Wireless Charging for Vehicle Batteries

• US 20160318413A1
• Filed: 12/11/2014
• Published: 11/03/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vitesco Technologies GmbH (Continental AG)
• Original Assignee: Continental Automotive GmbH (Continental AG)
• Inventors: Boeld, Martin, Thevenet, Mael, Roehrl, Thomas, Fokkelman, Joris, Hofmann, Karsten, Weigand, Christoph, Bartz, Stephan
• Granted Patent: US 10,023,059 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/124 Detection or removal of foreign bodies
• 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 53/36 by positioning the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/38 specially adapted for charging by inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/39 with position-responsive activation of primary coils
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/12 of the resonant type
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/60 responsive to the presence of foreign objects, e.g. detection of living beings
• 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 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• 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

The present disclosure relates to automobiles and, more specifically, teaches methods and systems that may be used for wirelessly charging batteries used in vehicles. In one embodiment, a method for detecting a relative position between a vehicle-side receiving charging coil and a fixed transmission charging coil, may include: generating an alternating magnetic orientation field using one of the coils; detecting the orientation field using at least one coil provided for inductive excitation, wherein the orientation field is detected in a frequency-selective manner by the at least one coil; and ascertaining the relative position using an orientation receiving signal induced by the orientation field in the at least one coil.

Claims

1. A method for detecting a relative position between a vehicle-side receiving charging coil and a fixed transmission charging coil, the method comprising:

generating an alternating magnetic orientation field using one of the coils;

detecting the orientation field using at least one coil provided for inductive excitation, wherein the orientation field is detected in a frequency-selective manner by the at least one coil; and

ascertaining the relative position using an orientation receiving signal induced by the orientation field in the at least one coil.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one coil provided for inductive excitation is part of a resonance circuit, the resonance frequency of which corresponds to a frequency of the orientation field.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the orientation receiving signal is directed through a filter which comprises a passing frequency range, within which the frequency of the orientation field lies.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the orientation field is generated by the transmission charging coil and the at least one coil provided for inductive excitation detects the orientation field on the vehicle side.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the orientation field is generated by the vehicle-side receiving charging coil and the at least one coil detects the orientation field in a fixed position.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein detecting the orientation field includes using at least one vehicle-side or fixed sensor coil as the coil provided for inductive excitation.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein detecting the orientation field includes using the transmission charging coil or receiving charging coil as the coil provided for inductive excitation.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the vehicle, the receiving charging coil, or the transmission charging coil is aligned in a predefined optimal relative position,

the relative position is repeatedly ascertained during alignment, and

electric power is transmitted via an alternating magnetic charge field from the transmission charging coil to the receiving charging coil.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

the orientation field and the charge field are generated using the transmission charging coil;

the transmission charging coil generates the orientation field at a first power level, until the at least one coil provided for inductive excitation starts to detect the orientation field;

the transmission charging coil works with less power than the first power level while alignment takes place and after the coil provided for inductive excitation has started to detect the orientation field; and

the charge field is generated by the transmission charging coil at a second power level which lies above the first level, when the optimal relative position is achieved through alignment.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the orientation field has a spatial scatter different from that of the charge field.

11. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein during detecting, during aligning, and/or during charging:

the coil provided for inductive excitation emits a signal examined for discontinuities, or the orientation receiving signal is examined for discontinuities, and

when a discontinuity occurs a signal is emitted, which points to a foreign body.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the orientation field is modulated with an identification signal identifying the transmission charging coil.

13. An orientation signal receiver comprising:

at least one coil provided for inductive excitation;

the at least one coil including

at least one vehicle-side or fixed sensor coil; and

a receiving device connected to the at least one sensor coil.

14. An orientation signal receiver as claimed in claim 13, wherein the receiving device is frequency-selective and is configured to receive an orientation receiving signal from the at least one coil provided for inductive excitation.

15. The orientation signal receiver as claimed in claim 13, wherein

the orientation signal receiver comprises at least one resonance circuit comprising the sensor coil as well as a capacity connected thereto, of the frequency-selective receiving device.

16. The orientation signal receiver as claimed in claim 13, wherein

the frequency-selective receiving device comprises a filter comprising a passing range, in which a frequency of the orientation field lies, which is adapted to induce the orientation receiving signal in the sensor coil.

17. The orientation signal receiver as claimed in claim 13, further comprising a plurality of sensor coils arranged so as to be inclined towards each other.

18. An inductive charging device for a vehicle, comprising:

an orientation signal receiver comprising;

at least one coil provided for inductive excitation;

the at least one coil including at least one vehicle-side or fixed sensor coil; and

a receiving device connected to the at least one sensor coil

a position calculating device arranged downstream of the receiving device and adapted to ascertain a relative position between the vehicle and a fixed transmission charging coil using the orientation receiving signal of the receiving device; and

an alignment signal generator arranged downstream of the position calculating device and adapted to generate an alignment signal using the relative position of the position calculating device, which signal is configured to be displayed by means of an optical display, or by means of an acoustic or haptic transducer and/or to activate a positioning mechanism of the receiving charging coil or the transmission charging coil.

19. The inductive charging device as claimed in claim 18, further comprising a foreign body detection device arranged downstream of the orientation signal receiver and adapted to ascertain discontinuities in the orientation receiving signal of the receiving device,

wherein an error generator of the foreign body detection device is adapted to emit an error condition signal, if discontinuities are present in the orientation receiving signal.