System for detecting a direct current arc fault in a battery system charger for an electric vehicle

Abstract

A charging system for an electric vehicle includes a charger connector configured to connect to a charging port on the electric vehicle and including a housing, a first conductor passing through the housing, a second conductor passing through the housing, and a current sensor configured to sense a current flowing through at least one of the first conductor and the second conductor to a battery system of the electric vehicle. A charger-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to selectively identify a direct current arc fault in response to a measured current sensed by the current sensor and to stop charging the electric vehicle in response to detecting the direct current arc fault.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to a charging system for electric vehicles, and more particularly to a system for detecting DC arcing faults in a charging system for electric vehicles. Background Technology

[0002] The information provided in this section is for the purpose of generally introducing the background of this disclosure. To the extent described in this section, the work of the currently named inventors and aspects of the description that may not constitute prior art at the time of filing are neither expressly nor implicitly acknowledged as prior art against this disclosure.

[0003] Electric vehicles, such as plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, battery electric vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles, include battery systems, which comprise one or more individual battery cells, battery modules, and / or battery packs. These battery systems require charging using a charging system. Some charging systems for battery systems require 4-10 hours to recharge an electric vehicle. Fast-charging systems are being developed to charge electric vehicles at higher voltage levels, such as 400V or 800V, to reduce the amount of time required to charge the battery systems of electric vehicles.

[0004] DC fast charging (DCFC) systems use a set of connectors adapted to standards by different original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in various countries. The connectors are designed to meet electrical, mechanical, and environmental requirements to ensure safe operation during charging at high voltage levels. Summary of the Invention

[0005] A charging system for an electric vehicle includes a charger connector configured to connect to a charging port on the electric vehicle, and includes a housing, a first conductor passing through the housing, a second conductor passing through the housing, and a current sensor configured to sense current flowing through at least one of the first and second conductors to a battery system of the electric vehicle. A charger-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to selectively identify a DC arc fault in response to a measured current sensed by the current sensor, and to stop charging the electric vehicle in response to detecting a DC arc fault.

[0006] Among other features, the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz. The current sensor includes a point field detector (PFD). This current sensor is selected from a group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensors, giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensors, tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) sensors, and Hall effect sensors. When charging stops, the charger-side controller is configured to reduce the current output to the electric vehicle to zero after the measured current falls below a predetermined current threshold, and send a message to the vehicle-side controller to disconnect the first and second contactors connecting the first and second conductors to the battery system.

[0007] Among other features, a current sensor is disposed within the housing. The current sensor is disposed between the first conductor and the second conductor within the housing. An insulating layer surrounds the first and second conductors. The current sensor is disposed around the insulating layer. A voltage sensor is configured to sense the voltage across the first and second conductors.

[0008] Among other features, the charger-side controller receives a second measured current and a second measured voltage from the vehicle-side controller. The arc fault detection module is configured to detect DC arc faults by comparing the measured current and measured voltage with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively.

[0009] A charging system for an electric vehicle includes: a charging port on the electric vehicle configured to connect to a charger connector; a first conductor configured to connect power from the charging port to a first terminal of a battery system; and a second conductor configured to connect power from the charging port to a second terminal of the battery system. A current sensor is configured to sense current flowing through at least one of the first and second conductors to the battery system. A vehicle-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to selectively identify a DC arc fault in response to a measured current output by a current sensor, and to stop charging in response to detecting a DC arc fault.

[0010] Among other features, the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz. The current sensor includes a point field detector (PFD). This current sensor is selected from the group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensors, giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensors, tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) sensors, and Hall effect sensors. A first contactor connects a first conductor to a first terminal of the battery system. A second contactor connects a second conductor to a second terminal of the battery system. When charging is stopped, the vehicle-side controller is configured to send a message to the charger-side controller after the measured current is less than a predetermined current threshold to reduce the current output to the electric vehicle to zero and disconnect the first and second contactors.

[0011] Among other features, a voltage sensor is configured to sense the voltage across the first and second conductors. A second measured current and a second measured voltage are received from the vehicle-side controller. The arc fault detection module is configured to detect DC arc faults by comparing the measured current and measured voltage with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively.

[0012] This invention provides the following technical solution:

[0013] 1. A charging system for electric vehicles, comprising:

[0014] A charger connector configured to connect to a charging port on the electric vehicle, and comprising:

[0015] case;

[0016] The first conductor passing through the housing;

[0017] A second conductor passing through the housing; and

[0018] A current sensor, configured to sense current flowing through at least one of the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system of the electric vehicle; and

[0019] A charger-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to selectively identify a DC arc fault in response to a measured current sensed by the current sensor, and to stop charging the electric vehicle in response to detecting the DC arc fault.

