Vehicle charging system

Abstract

To provide a vehicle charging system capable of supporting both contact charging and non-contact charging while minimizing changes on the vehicle side.SOLUTION: A vehicle charging system charges a power storage device installed in a vehicle by connecting a contact charging circuit and a non-contact charging circuit provided in the vehicle in parallel and selectively switching to either contact charging or non-contact charging. A vehicle side unit provided in the non-contact charging circuit includes: an AC / DC converter; a DC / AC converter; a relay that switches between contact charging and non-contact charging; and a microcomputer that outputs signals of the same format for contact charging and non-contact charging, to the on-board charging device, in which when a contact charging or non-contact charging signal is input to the microcomputer, the relay switches to the charging method in which input has been made.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle charging system.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which an on-board charger module for contact charging is shared with non-contact charging.

Prior Art Document

Patent Document

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Generally, there is a difference in the frequency of the alternating current between contact charging and non-contact charging, and it is necessary to adjust the frequency of the alternating current and change the system so that both contact charging and non-contact charging can be used.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle charging system that can support both contact charging and non-contact charging while minimizing changes on the vehicle side.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a vehicle charging system according to the present invention is a vehicle charging system that selectively switches to either contact charging or non-contact charging by connecting in parallel a contact charging circuit and a non-contact charging circuit provided in a vehicle to charge a power storage device mounted on the vehicle. A vehicle-side unit provided in the non-contact charging circuit includes an AC / DC converter, a DC / AC converter, a relay that switches between the contact charging and the non-contact charging, and a microcomputer that outputs signals of the same format to an in-vehicle charger for both the contact charging and the non-contact charging. When a signal for contact charging or non-contact charging is input to the microcomputer, the relay is switched to the input charging method.

Effect of the Invention

[0007] The vehicle charging system according to the present invention has an effect that it can cope with both contact charging and non-contact charging while minimizing changes in the vehicle-side configuration.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vehicle charging system according to the present invention will be described. Note that the present invention is not limited by this embodiment.

[0010] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle charging system 100 according to an embodiment. The vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment is composed of a vehicle 1 and a power supply facility 2 provided on the ground (outside the vehicle). The vehicle 1 includes a battery 10, a vehicle-side ECU 11, an in-vehicle charger 12, a connector 13, a vehicle-side unit 14, a power receiving unit 15, a connector 16, an inlet 17, and the like. The power supply facility 2 includes a contact charging device 201, and a ground-side unit 21 and a power transmission unit 22 that constitute a non-contact charging device 202. The non-contact charging device 202 is composed of the ground-side unit 21 and the power transmission unit 22 on the power supply facility 2 side, and the power receiving unit 15 and the vehicle-side unit 14 on the vehicle 1 side. In this embodiment, the charging of the battery 10 using the contact charging device 201 is referred to as contact charging, and the charging of the battery 10 using the non-contact charging device 202 is referred to as non-contact charging.

[0011] The in-vehicle charger 12 of the vehicle 1 is electrically connected to a battery 10 which is a power storage device mounted on the vehicle 1. The in-vehicle charger 12 is used for charging the battery 10 with power selectively supplied from one of the contact charging device 201 and the non-contact charging device 202. The in-vehicle charger 12 is provided with a microcomputer 121, a connector 122, an inverter, and the like. The microcomputer 121 of the in-vehicle charger 12 is composed of a microcomputer having a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. The connector 122 of the in-vehicle charger 12 is connected to the connector 13 of the vehicle-side unit 14.

[0012] The vehicle-side unit 14 is equipped with a microcomputer 141, a relay 142, a DC / AC converter 143, an AC / DC converter 144, a connector 145, etc. The input side of the relay 142 is electrically connected to the input lines L1 and L2 from the DC / AC converter 143 used for non-contact charging and the input lines L1 and L2 from the inlet 17 used for contact charging via the connectors 16 and 145 in a selectively switchable manner. The output side of the relay 142 is electrically connected to the in-vehicle charger 12 via the connectors 13 and 122 by the input lines L1 and L2. The microcomputer 141 of the vehicle-side unit 14 is composed of a CPU, a memory, an input / output interface, etc. The microcomputer 141 outputs a signal related to a switching command for the charging method between contact charging and non-contact charging to the relay 142, for example, to control the switching operation of the relay 142.

[0013] The power receiving unit 15 of the vehicle 1 receives AC power output from the power transmitting unit 22 of the ground-side unit 21 non-contact when charging the battery 10 using the non-contact charging device 202. The ground-side unit 21 is electrically connected to an external power source such as a commercial power source, for example.

