Charging cable

Abstract

The present invention provides a charging cable that can charge a vehicle's battery while keeping costs down, and also allows the vehicle's battery to be used as a storage battery for external power supply. [Solution] A charging cable 11 having a connector 12 that can be inserted into and removed from a vehicle charging receptacle, and a cable 13 that extends from the connector 12 and is connected to a charging device, wherein the connector 12 has an outlet portion 16 to which a charging-side plug 21 provided on the cable 13 or an external power supply-side plug provided on an external power supply cable can be attached and detached.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a charging cable.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a charging cable used for the purpose of charging a driving battery of a vehicle. This charging cable includes a grid plug connected to an external power source, a grid cable connected to the grid plug, a CCID including a relay circuit connected to the grid cable for controlling vehicle charging, a coupler connected to the vehicle, and a coupler cable connecting the coupler and the CCID.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, when introducing V2H (Vehicle to Home) that uses the battery of a vehicle such as a battery electric vehicle (BEV) or a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) as a home battery or V2G (Vehicle to Grid) that uses it as a power grid infrastructure, a separate external power supply dedicated connector is connected to the receptacle of the vehicle, and the plug of an external power supply cable is inserted into the outlet provided in this connector for power supply.

[0005] In this way, when externally supplying power from the battery of a vehicle, in addition to a charging cable equipped with a charging connector, it is necessary to separately prepare a separate expensive external power supply dedicated connector, which causes a problem of increased costs.

[0006] This invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a charging cable that can charge a vehicle's battery while keeping costs down, and that also allows the vehicle's battery to be used as a storage battery for external power supply. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To achieve the above objective, the charging cable of the present invention is A charging cable comprising a connector that can be inserted into and removed from a vehicle charging receptacle, and a cable extending from the connector and connected to a charging device, The connector has an outlet section to which a charging plug provided on the cable or an external power supply plug provided on the external power supply cable can be attached and detached.

[0008] With this charging cable configuration, the vehicle's battery can be charged by a charging device by connecting the charging plug to the connector's outlet. Furthermore, by connecting the external power supply plug of an electrical appliance or other device to the connector's outlet, power from the vehicle's battery can be supplied to various devices. In this way, the charging cable connector can be used for external power supply, eliminating the need for a separate, high-cost connector and thus reducing costs. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a charging cable that can charge a vehicle's battery while keeping costs down, and that also allows the vehicle's battery to be used as a storage battery for external power supply. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the charging cable according to this embodiment. [Figure 2]Figure 2 is a perspective view of the components illustrating the internal structure of the connector that makes up the charging cable. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a front view of the connector, illustrating the type of connector connection. [Figure 4] Figure 4 shows a side view and a front view of the outlet section of the connector, illustrating its function. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows a side view and a front view of a plug provided on a cable. [Figure 6] Figure 6 is a front view of an electrical outlet, showing examples of various outlet shapes used depending on the country, region, or electrical appliance used. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the charging cable 11 according to this embodiment.

[0012] As shown in Figure 1, the charging cable 11 according to this embodiment has a connector 12 and a cable 13. The connector 12 is connected to charging equipment (not shown) by the cable 13. The connector 12 is connected to a vehicle charging receptacle (not shown).

[0013] The charging cable 11 is used to charge the battery installed in the vehicle. The battery is charged from the charging equipment with the connector 12 connected to the vehicle's receptacle. Vehicles that are charged using the charging cable 11 are vehicles equipped with drive batteries, such as electric vehicles (BEVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).

[0014] In addition, when the charging cable 11 supplies power externally from the vehicle's battery, the connector 12 can be used as an external power supply connector. By using the connector 12, it is possible to supply power to various electrical appliances such as coffee makers, outdoor lights, rice cookers, etc.

[0015] The connector 12 has a connecting portion 15 that is detachable from the receptacle of the vehicle on one end side. Also, the connector 12 has a socket portion 16 on the other end side.

[0016] The cable 13 includes a plug 21, a coupler 22, and a controller 23. The plug 21 is provided on one end side of the cable 13, and the coupler 22 is provided on the other end side of the cable 13. The controller 23 is provided in the middle of the cable 13. s

[0017] The plug 21 is detachable from the socket portion 16 of the connector 12. The coupler 22 is detachable from the charging socket provided on the charging device. The controller 23 is a CCID (Charging Circuit Interrupt Device) that controls charging the vehicle, and includes a pilot circuit that monitors the states of the vehicle and the charging device, a relay that cuts off the power supply from the charging device, etc. Also, the controller 23 includes a communication circuit and communicates with the vehicle to transmit a control signal to the vehicle.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the components explaining the internal structure of the connector 12 that constitutes the charging cable 11. FIG. 3 is a front view of the connecting portion 15 explaining the type of the connecting portion 15 of the connector 12.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 2, the connector 12 has a plurality of connection terminals 31 housed inside a housing 30. Also, the connecting portion 15 includes a plurality of sleeves 32, a holder 33, a cover 34, an operation lever 35, a lock member 36, a spring 37, and a plurality of pins 38, etc. [[ID=!21]]

