Systems, methods, and apparatus related to wireless charging management

• US 9,626,258 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2015
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WiTricity Corporation
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Gosnell, Donald Joseph, Rodrguez-Figueroa, Hctor Rafael, Reyes, Christian Yair, Mehta, Jayal Madhukumar, Halker, Ravi, Keeling, Nicholas Athol, Kissin, Michael Le Gallais
• Primary Examiner(s): Lottich, Joshua P
• Application Number:
  US14/667,547
• Publication Number:
  US 20150278038A1
• Time in Patent Office: 756 Days
• 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 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 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/31 Charging columns specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/35 Means for automatic or assisted adjustment of the relative position of charging devices and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/62 in response to charging parameters, e.g. current, voltage or electrical charge
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/66 Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/67 Controlling two or more charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/20 using active fault-masking, e.g. by switching out faulty elements or by switching in spare elements
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• 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: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• 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 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

Various systems, methods, and apparatuses for operating a wireless charging device in an electric vehicle are disclosed. One method includes detecting a system fault indicative of one or more faults in the wireless charging device in the electric vehicle or in the transmitter. The method further includes determining a fault severity level from a plurality of fault severity levels based on a type of the system fault detected. A total number of types of system faults can be greater than a total number of the plurality of fault severity levels. The method further includes performing one or more system fault response operation based on the determined fault severity level. Each of the plurality of fault severity levels can be associated with a different set of system fault response operations.

Claims

1. A method of operating a wireless charging device in an electric vehicle, the wireless charging device configured to wirelessly receive power via a wireless field generated by a transmitter, the method comprising:

detecting a system fault indicative of one or more faults in the wireless charging device in the electric vehicle or in the transmitter;

mapping the detected system fault to a fault severity level from a plurality of fault severity levels, based on a type of the system fault detected, wherein a total number of types of detectable system faults is greater than a total number of the plurality of fault severity levels;

determining whether to notify a user of the detected system fault based on the fault severity level; and

recovering from the detected system fault without providing user notification for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

when a first fault severity level is determined, providing a notification via a user interface and clearing the fault;

when a second fault severity level is determined, clearing the fault without providing the notification;

when a third fault severity level is determined, providing the notification, receiving an input via the user interface, and clearing the fault in response to the input; and

when a fourth fault severity level is determined, providing the notification and refraining from clearing the fault.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising ignoring the system fault for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein charging or alignment is interrupted in response to a first set of severity levels, and wherein charging continues in response to a second set of severity levels, different than the first set of severity levels.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the system fault comprises at least one of:

a living object detection, a foreign object detection, or a hardware fault.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

instructing a wireless power controller to stop a charging mode in response to the system fault for a predetermined period of time including at least a first hold time; and

ignoring one or more subsequent system faults during at least the first hold time.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising instructing the wireless power controller to restart the charging mode when no system fault is detected for a first scan time after termination of the first hold time.

8. A wireless power charging device in an electric vehicle, comprising:

a receiver configured to wirelessly receive power via a wireless field generated by a transmitter;

a processor configured to;

detect a system fault indicative of one or more faults in the wireless charging device in the electric vehicle or in the transmitter;

map the detected system fault to a fault severity level from a plurality of fault severity levels based on a type of the system fault detected, wherein a total number of types of detectable system faults is greater than a total number of the plurality of fault severity levels;

determine whether to notify a user of the detected system fault based on the fault severity level; and

recover from the detected system fault without providing user notification for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

9. The device of claim 8, further comprising a user interface configured to selectively provide notifications, wherein the processor is further configured to:

when a first fault severity level is determined, provide a notification via the user interface and clear the fault;

when a second fault severity level is determined, clear the fault severity level without providing the notification;

when a third fault severity level is determined, provide the notification, receive an input via the user interface, and clear the fault severity level in response to the input; and

when a fourth fault severity level is determined, provide the notification and refrain from clearing the fault severity level.

