Power switch

Abstract

To provide a technique that makes a board including a communication unit and a control unit less susceptible to the effects of temperature rise of a board that generates a large amount of heat.SOLUTION: A power switch includes a communication unit communicatively connected to an external device, a relay that opens and closes an electric circuit that supplies power from a power source to a load, a control unit that controls the relay based on information received from the external device via the communication unit, and a housing that accommodates the communication unit, the relay, and the control unit. The housing has a first chamber and a second chamber separated from the first chamber by a partition. In the first chamber, a first board is disposed on which the relay is mounted and which forms part of the electric circuit, and in the second chamber, a second board is disposed that includes the communication unit and at least part of the control unit and is connected to the first board.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a power switch. [Background technology]

[0002] Previously, a board that generates a lot of heat and that includes EV power lines and switching relays, etc., was housed in the same space of the case, along with a board that includes a communication unit, MPU, and other control units. As a result, the board that generates a lot of heat was affected by the board that generates a lot of heat, and the temperature of the MPU, etc. could exceed the allowable operating temperature.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a control device housed in an EV charging station, but does not disclose any measures against heat generation from EV power lines or the like. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2023-46536 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a technology that makes a board including a communication unit and a control unit less susceptible to the effects of temperature increases in a board that generates a large amount of heat. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides: A communication unit that is communicably connected to an external device; A relay that opens and closes the circuit that supplies power from the power source to the load; a control unit that controls the relay based on information received from the external device via the communication unit; a housing that houses the communication unit, the relay, and the control unit; A power switch having The housing includes: A first chamber and a second chamber separated from the first chamber by a partition wall, The first chamber includes a first substrate on which the relay is mounted and which constitutes a part of the electric circuit. The second chamber is characterized in that a second board including the communication unit and at least a part of the control unit and connected to the first board is disposed therein.

[0007] According to this, the second board including the communication unit and at least a part of the control unit is mounted with a relay that opens and closes the electric circuit that supplies power from the power source to the load, and is arranged in the second chamber separated by a partition from the first chamber in which the first board that constitutes part of the electric circuit is arranged, so that the second board is less susceptible to the effects of temperature rise of the first board which generates a large amount of heat. Therefore, the communication unit and the control unit can be operated within an appropriate temperature range, and the reliability of the operation of the power switch can be ensured.

[0008] In the present invention, the first chamber includes a hollow interior of the housing; The second chamber may be configured to include a recess in the housing that is recessed from the outside toward the hollow interior and opens toward the outside.

[0009] According to this, the hollow interior of the housing is used to form the first chamber, and the recess of the housing that opens outward is used to form the first chamber, so that it is possible to provide a power switch with a simple configuration in which the second board is less susceptible to the effect of temperature rise of the first board that generates a large amount of heat. Also, since the recess that constitutes the partition wall constitutes part of the housing, heat from the first board can be released to the outside through the housing, and the effect of suppressing temperature rise of the second board is high. Also, by forming the second chamber using the recess of the housing in this way and forming the first chamber including the hollow interior of the housing including the recess, the volume of the power switch can be reduced.

[0010] In the present invention, The housing includes: a first housing portion in which the first substrate is disposed; A second housing portion having the recess; Equipped with The first chamber may be formed by the first housing portion and the second housing portion.

[0011] This makes it possible to provide a power switch having a simple configuration including a first housing portion and a second housing portion, in which the second board is less susceptible to the effects of temperature rise in the first board, which generates a large amount of heat.

[0012] In the present invention, A cover portion for covering an opening of the recess portion; a heat conductive member provided between the lid portion and the second substrate, the heat conductive member conducting heat from the second substrate to the lid portion; The above configuration may be adopted.

[0013] According to this, heat from the second board can be dissipated from the cover to the outside of the power switch via the thermally conductive member, so that a rise in temperature of the communication section and the control section can be suppressed.

[0014] In the present invention, The first substrate may include a bus bar that constitutes a part of the electrical path.

