Wireless power transfer device with foreign object detection, system, and method for performing the same

• US 10,020,693 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2017
• Issued: 07/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nakano, Hiroaki, Kozakai, Osamu, Komiyama, Shinji, Fujimaki, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Barnie, Rexford
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHIAO, DAVID A
• Application Number:
  US15/649,726
• Publication Number:
  US 20180006505A1
• Time in Patent Office: 361 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/36 Temperature of vehicle components or parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/12 Inductive energy transfer
• 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 53/124 Detection or removal of foreign bodies
• 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 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/665 Methods related to measuring, billing or payment
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 38/14 Inductive couplings for wireless supply or distribution of electric power using inductive coupling H02J50/10
• 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 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/75 for isolation purposes
• 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 10/72 : Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 : Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 : Plug-in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 : Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/167 : Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for detecting the presence of undesirable foreign matter in a region between a wireless power transmission apparatus and a power reception apparatus are described. First and second detection methods, based on different detection schemes, may be used to detect and distinguish the presence of foreign matter from misalignment during power transfer operation. A first detection method may be used before power is transferred to a load in a power reception apparatus, and a second detection method may be used while power is supplied to the load.

Claims

1. A power reception apparatus comprising:

a power receiver configured to wirelessly receive transmissions of electrical power from a power transmission apparatus, the power reception apparatus is configured to send a threshold Q-value to the power transmission apparatus after receiving one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus,

wherein the threshold Q-value is a quality factor of the power receiver that is measurable when no foreign matter is near the power receiver, the power reception apparatus is configured to store the threshold Q-value prior to receiving the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

2. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a load configured to use the electrical power,

wherein the load is a battery.

3. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is an electric vehicle, a home electronic appliance, or a mobile phone.

4. The power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electrical power is used to calculate a power loss, the power loss indicates an amount of the electrical power that has been lost during any of the transmissions.

5. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said one of the transmissions occurs before an occurrence of another of the transmissions.

6. The power reception apparatus of claim 5, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to measure an amount of the electrical power received from the power transmission apparatus during said another of the transmissions.

7. The power reception apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

a load configured to use the electrical power, wherein the electrical power is supplied to the load before the occurrence of said another of the transmissions.

8. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to receive the transmissions when the threshold Q-value is less than a measured Q-value of the power reception apparatus.

9. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to receive the transmissions based on a result of a foreign matter detection method that detects a presence of the foreign matter or an absence of the foreign matter by electronically comparing a threshold value with a power loss calculated by efficiency measuring circuitry.

10. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to receive the transmissions when the threshold Q-value is less than a measured Q-value of the power reception apparatus.

11. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to receive the transmissions based on a result of a foreign matter detection method that detects a presence of the foreign matter or an absence of the foreign matter by electronically comparing the threshold Q-value with a measured quality factor of the power receiving apparatus.

12. The power receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to receive the transmissions based on a result of a foreign matter detection method that detects a presence of the foreign matter or an absence of the foreign matter by electronically comparing a threshold value with a power loss calculated by efficiency measuring circuitry.

13. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to store a resonance frequency of the power receiver.

14. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to send a notification to a user of the power reception apparatus when said one of the transmissions is abnormal.

15. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to send a notification to the power transmission apparatus when the power reception apparatus detects a foreign matter between the power transmission apparatus and the power reception apparatus.

16. The power reception apparatus of claim 1, wherein the power reception apparatus is configured to send a measured Q-value to the power transmission apparatus after receiving said one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

17. The power reception apparatus of claim 16, wherein the measured Q-value is a quality factor of the power receiver that is measurable after the power receiver begins receiving the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

18. The power reception apparatus of claim 16, wherein the measured Q-value is a quality factor of the power receiver that is measurable during a different one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

19. A method for controlling electrical power supplied to a load of a power reception apparatus, the method comprising:

a step of electrically, by the power reception apparatus, measuring a quality factor of a power receiver when no foreign matter is near the power receiver to measure a threshold Q-value;

a step of storing, in the power reception apparatus, the threshold Q-value after the step of electrically measuring the quality factor of the power receiver when no foreign matter is near the power receiver;

a step of wirelessly, by the power receiver, receiving transmissions of the electrical power from a power transmission apparatus after the step of storing the threshold Q-value in the power reception apparatus; and

a step of sending the threshold Q-value from the power reception apparatus to the power transmission apparatus in response to the power receiver receiving one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the load is a battery.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the power reception apparatus is an electric vehicle, a home electronic appliance, or a mobile phone.

22. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

a step of measuring, by the power reception apparatus, an amount of the electrical power received from the power transmission apparatus during said one of the transmissions and another of the transmissions.

23. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

a step of sending a notification from the power reception apparatus to a user of the power reception apparatus when said one of the transmissions is abnormal.

24. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

a step of sending a notification from the power reception apparatus to the power transmission apparatus when the power reception apparatus detects a foreign matter between the power transmission apparatus and the power reception apparatus.

25. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

a step of sending a measured Q-value from the power reception apparatus to the power transmission apparatus after the power receiver receives said one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the measured Q-value is a quality factor of the power receiver that has been measured after the power receiver begins receiving the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the measured Q-value is a quality factor of the power receiver that has been measured during a different one of the transmissions from the power transmission apparatus.

28. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium in which a program is recorded, the program causing a controller to perform the method of claim 19.