Wireless power transmitter and management system

Abstract

One aspect of a wireless power transmitter according to the present disclosure is a wireless power transmitter that transmits power wirelessly and comprises a sensor unit that detects information related to the installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

Description

Wireless power transmitter and management system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wireless power transmitter and management system.

[0002] In recent years, development of wireless power supply technology by transmitting power using electromagnetic waves has been progressing. For example, as a wireless power supply method for short distances of several meters or less, there is an electromagnetic induction method or a magnetic resonance method using electromagnetic waves in a frequency band from several hundred kHz to several MHz.

[0003] Furthermore, for example, a microwave system using microwave beams of several hundred MHz to several GHz is a wireless power feeding system targeted at long distances of several tens of meters or less. Patent Document 1 proposes a distributed wireless power feeding system that achieves efficient power feeding from multiple power transmitting units to multiple power receiving devices by adjusting the phase of power transmission waves so that they do not interfere with each other in a microwave-based wireless power feeding system.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-220960

[0005] In order to realize the distributed wireless power transfer system described above, a large number of wireless power transmitters are required as a prerequisite, and these wireless power transmitters need to be installed appropriately. However, the wireless power transmitters used in conventional distributed wireless power transfer systems cannot detect whether the wireless power transmitters are installed appropriately.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a wireless power transmitter and a management system that can detect whether the wireless power transmitter is properly installed.

[0007] One aspect of a wireless power transmitter according to the present disclosure is a wireless power transmitter that transmits power wirelessly, and includes a sensor unit that detects information related to an installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

[0008] One aspect of the management system of the present disclosure includes a plurality of wireless power transmitters described above, a server device, and an administrator terminal, wherein the server device collects and aggregates information regarding the installation status from each of the plurality of wireless power transmitters, and the administrator terminal displays information regarding the installation status of the plurality of wireless power transmitters aggregated by the server device.

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a wireless power transmitter and a management system that can detect whether the wireless power transmitter is properly installed.

[0010] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a distributed wireless power supply system of this embodiment. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless power transmitter of this embodiment. Fig. 3 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a notification process performed in the distributed wireless power supply system of this embodiment. Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of an antenna control process performed by a control unit of this embodiment. Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless power transmitter of Modification 1. Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the external configuration of the wireless power transmitter of Modification 1. Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless power transmitter of Modification 2.

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure (hereinafter simply referred to as "the present embodiment") will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiment. Furthermore, the following embodiment and modified examples can be combined as appropriate.

[0012] 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a distributed wireless power supply system 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the distributed wireless power supply system 1 (an example of a management system) includes wireless power transmitters 10-1 to 10-6, an installer terminal 20, a server device 40, and an administrator terminal 50.

[0013] The wireless power transmitters 10-1 to 10-6, the server device 40, and the administrator terminal 50 are connected via a network 30. The network 30 can be realized, for example, by a local area network (LAN) or the Internet. Note that the connection between the wireless power transmitters 10-1 to 10-6 and the network 30 may be wired or wireless.

[0014] The wireless power transmitters 10-1 to 10-6 are devices that transmit power wirelessly to a power receiving device (not shown) using electromagnetic waves (microwaves) 11-1 to 11-6. In the following description, when there is no need to distinguish between the wireless power transmitters 10-1 to 10-6, they may be simply referred to as wireless power transmitters 10. In the example shown in Fig. 1, six wireless power transmitters 10 are illustrated, but the number of wireless power transmitters 10 is not limited to this.

[0015] As described above, the wireless power transmitter 10 transmits power wirelessly using microwaves. Although a wireless power feeding method using microwaves allows power to be fed to a power receiving device that is approximately 10 m away, the power feeding efficiency is low. Therefore, in the distributed wireless power feeding system 1 of this embodiment, a large number of wireless power transmitters 10 are installed in the space where wireless power feeding is performed, and power is transmitted by the multiple wireless power transmitters 10, thereby compensating for the decrease in power transmission efficiency.

