Wireless power reception apparatus, wireless power transmission apparatus, and wireless power transmission and reception system

• US 9,673,664 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2011
• Issued: 06/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Ichikawa, Shinji, Nakamura, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, Ryan
• Application Number:
  US14/352,916
• Publication Number:
  US 20140285030A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,049 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/2009 for braking
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/14 Synchronous machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/423 Torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/40 using propulsion power supplied by capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• 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 53/30 Constructional details of charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 7/14 for vehicles propelled by ac motors
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• 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 7/00036 : Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 : with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 : Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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
• 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

A power transmission apparatus includes a power transmission unit and a power supply unit. A wireless power reception apparatus includes a power reception unit capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from the power transmission unit, and a control unit performing control for positional alignment between the power reception unit and the power transmission unit and for reception of electric power after the positional alignment. The magnitude of electric power received by the power reception unit from the power transmission unit is used for positional alignment between the power reception unit and the power transmission unit. The control unit sets a parameter of a power transmission and reception path so that a power receivable range that can be received by the power reception unit at any time while positional alignment is done is wider than that when electric power is received after the positional alignment.

Claims

1. A wireless power reception apparatus for wirelessly receiving electric power transferred from a power transmission apparatus, the power transmission apparatus including a power transmitter and a power supply supplying AC power to the power transmitter, the wireless power reception apparatus comprising:

a power receiver capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from the power transmitter; and

a controller performing positional alignment between the power receiver and the power transmitter, the controller;

performing a first adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receiver at respective predetermined position;

performing a second adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receiver at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where the power transmitter and the power receiver are arranged by the first adjustment; and

setting an impedance of the power transmitter or the power receive so that a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the second adjustment is performed.

2. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

before an amount of misalignment due to positional misalignment between the power receiver and the power transmitter becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the controller sets the impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that a transfer efficiency from the power transmitter to the power receiver exhibits a first characteristic and,

after the amount of misalignment becomes equal to or less than the predetermined value, the controller sets the impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that the transfer efficiency from the power transmitter to the power receiver exhibits a second characteristic providing improved sensitivity to positional misalignment in a narrower range, relative to the first characteristic.

3. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the first characteristic is that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when the power receiver and the power transmitter are arranged with a central axis of the power receiver and a central axis of the power transmitter positionally misaligned with respect to each other in a horizontal direction, and

the second characteristic is that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when the power receiver and the power transmitter are arranged with the central axis of the power receiver and the central axis of the power transmitter positionally coincident with each other in the horizontal direction.

4. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the power transmission apparatus or the wireless power reception apparatus further comprises an impedance adjuster for changing a characteristic of the power transmitter or the power receiver, and

the controller instructs the impedance adjuster to switch the transfer efficiency from the first characteristic to the second characteristic.

5. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the power transmission apparatus further comprises a positional alignment mechanism moving the position of the power transmitter, and

the controller instructs the positional alignment mechanism to make an adjustment by moving the position of the power transmitter in a direction of travel of a vehicle and thereafter make an adjustment by moving the position of the power transmitter in a right-and-left direction of the vehicle.

6. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power receiver is configured so that a difference in natural frequency between the power receiver and the power transmitter is within ±

10%.

7. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a coupling coefficient between the power receiver and the power transmitter is 0.1 or less.

8. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power transmitter transmits electric power to the power receiver through at least one of a magnetic field formed between the power receiver and the power transmitter that oscillates at a specific frequency, and an electric field formed between the power receiver and the power transmitter that oscillates at a specific frequency.

9. A wireless power transmission apparatus for wirelessly transmitting electric power to a power reception apparatus, the power reception apparatus including a power receiver and an electrical load apparatus receiving electric power from the power receiver, the wireless power transmission apparatus comprising:

a power transmitter capable of wirelessly transmitting electric power to the power receiver;

a power supply supplying AC power to the power transmitter; and

a controller performing positional alignment between the power receiver and the power transmitter, the controller;

performing a first adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receive at respective predetermined positions;

performing a second adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receiver at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where the power transmitter and the power receiver are arranged by the first adjustment; and

setting an impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the second adjustment is performed.

10. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

before an amount of misalignment due to positional misalignment between the power receiver and the power transmitter becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, the controller sets the impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that a transfer efficiency from the power transmitter to the power receiver exhibits a first characteristic and,

after the amount of misalignment becomes equal to or less than the predetermined value, the controller sets the impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that the transfer efficiency from the power transmitter to the power receiver exhibits a second characteristic providing improved sensitivity to positional misalignment in a narrower range, relative to the first characteristic.

11. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

the first characteristic is that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when the power receiver and the power transmitter are arranged with a central axis of the power receiver and a central axis of the power transmitter positionally misaligned with respect to each other in a horizontal direction, and

the second characteristic is that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when the power receiver and the power transmitter are arranged with the central axis of the power receiver and the central axis of the power transmitter positionally coincident with each other in the horizontal direction.

12. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

the wireless power transmission apparatus or the power reception apparatus further comprises an impedance adjuster for changing a characteristic of the power transmitter or the power receiver, and

the controller instructs the impedance adjuster to switch the transfer efficiency from the first characteristic to the second characteristic.

13. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

the wireless power transmission apparatus further comprises a positional alignment mechanism moving the position of the power transmitter, and

the controller instructs the positional alignment mechanism to make an adjustment by moving the position of the power transmitter in a direction of travel of a vehicle and thereafter make an adjustment by moving the position of the power transmitter in a right-and-left direction of the vehicle.

14. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the power transmitter is configured so that a difference in natural frequency between the power transmitter and the power receiver is within ±

10%.

15. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a coupling coefficient between the power receiver and the power transmitter is 0.1 or less.

16. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the power receiver receives electric power from the power transmitter through at least one of a magnetic field formed between the power receiver and the power transmitter that oscillates at a specific frequency, and an electric field formed between the power receiver and the power transmitter that oscillates at a specific frequency.

17. A wireless power transmission and reception system comprising:

a wireless power transmission apparatus, including;

a power transmitter; and

a power supply supplying AC power to the power transmitter;

a wireless power reception apparatus for wirelessly receiving electric power transferred from the wireless power transmission apparatus, the wireless power reception apparatus including;

a power receiver capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from the power transmitter; and

an electrical load apparatus using electric power received by the power receive; and

a controller performing positional alignment between the power receiver and the power transmitter, the controller;

performing a first adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receiver at respective predetermined positions;

performing a second adjustment for arranging the power transmitter and the power receiver at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where the power transmitter and the power receiver are arranged by the first adjustment; and

setting an impedance of the power transmitter or the power receiver so that a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by the power receiver when the second adjustment is performed.