, e.g. failures within the drive train
• 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 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/68 Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control
• 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 30/12 Remote or cooperative charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

A vehicle charging equipment includes a charging equipment main body, a charging cable, a charge connector to be fitted to a vehicle-side connector and having a release button, a release button circuit to which voltage is applied from the vehicle to detect depression of the release button, a winding-up device to wind up the charging cable, a fit determination means for determining the fitting of the charge connector to the vehicle-side connector, and an automatic winding-up controller. The fit determination means includes a voltage detection unit and a fit determination portion, the voltage detection unit detecting voltage applied to the release button circuit to detect depression of the release button, and the fit determination portion determining the fitting of the vehicle-side connector based on the voltage detected. The automatic winding-up controller determines removal of the charge connector from the vehicle-side connector based on the determination by the fit determination means.

Claims

1. A vehicle charging equipment, comprising:

a charging equipment main body;

a charging cable to be pulled out of the charging equipment main body;

a charge connector that is provided at a tip of the charging cable, is to be fitted to a vehicle-side connector on a vehicle and has a release button to be pressed for removal from the vehicle-side connector;

a release button circuit to which voltage is applied from the vehicle to detect depression of the release button, the release button circuit having a resistance value that varies depending on whether or not the release button is pressed;

a winding-up device on the charging equipment main body to wind up the charging cable;

a fit determination means for determining whether or not the charge connector is fitted to the vehicle-side connector; and

an automatic winding-up controller for controlling the winding-up device to wind up the charging cable,

wherein the fit determination means comprises a voltage detection unit and a fit determination portion, the voltage detection unit detecting the voltage applied to the release button circuit from the vehicle to detect depression of the release button when the charge connector is fitted to the vehicle-side connector and the fit determination portion determining, based on the voltage detected by the voltage detection unit, whether or not the charge connector is fitted to the vehicle-side connector, and

wherein the automatic winding-up controller determines removal of the charge connector from the vehicle-side connector based on the determination made by the fit determination means and causes the winding-up device to wind up the charging cable after the charge connector is removed from the vehicle-side connector.

2. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, wherein the charge connector conforms to one of SAE J1772 (trademark) and IEC 62196 part 3.

3. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, wherein the fit determination means is provided on the charging equipment main body, and

wherein the charging cable comprises at least five cores including a core wire for detecting the voltage applied to the release button circuit from the vehicle to detect depression of the release button.

4. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, further comprising a release button depression determination means that determines depression of the release button based on the voltage detected by the voltage detection unit.

5. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, further comprising a release button depression performing means that renders the release button circuit into a same circuit condition as the release button-pressed state when a remote interrupt signal is input from outside.

6. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, further comprising an alarm means that stops winding the charging cable and sets off an alarm in the event of occurrence of abnormality during winding up of the charging cable.

7. The vehicle charging equipment according to claim 1, wherein the automatic winding-up controller is configured to control the winding-up device to wind up the charging cable at a predetermined time after removal of the charge connector from the vehicle-side connector.