Wireless charging system

Abstract

To provide a contactless charging system capable of avoiding unnecessary redoing of parking operations due to malfunction of a wireless communication device of a ground-side device. [Solution] The contactless charging system disclosed herein determines whether the relative position of the coil of a ground device and the coil of a vehicle is a position where the vehicle can be charged, and starts charging the vehicle if the relative position is a position where the vehicle can be charged.The system is equipped with a means for notifying the user of the determination result of the relative position in a manner different from notifications regarding malfunctions in the wireless communication device of the ground device that communicates wirelessly with the vehicle.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wireless charging system. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a contactless charging system that determines whether the relative position of the coil of a ground device and the coil of a vehicle is a position where the vehicle can be charged, and starts charging the vehicle if the relative position is a position where the vehicle can be charged (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-236524 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In conventional contactless charging systems, if a power outage occurs in the ground-side device, the user may not be able to recognize that there is no problem with the relative position, and may end up redoing the parking operation unnecessarily even though there is actually a malfunction in the wireless communication device of the ground-side device. For this reason, there has been a demand for technology that can prevent the user from having to redo the parking operation unnecessarily due to a malfunction in the wireless communication device of the ground-side device.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a contactless charging system that can avoid unnecessary redoing of parking operations due to a malfunction of the wireless communication device of the ground-side device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The contactless power receiving system of the present disclosure is a contactless charging system that determines whether the relative position of the coil of a ground device and the coil of a vehicle is a position where the vehicle can be charged, and starts charging the vehicle if the relative position is a position where the vehicle can be charged, and is equipped with a means for notifying the user of the determination result of the relative position in a manner different from a notification regarding a malfunction of the wireless communication device of the ground device that communicates wirelessly with the vehicle. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to avoid unnecessary redoing of parking operations due to a malfunction of the wireless communication device of the ground-side device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a contactless charging system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of notification processing according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of a user determination process according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of a contactless charging system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0010] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a contactless charging system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 1, the contactless charging system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a ground-side device 2 and a vehicle 3. In the contactless charging system 1, the ground-side device 2 determines whether the relative position of the power transmitting coil 11 and the power receiving coil 21 is such that the battery 22 of the vehicle 3 can be charged, and starts charging the battery 22 if the relative position is such that the battery 22 can be charged.

[0011] The ground-side device 2 is a ground facility that supplies power to the vehicle 3. For example, the ground-side device 2 is installed in a parking lot of a commercial facility or a parking lot at home. The ground-side device 2 includes a power supply device 10. The power supply device 10 is a device that transmits power to the vehicle 3 in a contactless manner. An AC power source is connected to the power supply device 10. The AC power source is constituted by a commercial power source, a household power source, or the like, and supplies power to the power supply device 10. The power supply device 10 includes a power transmission coil 11, a power transmission unit 12, a wall box 13, a power transmission ECU 14, and a communication device 15.

[0012] The power transmitting coil 11 is a primary coil installed on the ground 4. The power transmitting unit 12 is a device having the power transmitting coil 11, and is installed on the ground 4 in the parking space together with the power transmitting coil 11. The wall box 13 is installed near the parking space, for example, on the wall of the parking space. The wall box 13 has a power transmitting ECU 14 and a communication device 15 installed therein. The power transmitting unit 12 and the wall box 13 are electrically connected. Power is supplied to the power transmitting unit 12 from an AC power source.

[0013] The power transmission ECU 14 is an electronic control device that controls the power feeding device 10. The power transmission ECU 14 includes a processor and a memory. The processor is configured with a CPU, etc. The memory is configured with a RAM, a ROM, etc. Signals from various sensors are input to the power transmission ECU 14. The power transmission ECU 14 performs various controls based on the signals input from the various sensors. For example, the power transmission ECU 14 controls switching elements included in the power conversion unit of the power feeding device 10 to adjust the power to be transmitted. The power transmission ECU 14 can also perform power transmission control using information acquired by the communication device 15. This power transmission control is wireless power transmission control to the vehicle 3.

[0014] The communication device 15 performs wireless communication with the vehicle 3 parked in the parking space. The communication device 15 transmits information from the power transmission ECU 14 to the vehicle 3 and receives information transmitted from the vehicle 3. The communication device 15 is capable of wireless communication using, for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark) or wireless LAN.

[0015] The vehicle 3 is an electric vehicle that can be charged with power transmitted contactlessly from the ground-side device 2. The vehicle 3 is, for example, an electric vehicle (BEV), a hybrid vehicle (HEV), a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV), or the like. The vehicle 3 is a vehicle that can be parked in a parking space in which a power transmission coil 11 is installed. The vehicle 3 includes a power receiving device 20, a power receiving coil 21, a battery 22, a vehicle ECU 23, a communication device 24, and a notification device 25.

[0016] The power receiving device 20 includes a power receiving coil 21 installed under the body of the vehicle 3. The power receiving coil 21 receives power transmitted contactlessly from the power transmitting coil 11. The power receiving device 20 supplies the power received from the power supply device 10 to a battery 22. The power supply device 10 and the battery 22 are electrically connected.

[0017] The battery 22 is an in-vehicle battery that can be externally charged. The battery 22 stores the power received by the power receiving device 20. The battery 22 is configured as a secondary battery that stores the power supplied from the power receiving device 20.

[0018] The vehicle ECU 23 is an electronic control device that controls the vehicle 3. The vehicle ECU 23 has the same hardware configuration as the power transmission ECU 14. The vehicle ECU 23 executes various vehicle controls based on signals input from various sensors mounted on the vehicle 3 and information acquired through communication using the communication device 24. The vehicle controls include charging control for storing power transmitted contactlessly from the power transmission unit 12 in the battery 22. The charging control is control for transmitting power contactlessly from the power transmission coil 11 to the power receiving coil 21 and storing the power received by the power receiving coil 21 in the battery 22.