[0020] 2. The charging system according to Scheme 1, wherein the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz.

[0021] 3. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the current sensor includes a point field detector (PFD).

[0022] 4. The charging system according to Scheme 3, wherein the current sensor is selected from the group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensor, giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor, tunnel magnetoresistive (TMR) sensor and Hall effect sensor.

[0023] 5. The charging system according to Scheme 1, wherein when charging stops, the charger-side controller is configured to:

[0024] This reduces the current output to the electric vehicle to zero; and

[0025] After the measured current is less than a predetermined current threshold, a message is sent to the vehicle-side controller to cause the vehicle-side controller to disconnect the first and second contactors that connect the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system.

[0026] 6. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the current sensor is arranged in the housing.

[0027] 7. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the current sensor is arranged in the housing between the first conductor and the second conductor.

[0028] 8. The charging system according to claim 1 further includes an insulating layer surrounding the first conductor and the second conductor, wherein the current sensor is arranged around the insulating layer.

[0029] 9. The charging system according to claim 1 further includes a voltage sensor configured to sense the voltage across the first conductor and the second conductor.

[0030] 10. The charging system according to Scheme 8, wherein:

[0031] The charger-side controller receives a second measuring current and a second measuring voltage from the vehicle-side controller, and

[0032] The arc fault detection module is configured to detect the DC arc fault by comparing the measured current and the measured voltage with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively.

[0033] 11. A charging system for electric vehicles, comprising:

[0034] The charging port on the electric vehicle is configured to connect to a charger connector:

[0035] A first conductor, configured to connect power from the charging port to a first terminal of the battery system;

[0036] A second conductor, configured to connect power from the charging port to a second terminal of the battery system;

[0037] A current sensor, configured to sense current flowing through at least one of the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system; and

[0038] A vehicle-side controller, the vehicle-side controller including an arc fault detection module, the arc fault detection module being configured to selectively identify a DC arc fault in response to a measured current output by the current sensor, and to stop charging in response to detecting the DC arc fault.

[0039] 12. The charging system according to claim 11, wherein the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz.

[0040] 13. The charging system according to claim 11, wherein the current sensor includes a point field detector (PFD).

[0041] 14. The charging system according to Scheme 13, wherein the current sensor is selected from the group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensor, giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor, tunnel magnetoresistive (TMR) sensor and Hall effect sensor.

[0042] 15. The charging system according to claim 11 further includes:

[0043] A first contactor connects the first conductor to a first terminal of the battery system; and

[0044] The second contactor connects the second conductor to the second terminal of the battery system.

[0045] 16. The charging system according to claim 15, wherein when charging is stopped, the vehicle-side controller is configured to:

[0046] Send a message to the charger-side controller to reduce the current output to the electric vehicle to zero; and

[0047] After the measured current is less than a predetermined current threshold, the first contactor and the second contactor are disconnected.

[0048] 17. The charging system according to claim 11 further includes a voltage sensor configured to sense the voltage across the first conductor and the second conductor.

[0049] 18. The charging system according to claim 11, wherein:

[0050] The vehicle-side controller receives a second measuring current and a second measuring voltage from the vehicle-side controller, and

[0051] The arc fault detection module is configured to detect the DC arc fault by comparing the measured current and the measured voltage with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively.

[0052] Further applications of this disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description, claims, and drawings. The detailed description and specific examples are intended for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Attached Figure Description

[0053] This disclosure will be understood more fully from the detailed description and accompanying drawings, in which:

[0054] Figure 1 This is a functional block diagram of a charging system used to charge electric vehicles.

[0055] Figure 2A and Figure 2B It is a graph showing the current and voltage as a function of time, and includes DC arc flashes caused by series or parallel faults, respectively.

[0056] Figure 3 This is a perspective view of an example charging system according to this disclosure;

[0057] Figures 4 to 7 This is a functional block diagram of an example charging system for charging electric vehicles according to this disclosure;

[0058] Figure 8 and Figure 9 The illustration shows an example of a location for mounting a current sensor on a charging plug or charging port; and

[0059] Figure 10 and Figure 11 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for operating a charging system according to the present disclosure.

