Electricity storage device, method of controlling electricity storage device, charging device, method of controlling charging device, and wireless connection setting system

• US 9,781,552 B2
• Filed: 01/20/2017
• Issued: 10/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Toya, Shoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): TRANDAI, CINDY HUYEN
• Application Number:
  US15/411,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20170230783A1
• Time in Patent Office: 256 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 for charging batteries from ac mains by converters
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

An electricity storage device includes a storage battery charged by a charging device, a first connector that detachably connects the electricity storage device with the charging device, a first communicator that performs wireless communication with an information terminal, a second communicator that performs wired communication with the charging device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via the first connector, and a controller that causes, when the first communicator receives, from the information terminal, a wireless setting value for the charging device to establish wireless connection to a specific access point, the second communicator to transmit the wireless setting value to the charging device.

Claims

1. An electric storage device comprising:

a storage battery charged by a charging device;

a first connector that detachably connects the electricity storage device including the storage battery with the charging device;

a first communicator that performs wireless communication with an information terminal;

a second communicator that performs wired communication with the charging device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via the first connector; and

a controller that causes, when the first communicator receives, from the information terminal, a wireless setting value for the charging device to establish wireless connection to a specific access point, the second communicator to transmit the wireless setting value to the charging device.

2. The electric storage device according to claim 1, wherein the first communicator is a communicator that performs Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy (BLE) communication.

3. The electric storage device according to claim 1, wherein when the second communicator receives information on the specific access point from the charging device, the controller causes the first communicator to transmit the information on the specific access point to the information terminal.

4. A method comprising:

receiving a wireless setting value for a charging device to establish wireless connection to a specific access point, from an information terminal via a first communicator which is provided in an electricity storage device, and is performing wireless communication with the information terminal; and

transmitting the wireless setting value to the charging device via a second communicator which is provided in the electricity storage device, and is performing wired communication with the charging device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via a first connector that detachably connects the electricity storage device with the charging device.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the first communicator is a communicator that performs Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy (BLE) communication.

6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising:

receiving information on the specific access point from the charging device via the second communicator; and

transmitting the information on the specific access point to the information terminal via the first communicator.

7. A charging device comprising:

a charger that charges an electricity storage device by supplying electric power to the electricity storage device;

a second connector that detachably connects the charging device including the charger with the electricity storage device;

a third communicator that performs wired communication with the electricity storage device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via the second connector;

a fourth communicator that performs wireless communication with an access point; and

a controller that causes, when the third communicator receives, from the electricity storage device, a wireless setting value for the charging device to establish wireless connection to a specific access point, the fourth communicator to establish the wireless connection to the specific access point using the wireless setting value.

8. The charging device according to claim 7, wherein the fourth communicator is a communicator that performs Wi-Fi (registered trademark) communication.

9. The charging device according to claim 7, wherein the controller causes, when the fourth communicator receives information on the specific access point from the specific access point, the third communicator to transmit the information on the specific access point to the electricity storage device.

10. A method comprising:

receiving a wireless setting value from an electricity storage device via a third communicator which is provided in a charging device, and is performing wired communication with the electricity storage device at a time when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via a second connector that detachably connects the charging device and the electricity storage device; and

causing a fourth communicator to establish the wireless connection to the specific access point using the wireless setting value, the fourth communicator provided in the charging device, and performing wireless communication with an access point.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the fourth communicator is a communicator that performs Wi-Fi (registered trademark) communication.

12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

receiving information on the specific access point from the specific access point via the fourth communicator; and

transmitting the information on the specific access point to the electricity storage device via the third communicator.

13. A system comprising:

a charging device; and

an electricity storage device attached to the charging device, wherein

the electricity storage device includes;

a storage battery charged by the charging device;

a first connector that detachably connects the electricity storage device including the storage battery with the charging device;

a first communicator that performs wireless communication with an information terminal;

a second communicator that performs wired communication with the charging device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via the first connector; and

a first controller that causes, when the first communicator receives, from the information terminal, a wireless setting value for the charging device to establish wireless connection to a specific access point, the second communicator to transmit the wireless setting value to the charging device, and

the charging device includes;

a charger that charges the electricity storage device by supplying electric power to the electricity storage device;

a second connector that detachably connects the charging device including the charger with the electricity storage device;

a third communicator that performs wired communication with the electricity storage device when the electricity storage device is attached to the charging device via the second connector;

a fourth communicator that performs wireless communication with an access point; and

a second controller that causes, when the third communicator receives the wireless setting value from the electricity storage device, the fourth communicator to establish the wireless connection to the specific access point using the wireless setting value.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein power consumption of the first communicator is smaller than power consumption of the fourth communicator.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein

the first communicator is a communicator that performs Bluetooth (registered trademark) low energy (BLE) communication, and

the fourth communicator is a communicator that performs Wi-Fi (registered trademark) communication.

16. The system according to claim 13, wherein

when the fourth communicator receives information on the specific access point from the specific access point, the second controller causes the third communicator to transmit the information on the specific access point to the electricity storage device, and

when the second communicator receives the information on the specific access point from the charging device, the first controller causes the first communicator to transmit the information on the specific access point to the information terminal.