[0014] The power receiving unit 15 and the power transmitting unit 22 exchange power non-contact through at least one of the magnetic field and the electric field formed between the power receiving unit 15 and the power transmitting unit 22. The magnetic field and the electric field vibrate at a specific frequency. Then, by resonating (resonating) the power receiving unit 15 and the power transmitting unit 22 by the electromagnetic field, AC power is supplied (transmitted) non-contact from the power transmitting unit 22 to the power receiving unit 15.

[0015] The AC power supplied to the power receiving unit 15 is input to the AC / DC converter 144 of the vehicle-side unit 14 via the input lines L1 and L2. The AC / DC converter 144 converts the AC power, for example, with a frequency of 85 [kHz], input from the power receiving unit 15 into DC power by performing AC / DC conversion. Subsequently, the DC / AC converter 143 receives the DC power that has undergone AC / DC conversion by the AC / DC converter 144 via the input lines L1 and L2. The DC / AC converter 143 performs DC / AC conversion on the DC power that has undergone AC / DC conversion by the AC / DC converter 144 and converts it into AC power with an output of 100 to 200 [V] and a frequency of 50 [Hz] or 60 [Hz].

[0016] Also, the power receiving unit 15 and the microcomputer 141 provided in the vehicle-side unit 14 are connected by a communication line so as to be communicable with each other. Further, the ground-side unit 21 and the vehicle-side unit 14 are configured to be capable of wireless communication with each other. Then, information regarding non-contact charging, for example, is input to the microcomputer 141 through the communication line or wireless communication. The information regarding non-contact charging input to the microcomputer 141 is output from the microcomputer 141 to the in-vehicle charger 12 as a signal (pilot signal CPLT, connector connection signal PISW, and GND signal) in the same format as that for contact charging and is input to the microcomputer 121 of the in-vehicle charger 12 as a command value.

[0017] During the execution of non-contact charging, the in-vehicle charger 12 controls switching elements such as the inverter provided in the in-vehicle charger 12 by the microcomputer 121 based on command values input from the microcomputer 141 of the vehicle-side unit 14 and control signals such as CAN communication from the vehicle-side ECU 11, and converts the AC power supplied from the DC / AC converter 143 of the vehicle-side unit 14 into charging power (DC power) for the battery 10. Then, the charging power (DC power) output from the in-vehicle charger 12 is supplied to the battery 10 to charge the battery 10.

[0018] The input side of the inlet 17 provided in the vehicle 1 is configured to be connectable to the connector 20 of a charging cable that supplies power from the contact charging device 201 of the power supply facility 2 to the vehicle 1. When charging the battery 10 using the contact charging device 201, the inlet 17 receives AC power supplied from the contact charging device 201 via the charging cable, for example, with an output of 100 - 200 [V] and a frequency of 50 [Hz] or 60 [Hz]. The contact charging device 201 is electrically connected to an external power source such as a commercial power supply, for example.

[0019] On the output side of the inlet 17, the input side of the connector 16 is electrically connected via the input lines L1, L2 and various signal lines. The output side of the connector 16 is connected to the input side of the connector 145 provided in the vehicle-side unit 14 for non-contact charging. Note that the connector 16 connected to the connector 145 of the vehicle-side unit 14 uses the same one as the connector 13 connected to the connector 122 of the in-vehicle charger 12. Thereby, for example, when the vehicle 1 only supports contact charging and does not support non-contact charging without including the vehicle-side unit 14 etc., the configuration change on the vehicle 1 side when supporting both contact charging and non-contact charging can be minimized.

[0020] On the output side of the connector 145 of the vehicle-side unit 14, the input lines L1, L2 are electrically connected to the relay 142. Thereby, the input lines L1, L2 connected to the output side of the inlet 17 can be electrically connected to the input lines L1, L2 of the in-vehicle charger 12 via the relay 142 of the vehicle-side unit 14.

[0021] Also, the output side of the inlet 17 and the input side of the connector 16 are connected by various signal lines such as a signal line for transmitting a pilot signal CPLT for exchanging predetermined information between the vehicle 1 and the contact charging device 201, a signal line for transmitting a connector connection signal PISW indicating the connection state between the inlet 17 and the connector 20, and a signal line (GND line) for transmitting a GND signal for taking a ground potential. And on the output side of the connector 145 of the vehicle-side unit 14 connected to the connector 16, various signal lines for transmitting the pilot signal CPLT, the connector connection signal PISW, the GND signal, etc. are connected to the microcomputer 141 of the vehicle-side unit 14. In this way, between the inlet 17 and the microcomputer 141 of the vehicle-side unit 14, there are provided a signal line for transmitting the pilot signal CPLT, a signal line for transmitting the connector connection signal PISW, a signal line (GND line) for transmitting a GND signal for taking a ground potential, and the like.

