Portable battery system

Abstract

To provide a portable battery system comprising a portable battery device for charging a battery of a vehicle.SOLUTION: A portable battery system comprises: a plurality of portable battery devices 2 each including a charging battery for charging a battery mounted on an electric vehicle; a charging locker 3 including a charging part 34 for charging the battery device 2 and a storage part 31 of the battery device 2; and an operation part 4 for selecting the battery device 2 to be used. The charging locker 3 is provided with a door 33 that closes an opening part 32 through which the battery device 2 is inserted and removed, and a door control part 52 that controls the door 33. The door 33 is hinged to a lower end of the opening part 32, and a slope is formed in front of the opening part 32 by the opened door 33, so that the battery device 2 can be easily stored and removed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a portable battery system that stores a plurality of charging batteries for charging batteries mounted on electric vehicles and the like, and charges them while in storage. [Background technology]

[0002] Electric vehicles that run on a motor powered by an onboard battery are becoming more common. The batteries of such electric vehicles are charged by vehicle charging devices installed in parking areas or stores, or by a charger installed at home. On the other hand, there is a system that allows a vehicle to continue traveling by replacing a battery with a charged battery rather than charging it when the battery stored in the vehicle becomes empty (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7262085 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the above-described conventional method of charging with a vehicle charging device, if the vehicle charging device is in use or if a charging location is not available, the user must wait until the charging location becomes available, and it takes a certain amount of time for charging to be completed. On the other hand, the method of replacing the battery itself is convenient because it does not require parking in a designated parking space and takes less time than charging, but the battery itself is heavy due to its large capacity, making replacement not an easy task. Furthermore, safety considerations are required, and there are many issues with the system. Considering these points, one possible solution is to prepare a portable battery device with sufficient stored power, move the battery device to the vehicle that needs charging, and use the battery device to charge the vehicle's battery. In this case, after the vehicle is fully charged, the battery device can be returned to a designated location and the lost stored power can be recharged, eliminating the need to replace the vehicle's battery. Furthermore, since a large area such as a dedicated parking space is not required for charging, investment is minimal.

[0005] In view of the above problems, the present invention has an object to provide a portable battery system equipped with a portable charging battery for charging a vehicle battery. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the portable battery system of the present invention comprises a plurality of portable battery devices each equipped with a charging battery for charging a battery mounted on an electric vehicle, a charging locker equipped with a charging unit for charging the battery devices and a storage unit for the battery devices, and an operation unit for selecting the battery device to be used, the charging locker being provided with a door for closing an opening for putting the battery devices in and out, and a door control unit for controlling the door, the door being hinged to the bottom end of the opening, and when the door is opened a slope is formed in front of the opening, facilitating the operation of putting in and taking out the battery devices. With this configuration, the battery device is portable, so it can be moved close to the vehicle and charged, eliminating the need for a dedicated parking space for vehicle charging. Also, there is no need for the tedious task of replacing the battery. In addition, even if the battery device storage compartment of the charging locker is located one step above the ground, the opening for loading and unloading is sloped, making it easy to load and unload the battery device.

[0007] Another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, the back surface of the door forming the slope has a battery device detection sensor that detects a battery device that has risen to a specific position on the slope, and a locking means that fixes the battery device, and the door control unit fixes the battery device with the locking means when the battery device reaches the specific position. With this configuration, the battery device is fixed when it reaches a specific position on the slope, so it will not slide down even if it does not reach the top. Therefore, if you change the angle of the door in this state to remove the slope and make it horizontal, you can then smoothly store the battery device.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, the door control unit changes and controls the angle of the door once the battery device is fixed at a specific position, changing the back surface from a sloped state to a horizontal state. According to this configuration, the battery device can be smoothly stored after being raised halfway up the slope by simply moving it horizontally.

