Power receiver and power transmitting system

• US 10,177,605 B2
• Filed: 04/05/2017
• Issued: 01/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Shimokawa, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Deberadinis, Robert
• Application Number:
  US15/479,582
• Publication Number:
  US 20170207667A1
• Time in Patent Office: 643 Days
• 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 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• 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: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer

Abstract

A power receiver includes: a first secondary-side resonant coil that receives electric power from a primary-side resonant coil through magnetic field resonance; a capacitor; a smoothing circuit; a pair of output terminals; a switch coupled in parallel to the capacitor or in series between a rectifier circuit and either a first terminal or a second terminal; and a drive controller that drives the switch through a first PWM drive pattern determined by a first duty cycle and by a first frequency that is less than or equal to a frequency of the magnetic field resonance. The first duty cycle is set based on a first efficiency of power reception of the first secondary-side resonant coil, a first rated output of a first load, a second efficiency of power reception of a second secondary-side resonant coil of another power receiver, and a second rated output of a second load.

Claims

1. A power receiver comprising:

a first secondary-side resonant coil, including a resonant coil part, a first terminal and a second terminal, that receives electric power from a primary-side resonant coil through magnetic field resonance generated between the primary-side resonant coil and the first secondary-side resonant coil, the first terminal and the second terminal being respectively provided on both ends of the resonant coil part;

a capacitor inserted in series with the resonant coil part of the first secondary-side resonant coil;

a rectifier circuit, coupled to the first terminal and the second terminal, that rectifies alternating-current power input from the first secondary-side resonant coil;

a smoothing circuit coupled to an output side of the rectifier circuit;

a pair of output terminals coupled to an output side of the smoothing circuit;

a switch coupled in parallel to the capacitor or coupled in series between the rectifier circuit and one of the first terminal and the second terminal of the first secondary-side resonant coil; and

a drive controller that drives the switch through a first PWM drive pattern determined by a first duty cycle and by a first frequency that is less than or equal to a frequency of the magnetic field resonance, the first duty cycle being set based on a first efficiency of electric power reception of the first secondary-side resonant coil, a first rated output of a first load coupled to the pair of output terminals, a second efficiency of electric power reception of a second secondary-side resonant coil of another power receiver that receives electric power from the primary-side resonant coil through magnetic field resonance generated between the primary-side resonant coil and the second secondary-side resonant coil, and a second rated output of a second load to which the electric power is supplied from the other power receiver.

2. The power receiver according to claim 1,

wherein, when a first value obtained by dividing the first rated output by the first efficiency of electric power reception is less than a second value obtained by dividing the second rated output by the second efficiency of electric power reception, the first duty cycle is set to be a predetermined duty cycle that is less than a first initial value, and

wherein the predetermined duty cycle is a duty cycle by which a balance between the electric power that the first load receives and the electric power that the second load receives is improved relative to a balance of a case where the first duty cycle is the first initial value.

3. The power receiver according to claim 2,

wherein, when the first value obtained by dividing the first rated output by the first efficiency of electric power reception is greater than the second value obtained by dividing the second rated output by the second efficiency of electric power reception, the first duty cycle is set to be the first initial value.

4. The power receiver according to claim 3,

wherein the first initial value is 100%.

5. The power receiver according to claim 1,

wherein the first efficiency of electric power reception is obtained based on electric power that the primary-side resonant coil transmits and on electric power that the first secondary-side resonant coil receives from the primary-side resonant coil in a state in which the other power receiver is in a non-operating state, and

wherein the second efficiency of electric power reception is obtained based on electric power that the primary-side resonant coil transmits and on electric power that the second secondary-side resonant coil receives from the primary-side resonant coil in a state in which the power receiver is in a non-operating state.