[0015] According to this, by configuring an electric path capable of supplying a large amount of power to include a bus bar, it is possible to provide a power switch capable of switching a large amount of power without increasing the volume. Effect of the Invention

[0016] According to the present invention, it is possible to make a board including a communication section and a control section less susceptible to the effect of a rise in temperature of a board that generates a large amount of heat. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing an outline of the overall configuration of a charging system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is an external perspective view of a power switching module according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the power switching module according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a power switching module according to a first embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] [Application example] Hereinafter, application examples of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the power switching module 100 used in the charging system 200 shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the power switching module 100, and Fig. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the power switching module 100. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the module 100.

[0019] The charging system 200 includes an EV charging outlet 220, a power switching module 100 that opens and closes an electric circuit PL1 that charges a storage battery of an EV (Electric Vehicle) 230 connected via the EV charging outlet 220 using power supplied from an AC power source 210, and a charging management system 250 that is connected to the power switching module 100 via a network NT1.

[0020] The power switching module 100 includes a relay 101 that opens and closes the electrical circuit PL1, a power measuring unit 102 that measures the power supplied to the EV 230 through the electrical circuit PL1, a communication unit 103 that transmits and receives information between the power switching module 100 and an external device using a predetermined communication method, and a control unit 104 that provides overall control of the relay 101, the power measuring unit 102, and the communication unit 103.

[0021] The power switching module 100 is housed as a module in a housing of a pole or a box that is a charging facility 260 in which an EV charging outlet 220 is provided.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 3, the power switching module 100 is roughly composed of a housing 110 consisting of a front case 120 and a rear case 130, an opening cover 140, an IoT board 150, a thermally conductive sheet 160, and a power board 170.

[0023] The IoT board 150 is mounted with electronic components that function as the communication unit 103 and the control unit 104. The power board 170 is mounted with the relay 101 and the power measurement unit 102, which constitute a part of the electric circuit PL1. The power board 170 is also connected with bus bars 173 and 174 as a part of the electric circuit PL1, and has a capacity for the power supplied from the AC power source 210 to the EV 230 via the power switching module 100. The IoT board 150 may be mounted with an electronic component that functions as at least a part of the control unit 104, in addition to the electronic component that functions as the communication unit 103.

[0024] The IoT board 150 is disposed in a recess 123 provided on the surface portion 121 side of the front case 120, and is connected to a power board 170 disposed in the rear case 130. The IoT board 150 is held at a position separated from the bottom portion 123a by cylindrical holders 123d disposed at the four corners of the bottom portion 123a of the recess 123. In addition, a thermally conductive sheet 160 is disposed between the IoT board 150 and the opening cover 140 so as to be in close contact with the IoT board 150 and the opening cover 140, and has a function of transmitting heat generated by the IoT board 150 to the opening cover 140 and dissipating the heat from the opening cover 140.

[0025] The power board 170 is held at a distance from the rear part 131 by a holding part 133 arranged on the rear part 131 of the rear case 130. The bus bars 173 and 174 each extend from the power board 170 toward the front side, i.e., the front case 120 side, and are arranged along the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the rear case 130. The power board 170 including the bus bars 173 and 174 is arranged in an internal space 113 defined by the front case 120 and the rear case 130, as shown in FIG. 4. Heat generated from the power board 170 is released to the periphery of the power switching module 100 via the bottom part 123a of the recess 123, the side wall part 122 of the front case 120, and the rear case 130, which surround the internal space 113.

[0026] As described above, heat generated from the IoT board 150 is released to the front surface 121 side of the power switching module 100 through the thermally conductive sheet 160 and the opening cover 140. The IoT board 150 is disposed in the recess 123 of the front case 120, and is separated from the internal space 113 in which the power board 170 is disposed by the bottom 123a of the recess 123, and is further held at a distance from the bottom 123a by the holding portion 123d. The effect of heat generated by the power board 170 on the MPU and other components mounted on the board 150 is reduced, and temperature increases in the MPU and other components are suppressed.

[0027] Example 1 Hereinafter, a charging system 200 including a power switching module 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. However, the configurations of the device and system described in this embodiment should be appropriately modified depending on various conditions. In other words, it is not intended that the scope of the present invention be limited to the following embodiment.

