System diagnostics and health monitoring for wireless power delivery systems

• US 10,284,025 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2016
• Issued: 05/07/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ossia, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ossia, Inc.
• Inventors: Zeine, Hatem, El-Rukby, Fady, Mayes, Dale
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Paul D
• Application Number:
  US15/176,633
• Publication Number:
  US 20160356860A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,063 Days
• Field of Search: 702183
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/318566 Comparators; Diagnosing the device under test
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/40 Testing power supplies testing photovoltaic devices H02S50/10
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/40 using two or more transmitting or receiving devices H02J50/50 takes precedence
• 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 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0036 using connection detecting circuits H02J7/0034 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00714 in response to battery charging or discharging current
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2818 from a device located outside both the home and the home network access arrangements H04L12/2856; for remote control or remote monitoring of applications H04L67/025; arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless eletrical link G08C17/00; telephonic communication systems adapted for combination with remote control systems H04M11/007
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/12 Messaging; Mailboxes; Announcements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0212 managed by the network, e.g. network or access point is master and terminal is slave
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/20 End-user application control systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

Techniques are described herein for collecting and utilizing diagnostic information for advanced monitoring of wireless power delivery systems. Wireless power transmission systems and/or cloud processing systems accumulate significant volumes of data related to wireless devices, usage patterns, power delivery efficiency and system components. This data can be utilized to generate efficient and sophisticated power transmission schedules. Additionally, as discussed herein, the diagnostic information can be leveraged for advanced system diagnostics and health monitoring. Among other features, the diagnostic and health monitoring system can detect patterns and correlate events that lead to system errors or failures. In some embodiments, the diagnostic and health monitoring system can also provide error notification and/or automatic error correction.

Claims

1. A method of operating a cloud-based processing system to monitor system health of wireless power delivery environments, the method comprising:

collecting, by the cloud-based processing system, diagnostic data from the wireless power delivery environments, wherein each wireless power delivery environment includes one or more wireless power transmission systems;

responsive to detecting a system error in a portion of the diagnostic data associated with a first wireless power transmission system, timestamping the portion of the diagnostic data;

analyzing the portion of the diagnostic data to identify a pattern of events leading to the system error;

determining if the system error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

correlating the pattern of events with the system error when the error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

identifying a solution to the system error;

generating and persistently storing an error profile that associates the correlated pattern of events, the system error, and the solution to the system error; and

providing the error profile to the first wireless power transmission system for automatically applying the solution to repair the system error,

wherein applying the solution includes adjusting a power transmission schedule.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the diagnostic data comprises one or more of an average energy delivered to devices per power cycle by a wireless power transmission system, use rates of devices, device numbers, synchronizations between the wireless power transmission system and the devices, number of beacons received by the wireless power transmission system, network connectivity status, or a cloud processing status.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein determining if the system error consistently occurs as a result of the pattern of events further comprises:

when another pattern of events previously occurred that was similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error, determining if the another pattern of events lead to the system error.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining if the another pattern is similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting the system error.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein detecting the system error comprises receiving an error report from a user of the wireless power transmission system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the system error is related to power delivery efficiency of one or more of the wireless power transmission systems.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the system error comprises a system failure.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing and storing the portion of the diagnostic data.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating one or more error codes representative of the system error; and

presenting, via a visual interface, the one or more error codes.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having program instructions stored thereon which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:

collect diagnostic data from multiple wireless power delivery environments, wherein each wireless power delivery environment includes one or more wireless power transmission systems;

responsive to detecting a system error in a portion of the diagnostic data associated with a first wireless power transmission system, timestamp the portion of the diagnostic data;

analyze the portion of the diagnostic data to identify a pattern of events leading to the system error;

determine if the system error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

correlate the pattern of events with the system error when the error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

generate and persistently store an error profile that correlates the pattern of events and the error; and

provide the error profile to the first wireless power transmission system to apply a solution for automatically repairing the system error,

wherein applying the solution includes adjusting a power transmission schedule.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein to determine if the system error consistently occurs as a result of the pattern of events, the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to:

determine if another pattern is similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error; and

when the another pattern of events previously occurred that was similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error, determine if the another pattern of events lead to the system error.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to detect the system error.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein detecting the system error comprises receiving an error report from a user of the wireless power transmission system.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to capture and store the portion of the diagnostic data.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the instructions, when executed by one or more processors, further cause the one or more processors to generate one or more error codes representative of the system error and present, via a visual interface, the one or more error codes.

17. A wireless power transmission system, comprising:

an adaptively-phased antenna array having multiple radio frequency (RF) transceivers;

control circuitry configured to;

monitor diagnostic data from within a wireless power delivery environment;

responsive to detecting a system error in a portion of the diagnostic data, timestamp the portion of the diagnostic data;

analyze the portion of the diagnostic data to identify a pattern of events leading to the system error;

determine if the system error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

correlate the pattern of events with the system error when the error occurs consistently as a result of the pattern of events;

generate an error profile that correlates the pattern of events and the error;

identify a solution to the system error; and

automatically apply the solution to repair the system error,

wherein applying the solution includes adjusting a power transmission schedule.

18. The wireless power transmission system of claim 17, wherein the control circuitry is further configured to:

determine if another pattern is similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error; and

when the another pattern of events previously occurred that was similar to the pattern of events leading to the system error, determine if the another pattern of events lead to the system error.

19. The wireless power transmission system of claim 17, wherein the diagnostic data comprises one or more of an average energy delivered to devices per power cycle by a wireless power transmission system, use rates of devices, device numbers, synchronizations between the wireless power transmission system and the devices, number of beacons received by the wireless power transmission system, network connectivity status, or a cloud processing status.

20. The wireless power transmission system of claim 17, wherein the control circuitry is further configured to detect the system error.