[0009] Another aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the above configuration, it has a storage detection means for detecting that the battery device has been stored in a predetermined storage position, and when the storage detection means detects that the battery device has been completely stored, the door control unit closes the door and the charging unit starts charging the battery device. With this configuration, the door closing operation starts once the battery device is completely stored, preventing the door from being forgotten to be closed. In addition, charging starts at the same time, eliminating the need for a separate operation to start charging. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, the battery device is portable, so it can be moved close to the vehicle to charge the vehicle's battery, eliminating the need for a large area such as a dedicated parking space for vehicle charging. Furthermore, it does not require the cumbersome task of replacing the battery. Furthermore, even if the storage compartment for the heavy battery device is located one step above the ground, a slope is formed at the opening when the door is opened, making it easy to load and unload the battery device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is an external view showing an example of a portable battery system according to the present invention; [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the portable battery system of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a side view of the charging locker. [Figure 4] 10 is a flowchart showing a control flow for removing the battery device. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart showing a control flow for removing the battery device. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart showing a control flow for storing the battery device. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing a control flow for storing the battery device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figures 1 and 2 show an example of a portable battery system according to the present invention, with Figure 1 being an external view and Figure 2 being a functional block diagram. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the portable battery system 1 is composed of portable battery devices 2, charging lockers 3 for individually storing the battery devices 2, and an operation unit 4. Here, a portable battery system equipped with three battery devices 2 is shown.

[0013] The battery device 2 has a built-in charging battery for charging the vehicle, and is portable with wheels 21, allowing the user to move it around.

[0014] The charging locker 3 has storage sections 31 (first storage section 31a, second storage section 31b, third storage section 31c) for storing battery devices 2, and each storage section 31 can store one battery device 2. The storage section 31 has an opening 32 on the front for putting in and taking out the battery device 2, and the opening 32 is provided with a door 33 so that it can be closed. The door 33 is hinged at its lower end to the charging locker 3, and by rotating and tilting forward from a state in which it is raised to close the opening 32, it opens the opening 32 and allows the battery device 2 to be loaded or unloaded. As shown in FIG. 1, the tilted door 33 is configured to form a slope between the opening 32 and the ground, eliminating any steps.

[0015] In addition, Figure 1 shows the first storage section 31a with the door 33 closed, the second storage section 31b with the battery device 2 removed and moved up the slope formed by the door 33, and the third storage section 31c with the door 33 open and the battery device 2 not removed.

[0016] The charging locker 3 has a charging unit 34 that charges the battery device 2, a door drive unit 35 that controls the opening and closing of the door 33, and an obstacle sensor 36 that detects obstacles when opening and closing the door 33. The door 33 is provided with a lock unit (locking means) 37 that locks the battery device 2, and a wheel sensor 38 that serves as a battery device detection sensor that detects that the battery device 2 is in a predetermined position.

[0017] The charging unit 34 includes a power supply unit 34a that generates charging power using commercial power as a power source, a power transmission coil 34b that wirelessly transmits power to the housed battery device 2, and the like.

[0018] The obstacle sensor 36 is composed of a first sensor 36a and a second sensor 36b. The first sensor 36a is disposed in the center of the top surface of the opening 32 to detect obstacles below and in front of the opening, and the second sensor 36b is disposed on the front surface of the door 33 to detect obstacles on the entire door surface.

[0019] Two guide paths 33a are formed on the back surface of the door 33 as paths for the wheels 21 of the battery device 2, and the wheel sensors 38 are arranged in these guide paths 33a. Specifically, four sensors for detecting the wheels 21 of the battery device 2 are arranged on the guide paths 33a in accordance with the spacing between the wheels 21 of the battery device 2, and these sensors constitute the wheel sensors 38. The locking portion 37 is disposed at a middle position between the left and right guide paths 33a, and protrudes upward to lock the battery device 2.

[0020] Fig. 3 is an explanatory side view of the charging locker 3, showing the internal structure of the charging locker 3. As shown in Fig. 3, a charging unit 34 equipped with a power supply unit 34a is disposed at the back of the storage unit 31 of the charging locker 3, and a power transmission coil 34b is disposed on the floor of the storage unit 31. The power transmitting coil 34b is used to wirelessly charge the battery device 2, and is disposed at the bottom of the storage section 31. Meanwhile, the battery device 2 has a built-in power receiving coil (not shown) that receives power transmitted from the power transmitting coil 34b, and wireless charging is performed by a magnetic field resonance method or an electromagnetic induction method.

[0021] The charging locker 3 is provided with one main control unit 50 that controls the entire system regardless of the number of storage units 31. The main control unit 50 includes a charge control unit 51 that controls the charging of each battery device 2, a door control unit 52 that controls the opening and closing of the door 33, a position recognition unit 53 that recognizes the position of the battery device 2 based on information from the wheel sensor 38, an obstacle recognition unit 54 that recognizes obstacles based on information from the obstacle sensor 36, and a communication unit 56 that communicates with the battery devices 2, etc.