[0016] In this embodiment, power transmission from a plurality of wireless power transmitters 10 to a plurality of power receiving devices is assumed, but this is not limited thereto, and power transmission from a plurality of wireless power transmitters 10 to a single power receiving device is also possible. Furthermore, if power transmission efficiency is not an issue, power may be transmitted from a single wireless power transmitter 10 to one or a plurality of power receiving devices. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the space in which wireless power supply is performed is assumed to be an indoor space such as inside a building, but this is not limited thereto and may also be an outdoor space. Hereinafter, the space in which wireless power supply is performed may be referred to as a target space.

[0017] Although a detailed description will be omitted, the distributed wireless power supply system 1 of this embodiment achieves efficient power supply from multiple wireless power transmitters 10 to multiple power receiving devices by adjusting the phase of the power transmission radio waves so that they do not interfere with each other. For this reason, it is necessary to install each wireless power transmitter 10 in a predetermined location. Furthermore, it is natural that the installation of each wireless power transmitter 10 must be in compliance with the legal system.

[0018] For this reason, the wireless power transmitter 10 of the present embodiment is capable of detecting information related to the installation state of the wireless power transmitter 10. The wireless power transmitter 10 notifies (announces) the detected information on the housing of the wireless power transmitter 10, outputs the detected information to the installer terminal 20 held by the installer 5, or outputs the information to the manager terminal 50 via the server device 40. This allows the installer 5 to check whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed during construction work to install the wireless power transmitter 10. Furthermore, the manager of the distributed wireless power transfer system 1 can check whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed and whether the proper installation state is being maintained after construction by the installer 5 or at an appropriate timing during operation of the distributed wireless power transfer system 1, for example.

[0019] In this embodiment, the predetermined location where each wireless power transmitter 10 is installed is assumed to be the ceiling of the target space, and not the walls, floor, etc. of the target space. Therefore, each wireless power transmitter 10 of this embodiment can detect that it is installed at a predetermined position on the ceiling of the target space.

[0020] The installer terminal 20 is a terminal device held by the installer 5, and may be, for example, a smart terminal such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal, but is not limited to these. The installer terminal 20 can communicate with the wireless power transmitter 10 via short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). The installer terminal 20 receives and displays information about the installation status from the wireless power transmitter 10 via short-range wireless communication. This allows the installer 5 to check whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed during construction work.

[0021] The contractor terminal 20 is equipped with a control device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a main memory device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random Access Memory), an auxiliary memory device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive), a display device such as a monitor, an input device such as a touch panel, and a communication interface, and has a hardware configuration that utilizes a normal computer.

[0022] The server device 40 periodically collects and aggregates information about the installation state from each wireless power transmitter 10 via the network 30. Aggregation of the information about the installation state includes, for example, associating information about whether each wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed with each other and making it possible to display a list of the installation states of the wireless power transmitters 10, but is not limited to this.

[0023] Like the contractor terminal 20, the server device 40 is equipped with a control device such as a CPU, a main memory device such as a ROM or RAM, an auxiliary memory device such as an HDD or SSD, a display device such as a monitor, input devices such as a keyboard or mouse, and a communication interface, and has a hardware configuration that utilizes a conventional computer.

[0024] The administrator terminal 50 is a terminal used by an administrator of the distributed wireless power supply system 1, and may be, for example, a general-purpose computer such as a PC (Personal Computer), but is not limited to this. The administrator terminal 50 accesses the server device 40, and acquires and displays a list of installation status information that aggregates information on the installation status of each wireless power transmitter 10. This allows the administrator of the distributed wireless power supply system 1 to check whether the wireless power transmitters 10 are properly installed and whether the proper installation status is being maintained after construction by the installer 5 or at an appropriate timing during operation of the distributed wireless power supply system 1.

[0025] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the wireless power transmitter 10 of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the wireless power transmitter 10 that transmits power wirelessly includes a power transmitting unit 110, a coaxial cable 120, an antenna unit 130, a sensor unit 150, and a notification unit 170.

[0026] The power transmitting unit 110 transmits power. Specifically, the power transmitting unit 110 supplies power to the antenna unit 130. In this embodiment, the power transmitting unit 110 includes an oscillator (not shown) that generates an AC signal. The power transmitting unit 110 transmits power using the AC signal generated by the oscillator. The power transmitting unit 110 outputs AC power with, for example, 1 W of power, but is not limited to this and may output AC power with other wattages. The AC signal generated by the oscillator is, for example, a microwave in the 920 MHz band, but is not limited to this and may be an AC signal in another frequency band. In this embodiment, a case will be described in which the power transmitting unit 110 transmits power using AC power, but is not limited to this and the power transmitting unit 110 may transmit power using DC power.