[0028] Charging system 200 includes EV charging outlet 220, a power switching module 100 that opens and closes an electric circuit PL1 that charges a storage battery of an EV (Electric Vehicle) 230 connected via EV charging outlet 220 with power supplied from AC power source 210, and a charging management system 250 that is connected to power switching module 100 via a network NT1. Here, AC power source 210 and EV 230 correspond to the power source and load of the present invention, respectively. Also, electric circuit PL1 corresponds to the electric circuit of the present invention. And, power switching module 100 corresponds to the power switch of the present invention, and charging management system 250 corresponds to the external device of the present invention.

[0029] The power switching module 100 mainly includes a relay 101, a power measurement unit 102, a communication unit 103, and a control unit 104. The relay 101 opens and closes an electric circuit PL1 that connects an AC power source 210 and an EV charging outlet 220. The power measurement unit 120 detects an E The relay 101 measures the power supplied to V230. The communication unit 103 is an interface for transmitting and receiving information between the power switching module 100 and an external device using a predetermined communication method. The control unit 104 comprehensively controls the relay 101, the power measuring unit 102, and the communication unit 103. Here, the relay 101, the communication unit 103, and the control unit 104 correspond to the relay, the communication unit, and the control unit of the present invention, respectively.

[0030] The control unit 104 includes a processor such as an MPU and a memory.

[0031] An example of the operation of the charging system 200 described above will be described below. The charging management system 250 is, for example, a computer device such as a plurality of servers arranged on a cloud.

[0032] The charging management system 250 monitors and controls the power switching modules 100 connected via the network NT1.

[0033] Power switching module 100 is housed as a module in a housing of a pole or a box that is charging equipment 260 provided with EV charging outlet 220, for example. Relay 101 and power measurement unit 102 are arranged on an electric circuit PL1 that connects AC power source 210 and EV charging outlet 220 and supplies AC power supplied from AC power source 210 to EV 230 via EV charging outlet 220. Relay 101 opens and closes electric circuit PL1 in response to an instruction from control unit 104, and charges the storage battery of EV 230. Power measurement unit 102 measures the power or the amount of power supplied from AC power source 210 to EV 230 via EV charging outlet 220. Charging management system 250 monitors and controls the operation of power switching module 100 based on necessary information transmitted from communication unit 103.

[0034] Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the outer shape of the power switching module 100, and Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the power switching module 100. Note that in Fig. 3, for convenience of explanation, some members are omitted as appropriate.

[0035] The power switching module 100 has a Z direction as shown in FIG. EV charging outlet 220 is disposed in a housing of a pole or a box that is charging equipment 260 such that the Y direction is the front side, the Y direction is the upper side (-Y direction is the lower side), and the X direction is the right side when facing the front (-X direction is the left side when facing the front). In this case, the front side is the side of charging equipment 260 where EV charging outlet 220 is disposed.

[0036] The power switching module 100 is generally composed of a housing 110 consisting of a front case 120 and a rear case 130, an opening cover 140, an IoT board 150, a heat conductive sheet 160, and a power board 170. The housing 110, which is hollow and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, is divided into a front case 120 on the front side and a rear case 130 on the rear side along a dividing plane 111 parallel to the surface portion 121 and the rear portion 131. The front case 120 and the rear case 130 are joined by an appropriate joining means. The front case 120 has a substantially rectangular shape with a bottom and a side wall portion 122 that rises from the periphery of the substantially rectangular surface portion 121 parallel to the XY plane in a direction perpendicular to the surface portion 121 (-Z direction). Similarly, the rear case 130 has a substantially rectangular shape with a bottom and a side wall 132 rising from the periphery of the rear section 131, which is substantially rectangular parallel to the XY plane, in a direction (Z direction) perpendicular to the rear section 131. The housing 110 of the power switching module 100 can be configured with a simple structure by dividing the housing 110 into the front case 120 and the rear case 130. Here, the housing 110, the front case 120, and the rear case 130 correspond to the housing, the second housing section, and the first housing section of the present invention, respectively. The opening cover 140 and the heat conductive sheet 160 correspond to the lid section and the heat conductive member of the present invention, respectively. The IoT board 150 and the power board 170 correspond to the second board and the first board of the present invention, respectively.