[0019] The communication device 24 performs wireless communication with an external device such as the ground device 2. The communication device 24 performs wireless communication with the communication device 15 of the power supply device 10 when the vehicle 3 performs contactless charging. The communication device 24 transmits information from the vehicle 3 to the power supply device 10 and receives information transmitted from the power supply device 10 to the vehicle 3.

[0020] The notification device 25 is configured with LEDs of multiple colors, such as red and green, and notifies a user in the vehicle 3 of multiple pieces of information. In the present embodiment, the notification device 25 is configured with LEDs, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and any device that can notify a user in the vehicle 3 of multiple pieces of information may be used other than an LED, such as a display output device or an audio output device.

[0021] In this contactless charging system 1, contactless charging is performed from the power supply device 10 to the vehicle 3 when wireless communication is established between the vehicle 3 and the power supply device 10. When the vehicle 3 and the power supply device 10 are paired by wireless communication, power is transmitted contactlessly from a power transmission coil 11 on the ground to a power receiving coil 21 on the vehicle side. In the vehicle 3, control is performed to supply the power received by the power receiving coil 21 to a battery 22.

[0022] In the wireless charging system 1 having such a configuration, the ground-side device 2 executes the following notification process to avoid unnecessary redoing of parking operations in the parking space where the power transmitting coil 11 is installed due to a malfunction of the communication device 15. Hereinafter, the operation of the ground-side device 2 when executing this notification process will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0023] [Notification processing] 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of notification processing according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The flowchart shown in FIG. 2 starts when the vehicle 3 stops in a parking space in which the power transmitting coil 11 is installed, and the notification processing proceeds to step S1. Whether the vehicle 3 has stopped in the parking space in which the power transmitting coil 11 is installed can be determined, for example, using a sensor or the like installed in the ground-side device 2. In this embodiment, when it is determined that the vehicle 3 has been parked in a position where charging is possible, the power transmitting ECU 14 turns on a green LED provided in the notification device 25 of the vehicle 3 via the communication device 15.

[0024] In the process of step S1, the vehicle ECU 23 determines whether wireless communication has been established between the communication device 24 of the vehicle 3 and the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2. If the result of the determination is that wireless communication has been established (step S1: Yes), the vehicle ECU 23 proceeds with the notification process to the process of step S2. On the other hand, if wireless communication has not been established (step S1: No), the vehicle ECU 23 proceeds with the notification process to the process of step S3.

[0025] In the process of step S2, the vehicle ECU 23 turns on a red LED lamp to notify the user of the vehicle 3 that wireless communication has been established between the communication device 24 of the vehicle 3 and the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2. This completes the process of step S2, and the series of notification processes ends.

[0026] In the process of step S3, the vehicle ECU 23 does not turn on the red LED lamp, thereby notifying the user of the vehicle 3 that wireless communication has not been established between the communication device 24 of the vehicle 3 and the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2. This completes the process of step S3, and the series of notification processes ends.

[0027] As described above, in the contactless charging system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when it is determined that the vehicle 3 is parked in a position where charging is possible, the power transmission ECU 14 turns on the green LED provided in the notification device 25 of the vehicle 3 via the communication device 15. Furthermore, when wireless communication is not established between the communication device 24 of the vehicle 3 and the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2, the vehicle ECU 23 does not turn on the red LED provided in the notification device 25 of the vehicle 3. In other words, the contactless charging system 1 notifies the user of the vehicle 3 of the determination result of whether the vehicle 3 is parked in a position where charging is possible in a manner different from the notification regarding a malfunction of the communication device 15 that communicates wirelessly with the vehicle 3. This makes it possible to avoid unnecessary redoing of the parking operation due to a malfunction of the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2.

[0028] Specifically, in the contactless charging system 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in FIG. 3, if the green LED is lit (step S11: Yes), the user can determine that the vehicle 3 is parked in a position where charging is possible (step S13). In this case, the user gets out of the vehicle 3. On the other hand, if the green LED is not lit but the red LED is lit (step S11: No, step S12: Yes), the user can determine that the vehicle 3 is not parked in a position where charging is possible (step S14). In this case, the user retries the parking operation. Furthermore, if both the green LED and the red LED are not lit (step S11: No, step S12: No), the user can determine that wireless communication has not been established between the communication device 24 of the vehicle 3 and the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2 (step S15). In this case, the user checks whether the wallbox 13 is activated. This makes it possible to avoid having to redo the parking operation due to a malfunction of the communication device 15 of the ground-side device 2.

[0029] Further advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. The disclosure in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general disclosed concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0030] 1. Wireless charging system 2 Ground side equipment 3 vehicles 4 ground 10 Power supply device 11. Transmission coil 12 Power Transmission Unit 13 Wall Box 14 Power Transmission ECU 15. Communications equipment 20 Power receiving device 21 Receiving coil 22 Battery 23 Vehicle ECU 24 Communication equipment 25 Notification device

Claims

[Claim 1] A wireless charging system that determines whether a relative position of a coil of a ground device and a coil of a vehicle is a position where the vehicle can be charged, and starts charging of the vehicle when the relative position is a position where the vehicle can be charged, A wireless charging system comprising: means for notifying a user of the determination result of the relative position in a manner different from a notification regarding a malfunction of a wireless communication device of a ground-side device that wirelessly communicates with the vehicle.

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