[0027] The coaxial cable 120 connects the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130. The coaxial cable 120 transmits the AC power transmitted from the power transmission unit 110 to the antenna unit 130. The coaxial cable 120 is, for example, a cable with an impedance of 50 Ω, but is not limited to this and may be a cable with another impedance. In the present embodiment, an example has been described in which the coaxial cable 120 is used to connect the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130. However, this is not limited to this and multiple cables may be used. However, in the present embodiment, the coaxial cable 120 is used to connect the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130, which enables improved workability and reduced costs compared to connecting the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130 using multiple cables.

[0028] Antenna unit 130 receives power transmitted from power transmission unit 110 and radiates the received power as radio waves. Antenna unit 130 includes a distributor 131, a filter unit 133, a rectifier circuit 135, a control unit 137, a switch 139, an antenna 141, a power storage unit 143, and a backflow prevention unit 145. However, since filter unit 133, power storage unit 143, and backflow prevention unit 145 are not essential components of antenna unit 130, they may be omitted.

[0029] The distributor 131 distributes the power transmitted from the power transmitting unit 110 via the coaxial cable 120. For example, the distributor 131 distributes 99% of the power transmitted as AC from the power transmitting unit 110 to the switch 139 and distributes the remaining 1% to the rectifier circuit 135. The distributor 131 can be realized by at least one of, for example, a directional coupler, a Wilkinson coupler, a hybrid circuit, and the like, but is not limited to these and may be realized by other distribution circuits.

[0030] The filter unit 133 is located between the distributor 131 and the rectifier circuit 135. The filter unit 133 is a circuit that suppresses noise when it is contained in the AC power distributed by the distributor 131. Harmonic noise is generally considered to be the noise, but other types of noise are also present. For example, at least one of a low pass filter (LPF), a band pass filter (BPF), a high pass filter (HPF), and a band elimination filter (BEF) is used as the filter unit 133 depending on the type of noise. However, the filter unit 133 is not limited to these, and other filters may also be used.

[0031] The rectifier circuit 135 rectifies the AC power distributed by the distributor 131 to DC and transmits it to the control unit 137 and the sensor unit 150. The rectifier circuit 135 is realized, for example, by at least one of a voltage doubler rectifier circuit, a current doubler rectifier circuit, a cross-coupled rectifier circuit, a single shunt rectifier circuit, and a single series rectifier circuit, but is not limited to these and may be realized by other rectifier circuits. Note that if the power distributed by the distributor 131 is DC, the rectifier circuit 135 may be omitted, or an inverter may be installed between the distributor 131 and the switch 139.

[0032] The control unit 137 controls the switch 139 to control the emission of radio waves from the antenna 141. For example, a DC signal modulated by ASK, OOK, PWM, or the like, which is an RF input modulation signal, is input to the control unit 137. The control unit 137 generates a control signal based on this DC signal and outputs the control signal to the switch 139, thereby controlling the switch 139. Note that other modulation methods may also be used. Furthermore, the control signal output to the switch 139 may be, for example, at least one of a command signal, a timer code signal, or the like, but is not limited to these.

[0033] In the present embodiment, the control unit 137 may also use information detected by a sensor unit 150 (described later) to generate a control signal and output the control signal to the switch 139. For example, when the control unit 137 detects that an abnormality has occurred in the installation state of the wireless power transmitter 10 based on at least one of position information and corrected tilt information detected by the sensor unit 150 (described later), the control unit 137 generates a control signal to stop the emission of radio waves from the antenna 141. In the present embodiment, the control unit 137 also outputs the information detected by the sensor unit 150 to the notification unit 170. When the control unit 137 detects that an abnormality has occurred in the installation state of the wireless power transmitter 10, the control unit 137 also outputs a notification to that effect to the notification unit 170.

