Electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit, power transmission apparatus, contactless power transmission system, and electromagnetically-coupled state detection method

• US 9,806,769 B2
• Filed: 04/10/2012
• Issued: 10/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nakano, Hiroaki, Murakami, Tomomichi, Fukuda, Shinichi, Kozakai, Osamu, Fujimaki, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Barnie, Rexford
• Assistant Examiner(s): Willoughby, Terrence
• Application Number:
  US14/116,004
• Publication Number:
  US 20140077617A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,030 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/124 Detection or removal of foreign bodies
• 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: 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 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

An electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit including a detection unit that measures a primary side Q value of a circuit containing a primary side coil electromagnetically coupled with a secondary side coil and power transmission efficiency to the secondary side coil, corrects the power transmission efficiency based on the Q value of the primary side coil, and detects a state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil based on an obtained corrected value of the power transmission efficiency.

Claims

1. An electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit comprising circuitry that:

measures a primary side Q value of a power transmission circuit containing a primary side coil;

generates a power transmission efficiency value for the power transmission circuit,

generates a corrected power transmission efficiency value based on the primary side Q value, and

determines a state of electromagnetic coupling of the primary side coil with a conductor based on the corrected power transmission efficiency value, the circuitry determining the state of electromagnetic coupling of the primary side coil with the conductor by comparing the corrected power transmission efficiency value with a predetermined threshold value.

2. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 1, wherein whether the conductor is present adjacent the primary side coil is determined by detecting the state of electromagnetic coupling with the primary side coil.

3. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 2, wherein the primary side Q value is a Q value of a resonance circuit containing the primary side coil and a capacitor.

4. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 3, wherein the circuitry includes:

a Q value operation unit that acquires a first voltage applied to between the primary side coil of the resonance circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor and the capacitor and a second voltage applied to between both ends of the primary side coil, and calculates the primary side Q value from a ratio of the first voltage to the second voltage,

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

5. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 3, wherein the detection circuitry includes

a Q value operation unit that calculates the primary side Q value using a half-power band width method that determines the Q value from a band where impedance is √

2 times an absolute value of the impedance at a resonance frequency of a series resonant circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor,

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

6. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 3, further comprising:

a Q value operation unit that calculates the primary side Q value using a half-power band width method that determines the Q value from a band where impedance is 1/√

2 times an absolute value of the impedance at a resonance frequency of a parallel resonant circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor;

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

7. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 3, further comprising:

a Q value operation unit that determines a real part and an imaginary part of impedance of the resonance circuit using a self-balancing bridge circuit and a vector ratio detector, and calculates the primary side Q value from a ratio thereof.

8. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 4, wherein the power transmission efficiency is a ratio of primary side power as a product of an induced voltage and an induced current of the primary side coil to a secondary side power as a product of an induced voltage and an induced current of a secondary side coil.

19. The electromagnetically-coupled state detection circuit according to claim 1, wherein the conductor is a secondary coil of a secondary side power receiving circuit.

9. A power transmission apparatus comprising:

a power transmission circuit including a primary side coil; and

detection circuitry,

wherein, the detection circuitry includes circuitry to

measure a primary side Q value of the power transmission circuit including the primary side coil,

generate a first power transmission efficiency value for the power transmission circuit,

generate a corrected power transmission efficiency value based on the primary side Q value of the primary side coil, and

determine a state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil with a conductor based on the corrected power transmission efficiency value by comparing the corrected power transmission efficiency with a predetermined threshold power transmission efficiency value.

10. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether the conductor is present near the primary side coil is determined by detecting the state of electromagnetic coupling with the primary side coil.

11. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the measured primary side Q value is a Q value of a resonance circuit containing the primary side coil and a capacitor.

12. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the detection circuitry includes

a Q value operation unit that acquires a first voltage applied to between the primary side coil of the resonance circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor and the capacitor, and a second voltage applied to between both ends of the primary side coil, and calculates the primary side Q value from a ratio of the first voltage to the second voltage,

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

13. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the detection circuitry includes

a Q value operation unit that calculates the primary side Q value using a half-power band width method that determines the Q value from a band where impedance is √

2 times an absolute value of the impedance at a resonance frequency of a series resonant circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor,

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

14. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a Q value operation unit that calculates the primary side Q value using a half-power band width method that determines the Q value from a band where impedance is 1/√

2 times an absolute value of the impedance at a resonance frequency of a parallel resonant circuit containing the primary side coil and the capacitor;

a corrected value operation unit that calculates a corrected value according to a formula below

15. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a Q value operation unit that determines a real part and an imaginary part of impedance of the resonance circuit using a self-balancing bridge circuit and a vector ratio detector, and calculates the primary side Q value from a ratio thereof.

16. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the power transmission efficiency is a ratio of primary side power as a product of an induced voltage and an induced current of the primary side coil to secondary side power as a product of an induced voltage and an induced current of a secondary side coil.

20. The power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the conductor is a secondary coil of a secondary side power receiving unit.

17. A contactless power transmission system comprising:

a power transmission apparatus that wirelessly transmits power; and

a power receiving apparatus that receives the power from the power transmission apparatus,

wherein the power receiving apparatus includes

a secondary side coil electromagnetically coupled with a primary side coil of the power transmission apparatus, and

a secondary side communication unit that communicates with the power transmission apparatus, and

wherein the power transmission apparatus includes

the primary side coil electromagnetically coupled with the secondary side coil of the power receiving apparatus,

a primary side communication unit that communicates with the power receiving apparatus,

a detection unit that measures a primary side Q value of a circuit containing the primary side coil and power transmission efficiency to the secondary side coil based on information about the power receiving apparatus received by the primary side communication unit, corrects the power transmission efficiency based on the Q value of the primary side coil, and detects a state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil based on an obtained corrected value of the power transmission efficiency, and

determines the state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil by comparing the corrected value calculated by the corrected value operation unit with a threshold set based on a corrected value measured in advance when no conductor is present near the primary side coil.

18. An electromagnetically-coupled state detection method comprising:

measuring a primary side Q value of a circuit containing a primary side coil electromagnetically coupled with a secondary side coil and power transmission efficiency to the secondary side coil;

correcting the power transmission efficiency based on the Q value of the primary side coil and detecting a state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil based on an obtained corrected value of the power transmission efficiency, and

determining the state of electromagnetic coupling with the secondary side coil by comparing the corrected value calculated by the corrected value operation unit with a threshold set based on a corrected value measured in advance when no conductor is present near the primary side coil.