[0060] In the accompanying drawings, reference numerals may be used repeatedly to identify similar and / or identical elements. Detailed Implementation

[0061] Charging stations comprise multiple charging systems, typically located outdoors and therefore not in temperature- and humidity-controlled environments. They are supplied with DC power from a source such as a utility power supply. In coastal areas, charger connectors are also prone to accumulating moisture and salt, which can impair creepage distances and lead to DC arcing faults. Because DC arcing faults do not cause overcurrent or overvoltage conditions, standard protection devices used in charging systems do not detect them.

[0062] The charging system and method disclosed herein monitor the current flowing from the charging system to an electric vehicle via a charging connector. The charging system detects DC arcing faults during charging of the electric vehicle. Examples of DC arcing faults include series or parallel DC arcing faults. Both types of DC arcing faults have unique current characteristics that can be detected by processing current and / or voltage waveforms measured using current or voltage sensors. In some examples, the current sensor is a high-bandwidth sensor. As used herein, high bandwidth means a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz.

[0063] In some examples, the current sensor is located in the charger connector on the charger side. The arc fault detection module of the charger-side controller detects DC arc faults based on the current sensed by the current sensor. When a DC arc fault is detected, the charger-side controller reduces the charging current to zero within a predetermined period. After the charging current decreases below a predetermined threshold, the charger-side controller sends a message to the vehicle-side controller to disconnect the battery contactor.

[0064] In some examples, the current sensor is located on the vehicle side. When a DC arc fault is detected, the vehicle-side controller sends a request to the charger-side controller to reduce the charging current to zero within a predetermined period. After the charging current has decreased below a predetermined current threshold, the vehicle-side controller disconnects the battery contactor.

[0065] In some examples, both current and voltage sensors monitor current and voltage levels on one or both of the charger and vehicle sides. The charger-side controller and / or vehicle-side controller compare the two sets of voltage and current. Under normal operating conditions, both voltages and currents will be within predetermined ranges from each other. Any deviation outside the predetermined range indicates a potential fault and stops charging.

[0066] Now for reference Figure 1 The diagram illustrates a system 10 for charging an electric vehicle 16. The charging system 10 includes a charger-side controller 12 for controlling the supply of charging current from a DC power source to the electric vehicle, and a plug 14 for connecting to a port on the electric vehicle 16. The electric vehicle 16 includes a battery system 18, which includes contactors CON1 and CON2 that connect insulated wires 22 and 24 to terminals of a battery BATT. The battery BATT includes one or more battery cells, battery modules, and / or battery packs connected in series, parallel, and / or combinations of series and parallel connections.

[0067] Now for reference Figure 2A and 2BThe diagram illustrates example current and voltage as a function of time during a DC arc fault. DC arc faults include series or parallel arc faults. Both types of DC arc faults have unique current and / or voltage characteristics, which can be detected by processing the current waveform measured using a low-cost, high-bandwidth sensor. During charging, the current is typically high, and the voltage is very low (close to zero). Figure 2A During the series DC arc fault illustrated, the current suddenly drops to zero, the voltage rises accordingly, and then an open-circuit condition occurs. Figure 2B The image shows an example of a parallel DC arc fault. It can be seen that the current and voltage exhibit different characteristics compared to a series DC arc fault. In this example, the current drops slightly (to a non-zero value), while the voltage rises above zero.

[0068] Now for reference Figure 3 An example of a charger connector 28 is shown. A plug 30 is located at the vehicle-side end of the charger connector 28. Multiple insulated wires 32 extend from the plug 30 to a connection point for utility power. In some examples, a printed circuit board 36 is located inside a housing 35 adjacent to the plug 30. In some examples, a current sensor 38 is arranged within the housing 35. In other examples, both a current sensor and a voltage sensor are arranged within the housing 35.

[0069] Now for reference Figures 4 to 7 An example of a charging system for charging electric vehicles is shown. Figure 4 In this example, the charging system 100 includes a charger-side controller 112, a charger connector 114, and a current sensor 124. In this example, the current sensor 124 is located on the charger side.

[0070] Electric vehicle 116 includes battery system 118. Battery system 118 includes contactors CON1 and CON2 and battery BATT, which includes one or more battery cells, battery modules, and / or battery packs connected in series, parallel, and / or a combination of series and parallel connections. Charger-side controller 112 communicates with vehicle-side controller 120 via wire 126 such as a controller area network (CAN) bus.

[0071] With the current sensor 124 located on the charger side, the arc fault detection module 125 resides in the charger-side controller 112. The arc fault detection module 125 detects DC arc faults based on the measured current. When a DC arc fault is detected, the charger-side controller 112 reduces the charging current to zero within a predetermined time period and sends a command to the vehicle-side controller 120 to disconnect the battery contactor when the charging current drops below a predetermined current threshold.

