Mobile machine, wireless power transmission system, and wireless power transmission method

• US 9,889,757 B2
• Filed: 04/08/2016
• Issued: 02/13/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Obayashi, Shuichi, Oodachi, Noriaki, Shijo, Tetsu, Ogawa, Kenichirou
• Primary Examiner(s): Brown, Drew J
• Application Number:
  US15/094,129
• Publication Number:
  US 20160221461A1
• Time in Patent Office: 676 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 5/00 Current collectors for power supply lines of electrically-propelled vehicles current collectors in general H01R41/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/60 using power supplied by batteries in combination with fuel cells B60L50/75
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/122 Circuits or methods for driving the primary coil, e.g. supplying electric power to the coil
• 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 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60M 7/003 for vehicles using stored power (e.g. charging stations)
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/402 the two or more transmitting or the two or more receiving devices being integrated in the same unit, e.g. power mats with several coils or antennas with several sub-antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/70 involving the reduction of electric, magnetic or electromagnetic leakage fields
• 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 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• 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 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a mobile machine includes a mobile body and a plurality of power transmission resonators. The mobile body is capable of being tilted in a particular direction such that a distance between a particular part opposed to a travel surface and the travel surface is reduced. The plurality of power transmission resonators are arranged at portions of the particular part of the mobile body, heights of the portions with reference to the travel surface being approximately identical with each other in a state of the mobile body being tilted.

Claims

1. A mobile machine comprising:

a mobile body capable of being tilted in a particular direction such that a distance between a particular part opposed to a travel surface and the travel surface is reduced; and

a plurality of power transmission resonators arranged at portions of the particular part of the mobile body, heights of the portions with reference to the travel surface being approximately identical with each other in a state of the mobile body being tilted,

wherein the plurality of power transmission resonators receive electric power from a plurality of other power transmission resonators arranged on the travel surface opposed to the plurality of power transmission resonators in a state in which the mobile body is tilted in the particular direction, by coupling with induced magnetic fields from the other power transmission resonators, and phases of the induced magnetic fields radiated from the other power transmission resonators relate such that the induced magnetic fields cancel each other.

2. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the power transmission resonators are arranged in a single line in a direction approximately orthogonal to the particular direction.

3. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the particular direction is a leftward direction of the mobile machine and the particular part is a left portion of the mobile body.

4. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the particular direction is a rightward direction of the mobile machine and the particular part is a right portion of the mobile body.

5. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the particular direction is a frontward direction of the mobile machine, and the particular part is a front portion of the mobile body.

6. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the particular direction is a rearward direction of the mobile machine and the particular part is a rear portion of the mobile body.

7. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the particular part is a lower surface portion of the mobile body.

8. The mobile machine according to claim 2, wherein the power transmission resonators each include a magnetic core and a coil wound around the magnetic core, and the power transmission resonators are arranged such that a wind direction of the coil is substantially parallel to a right-left direction of the mobile machine.

9. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the power transmission resonators are arranged at a predetermined interval.

10. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the power transmission resonators are each configured to wirelessly receive electrical power from a plurality of other power transmission resonators arranged on the travel surface so as to be opposed to the power transmission resonators of the mobile machine in a state where the mobile body is tilted in the particular direction.

11. The mobile machine according to claim 10, wherein the mobile body is configured to charge a storage battery with electrical energy on the basis of the electrical power received by the power transmission resonators, and to travel using as a driving source the electrical energy stored in the storage battery.

12. The mobile machine according to claim 1, wherein the mobile machine is a vehicle.

13. The mobile machine according to claim 12, wherein the vehicle is an autobus having a kneeling function and the autobus makes a body of the autobus tilted in the particular direction by the kneeling function.

14. A wireless power transmission system comprising:

a mobile machine comprising a mobile body capable of being tilted in a particular direction such that a distance between a particular part opposed to a travel surface and the travel surface is reduced;

a plurality of first power transmission resonators arranged at portions of the particular part of the mobile body, heights of the portions with reference to the travel surface being approximately identical with each other in a state of the mobile body being tilted; and

a plurality of second power transmission resonators arranged on the travel surface so as to be opposed to the first power transmission resonators of the mobile machine, the second power transmission resonators being configured to wirelessly transmit electrical power to the first power transmission resonators by generating induced magnetic fields that couple with the first power transmission resonators,

wherein the plurality of first power transmission resonators receive electric power from the second power transmission resonators in a state in which the mobile body is tilted in the particular direction, by coupling with the induced magnetic fields from the second power transmission resonators, and phases of the induced magnetic fields radiated from the second power transmission resonators relate such that the induced magnetic fields cancel each other.

15. A wireless power transmission method comprising:

tilting a mobile machine comprising a mobile body capable of being tilted in a particular direction such that a distance between a particular part opposed to a travel surface and the travel surface is reduced;

providing a plurality of first power transmission resonators arranged at portions of the particular part of the mobile body, heights of the portions with reference to the travel surface being approximately identical with each other in a state of the mobile body being tilted wherein the mobile machine is tilted in the particular direction so that the first power transmission resonators are opposed to a plurality of second power transmission resonators arranged on the travel surface; and

wirelessly transmitting electrical power from the second power transmission resonators to the first power transmission resonators by generating induced magnetic fields that couple with the first power transmission resonators in a state of the mobile body being titled in the particular direction,

wherein the plurality of first power transmission resonators receive electric power from the second power transmission resonators in a state in which the mobile body is tilted in the particular direction, by coupling with induced magnetic fields from the second power transmission resonators, and phases of the induced magnetic fields radiated from the second power transmission resonators relate such that the induced magnetic fields cancel each other.