Feeder-Lineless Traffic System and Charging Method Therefor

• US 20090121678A1
• Filed: 02/20/2008
• Published: 05/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering, Ltd. (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
• Inventors: Mitake, Masaya, Yamashita, Hiroshi, Yamada, Masaomi, Katahira, Kousuke, Morita, Katsuaki, Yamaguchi, Masahiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,986,125 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/109
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/26 Rail vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 5/42 for collecting current from individual contact pieces connected to the power supply line
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/11 DC charging controlled by the charging station, e.g. mode 4
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/30 Constructional details of charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/32 by charging in short intervals along the itinerary, e.g. during short stops
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/53 Batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 9/00 Electric propulsion with power supply external to the vehicle electric propulsion for monorail vehicles, suspension vehicles or rack railways B60L13/00; in combination with batteries or fuel cells within the vehicle B60L50/53
• CPC Class Codes: B60M 1/36 Single contact pieces along the line for power supply
• 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

Provided is a railway type feeder-lineless traffic system in which the weight of a vehicle is reduced while the structure of the vehicle is simplified, and it is possible to carry out a quick charge during a brief stopping time at a station or the like. A charging method in a feeder-lineless traffic system in which a vehicle mounted thereon with an electric storage unit runs on a predetermined pathway with the use of a power, and the electric storage unit in the vehicle is charged from a charger set up on the pathway, wherein a contact charging way in which a power feeder 24 connected to the charger 21 set up on the ground is made into contact with a power receiver 6 mounted on a vehicle 1 is carried out when the vehicle 1 comes to a stop, and a commercial electric power is converted by the charger and a charge control unit of the charger into a DC power which is chargeable direct into the electric storage unit 1, and the DC power is quickly charged into the electric storage unit through the intermediary of the power feeder and the power receiver while a current value of the DC power is controlled.

Claims

1. A charging method in a feeder-lineless traffic system in which a vehicle mounted thereon with an electric storage unit runs on a predetermined pathway with the use of a power, and the electric storage unit in the vehicle is charged from a charger set up on the pathway, characterized in that

a contact charging way in which a power feeder connected to the charger set up on the ground is made into contact with a power receiver mounted on a vehicle is carried out when the vehicle comes to a stop, and

a commercial electric power is converted by the charger and a charge control unit of the charger into a DC power which is chargeable direct into the electric storage unit, and the DC power is quickly charged into the electric storage unit through the intermediary of the power feeder and the power receiver while a current value of the DC power is controlled.

2. A charging method in a feeder-lineless traffic system, as set forth in claim 1, characterized in that a charging condition of the electric storage unit is compared with a set charge completion condition, and when the charging condition of the electric storage unit reaches the set charge completion condition, the charging is stopped.

3. A charging method in a feeder-lineless traffic system, as set forth in claim 1, characterized in that one power source enables electric storage units in a plurality of vehicles to be charged at the same time, and a vehicle having a less residual power is preferentially charged through constant current charging.

4. A charging method in a feeder-lineless traffic system, as set forth in claim 1, characterized in that charging conditions of electric storage units in a plurality of vehicles are detected by the charge control unit so as to select a vehicle having a less residual power in order to charge the thus selected vehicle.

5. A feeder-lineless traffic system in which a vehicle mounted thereon with an electric storage unit runs on a predetermined pathway with the use of a power, and the electric storage cell in the vehicle is charged from a charger set up on the pathway,

characterized in that the charger and a power receiver connected to a power feeder are constructed so as to be able to contact to or separate from each other, and the charger and a charge control unit are arranged on the ground so as to covert a commercial electric power into a DC power which is chargeable direct into the electric storage unit, and stop the charging when the electric storage unit is charged up to a previously set charging condition.

6. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 5, characterized in that said power receiver is a contactor secured to the roof of the vehicle, and said power feeder is composed of a feeding shoe which is attached above said contactor to a ground structure through the intermediary of a link mechanism so as to be movable up and down, a means for urging a resilient force to the feeding shoe so as to lower the feeding shoe down to a position where the feeding shoes are made into contact with the contactor, and a means for raising the feeding shoe which has been lowered down to the position where the feeding shoe is made into contact with the contactor.

7. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 5, characterized in that the power receiver is a planar contactor which is secured to the roof of the vehicle, which is extended in a vehicle advancing direction, having a predetermined thickness, the power feeder is composed of a pair of feeding shoes each of which is provided to a ground structure arranged each of opposite sides of the contactor, through the intermediary of a link mechanism so as to be movable to and from the contactor, and means for urging the pair of feeding shoes with a resilient force in a direction in which the pair of feeding shoes approach each other so as to press the feeding shoes against the contactor inserted between the pair of the feeding shoes.

8. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 6, characterized by further comprising means for moving the feeding shoes which have been moved to the position where the feeding shoes is made into contact with the contactor with the resilient force, in a direction in which the feeding shoes go away from the contactor.

9. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 5, characterized in that a plurality of power feeders are provided so as to allow electric storage units in a plurality of vehicles to be simultaneously charged, the power receiver in a vehicle in which the charging condition of the electric storage unit becomes a set charge completion condition is individually separated from the associated power feeder.

10. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 9, characterized in that the plurality of power feeders are provided amount a plurality of pathways so as to arrow a plurality of vehicles running on different pathways to be simultaneously charged.

11. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 9, characterized in that the plurality of power feeders are arranged in a single pathway so as to allow a plurality of trained vehicles to be simultaneously,

12. A feeder-lineless traffic system as set forth in claim 5, characterized in that the power feeder is extended along a plurality of power receivers provided in a vehicle so as to allow the plurality of power receivers to be simultaneously made into contact with the power feeder.