[0072] exist Figure 5In this configuration, current sensor 124 is located on the vehicle side. Vehicle-side controller 120 includes an arc fault detection module 125. When a DC arc fault is detected, vehicle-side controller 120 sends a request to charger-side controller 112 to reduce the current ramp to zero within a predetermined time period. After the charging current drops below a predetermined threshold, vehicle-side controller 120 disconnects the battery contactor.

[0073] exist Figure 6 In this configuration, voltage sensor 144 can be positioned on the charger side to sense voltage. The arc fault detection module uses both voltage and current values ​​to diagnose DC arc faults.

[0074] exist Figure 7 In this configuration, a current sensor 150 and a voltage sensor 154 are also arranged on the vehicle side. Using the current and voltage sensors located on both the vehicle and charger sides, the arc fault detection module 125 compares these two sets of current and voltage. Either the charger-side controller 112 or the vehicle-side controller 120 can serve as the master unit of the arc fault detection module 125. Alternatively, both the charger-side controller 112 and the vehicle-side controller 120 can serve as the master units of the arc fault detection module 125. When a DC arc fault is detected, the charger-side controller 112 ramps down the current and disconnects contactors CON1 and CON2 after the charging current drops below a predetermined current threshold.

[0075] Now for reference Figure 8 The charger plug or charger port 180 is shown to include a first connector 182 and a second connector 184. In some examples, the first connector 182 includes a male or female connector for a positive terminal, and the second connector 184 includes a negative male or female connector. The first connector 182 and the second connector 184 of the charger plug or charger port 180 generate a natural amplifying field at their location. A current sensor 186 is disposed between the first connector 182 and the second connector 184.

[0076] In some examples, the current sensor 186 includes a point field detector (PFD), such as an anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) sensor, a giant magnetoresistive (GMR) sensor, a tunneling magnetoresistive (TMR) sensor, a Hall effect sensor, or other suitable sensor. In some examples, the PFD sensor is a submillimeter high-bandwidth PFD located between the first connector 182 and the second connector 184 to detect the field and current in the charging circuit. Although a PFD sensor is shown, any low-cost, high-bandwidth field sensor can be used to sense current.

[0077] Now for reference Figure 9The plug 190 is shown to include a first connector 192 (e.g., a positive connector), a second connector 193 (e.g., a negative connector), and a third connector 194. A current sensor 198 is arranged around the outer insulating layer 197 of the plug 190.

[0078] In some examples, the current sensor 198 comprises a ring-shaped sensor based on a zero-current core, arranged around the outer insulation layer 197 of the plug 190. The ring-shaped magnetic core surrounding the positive and negative currents experiences field cancellation from the regular charging current. However, only fault currents with an unbalanced field will generate a magnetic field within the core. Because of this, the core can be very thin, with a low cross-sectional area. The current sensor 198 is very inexpensive and tightly integrated with the outer insulation layer 197 due to field zeroing. In the absence of isolation losses or parallel fault issues, the low-field detector output will be close to zero. When a DC arc fault is detected, the charging system ramps down the current, and after the current drops below a predetermined current threshold, the vehicle-side controller disconnects the contactor. While a particular type of current sensor has been shown and described, other types of current sensors may also be used.

[0079] Now for reference Figure 10 The diagram illustrates a method for operating a charging system. At 210, a charging signal is sent. At 214, the method determines whether a start signal confirmation has been received from the charger-side controller. At 218, key battery parameters are sent to the charger-side controller. At 222, the connector is locked and an initial safety check is performed. At 226, the method determines whether the safety check has passed. If 226 is false, a diagnostic code is set and a message is sent to the user. If 226 is true, the method continues at 234, and the charger begins charging the battery. At 238, the vehicle-side controller is read. At 242, the method determines whether a request to terminate charging exists. If 242 is true, the charging current ramp drops to zero, the contactor is disconnected, the charging process is terminated, and the connector is unlocked.

[0080] If 242 is true, the method determines whether an arc fault has been detected. If 246 is true, the charging current ramp is reduced to zero, the contactor is disconnected, the charging process is terminated, and the connector is unlocked. In 248, a message is sent to the vehicle-side controller. If 246 is false, the battery is charged in either constant charge (CC) or constant voltage (CV) mode according to the charging request.