[0020] Here, as the type of the connection part 15 of the connector 12 connected to the receptacle of the vehicle, various types are applicable according to the vehicle. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, as the type of the connection part 15, a Type-1 (CCS1) type T1, a Type-2 (CCS2) type T2, a GB / T type T3, or a NACS type T4, etc. are applicable.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a side view and a front view of the socket part 16 for explaining the socket part 16 of the connector 12. FIG. 5 is a side view and a front view of the plug 21 provided on the cable 13 for explaining the plug 21.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 4, the socket part 16 of the connector 12 has a so-called grounded single-phase 100V socket shape having an L (Live) hole 41, an N (Neutral) hole 42, and a G (Ground) hole �. Further, the socket part 16 has a CP (Control Pilot) hole 44 for transmitting and receiving control signals at its central part. [[ID=!0]]

[0023] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the plug 21 of the cable 13 has a so-called grounded single-phase 100V plug shape having an L (Live) pin 51, an N (Neutral) pin 52, and a G (Ground) pin 53. Further, the plug 21 has a CP (Control Pilot) pin 54 for transmitting and receiving control signals at its central part.

[0024] [[ID=1!6]]And by inserting the plug 21 of the cable 13 into the socket part 16 of the connector 12, the L (Live) pin 51, N (Neutral) pin 52, G (Ground) pin 53, and CP (Control Pilot) pin 54 of the plug 21 are inserted into the L (Live) hole 41, N (Neutral) hole 42, G (Ground) hole 43, and CP (Control Pilot) hole 44 of the socket part 16 and electrically connected to each other.

[0025] Next, we will explain an example of how to use the charging cable 11. (When charging the vehicle's battery) When charging the vehicle's battery using the charging cable 11, the coupler 22 of the charging cable 11 is inserted into the charging outlet of the charging device. Next, the connection part 15 of the connector 12 of the charging cable 11 is inserted into the vehicle's receptacle. After that, the charging device charges the vehicle's battery via the charging cable 11.

[0026] (When power is supplied externally from the vehicle's battery) When supplying external power from the vehicle's battery using the charging cable 11, first, the plug 21 is removed from the outlet section 16 of the connector 12 of the charging cable 11 to separate the connector 12. Next, the connection section 15 of the connector 12 is inserted into the vehicle's receptacle to make the connection. After that, the plug on the power cable of the electrical appliance to be powered is inserted into the outlet section 16 of the connector 12 to make the connection. The plug on the power cable of the electrical appliance has an L (Live) pin, an N (Neutral) pin, and a G (Ground) pin, and does not have a CP (Control Pilot) pin for transmitting and receiving control signals, and has the shape of a so-called grounded single-phase 100V outlet. Therefore, when the plug of a power cable for an electrical appliance is connected to the outlet section 16 of the connector 12 connected to the vehicle's receptacle, the L (Live) pin, N (Neutral) pin, and G (Ground) pin of the plug are inserted into the L (Live) hole 41, N (Neutral) hole 42, and G (Ground) hole 43 of the outlet section 16, and are electrically connected to each other. This makes it possible to supply power to electrical appliances from the vehicle's battery.

[0027] As described above, according to the charging cable 11 of this embodiment, the vehicle's battery can be charged by a charging device by connecting the charging plug 21 to the outlet portion 16 of the connector 12. Furthermore, by connecting the external power supply plug provided on the cable of an electrical appliance or other device to the outlet portion 16 of the connector 12, power from the vehicle's battery can be supplied to various devices. In this way, the connector 12 of the charging cable 11 can be used for external power supply, and by standardizing the high-cost connector 12, a dedicated power supply connector can be eliminated, thereby reducing costs.

[0028] In particular, cost reduction can be achieved by standardizing the connection terminals 31 of the connector 12, which are made of high-grade, expensive parts that are formed with high precision by processes such as pressure relief and are also silver-plated.

[0029] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the outlet portion 16 of the connector 12 and the plug 21 of the cable 13 were exemplified as having the shape of a so-called grounded single-phase 100V connector. However, the shape of the outlet portion 16 of the connector 12 and the plug 21 of the cable 13 are not limited to the grounded single-phase 100V shape shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0030] Figure 6 shows examples of various outlet and plug shapes used depending on the country of use, region of use, or electrical appliance used.

[0031] In the charging cable 11 according to this embodiment, the shape patterns of the outlet portion 16 of the connector 12 and the plug 21 of the cable 13 are not limited to the grounded single-phase 100V pattern P1 shown in the above embodiment, but may be various patterns P2 to P15, etc., depending on the region of use and the electrical appliances used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] 11 Charging cable 12 connectors 13 Cables 16. Outlet section 21 plugs

Claims

[Claim 1] A charging cable comprising a connector that can be inserted into and removed from a vehicle charging receptacle, and a cable extending from the connector and connected to a charging device, The connector has an outlet section to which a charging plug provided on the cable or an external power supply plug provided on an external power supply cable can be attached and detached. Charging cable.

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