[0034] The switch 139 controls the antenna 141 based on the control signal output by the control unit 137. When the control signal is a signal to stop the radiation of radio waves from the antenna 141, the switch 139 controls the antenna 141 to stop the radiation of radio waves. The switch 139 is realized by, for example, at least one of a PIN diode switch, a monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC), a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS), a relay, etc. However, the switch is not limited to these, and other switches may also be used.

[0035] The antenna 141 emits the power transmitted from the power transmitting unit 110 as radio waves. Specifically, the antenna 141 receives the power distributed by the distributor 131 and emits the received power as a signal based on the control of the switch 139. When the antenna 141 is configured with multiple antennas, the antenna 141 selects an antenna from among the multiple antennas to emit a signal based on the control of the switch 139, and switches each antenna between ON and OFF depending on whether or not a signal is being emitted. For example, the antenna 141 emits 99% of the power output from the power transmitting unit 110 into space as radio waves (microwaves) from an antenna selected from the multiple antennas.

[0036] In this embodiment, the antenna 141 is described as being composed of two antennas. However, this is not limiting, and the antenna 141 may be composed of one antenna or three or more antennas. When the antenna 141 is composed of three or more antennas, the switch 139 may be controlled to select one antenna or multiple antennas as the antenna for emitting a signal. When the antenna 141 is composed of multiple antennas, the multiple antennas may include, for example, at least one of a vertically polarized antenna that outputs vertically polarized waves and a horizontally polarized antenna that outputs horizontally polarized waves. Examples of antennas that constitute the antenna 141 include at least one of a horizontally polarized antenna, an orthogonally polarized antenna, a circularly polarized antenna, a dipole antenna, a monopole antenna, and a patch antenna. However, the antenna 141 is not limited to these and may be other antennas. By configuring the antenna 141 with multiple antennas, the antenna 141 can perform at least one of polarization switching, beam switching, and spatial diversity.

[0037] The power storage unit 143 is located between the rectifier circuit 135 and the control unit 137. The power storage unit 143 stores the direct current transmitted from the rectifier circuit 135 and provides power to drive the components of the antenna unit 130 during power transmission pause times. The power storage unit 143 can be realized by at least one of, for example, a capacitance, a lithium ion battery, a nickel-metal hydride battery, and a flywheel, but is not limited to these and may be realized by other means.

[0038] The backflow prevention unit 145 is located between the rectifier circuit 135 and the power storage unit 143. The backflow prevention unit 145 prevents the power stored in the power storage unit 143 from flowing back into the rectifier circuit 135, and thereby can measure changes in the direct current input from the rectifier circuit 135 without being affected by the power storage unit 143. The backflow prevention unit 145 can be realized by, for example, a diode or the like, but is not limited to this and may be realized by other means.

[0039] The sensor unit 150 detects information related to the installation state of the wireless power transmitter 10. The sensor unit 150 receives power rectified into DC by the rectifier circuit 135. The sensor unit 150 includes a position detection unit 151, a tilt detection unit 153, and a vibration detection unit 155.

[0040] The position detection unit 151 detects the position of the wireless power transmitter 10. Examples of a position detection method used by the position detection unit 151 include at least one of a Global Positioning System (GPS), a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), a Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), a cellular cell number, Wi-Fi (registered trademark), Bluetooth, a direction sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, and an acceleration sensor. However, the present invention is not limited to these, and other position detection methods may be used.

[0041] It is possible to improve the accuracy of location detection by combining these methods rather than using them alone. For example, GPS, a widely known location information detection method, can identify an address but has difficulty accurately identifying latitude and longitude. Furthermore, the accuracy of GPS satellite radio waves is insufficient underground or indoors. Therefore, when using GPS as a location detection method, the accuracy of location detection can be improved by combining it with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, which have strong connections even indoors, or with a barometric pressure sensor, which is effective in measuring latitude and longitude. This allows the location detection unit 151 to detect highly accurate location information about the installation location of the wireless power transmitter 10 at the floor (floor number) or room level, rather than rough location information such as an address.

[0042] The tilt detection unit 153 detects the tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10. Specifically, the tilt detection unit 153 detects the tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10 with respect to the gravitational acceleration. This makes it possible to determine the position where the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the target space (e.g., a floor of a building where the wireless power transmitter 10 is to be installed). For example, assume that the wireless power transmitter 10 needs to be installed on the ceiling of the target space. In this case, the position detected by the position detection unit 151 alone cannot determine that the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed on the ceiling of the target space. Therefore, by using the tilt detected by the tilt detection unit 153, it is possible to detect that the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed on the ceiling of the target space and, further, that it is installed in the correct orientation on the ceiling.