10. The device of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to ignore the system fault for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

11. The device of claim 8, wherein the device is interrupted for charging or alignment in response to a first set of severity levels, and wherein the device continues charging in response to a second set of severity levels, different than the first set of severity levels.

12. The device of claim 8, wherein the system fault comprises at least one of:

a living object detection, a foreign object detection, or a hardware fault.

13. The device of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

instruct a wireless power controller to stop a charging mode in response to the system fault for a predetermined period of time including at least a first hold time; and

ignore one or more subsequent system faults during at least the first hold time.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to instruct the wireless power controller to restart the charging mode when no system fault is detected for a first scan time after termination of the first hold time.

15. An apparatus for operating a wireless charging device in an electric vehicle, comprising:

means for wirelessly receiving power via a wireless field generated by a transmitter;

means for detecting a system fault indicative of one or more faults in the wireless charging device in the electric vehicle or in the transmitter;

means for mapping the detected system fault to a fault severity level from a plurality of fault severity levels based on a type of the system fault detected, wherein a total number of types of detectable system faults is greater than a total number of the plurality of fault severity levels;

means for determining whether to notify a user of the detected system fault based on the determined fault severity level; and

means for recovering from the detected system fault without providing user notification for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising:

means for providing a notification via a user interface and clearing the fault when a first fault severity level is determined;

means for clearing the fault without providing the notification when a second fault severity level is determined;

means for providing the notification, receiving an input via the user interface, and clearing the fault in response to the input when a third fault severity level is determined; and

providing the notification and refraining from clearing the fault when a fourth fault severity level is determined.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising means for ignoring the system fault for at least one fault severity of fault severity levels.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein charging or alignment is interrupted in response to a first set of severity levels, and wherein charging is continued in response to a second set of severity levels, different than the first set of severity levels.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the system fault comprises at least one of:

a living object detection, a foreign object detection, or a hardware fault.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising:

means for instructing a wireless power controller to stop a charging mode in response to the system fault for a predetermined period of time including at least a first hold time; and

means for ignoring one or more subsequent system faults during at least the first hold time.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, further comprising means for instructing the wireless power controller to restart the charging mode when no system fault is detected for a first scan time after termination of the first hold time.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising code that, when executed, causes an apparatus for operating a wireless charging device in an electric vehicle to:

wirelessly receive power in the electric vehicle via a wireless field generated by a transmitter;

detect a system fault indicative of one or more faults in the wireless charging device in the electric vehicle or in the transmitter;

map the detected system fault to a fault severity level from a plurality of fault severity levels based on a type of the system fault detected, wherein a total number of types of detectable system faults is greater than a total number of the plurality of fault severity levels; and

determine whether to notify a user of the detected system fault based on the determined fault severity level; and

recover from the detected system fault without providing user notification for at least one fault severity level of the plurality of fault severity levels.

23. The medium of claim 22 further comprising code that, when executed, causes the apparatus to:

when a first fault severity level is determined, provide a notification via a user interface and clear the fault;

when a second fault severity level is determined, clear the fault without providing the notification;

when a third fault severity level is determined, provide the notification, receive an input via the user interface, and clear the fault in response to the input; and

when a fourth fault severity level is determined, provide the notification and refrain from clearing the fault.

24. The medium of claim 22, further comprising code that, when executed, causes the apparatus to ignore the system fault.

25. The medium of claim 22, wherein the apparatus is interrupted for charging or alignment in response to a first set of severity levels, and wherein the apparatus continues charging in response to a second set of severity levels, different than the first set of severity levels.

26. The medium of claim 22, wherein the system fault comprises at least one of:

a living object detection, a foreign object detection, or a hardware fault.

27. The medium of claim 22, further comprising code that, when executed, causes the apparatus to:

instruct a wireless power controller to stop a charging mode in response to the system fault for a predetermined period of time including at least a first hold time; and

ignore one or more subsequent system faults during at least the first hold time.

28. The medium of claim 27, further comprising code that, when executed, causes the apparatus to instruct the wireless power controller to restart the charging mode when no system fault is detected for a first scan time after termination of the first hold time.