WIRELESS POWER RECEPTION APPARATUS, WIRELESS POWER TRANSMISSION APPARATUS, AND WIRELESS POWER TRANSMISSION AND RECEPTION SYSTEM

• US 20140285030A1
• Filed: 10/27/2011
• Published: 09/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Toru, Ichikawa, Shinji
• Granted Patent: US 9,673,664 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/104
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/2009 for braking
• 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 2220/14 Synchronous machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/423 Torque
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/40 using propulsion power supplied by capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/51 characterised by AC-motors
• 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 53/30 Constructional details of charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 7/14 for vehicles propelled by ac motors
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• 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 50/90 : involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• 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: Y02T 10/64 : Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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

A power transmission apparatus includes a power transmission unit and a power supply unit. A wireless power reception apparatus includes a power reception unit capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from the power transmission unit, and a control unit performing control for positional alignment between the power reception unit and the power transmission unit and for reception of electric power after the positional alignment. The magnitude of electric power received by the power reception unit from the power transmission unit is used for positional alignment between the power reception unit and the power transmission unit. The control unit sets a parameter of a power transmission and reception path so that a power receivable range that can be received by the power reception unit at any time while positional alignment is done is wider than that when electric power is received after the positional alignment.

Claims

1. A wireless power reception apparatus for wirelessly receiving electric power transferred from a power transmission apparatus,

said power transmission apparatus including:

a power transmission unit; and

a power supply unit supplying AC power to said power transmission unit,

said wireless power reception apparatus comprising;

a power reception unit capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from said power transmission unit; and

a control unit performing positional alignment between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit,

said control unit performing a first adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective predetermined positions, and a second adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where said power transmission unit and said power reception unit are arranged by said first adjustment, and said control unit setting a parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said second adjustment is performed.

2. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

before an amount of misalignment due to positional misalignment between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, said control unit sets the parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that a transfer efficiency from said power transmission unit to said power reception unit exhibits a first characteristic and,

after said amount of misalignment becomes equal to or less than said predetermined value, said control unit sets the parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that the transfer efficiency from said power transmission unit to said power reception unit exhibits a second characteristic providing improved sensitivity to positional misalignment in a narrower range, relative to said first characteristic.

3. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

said first characteristic is a characteristic that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when said power reception unit and said power transmission unit are arranged with a central axis of said power reception unit and a central axis of said power transmission unit positionally misaligned with respect to each other in a horizontal direction, and

said second characteristic is a characteristic that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when said power reception unit and said power transmission unit are arranged with the central axis of said power reception unit and the central axis of said power transmission unit positionally coincident with each other in the horizontal direction.

4. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

said power transmission apparatus or said wireless power reception apparatus further comprises an impedance adjustment unit for changing a characteristic of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit, and

said control unit instructs said impedance adjustment unit to switch said transfer efficiency from said first characteristic to said second characteristic.

5. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

said power transmission apparatus further comprises a positional alignment mechanism moving the position of said power transmission unit, and

said control unit instructs said positional alignment mechanism to make an adjustment by moving the position of said power transmission unit in a direction of travel of a vehicle and thereafter make an adjustment by moving the position of said power transmission unit in a right-and-left direction of the vehicle.

6. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said power reception unit is configured so that a difference in natural frequency between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit is within ±

10%.

7. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a coupling coefficient between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit is 0.1 or less.

8. The wireless power reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said power transmission unit transmits electric power to said power reception unit through at least one of a magnetic field formed between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit and oscillates at a specific frequency, and an electric field formed between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit and oscillates at a specific frequency.

9. A wireless power transmission apparatus for wirelessly transmitting electric power to a power reception apparatus,

said power reception apparatus including:

a power reception unit; and

an electrical load apparatus receiving electric power from said power reception unit,

said wireless power transmission apparatus comprising;

a power transmission unit capable of wirelessly transmitting electric power to said power reception unit;

a power supply unit supplying AC power to said power transmission unit; and

a control unit performing positional alignment between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit,

said control unit performing a first adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective predetermined positions, and a second adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where said power transmission unit and said power reception unit are arranged by said first adjustment, and said control unit setting a parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said second adjustment is performed.

10. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

before an amount of misalignment due to positional misalignment between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit becomes equal to or less than a predetermined value, said control unit sets the parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that a transfer efficiency from said power transmission unit to said power reception unit exhibits a first characteristic and,

after said amount of misalignment becomes equal to or less than said predetermined value, said control unit sets the parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that the transfer efficiency from said power transmission unit to said power reception unit exhibits a second characteristic providing improved sensitivity to positional misalignment in a narrower range, relative to said first characteristic.

11. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

said first characteristic is a characteristic that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when said power reception unit and said power transmission unit are arranged with a central axis of said power reception unit and a central axis of said power transmission unit positionally misaligned with respect to each other in a horizontal direction, and

said second characteristic is a characteristic that the transfer efficiency exhibits a peak when said power reception unit and said power transmission unit are arranged with the central axis of said power reception unit and the central axis of said power transmission unit positionally coincident with each other in the horizontal direction.

12. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

said wireless power transmission apparatus or said power reception apparatus further comprises an impedance adjustment unit for changing a characteristic of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit, and

said control unit instructs said impedance adjustment unit to switch said transfer efficiency from said first characteristic to said second characteristic.

13. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

said wireless power transmission apparatus further comprises a positional alignment mechanism moving the position of said power transmission unit, and

said control unit instructs said positional alignment mechanism to make an adjustment by moving the position of said power transmission unit in a direction of travel of a vehicle and thereafter make an adjustment by moving the position of said power transmission unit in a right-and-left direction of the vehicle.

14. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said power transmission unit is configured so that a difference in natural frequency between said power transmission unit and said power reception unit is within ±

10%.

15. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a coupling coefficient between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit is 0.1 or less.

16. The wireless power transmission apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said power reception unit receives electric power from said power transmission unit through at least one of a magnetic field formed between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit and oscillates at a specific frequency, and an electric field formed between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit and oscillates at a specific frequency.

17. A wireless power transmission and reception system comprising:

a wireless power transmission apparatus; and

a wireless power reception apparatus for wirelessly receiving electric power transferred from said wireless power transmission apparatus,

said wireless power transmission apparatus including;

a power transmission unit; and

a power supply unit supplying AC power to said power transmission unit,

said wireless power reception apparatus including;

a power reception unit capable of wirelessly receiving electric power from said power transmission unit; and

an electrical load apparatus using electric power received by said power reception unit,

said wireless power transmission and reception system further comprising a control unit performing positional alignment between said power reception unit and said power transmission unit,

said control unit performing a first adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective predetermined positions, and a second adjustment for arranging said power transmission unit and said power reception unit at respective positions that produce a higher electric power reception efficiency than the positions where said power transmission unit and said power reception unit are arranged by said first adjustment, and said control unit setting a parameter of said power transmission unit or said power reception unit so that a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said first adjustment is performed is wider than a power receivable range that can be received by said power reception unit when said second adjustment is performed.