[0043] The tilt detection unit 153 can be realized by, for example, at least one of an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, and a geomagnetic sensor, but is not limited to these and may be realized by other means for detecting tilt. For example, an acceleration sensor detects the acceleration of an object, but if it is a three-axis acceleration sensor, it can calculate the tilt with respect to the direction of gravity by combining the vectors of the detected three-axis acceleration. Also, the tilt can be calculated using a similar method with a gyro sensor and a geomagnetic sensor.

[0044] The vibration detection unit 155 detects vibration of the wireless power transmitter 10. The vibration detection unit 155 can detect vibration components originating from the installation location of the wireless power transmitter 10 (e.g., vibration of the building in which the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed). Therefore, for example, by removing the vibration components from the tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10 detected by the tilt detection unit 153, it is possible to detect a corrected tilt, which is a more accurate tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10. For example, the vibration detection unit 155 applies a fast Fourier transform (FFT) or the like to the tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10 to remove frequency components related to vibration from the tilt, thereby obtaining the corrected tilt. The vibration detection unit 155 can be realized, for example, by an LPF that passes low-frequency signals and cuts high-frequency signals, but is not limited thereto and may be realized by other vibration detection means.

[0045] The sensor unit 150 outputs to the control unit 137 position information indicating the position of the wireless power transmitter 10 detected by the position detection unit 151 and corrected tilt information indicating the corrected tilt of the wireless power transmitter 10 derived by the tilt detection unit 153 and the vibration detection unit 155. Note that the sensor unit 150 may further include sensors for detecting temperature and humidity in addition to the position detection unit 151, the tilt detection unit 153, and the vibration detection unit 155. In this way, the sensor unit 150 can also notify the notification unit 170, the installer terminal 20, and the server device 40 of information on the installation environment of the wireless power transmitter 10, such as temperature and humidity, via the control unit 137.

[0046] The sensor unit 150 may omit at least some of the position detection unit 151, the tilt detection unit 153, and the vibration detection unit 155. For example, the vibration detection unit 155 may be omitted from the sensor unit 150, or the tilt detection unit 153 and the vibration detection unit 155 may be omitted.

[0047] In this embodiment, as described above, the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130 are connected by the coaxial cable 120. Therefore, in this embodiment, noise in the AC signal transmitted to the antenna unit 130 is suppressed compared to when the power transmission unit 110 and the antenna unit 130 are connected by multiple cables, and noise is also suppressed in the DC signal rectified by the rectifier circuit 135. Therefore, the sensor unit 150 of this embodiment can detect position and tilt using such noise-suppressed DC power, thereby improving detection accuracy. As described above, the sensor unit 150 of this embodiment is driven by DC power rectified by the rectifier circuit 135. However, this is not limited thereto, and a separate power supply for the sensor unit 150 may be provided to reduce the power consumption of the power transmission unit 110.

[0048] The control unit 137 determines whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is appropriately installed, using the position information and corrected tilt information output from the sensor unit 150. Here, it is assumed that the control unit 137 holds information indicating the correct installation position of the wireless power transmitter 10. This information may be acquired from the server 40, for example, when the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed and turned on. The control unit 137 compares the position information output from the sensor unit 150 with the information indicating the correct installation position, and determines whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the correct position.

[0049] Furthermore, when the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the correct position, the control unit 137 further determines whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the correct orientation using the corrected tilt information. For example, when the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed on a ceiling, the control unit 137 determines whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the correct orientation when installed on a ceiling using the corrected tilt information. When the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed in the correct orientation, the control unit 137 determines that the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed appropriately. On the other hand, when the wireless power transmitter 10 is not installed in the correct position or is not installed in the correct orientation, the control unit 137 determines that the wireless power transmitter 10 is not installed appropriately.