[0022] The operation unit 4 is disposed adjacent to the charging locker 3 and includes a display unit 41 that displays operation results and various information, a touch panel 42 for performing various operations, and the like. The entire portable battery system 1 is installed in a place with a roof (not shown) to protect it from rainwater.

[0023] The portable battery system configured as described above is operated and operates as follows. This will be explained with reference to the flow charts in Figures 4 and 5. Figures 4 and 5 show the flow for removing the stored battery device 2, and Figures 6 and 7 show the flow for storing the used battery device 2. First, the flow of removing the battery device 2 to charge the battery (not shown) of the electric vehicle will be described with reference to the flow in Figures 4 and 5. To remove the battery device 2, first, the battery device 2 to be used is selected from the plurality of battery devices 2. The selection is performed by operating the operation unit 4 to select the number of the storage unit 31 (S1).

[0024] The charge control section 51 of the main control section 50 determines the charge state of the selected battery device 2 by communicating with the battery device 2 via the battery storage section 31 (S2). If it determines that the selected battery device 2 is not sufficiently charged, it causes another battery device 2 to be selected. For example, if it determines that the charge amount of the battery device 2 in the selected first storage section 31a is not sufficient (for example, less than 70% of full charge) (NO in S2), it determines that removal is not possible (S3), and the process returns to the selection operation S1 for the battery device 2, causing a battery device 2 with another number to be selected.

[0025] If the selected battery device 2 is sufficiently charged, the door 33 is unlocked (S4) and the opening operation is started (S5). At the same time, a loop control (S6 to S7) is entered to monitor the presence or absence of an obstacle in front of the door 33 based on information from the obstacle sensor 36 until the opening operation is completed. In this loop control, the obstacle recognition unit 54 determines whether there is an obstacle in front of the door 33 using the second sensor 36b provided on the front surface of the door 33 (S101), and if an obstacle is recognized (NO in S101), stops the opening operation of the door 33 (S102), prompts the user to remove the obstacle (S103), and waits for the obstacle to be removed (S104). Once the obstacle is removed (YES in S104), the opening operation of the door 33 is resumed (S105). When the presence of an obstacle is recognized, an alarm unit (not shown) provided on the operation unit 4 sounds a message urging the user to remove the obstacle.

[0026] When the opening operation of the door 33 is completed in this way (YES in S7), the opening portion 32 is opened and the battery device 2 can be removed. The door 33 that has been opened continues to open beyond the horizontal position until its tip touches the ground. When it touches the ground, the opening operation ends. As a result, a slope is formed at the tip of the opening portion 32 by the door 33 that has been opened, eliminating the step between the storage section 31 and the ground in front of the opening portion 32 and making it easier to remove the battery device 2.

[0027] Thereafter, when the user removes the battery device 2 (YES in S8), the door closing operation (S9) is started. In this closing control, the position recognition unit 53 recognizes this by the wheel sensor 38 and the first sensor 36a, and the door 33 is closed by the control of the door control unit 52 of the main control unit 50 (S10 to S11). In addition, loop control is performed in this door closing operation S10 to S11, and the control of the above S101 to S105 is performed. When the door closing is completed, the door is locked (S12). However, at this time, the first sensor 36a detects an obstacle.

[0028] The user then moves the drawn-out battery device 2 to the location of the vehicle to be charged, and begins charging the vehicle. Charging is performed by connecting the battery device 2 to the vehicle using a separately provided charging cable.

[0029] When vehicle charging is complete, the user returns the battery device 2 to the charging locker 3. The user may return the battery device 2 to the storage section 31 from which it was removed, or to another available storage section 31. This will be described below with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. First, the storage section number of the storage destination is input from the operation section 4 (S21). Available storage section numbers are displayed on the display section 41, and one of these numbers is selected. The door 33 of the selected storage unit is unlocked (S22), and the opening operation of the door 33 is started (S23). Thereafter, a loop control (S24 to S24) is performed to determine whether or not there is an obstacle until the opening operation of the door 33 is completed, and the control of S101 to S105 is performed.

[0030] When the opening operation of the door 33 is completed, the system waits for the battery device 2 to be stored and waits for the battery device 2 to rise to an intermediate position, which is a specific position on the back surface of the door 33 that forms the guide path for the battery device 2 (S26). When the position recognition unit 53 of the main control unit 50 recognizes that the battery device 2 has risen to the intermediate position based on the detection information of the wheel sensor 38 installed on the door 33, the door control unit 52 operates the lock unit 37 to lock the wheels of the battery device 2 (S27), thereby fixing the battery device 2.