6. The power receiver according to claim 5, further comprising:

a dummy load coupled to the pair of output terminals in parallel with the first load, the dummy load having an impedance property equal to an impedance property of the first load; and

a selection switch that selectively switches a coupling destination of the pair of output terminals between the first load and the dummy load,

wherein the first efficiency of electric power reception is obtained based on the electric power that the primary-side resonant coil transmits and on the electric power that the first secondary-side resonant coil receives from the primary-side resonant coil in a state in which the pair of output terminals and the dummy load are coupled to the selection switch, in the state in which the other power receiver is in the non-operating state.

7. A power transmitting system comprising:

a first power receiver;

a second power receiver; and

a power transmitter including a primary-side resonant coil,

wherein the first power receiver includes

a first secondary-side resonant coil, including a resonant coil part, a first terminal and a second terminal, that receives electric power from the primary-side resonant coil through magnetic field resonance generated between the primary-side resonant coil and the first secondary-side resonant coil, the first terminal and the second terminal being respectively provided on both ends of the resonant coil part;

a capacitor inserted in series with the resonant coil part of the first secondary-side resonant coil;

a rectifier circuit, coupled to the first terminal and the second terminal, that rectifies alternating-current power input from the first secondary-side resonant coil;

a smoothing circuit coupled to an output side of the rectifier circuit;

a pair of output terminals coupled to an output side of the smoothing circuit;

a switch coupled in parallel to the capacitor or coupled in series between the rectifier circuit and one of the first terminal and the second terminal of the first secondary-side resonant coil; and

a drive controller that drives the switch through a first PWM drive pattern determined by a first duty cycle and by a first frequency that is less than or equal to a frequency of the magnetic field resonance, the first duty cycle being set based on a first efficiency of electric power reception of the first secondary-side resonant coil, a first rated output of a first load coupled to the pair of output terminals, a second efficiency of electric power reception of a second secondary-side resonant coil of the second power receiver that receives electric power from the primary-side resonant coil through magnetic field resonance generated between the primary-side resonant coil and the second secondary-side resonant coil, and a second rated output of a second load to which the electric power is supplied from the second power receiver.

8. The power transmitting system according to claim 7, wherein the first power receiver and the second power receiver have a same circuit configuration.

9. The power transmitting system according to claim 8,

wherein in the second power receiver, a switch is driven through a second PWM drive pattern determined by a second duty cycle and by a second frequency that is less than or equal to a frequency of the magnetic field resonance, the second duty cycle being set based on the second efficiency of electric power reception, the second rated output, the first efficiency of electric power reception, and the first rated output,

wherein, when a second value obtained by dividing the second rated output by the second efficiency of electric power reception is less than a first value obtained by dividing the first rated output by the first efficiency of electric power reception, the second duty cycle is set to be a predetermined duty cycle that is less than a second initial value, and

wherein the predetermined duty cycle is a duty cycle by which a balance between the electric power that the first load receives and the electric power that the second load receives is improved relative to a balance of a case where the second duty cycle is the second initial value.

10. The power transmitting system according to claim 9, wherein, when the second value obtained by dividing the second rated output by the second efficiency of electric power reception is greater than the first value obtained by dividing the first rated output by the first efficiency of electric power reception, the second duty cycle is set to be the second initial value.

11. The power transmitting system according to claim 10, wherein the second initial value is 100%.

12. The power transmitting system according to claim 9,

wherein, the first power receiver, the second power receiver, and the power transmitter respectively include a first communication part, a second communication part, and a third communication part,

wherein the third communication part of the power transmitter receives from the first communication part of the first power receiver first data that represents the first efficiency of electric power reception and the first rated output and receives from the second communication part of the second power receiver second data that represents the second efficiency of electric power reception and the second rated output,

wherein the power transmitter calculates the first value based on the first efficiency of electric power reception and the first rated output represented by the first data that the third communication part receives and calculates the second value based on the second efficiency of electric power reception and the second rated output represented by the second data that the third communication part receives, and

wherein the third communication part of the power transmitter transmits to the first communication part of the first power receiver data that represents the first value and transmits to the second communication part of the second power receiver data that represents the second value.