[0022] During the execution of contact charging, the in-vehicle charger 12 controls switching elements such as an inverter provided in the in-vehicle charger 12 by the microcomputer 121 based on a control signal from the vehicle-side ECU 11 through CAN communication or the like, and converts the power supplied from the inlet 17 (vehicle-side unit 14) into charging power (DC power) for the battery 10. Then, the charging power (DC power) output from the in-vehicle charger 12 is supplied to the battery 10 to charge the battery 10.

[0023] In the vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment, a contact charging circuit and a non-contact charging circuit provided in the vehicle 1 are connected in parallel, and the charging method is selectively switched to either contact charging or non-contact charging to charge the battery 10 mounted on the vehicle 1. The vehicle-side unit 14 provided in the non-contact charging circuit includes an AC / DC converter 144, a DC / AC converter 143, a relay 142 that switches between contact charging and non-contact charging, and a microcomputer 141 that outputs signals of the same format for in-vehicle charger 12 for both contact charging and non-contact charging. In the vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment, when a contact charging or non-contact charging signal is input to the microcomputer 141, the relay 142 is switched to the charging method for which the input was received. The contact charging signal and the non-contact charging signal include, for example, information related to contact charging (information for starting contact charging) and information related to non-contact charging (information for starting non-contact charging) respectively output from the ground-side unit 21 that constitutes the contact charging device 201 and the non-contact charging device 202. Further, in the vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment, the vehicle-side unit 14 adjusts the frequency of the alternating current for both contact charging and non-contact charging, so that the in-vehicle charger 12 is compatible with both contact charging and non-contact charging.

[0024] Figure 2 is a flowchart showing an example of control implemented in the vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment. First, in the vehicle charging system 100, it is determined whether signals for both non-contact charging and contact charging are input to the microcomputer 141 in the vehicle-side unit 14 (step S1). If it is determined that signals for both non-contact charging and contact charging are input to the microcomputer 141 (Yes in step S1), one of the signals for non-contact charging and contact charging is selected (step S2), and the process proceeds to step S3. Also, in step S1, if it is determined that signals for both non-contact charging and contact charging are not input to the microcomputer 141 (No in step S1), the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, in the vehicle charging system 100, it is determined whether a signal for non-contact charging or contact charging is input to the microcomputer 141 in the vehicle-side unit 14 (step S3). If it is determined that neither a signal for non-contact charging nor a signal for contact charging is input to the microcomputer 141 (No in step S3), the process returns to step S1. On the other hand, if it is determined that a signal for non-contact charging or contact charging is input to the microcomputer 141 (Yes in step S3), the microcomputer 141 controls the switching operation of the relay 142 to switch to the charging method for which there is an input between non-contact charging and contact charging (step S4), and a series of control ends.

[0025] The vehicle charging system 100 according to the embodiment can correspond to both contact charging and non-contact charging by adjusting the frequencies of the alternating currents for contact charging and non-contact charging in the vehicle-side unit 14 while minimizing configuration changes on the vehicle 1 side.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0026] 1 Vehicle 2 Power supply facility 10 Battery 11 Vehicle-side ECU 12 On-vehicle charger 13 Connector 14 Vehicle-side unit 15 Power receiving unit 16 Connector 17 Inlet 20 Connectors 21 Ground - side Unit 22 Power Transmission Unit 100 Vehicle Charging System 121 Microcontroller 122 Connector 141 Microcontroller 142 Relay 143 DC / AC Converter 144 AC / DC Converter 145 Connector 201 Contact Charging Device 202 Non - contact Charging Device

Claims

【Claim 1】 A vehicle charging system that charges a power storage device mounted on the vehicle by selectively switching between conductive charging and non-conductive charging by connecting in parallel a conductive charging circuit and a non-conductive charging circuit provided in the vehicle, wherein the vehicle-side unit provided in the non-conductive charging circuit includes an AC / DC converter, a DC / AC converter, a relay that switches between the conductive charging and the non-conductive charging, and a microcomputer that outputs signals of the same format to an in-vehicle charger for both the conductive charging and the non-conductive charging. The vehicle charging system is characterized in that when a signal for conductive charging or non-conductive charging is input to the microcomputer, the relay is switched to the charging method for which the input was received.

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