[0050] The notification unit 170 notifies information related to the installation state of the wireless power transmitter 10 detected by the sensor unit 150. Specifically, the notification unit 170 notifies at least one of position information indicating the position detected by the position detection unit 151 and corrected tilt information indicating the tilt after correction obtained by removing the vibration component detected by the vibration detection unit 155 from the tilt detected by the tilt detection unit 153.

[0051] For example, the notification unit 170 is assumed to include a notification device that outputs at least one of a lamp, sound, and vibration as notification means. In this case, the notification unit 170 does not receive a control signal for activating the notification device from the control unit 137 if the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed, and receives a control signal for activating the notification device if the wireless power transmitter 10 is not properly installed. When the notification unit 170 receives the control signal for activating the notification device, it activates the notification device and notifies the installer 5 that the installation position of the wireless power transmitter 10 is incorrect. This allows the installer 5 to confirm that the installation position of the wireless power transmitter 10 is incorrect. Note that examples of activating the notification device include, but are not limited to, turning on a lamp if the notification device is a lamp, outputting a warning sound if the notification device is a sound output device, and outputting vibration if the notification device is a vibration device.

[0052] Further, for example, it is assumed that the notification unit 170 includes a short-range wireless communication device such as Bluetooth as a notification means. In this case, the notification unit 170 receives the position information and corrected tilt information of the wireless power transmitter 10 from the control unit 137, notifies the received information to the installer terminal 20 by short-range wireless communication, and the installer terminal 20 displays the notified information. Note that the notification unit 170 may also receive determination information on whether or not the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed from the control unit 137 and notify the installer terminal 20 of the determination information. In this way, the installer 5 can also confirm whether or not the installation position of the wireless power transmitter 10 is correct.

[0053] Further, for example, it is assumed that the notification unit 170 includes a communication device capable of communication via the network 30. In this case, the notification unit 170 receives the position information and corrected tilt information of the wireless power transmitter 10 from the control unit 137, and notifies the server 40 or the like of the received information via the network 30. Note that the notification unit 170 may also receive determination information on whether or not the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed from the control unit 137, and notify the server 40 of the determination information. In this way, the administrator of the distributed wireless power supply system 1 can check whether or not the installation positions of the wireless power transmitters 10 are correct by accessing the server 40 from the administrator terminal 50.

[0054] The notification method used by the notification unit 170 is not limited to these, and other notification methods may be used.

[0055] Fig. 3 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a notification process performed in the distributed wireless power supply system 1 of this embodiment. However, in the example shown in Fig. 3, notification (announcement) by the wireless power transmitter 10 itself is omitted.

[0056] First, in the wireless power transmitter 10, the control unit 137 acquires at least one of the position information and the corrected tilt information detected by the sensor unit 150 (step S101).

[0057] Next, the notification unit 170 notifies the builder terminal 20 of at least one of the position information and the corrected tilt information acquired by the control unit 137 (step S103), and also notifies the server device 40 (step S105).

[0058] Next, the installer terminal 20 receives and displays the position information and corrected tilt information notified from the wireless power transmitter 10 (step S107).

[0059] Next, the server device 40 receives the position information and corrected tilt information notified from the wireless power transmitter 10, and aggregates the position information and corrected tilt information notified from other wireless power transmitters 10 (step S109).

[0060] Next, the server device 40 transmits the collected information to the administrator terminal 50 (step S111).

[0061] Next, the administrator terminal 50 displays the received aggregated information (step S113).

[0062] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a control process for the antenna 141 performed by the control unit 137 of this embodiment.

[0063] First, when the main power of the wireless power transmitter 10 is turned on, the control unit 137 acquires at least one of the position information and the corrected tilt information from the sensor unit 150 (step S201). In this embodiment, when the installer 5 installs the wireless power transmitter 10, the installer 5 turns on the main power of the wireless power transmitter 10. However, when multiple wireless power transmitters 10 are installed and the main powers of the wireless power transmitters 10 are to be turned on collectively, the main power of each wireless power transmitter 10 is turned on by turning on the DC power source that supplies power to each wireless power transmitter 10.

[0064] Next, the control unit 137 determines whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is appropriately installed, using at least one of the acquired position information and corrected tilt information (step S203).