[0081] Now for reference Figure 11The diagram illustrates a method 300 for operating a charging system. At 310, the method determines whether a start charging signal has been received. At 314, the method identifies the start of charging. At 318, battery parameters and a start permission signal are sent to the charger. At 322, the battery status and desired charging mode (CC or CV) are sent to the charger. At 324, the method determines whether the charger indicates a fault. If 324 is false, the method returns to 322. If 324 is true, the method continues at 326 and determines whether the charging current is less than a predetermined limit. If 326 is false, the method returns to 326. If 326 is true, the method disconnects the battery contactor at 328. At 332, the method sets a diagnostic code and sends a message to the user.

[0082] The foregoing description is illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit this disclosure, its application, or use. The broad teachings of this disclosure can be implemented in various forms. Therefore, although this disclosure includes specific examples, its true scope should not be so limited, as other modifications will become apparent upon examination of the drawings, specification, and appended claims. It should be understood that one or more steps within the method can be performed in a different order (or simultaneously) without altering the principles of this disclosure. Furthermore, although each embodiment has been described above as having certain features, any one or more of those features described with respect to any embodiment of this disclosure can be implemented in any other embodiment and / or combined with features of any other embodiment, even if such combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and substitution of one or more embodiments for each other remains within the scope of this disclosure.

[0083] Various terms, including “connection,” “joint,” “link,” “adjacent,” “next to,” “on top of,” “above,” “below,” and “set,” are used to describe spatial and functional relationships between elements (e.g., between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.). Unless explicitly described as “direct,” the relationship between the first and second elements described in the above disclosure can be a direct relationship where no other intermediate elements exist between the first and second elements, but it can also be an indirect relationship where one or more intermediate elements (spatially or functionally) exist between the first and second elements. As used herein, at least one of the phrases A, B, and C should be interpreted as indicating a logic using the non-exclusive logic “OR” (A or B or C) and should not be interpreted as indicating “at least one of A, at least one of B, and at least one of C.”

[0084] In the accompanying drawings, the direction in which the arrows point (as indicated by the arrows) typically indicates the flow of information (such as data or instructions) of interest to the illustration. For example, when components A and B exchange various types of information, but the information sent from component A to component B is relevant to the illustration, the arrow may point from component A to component B. This unidirectional arrow does not imply that no other information is being sent from component B to component A. Furthermore, for information sent from component A to component B, component B may send a request for that information or an acknowledgment of receipt of that information to component A.

[0085] In this application, which includes the following definitions, the term "module" or "controller" may be replaced by the term "circuit". The term "module" may refer to, be part of, or include the following: application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC); digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuit; digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuit; combinational logic circuit; field-programmable gate array (FPGA); processor circuitry (shared, dedicated, or grouped) for executing code; memory circuitry (shared, dedicated, or grouped) for storing code executed by the processor circuitry; other suitable hardware components that provide the aforementioned functionality; or some or all of the above combinations, such as in a system-on-a-chip.

[0086] A module may include one or more interface circuits. In some examples, the interface circuit may include a wired or wireless interface connected to a local area network (LAN), the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), or a combination thereof. The functionality of any given module disclosed herein may be distributed across multiple modules connected via the interface circuit. For example, multiple modules may allow for load balancing. In another example, a server (also known as a remote or cloud) module may perform certain functions on behalf of a client module.

[0087] The term "code" as used above can include software, firmware, and / or microcode, and can refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, data structures, and / or objects. The term "shared processor circuitry" includes a single processor circuit that executes some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term "group processor circuitry" includes a processor circuit that, in combination with other processor circuits, executes some or all of the code from one or more modules. References to multiple processor circuits include multiple processor circuits on a discrete die, multiple processor circuits on a single die, multiple cores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a single processor circuit, or a combination of the above. The term "shared memory circuitry" includes a single memory circuit that stores some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term "group memory circuitry" includes a memory circuit that, in combination with other memories, stores some or all of the code from one or more modules.

[0088] The term "memory circuit" is a subset of the term "computer-readable medium." As used herein, the term "computer-readable medium" does not include transient electrical or electromagnetic signals propagating through a medium (such as on a carrier wave); therefore, the term "computer-readable medium" can be considered tangible and non-transitory. Non-limiting examples of non-transitory tangible computer-readable media include non-volatile memory circuits (such as flash memory circuits, erasable programmable read-only memory circuits, or masked read-only memory circuits), volatile memory circuits (such as static random access memory circuits or dynamic random access memory circuits), magnetic storage media (such as analog or digital magnetic tape or hard disk drives), and optical storage media (such as CDs, DVDs, or Blu-ray discs).