[0037] Further, near the lower end of the surface portion 121 of the front side case 120 in the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction), a recess 123 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape that is recessed from the front side to the back side is formed. The recess 123 has a bottom portion 123a parallel to the surface portion 121, and a side wall portion 123b that rises from the periphery of the bottom portion 123a perpendicularly to the bottom portion 123a and connects to the surface portion 121, and an opening portion 123c that opens outward (to the front side) is formed. The opening portion 123c of the recess 123 provided in the front side case 120 is covered by an opening portion cover 140 that is a substantially rectangular plate-like member so as to be able to be opened and closed. Here, the recess 123 corresponds to the recess of the present invention.

[0038] Near the upper end in the longitudinal direction of the surface portion 121 of the front case 120, there is formed a substantially rectangular opening 124 through which an output connector 172, which will be described later, is exposed toward the surface side.

[0039] An opening 112 is provided on the underside (-Y direction) of the power opening and closing module 100, spanning a side wall 122 of the front case 120 and a side wall 132 of the rear case 130, from which an input connector 171 for connecting an input cable connecting the AC power source 210 and the power opening and closing module 100 is exposed. In addition, an output connector 172 for connecting an output cable connecting the power opening and closing module 100 and the EV charging outlet 220 is disposed on a front surface 100b of the power opening and closing module 100.

[0040] In the power switching module 100, as described above, the circuit board is divided into the IoT board 150 and the power board 170. The IoT board 150 is mounted with electronic components that function as the communication unit 103 and the control unit 104. The power board 170 is mounted with the relay 101 and the power measurement unit 102, and constitutes a part of the electric circuit PL1. In addition, the power board 170 is connected with the bus bars 173 and 174 as a part of the electric circuit PL1, and ensures a capacity for the power supplied from the AC power source 210 to the EV 230 via the power switching module 100. Here, the bus bars 173 and 174 correspond to the bus bars of the present invention. The thermally conductive sheet 160 is a sheet made of a thermally conductive material such as silicon, and is disposed between the IoT board 150 and the opening cover 140.

[0041] Fig. 4 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of the power switching module 100. For convenience of explanation, some components are omitted in Fig. 4. The cross-section shown in Fig. 4 is a cross-section of a portion indicated by dashed line CS in Fig. 2, as viewed from the direction of arrow D1. The IoT board 150 is disposed in a recess 123 provided on the surface portion 121 side of the front case 120, and is connected to a power board 170 disposed in the rear case 130. The IoT board 150 is held at a position separated from the bottom portion 123a by cylindrical holders 123d disposed at the four corners of the bottom portion 123a of the recess 123. The thermally conductive sheet 160 disposed between the IoT board 150 and the opening cover 140 is slightly crushed between the opening cover 140 and the IoT board 150 when the opening cover 140 is closed, and adheres closely to the IoT board 150 and the opening cover 140, and has the function of transmitting heat generated in the IoT board 150 to the opening cover 140 and dissipating the heat from the opening cover 140. Here, the recess 123 corresponds to the second chamber of the present invention. The opening cover 140 may also correspond to the second chamber of the present invention.

[0042] The power board 170 is held at a distance from the rear part 131 by a holding part 133 arranged on the rear part 131 of the rear case 130. The bus bars 173 and 174 each extend from the power board 170 toward the front side, i.e., the front case 120 side, and are arranged along the longitudinal direction (Y-axis direction) of the rear case 130. The power board 170 including the bus bars 173 and 174 is arranged in an internal space 113 defined by the front case 120 and the rear case 130, as shown in FIG. 4. Heat generated from the power board 170 is released to the periphery of the power switching module 100 via the bottom 123a and the side wall part 123b of the recess 123, the side wall part 122 of the front case 120, and the rear case 130, which surround the internal space 113. Here, the internal space 113 corresponds to the hollow interior of the present invention, and the bottom 123a and side wall 123b of the recess 123, the side wall 122 of the front case 120, and the rear case 130 correspond to the first chamber of the present invention. Also, the bottom 123a and side wall 123b of the recess 123 correspond to the partition wall of the present invention.

