POWER STORAGE APPARATUS

• US 20120194127A1
• Filed: 10/08/2010
• Published: 08/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: UD Trucks Corporation (Isuzu Motors Limited)
• Original Assignee: UD Trucks Corporation (Isuzu Motors Limited)
• Inventors: Kobayashi, Shigemi, Nakane, Masayuki, Tsuchiya, Takayuki
• Granted Patent: US 9,496,721 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/108
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/40 using propulsion power supplied by capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/11 DC charging controlled by the charging station, e.g. mode 4
• 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 53/126 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 53/22 Constructional details or arrangements of charging converters specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/033 characterised by the use of electrical cells or batteries for propulsion puposes B60K1/04; supplying batteries to, or removing batteries from, vehicles B60S5/06; testing of charge state G01R31/36
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/2804 Printed windings
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 11/10 Multiple hybrid or EDL capacitors, e.g. arrays or modules housings, cases, encapsulations or mountings thereof H01G11/78
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 11/14 Arrangements or processes for adjusting or protecting hybrid or EDL capacitors emergency protective circuit arrangements specially adapted for capacitors, and effecting automatic switching in the event of an undesired change from normal working conditions H02H7/16; emergency protective circuit arrangements for limiting excess current or voltages without disconnection H02H9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 9/26 Structural combinations of electrolytic capacitors, rectifiers, detectors, switching devices, light-sensitive or temperature-sensitive devices with each other
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/70 involving the reduction of electric, magnetic or electromagnetic leakage fields
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0014 Circuits for equalisation of charge between batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0042 characterised by the mechanical construction
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/13 Energy storage using capacitors
• 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

A storage apparatus comprises a plurality of storage cells connected in series. Each storage cell comprises a storage element that stores a charge, a container that houses the storage element, a reception antenna capable of receiving power transmitted from a transmission antenna of a feeding facility provided in a wireless power transfer system, and a charging control circuit that charges the storage element using the power received by the reception antenna. The plurality of storage cells are charged concurrently and wirelessly, and therefore charging can be performed on all of the storage cells without overcharging or undercharging.

Claims

1. A storage apparatus that stores power transferred from a feeding facility via a wireless power transfer system, comprising:

a plurality of storage cells connected in series or in parallel,

wherein each storage cell comprises;

a storage element that stores a charge;

a container that houses the storage element;

a reception antenna that receives power transmitted by the wireless power transfer system; and

a charging control circuit that charges the storage element using the power received by the reception antenna.

2. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the reception antenna is supported by the container.

3. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the storage apparatus is installed in a vehicle, and the feeding facility is disposed outside the vehicle.

4. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the feeding facility comprises a transmission antenna constituted by a primary coil that receives high-frequency power and a primary self-resonant coil that can be coupled to the primary coil by electromagnetic induction, and the reception antenna comprises:

a secondary self-resonant coil that can be coupled to the primary self-resonant coil by magnetic field resonance; and

a secondary coil that can be coupled to the secondary self-resonant coil by electromagnetic induction.

5. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 3, wherein a plurality of storage cells connected in parallel are connected in series.

6. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 5, further comprising a frame that supports the storage cells such that the storage cells are arranged on a plane.

7. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the storage cell comprises a storage element constituted by an electric double layer capacitor.

8. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the charging control circuit comprises:

a rectifier that rectifies the power received by the reception antenna to a direct current;

a sensor that detects a state of charge of the storage element; and

a controller that controls a supply of charging power from the rectifier to the storage element in accordance with the state of charge of the storage element.

9. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein the respective controllers of the plurality of storage cells control the supply of charging power to the storage elements concurrently, using a charging command signal input from an exterior as a trigger.

10. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein the sensor is constituted by a state of charge sensor that detects the state of charge of the storage element.

11. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 10, wherein each controller is programmed to:

supply the charging power to the storage element when the state of charge of the storage element is lower than a predetermined charging determination threshold; and

stop supplying the charging power to the storage element when the state of charge of the storage element reaches a predetermined state.

12. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 11, wherein each controller is further programmed to control the supply of charging power to the storage element on the basis of a difference between a fully charged state and the state of the charge of the storage element when the state of charge of the storage element is lower than the predetermined charging determination threshold.

13. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein the storage cell is constituted by an electric double layer capacitor, and the sensor is constituted by a voltage sensor that detects a voltage of the storage element.

14. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 13, wherein each controller is programmed to:

supply the charging power to the storage element when the voltage of the storage element is lower than a predetermined charging start voltage; and

stop supplying the charging power to the storage element when the voltage of the storage element reaches a predetermined charging stop voltage.

15. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the container comprises:

a rectangular frame that surrounds the storage element; and

a film body adhered to respective surfaces of the rectangular frame,

wherein the reception antenna is wound around the rectangular frame.

16. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the container comprises:

a rectangular frame that surrounds the storage element; and

a film body adhered to respective surfaces of the rectangular frame,

wherein the reception antenna is incorporated into the film body.

17. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 16, wherein the film body is constituted by a laminate sheet formed by laminating resin layers having an electric insulation property, and the reception antenna is pattern-printed onto an electrical insulating film inserted between the resin layers of the film body.

18. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the container comprises:

a first rectangular frame that surrounds the storage element; and

a second rectangular frame that surrounds the first rectangular frame,

wherein the reception antenna is wound around the second rectangular frame.

19. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the reception antenna is pattern-printed in advance onto an electrical insulating film and fixed to the container.

20. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein the feeding facility comprises a transmission antenna constituted by a primary coil that receives high-frequency power and a primary self-resonant coil that can be coupled to the primary coil by electromagnetic induction, and the reception antenna comprises:

a secondary self-resonant coil that can be coupled to the primary self-resonant coil by magnetic field resonance; and

a secondary coil that can be coupled to the secondary self-resonant coil by electromagnetic induction.

21. The storage apparatus as defined in claim 20, wherein the container comprises:

a rectangular frame surrounding the storage element; and

a pair of film bodies adhered to the respective surfaces of the rectangular frame,

wherein the secondary self-resonant coil is incorporated into one of the film bodies, and the secondary coil is incorporated into the other film body.

22. The storage apparatus as defined claim 20, wherein the container comprises:

a first rectangular frame surrounding the storage element; and

a second rectangular frame surrounding the first rectangular frame,

wherein the secondary coil is wound around the first rectangular frame, and the secondary self-resonant coil is wound around the second rectangular frame.

23. The storage apparatus as defined claim 20, wherein the container comprises a case member constituted by a laminate film formed by laminating resin layers having an electric insulation property, a recessed portion being formed in the case member,

wherein one of the secondary coil and the secondary self-resonant coil is pattern-printed onto an electrical insulating film and inserted between the resin layers, and the other of the secondary coil and the secondary self-resonant coil is pattern-printed onto the electrical insulating film and adhered to a bottom of the recessed portion.

24. The storage apparatus as defined claim 20, wherein the container is constituted by a metallic hard case,

the secondary coil and the secondary self-resonant coil are pattern-printed onto a surface of an electrical insulating film on an opposite side to a surface that is adhered to the outer surface of the container so as not to interfere with each other, and the container and the electrical insulating film are housed in a heat-shrunk bag made of a heat-shrinking material.

25. The storage apparatus as defined claim 20, wherein a laminate film formed by laminating an electrical insulating film on which the secondary coil is pattern-printed and another electrical insulating film on which the secondary self-resonant coil is pattern-printed while insulating the respective electrical insulating films from each other using an electric insulation resin layer is adhered to the container.