[0089] The apparatus and methods described in this application can be partially or fully implemented by a special-purpose computer created by configuring a general-purpose computer to perform one or more specific functions implemented in a computer program. The function blocks, flowchart components, and other elements described above serve as software specifications that can be converted into computer programs through the daily work of technicians or programmers.

[0090] A computer program includes processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory tangible computer-readable medium. The computer program may also contain or depend on stored data. The computer program may include a basic input / output system (BIOS) for interacting with the hardware of a special-purpose computer, device drivers for interacting with specific devices of the special-purpose computer, one or more operating systems, user applications, background services, background applications, etc.

[0091] These computer programs may include: (i) descriptive text to be parsed, such as HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language), or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation); (ii) assembly code; (iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler; (iv) source code executed by an interpreter; (v) source code compiled and executed by a just-in-time compiler; and so on. As an example only, source code may be written using the syntax of languages ​​including: C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl, Pascal, Curl, OCaml, JavaScript®, HTML5 (Hypertext Markup Language version 5), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, Visual Basic®, Lua, MATLAB, SIMULINK, and Python®.

Claims

1. A charging system for electric vehicles, comprising: A charger connector configured to connect to a charging port on the electric vehicle, and comprising: case; The first conductor passing through the housing; A second conductor passing through the housing; An insulating layer surrounding both the first conductor and the second conductor; A current sensor disposed within the housing and around the insulating layer, the current sensor being configured to sense the current flowing through at least one of the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system of the electric vehicle; and A voltage sensor, configured to sense the voltage across the first conductor and the second conductor; and A charger-side controller is configured to receive a first measured current from a current sensor, a first measured voltage from a voltage sensor, and a second measured current and a second measured voltage from a vehicle-side controller. The charger-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to detect a DC arc fault by comparing the first measured current from the current sensor and the first measured voltage from the voltage sensor with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively, and to stop charging the electric vehicle in response to detecting the DC arc fault. The current sensor mentioned therein is a ring sensor based on a zero-current core.

2. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz.

3. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the current sensor includes a point field detector.

4. The charging system according to claim 3, wherein the current sensor is selected from the group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive sensors, giant magnetoresistive sensors, tunnel magnetoresistive sensors and Hall effect sensors.

5. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein when charging stops, the charger-side controller is configured to: This reduces the current output to the electric vehicle to zero; and After the first measured current is less than a predetermined current threshold, a message is sent to the vehicle-side controller to cause the vehicle-side controller to disconnect the first and second contactors that connect the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system.

6. The charging system according to claim 1, wherein the voltage sensor is arranged in the housing.

7. The charging system of claim 1, wherein the current sensor is integrated with the insulating layer.

8. A charging system for electric vehicles, comprising: The charging port on the electric vehicle is configured to connect to a charger connector: A first conductor, configured to connect power from the charging port to a first terminal of the battery system; A second conductor, configured to connect power from the charging port to a second terminal of the battery system; A current sensor disposed in the charging port and between a first conductor and a second conductor, the current sensor being configured to sense the current flowing through at least one of the first conductor and the second conductor to the battery system; A voltage sensor configured to sense the voltage across the first conductor and the second conductor; as well as A vehicle-side controller is configured to receive a first measured current from a current sensor, a first measured voltage from a voltage sensor, and a second measured current and a second measured voltage from a charger-side controller. The vehicle-side controller includes an arc fault detection module configured to detect a DC arc fault by comparing the first measured current from the current sensor and the first measured voltage from the voltage sensor with the second measured current and the second measured voltage, respectively, and to stop charging in response to detecting the DC arc fault.

9. The charging system according to claim 8, wherein the current sensor has a bandwidth greater than 100 kHz.

10. The charging system of claim 8, wherein the current sensor comprises a point field detector.

11. The charging system according to claim 10, wherein the current sensor is selected from the group consisting of anisotropic magnetoresistive sensors, giant magnetoresistive sensors, tunnel magnetoresistive sensors, and Hall effect sensors.

12. The charging system according to claim 8, further comprising: A first contactor connects the first conductor to a first terminal of the battery system; as well as The second contactor connects the second conductor to the second terminal of the battery system.

13. The charging system according to claim 12, wherein, When charging is stopped, the vehicle-side controller is configured to: A message is sent to the charger-side controller to reduce the current output to the electric vehicle to zero; as well as After the first measured current is less than a predetermined current threshold, the first contactor and the second contactor are disconnected.

14. The charging system of claim 8, wherein the voltage sensor is disposed on the vehicle side.

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