[0043] As described above, the heat generated from the IoT board 150 is released to the surface portion 121 side of the power switching module 100 through the thermally conductive sheet 160 and the opening cover 140. Since the IoT board 150 is disposed in the recess 123 of the front side case 120, the bottom portion 123a of the recess 123 separates the IoT board 150 from the internal space 113 in which the power board 170 is disposed, and the holding portion 123d holds the IoT board 150 away from the bottom portion 123a. Therefore, the influence of heat generated by the power board 170 on the MPU and the like mounted on the IoT board 150 is reduced, and the temperature rise of the MPU and the like is suppressed. Therefore, the communication unit 103 and the control unit 104 can be operated within an appropriate temperature range, and the reliability of the operation of the power switching module 100 can be ensured. Moreover, by configuring the power switching module 100 in this way, the volume can be suppressed to make the entire device compact, and the power switching module 100 can be installed in a post or a box charging facility with a limited internal space volume.

[0044] In the following, the components of the present invention will be described with reference to the reference numerals in the drawings in order to make it possible to compare the components of the present invention with the configurations of the embodiments. <Appendix 1> A communication unit (103) communicably connected to an external device (250); A relay (101) that opens and closes an electric circuit (PL1) that supplies power from a power source (210) to a load (230); a control unit (104) that controls the relay (101) based on information received from the external device (250) via the communication unit (103); a housing (110) that houses the communication unit (103), the relay (101) and the control unit (104); A power switch (100) having The housing (110) is a first chamber (123a, 123b, 122, 130) and a second chamber (123) separated from the first chamber (123a, 123b, 122, 130) by a partition wall (123a, 123b); The first chamber (123a, 123b, 122, 130) includes a first board (170) on which the relay (101) is mounted and which constitutes a part of the electric circuit (PL1), The power switch (100) is characterized in that a second board (150) including the communication unit (103) and at least a part of the control unit (104) and connected to the first board (170) is disposed in the second chamber (123). <Appendix 2> the first chamber (123a, 123b, 122, 130) comprises a hollow interior (113) of the housing (110); The power switch (100) described in Appendix 1, characterized in that the second chamber (123) is concave from the outside toward the hollow interior (113) in the housing (110) and includes a recess (123) that opens toward the outside. <Appendix 3> The housing (110) is a first housing portion (130) in which the first substrate (170) is disposed; a second housing portion (120) having the recess (123); Equipped with The power switch (100) according to claim 2, wherein the first housing portion (130) and the second housing portion (120) form the first chamber (123a, 123b, 122, 130). <Appendix 4> a cover portion (140) for covering an opening portion (123c) of the recess portion (123); a heat conductive member (160) provided between the lid portion (140) and the second substrate (150) for conducting heat from the second substrate (150) to the lid portion (140); The power switch (100) according to claim 2 or 3, comprising: <Appendix 5> 5. The power switch (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first board (170) includes bus bars (173, 174) that form part of the electric circuit (PL1). [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 100: Power switching module 101: Relay 103: Communications Department 104: Control unit 113:Hollow interior 123: Recess 150: IoT board 170: Power board 210 :AC power supply 230: Electric vehicles PL1: Electrical line

Claims

1. A communication unit that is communicably connected to an external device; A relay that opens and closes the circuit that supplies power from the power source to the load; a control unit that controls the relay based on information received from the external device via the communication unit; a housing that houses the communication unit, the relay, and the control unit; A power switch having The housing includes: A first chamber and a second chamber separated from the first chamber by a partition wall, The first chamber includes a first substrate on which the relay is mounted and which constitutes a part of the electric circuit. A power switch characterized in that a second board including the communication unit and at least a part of the control unit and connected to the first board is disposed in the second chamber.

2. the first chamber includes a hollow interior of the housing; The power switch according to claim 1 , wherein the second chamber is in the housing and includes a recess that is recessed from the outside toward the hollow interior and opens toward the outside.

3. The housing includes: a first housing portion in which the first substrate is disposed; A second housing portion having the recess; Equipped with The power switch according to claim 2 , wherein the first chamber is formed by the first housing portion and the second housing portion.

4. A cover portion for covering an opening of the recess portion; a heat conductive member provided between the lid portion and the second substrate, the heat conductive member conducting heat from the second substrate to the lid portion; 4. The power switch according to claim 2 or 3, further comprising:

5. The power switch according to claim 1 , wherein the first board includes a bus bar that constitutes a part of the electric path.

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