[0065] If the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed (Yes in step S203), the control unit 137 outputs a control signal to turn on the switch 139, turning on the switch 139 (step S205). As a result, the antenna 141 is connected to the antenna selected by the switch 139, and radiates the power transmitted from the distributor 131.

[0066] On the other hand, if the wireless power transmitter 10 is not properly installed (No in step S203), the control unit 137 checks whether the switch 139 is in the OFF state (step S207).

[0067] If the switch 139 is off (Yes in step S207), the process waits until the installer 5 adjusts the position of the wireless power transmitter 1, and once the position adjustment is completed, the process returns to step S201 and the process of step S201 is performed again.

[0068] On the other hand, if the switch 139 is on (No in step S207), the control unit 137 outputs a control signal to turn off the switch 139, turning off the switch 139 (step S209). After that, the process waits until the installer 5 adjusts the position of the wireless power transmitter 1, and once the position adjustment is completed, the process returns to step S201, and the process of step S201 is performed again.

[0069] As described above, in this embodiment, even if the main power supply is turned on, if the wireless power transmitter 10 is not installed correctly, the switch 139 is not turned on and power is not emitted. Therefore, this embodiment can prevent a situation in which power is emitted when the wireless power transmitter 10 is not installed correctly. Note that in this embodiment, an example in which the main power supply is turned on to operate the wireless power transmitter 10 has been described, but this is not limiting, and the wireless power transmitter 10 may be operated using power that has been stored in advance in the power storage unit 143, or may be operated by obtaining power from a power transmission panel.

[0070] As described above, according to this embodiment, the wireless power transmitter 10 is equipped with a sensor unit 150 that detects information regarding the installation status of the wireless power transmitter 10, so that it is possible to detect whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed appropriately and to clarify whether the wireless power transmitter 10 has been installed in a previously permitted location.

[0071] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the sensor unit 150 can detect the inclination of the wireless power transmitter 10, and therefore can determine not only the correct position but also whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed on the ceiling, wall, or floor within the target space.

[0072] Therefore, an installer, a manager, or the like can easily check whether the wireless power transmitter 10 has been properly installed. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, even if the wireless power transmitter 10 is an embedded wireless power transmitter whose installation status cannot be checked from the outside, it is possible to easily check whether the wireless power transmitter 10 has been properly installed. As described above, this embodiment makes it possible to digitally determine whether the installation location and installation status of the wireless power transmitter 10 comply with the legal system, thereby improving the ease of installation and making the determination of legal compliance more efficient even if the installer does not have sufficient installation skills.

[0073] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, power transmission can be stopped when the wireless power transmitter 10 is not properly installed or when the wireless power transmitter 10 is later found to be not properly installed. Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to prevent power transmission when the efficiency of power supply is poor or when the installation of the wireless power transmitter 10 does not satisfy legal compliance.

[0074] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the server device 40 periodically collects and aggregates information on whether each wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed, allowing the administrator to check changes in the installation status of each wireless power transmitter 10.

[0075] (Modification 1) Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless power transmitter 210 of Modification 1. The example shown in Fig. 5 differs from the above embodiment in that an antenna unit 330 includes a sensor unit 150 and a notification unit 170.

[0076] When the antenna unit 330 is equipped with the sensor unit 150, as in the wireless power transmitter 210 of variant example 1, the sensor unit 150 receives the power radiated from the antenna unit 330 at a close distance, making it possible to more accurately detect at least one of the position information and the tilt information.

[0077] Furthermore, the power transmitting unit 110 may be located away from the antenna unit 330. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 6, it is possible to configure the wireless power transmitter 210 by separating the power transmitting unit 110 and the antenna unit 330. This allows for installation in which the power transmitting unit 110 is installed above the ceiling and the antenna unit 330 is installed on the ceiling surface. In this way, installing the power transmitting unit 110 in an inconspicuous position on the exterior surface allows for installation of the wireless power transmitter 210 with a neat appearance, thereby improving ease of installation and aesthetics.

[0078] (Modification 2) Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a wireless power transmitter 210 of Modification 2. The example shown in Fig. 7 differs from the above embodiment in that a power transmission unit 510 includes a sensor unit 150 and a notification unit 170.