[0031] After the battery device 2 is secured, the door 33 is opened in the closing direction until the back surface, which had been sloping, becomes horizontal (S28). Once the door 33 is horizontal (YES in S29), this state is maintained (S30). Then, the locking unit 37 is unlocked (S31), allowing the battery device 2 to be moved. Thereafter, when the user moves the battery device 2 to a predetermined storage position in the storage section 31 and the storage operation is completed (YES in S32), the door 33 starts to be closed (S33).

[0032] The completion of storing the battery device 2 is detected by a storage detection means (not shown) made up of, for example, a magnetic sensor provided in the storage section 31. Also, in this door closing control, a loop control (S34 to S35) is performed to determine whether or not there is an obstacle, and the control of the above S101 to S105 is performed.

[0033] When the door closing operation is completed, the door 33 is locked (S36) and the storage control of the battery device 2 is terminated, but upon completion of the door closing, charging of the stored battery device 2 is started. The charging control unit 51 controls the charging unit 34 to start wireless charging using the power transmission coil 34b.

[0034] In this way, because the battery device 2 is portable, it can be moved close to the vehicle to be charged, and the vehicle can be charged without having to park it near the charging locker 3. Therefore, a dedicated parking space is not required for vehicle charging. Also, there is no need for the troublesome task of replacing the battery. In addition, even though the storage section 31 for the battery device 2 in the charging locker 3 is located one step higher than the ground, the door 33 forms a slope at the opening 32 for loading and unloading, making it easy to load and unload the battery device 2. Furthermore, when storing the battery device 2, the slope is raised to a specific position and then fixed, so that the battery device 2 does not slide down even if it is not raised all the way up. Once the battery device 2 is fixed, the door 33 operates to make the slope horizontal, allowing the battery device 2 to be stored smoothly. Furthermore, once the battery device 2 has been stored, the door closing operation is initiated, which prevents the user from forgetting to close the door 33. In addition, since charging starts at the same time, there is no need for a separate operation to start charging.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the portable battery system 1 is described as having three battery devices 2, but the number of battery devices 2 that can be installed is arbitrary. Also, although nothing is stated regarding charging fees, for example, a user can register in advance and obtain an ID, and by inputting the registered ID into the operation unit when using the system, the charging fee can be charged from the reduced amount of charging power of the battery devices 2. Although the battery device 2 is configured for wireless charging, wired charging may also be performed. In this case, when the battery device 2 is placed in a predetermined position (storage completion position) in the storage section 31, a plug or the like provided on the battery device 2 may be connected to a power outlet or the like provided on the charging locker 3 side. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1·· Portable battery system, 2·· Battery device, 3·· Charging locker, 4·· Operation unit, 31 (31a, 31b, 31c)·· Storage unit (battery storage unit), 32·· Opening, 33·· Door, 34·· Charging unit, 36·· Obstacle sensor, 37·· Lock unit, 38·· Wheel sensor (battery device detection sensor), 50·· Main control unit, 51·· Charging control unit, 52·· Door control unit, 53·· Position recognition unit, 54·· Obstacle recognition unit.

Claims

1. a plurality of portable battery devices each including a charging battery for charging batteries mounted on an electric vehicle; a charging locker including a charging unit for charging the battery device and a storage unit for the battery device; an operation unit for selecting the battery device to be used, the charging locker is provided with a door that closes an opening through which the battery device is inserted and removed, and a door control unit that controls the door, The door is hinged to the lower end of the opening, and when the door is opened, a slope is formed in front of the opening, facilitating the storage and removal of the battery device.

2. The rear surface of the door forming the slope has a battery device detection sensor that detects the battery device that has risen to a specific position on the slope, and a locking means that fixes the battery device, 2. The portable battery system according to claim 1, wherein the door control section fixes the battery device with the locking means when the battery device reaches the specific position.

3. The portable battery system according to claim 2, characterized in that, once the battery device is fixed at the specific position, the door control unit changes and controls the angle of the door to make the back surface horizontal from a sloped state.

4. a storage detection means for detecting that the battery device has been stored in a predetermined storage position; 4. The portable battery system according to claim 2, wherein when the storage detection means detects that the battery device has been completely stored, the door control unit closes the door and the charging unit starts charging the battery device.

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