Charging station and charging station guide for autonomously navigating utility vehicle
First Claim
1. A charging station for charging a battery installed on an autonomously navigating utility vehicle equipped with a prime mover powered by the battery to travel about a working area delineated by a boundary wire in order to perform work autonomously, comprising:
- a pair of charging terminals installed on the station to be spaced apart from each other via a first midpoint, the pair of charging terminals on the station being capable of connecting with a pair of charging terminals installed on the vehicle;
a first wire installed on the station at a location inside or outside of the working area and being formed as a circular shape having a center; and
a second wire installed on the station to project toward the location of the first wire, the second wire being connected to the boundary wire and being formed as a shape that is symmetrical with respect to a first center line obtained by connecting the first midpoint of the pair of charging terminals on the station and the center of the first wire.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
In a charging station for charging a battery installed on an autonomously navigating utility vehicle equipped with a prime mover powered by the battery to travel about a working area delineated by a boundary wire, there are provided with a pair of charging terminals installed on the station to be capable of connecting with a pair of charging terminals installed on the vehicle, a first wire installed on the station at a location inside of the working area and being formed as a circular shape having a center, and a second wire installed on the station to be formed as a shape that is symmetrical with respect to a center line obtained by connecting a midpoint of the terminals and the center of the first wire.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. A charging station for charging a battery installed on an autonomously navigating utility vehicle equipped with a prime mover powered by the battery to travel about a working area delineated by a boundary wire in order to perform work autonomously, comprising:
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a pair of charging terminals installed on the station to be spaced apart from each other via a first midpoint, the pair of charging terminals on the station being capable of connecting with a pair of charging terminals installed on the vehicle; a first wire installed on the station at a location inside or outside of the working area and being formed as a circular shape having a center; and a second wire installed on the station to project toward the location of the first wire, the second wire being connected to the boundary wire and being formed as a shape that is symmetrical with respect to a first center line obtained by connecting the first midpoint of the pair of charging terminals on the station and the center of the first wire. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A charging station for charging a battery installed on an autonomously navigating utility vehicle equipped with a prime mover powered by the battery to travel about a working area delineated by a boundary wire in order to perform work autonomously, the charging station comprising:
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a base having a longitudinal center line perpendicular to the boundary wire; a pair of charging terminals installed on the charging station to be spaced apart from each other via the center line, and configured to connect with a pair of charging terminals installed on the vehicle; and a first wire and a second wire installed in the base at vertically-offset levels so the first wire does not intersect with the second wire; the first wire is not connected to the boundary wire and has a circular shape, wherein a center point of first wire is aligned with the center line and is spaced from the boundary wire by a first distance; the second wire is connected to the boundary wire and has a shape that is symmetrical with respect to the center line, the second wire comprising a first wire segment and a second wire segment extending substantially perpendicular from the boundary wire, and a third wire segment that connects the first wire segment to the second wire segment; wherein the third wire segment is spaced from the boundary wire by a second distance that is less than the first distance.
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10. A charging station for charging a battery installed on an autonomously navigating utility vehicle equipped with a prime mover powered by the battery to travel about a working area delineated by a boundary wire in order to perform work autonomously, the charging station comprising:
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a base having a longitudinal center line; a pair of charging terminals installed on the charging station to be spaced apart from each other via the center line; a first wire and a second wire installed in the base at vertically-offset levels so the first wire does not intersect with the second wire; and an electric current supplier that supplies electric current to the first wire to generate a magnetic field of a first pattern around the first wire to guide the vehicle to a target position, and supplies electric current to the second wire to generate a magnetic field of a second pattern around the second wire to align the vehicle with the center line and guide the vehicle so that a pair of charging terminals installed on the vehicle connect with the charging terminals installed on the charging station.
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Specification