Vehicle-mounted power source apparatus

• US 9,809,126 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2013
• Issued: 11/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakazawa, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): TSO, EDWARD H
• Application Number:
  US14/438,760
• Publication Number:
  US 20150291052A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,482 Days
• Field of Search: 320101, 320103, 320104, 320109, 320141, 136291, 136293
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/14 Boost converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/80 Time limits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0046 relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• 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 50/52 characterised by DC-motors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/20 having different nominal voltages
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 8/003 Converting light into electric energy, e.g. by using photo-voltaic systems
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/03 for supply of electrical power to vehicle subsystems or for circuit arrangements for charging batteries H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/46 for ICE-powered road vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0013 acting upon several batteries simultaneously or sequentially H02J7/1423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/35 with light sensitive cells
• 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

Abstract

In the present invention, when charging both a high-voltage battery and a low-voltage battery by means of electrical power obtained by means of solar generation, by means of prioritizing the charging of the low-voltage battery over the charging of the high-voltage battery, a decrease in charging efficiency of the battery overall is suppressed. The vehicle-mounted power source device charges batteries by means of electrical power obtained by means of solar generation. A solar panel converts sunlight into electrical power. A DC/DC boost converter boosts the power converted by the solar panel. A control unit causes switching in a manner so that the high-voltage battery is charged by the electrical power boosted by the DC/DC boost converter when charging the low-voltage battery by means of the power converted by the solar panel and the amount of accumulated electrical power accumulated at the low-voltage battery is at least a predetermined value.

Claims

1. A vehicle-mounted power source apparatus that charges a battery with electrical power obtained by solar power generation, the apparatus comprising:

a low voltage battery;

a high voltage battery that stores electrical power having a voltage higher than the low voltage battery;

a solar panel that converts sunlight into electrical power;

a buck-boost section that boosts or steps down the voltage of the electrical power obtained through the conversion by the solar panel;

a boost section that boosts the voltage of the electrical power boosted or stepped down by the buck-boost section; and

a control section that charges the low voltage battery with the electrical power boosted or stepped down by the buck-boost section, and that performs switching so as to charge the high voltage battery with the electrical power boosted by the boost section when the amount of electrical power stored in the low voltage battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.

2. The vehicle-mounted power source apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control section performs the switching while a vehicle stops, and the control section charges, while the vehicle travels, the high voltage battery with the electrical power boosted by the boost section, and performs switching so as to charge the low voltage battery with the electrical power obtained through the conversion by the solar panel when the amount of electrical power stored in the high voltage battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.

3. The vehicle-mounted power source apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the amount of electrical power stored in the low voltage battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the control section performs switching so as to cause the electrical power stored in the low voltage battery to be boosted by the boost section, and to charge the high voltage battery.

4. The vehicle-mounted power source apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the low voltage battery consists of a first low voltage battery and a second low voltage battery, the first low voltage battery being configured to supply the stored electric power to a load, and

the control section performs switching so as to cause the electrical power stored in the second low voltage battery to be boosted by the boost section, and to charge the high voltage battery when the amount of electrical power stored in the second low voltage battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, and the control section performs switching so as to charge the first low voltage battery with the electrical power boosted or stepped down by the buck-boost section, while the switching that causes the electrical power stored in the second low voltage battery to be boosted by the boost section and that charges the high voltage battery is performed.

5. The vehicle-mounted power source apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising protection switches that are respectively provided between the buck-boost section and the first low voltage battery, between the buck-boost section and the second low voltage battery, and between the buck-boost section and the boost section, wherein

the boost section acquires electrical power stored in the low voltage battery not via the protection switches.

6. The vehicle-mounted power source apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the control section charges the first low voltage battery with the electrical power boosted or stepped down by the buck-boost section, and performs switching so as to charge the second low voltage battery with the electrical power boosted or stepped down by the buck-boost section, when the amount of electrical power stored in the first low voltage battery is equal to or greater than a predetermined value.