Wireless power feeding method

• US 9,991,752 B1
• Filed: 11/17/2017
• Issued: 06/05/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tani, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Kessie, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US15/815,767
• Publication Number:
  US 20180159381A1
• Time in Patent Office: 200 Days
• Field of Search: 307104
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 21/00 Arrangements for measuring electric power or power factor G01R7/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/23 characterised by the type of transmitting antennas, e.g. directional array antennas or Yagi antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment

Abstract

A direction of the first power transmission antenna is detected in a power transmission stop state from the slave power transmission apparatus after detection of a power reception apparatus, by using a master power transmission apparatus including a first power transmission device and a first power transmission antenna and a slave power transmission apparatus including a second power transmission device and a plurality of the second power transmission antennas, a second power transmission antenna in which an amount of electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum is detected in the power transmission stop state from the master power transmission apparatus, and a phase of at least one power transmission radio wave of the master power transmission apparatus and the slave power transmission apparatus is adjusted to a phase in which the amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum.

Claims

1. A wireless power feeding method for transmitting electric power to one power reception apparatus by a plurality of power transmission apparatuses using a wireless power feeding system, in which the plurality of the power transmission apparatuses are configured with a master power transmission apparatus including a first power transmission device and a first power transmission antenna connected to the first power transmission device and a slave power transmission apparatus including a second power transmission device and a plurality of second power transmission antennas connected to the second power transmission device, the method comprising:

a first step of detecting the power reception apparatus within a power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus by the master power transmission apparatus;

a second step of detecting a direction of the first power transmission antenna of the master power transmission apparatus in which an amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum, by performing power transmission from the master power transmission apparatus to the power reception apparatus, while changing a direction of the first power transmission antenna, in a state where the power transmission from the slave power transmission apparatus is stopped;

a third step of detecting one of the plurality of the second power transmission antennas of the slave power transmission apparatus in which the amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum, by performing the power transmission from the slave power transmission apparatus to the power reception apparatus while sequentially switching the plurality of the second power transmission antennas one by one by stopping the power transmission from the master power transmission apparatus;

a fourth step of adjusting a phase of at least one radio wave transmitted from the master power transmission apparatus and the slave power transmission apparatus to a phase in which the amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum, while performing the power transmission from both the first power transmission antenna and the detected second power transmission antenna to the power reception apparatus; and

a fifth step of transmitting the electric power from both the first power transmission antenna and the detected second power transmission antenna to the power reception apparatus based on the adjusted phase.

2. The wireless power feeding method of claim 1,

wherein the plurality of the power transmission apparatuses are configured with one master power transmission apparatus that is the master power transmission apparatus, a first slave power transmission apparatus that is the slave power transmission apparatus, and a second slave power transmission apparatus that is the slave power transmission apparatus different from the first slave power transmission apparatus,

after the second step, in the first slave power transmission apparatus, detection of the second power transmission antenna of the first slave power transmission apparatus in which the amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum is performed in the third step and the phase adjustment is performed in the fourth step,

before the fifth step, in the second slave power transmission apparatus, detection of the second power transmission antenna of the second slave power transmission apparatus in which the amount of the electric power received by the power reception apparatus becomes maximum is performed again in the third step, and the phase adjustment is performed in the fourth step, and

in the fifth step, the power transmission is performed in the master power transmission apparatus, the first slave power transmission apparatus, and the second slave power transmission apparatus at the same time.

3. The wireless power feeding method of claim 1,

wherein in the first step, when it is detected that a plurality of the power reception apparatuses are present within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus by detecting the power reception apparatus within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus by the master power transmission apparatus,

the second to fourth steps are sequentially performed with respect to each of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses, and

in the fifth step, the power transmission is sequentially performed with respect to each of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses based on a phase adjustment result of each of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses.

4. The wireless power feeding method of claim 2,

wherein in the first step, when it is detected that the plurality of the power reception apparatuses are present within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus by detecting the power reception apparatus within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus by the master power transmission apparatus,

the second to fourth steps are performed with respect to each of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses, and

in the fifth step, the power transmission is sequentially performed with respect to each of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses based on a phase adjustment result of each of the plurality of power reception apparatuses.

5. The wireless power feeding method of claim 3,

wherein in the second step, the master power transmission apparatus detects power reception information of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus, and

in the fifth step, an order of transmitting the electric power is determined based on the detected power reception information of the power reception apparatus in the second step.

6. The wireless power feeding method of claim 4,

wherein in the second step, the master power transmission apparatus detects power reception information of the plurality of the power reception apparatuses within the power transmission range of the master power transmission apparatus, and

in the fifth step, an order of transmitting the electric power is determined based on the detected power reception information of the power reception apparatus in the second step.