[0079] When the power transmission unit 510 is equipped with a sensor unit 150, as in the wireless power transmitter 410 of variant example 2, the power consumption by the sensor unit 150 in the antenna unit 130 can be eliminated, and the power radiated by the antenna unit 130 can be increased.

[0080] In Modifications 1 and 2, the sensor unit 150 and the notification unit 170 do not have to be provided in the same location. For example, in Modification 1, the notification unit 170 may be provided in the power transmission unit 110, and in Modification 2, the notification unit 170 may be provided in the antenna unit 130.

[0081] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment and modifications 1 and 2, the control unit 137 may be provided in the power transmitting unit. In this case, the control unit 137 may superimpose a binary control signal on the power to be transmitted and switch the antenna 141 connected to the switch 139 using the binary control signal, thereby connecting the output of the rectifier circuit 135 to the switch 139 without going through the control unit 137.

[0082] (Variation 3) In the above embodiment, whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed is detected not only when the wireless power transmitter 10 is installed but also after operation. However, in order to reduce the power consumed by the sensor unit 150, the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit 151 may be stopped while radio waves are being emitted from the antenna 141 (after operation). When the vibration detection unit 155 detects vibrations exceeding the threshold of the wireless power transmitter 10, the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit 151 may be resumed even if radio waves are being emitted from the antenna 141. In this way, whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed is not determined after operation of the wireless power transmitter 10, but whether the wireless power transmitter 10 is properly installed can be determined in the event of an earthquake or manual removal of the wireless power transmitter 10. Therefore, Variation 3 makes it possible to reduce power consumption and determine whether the wireless power transmitter is properly installed at the same time. For example, the control unit 137 controls the power supply to the position detection unit 151, the tilt detection unit 153, and the vibration detection unit 155. The control unit 137 stops the power supply to the position detection unit 151 while supplying power to the vibration detection unit 155. When the vibration detection unit 155 detects vibration exceeding the threshold value of the wireless power transmitter 10, the control unit 137 supplies power to the position detection unit 151.

[0083] As described above, according to the above embodiment and each of the above modifications, it is possible to detect whether or not a wireless power transmitter is properly installed.

[0084] The above-described embodiment and each of the modifications merely illustrate examples of implementations of the present disclosure, and the technical scope of the present disclosure should not be construed as being limited by these. Therefore, the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms without departing from the spirit or main features thereof. For example, the above-described embodiment and each of the modifications may be appropriately combined in their respective constituent units. Furthermore, for example, some components may be deleted from all components in the above-described embodiment and each of the modifications.

[0085] The present disclosure includes the following aspects.

[0086] (1) A wireless power transmitter that transmits power wirelessly, comprising: a sensor unit that detects information relating to an installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

[0087] (2) The wireless power transmitter according to (1), wherein the sensor unit includes a position detection unit that detects a position of the wireless power transmitter.

[0088] (3) The wireless power transmitter according to (2), wherein the sensor unit further includes a tilt detection unit that detects a tilt of the wireless power transmitter.

[0089] (4) The wireless power transmitter according to (3), wherein the sensor unit further includes a vibration detection unit that detects vibration of the wireless power transmitter.

[0090] (5) The wireless power transmitter according to (4), further comprising: a notification unit that notifies at least one of position information indicating the position detected by the position detection unit and corrected tilt information indicating a corrected tilt obtained by removing a component of the vibration detected by the vibration detection unit from the tilt detected by the tilt detection unit.

[0091] (6) The wireless power transmitter according to (5), further comprising: a power transmission unit that transmits power; and an antenna unit that has an antenna that radiates the power transmitted from the power transmission unit as radio waves.

[0092] (7) The wireless power transmitter according to (6), wherein the power transmitted from the power transmission unit is AC, the antenna unit further includes a distributor that distributes the power, and a rectifier circuit that rectifies the power distributed by the distributor into DC, and the power rectified into DC is input to the sensor unit.

[0093] (8) The wireless power transmitter according to (7), wherein the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit is stopped while the radio waves are being emitted by the antenna, and when the vibration detection unit detects vibrations exceeding a threshold value of the wireless power transmitter, the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit is resumed even if the radio waves are being emitted by the antenna.

[0094] (9) The wireless power transmitter according to (6), wherein the antenna unit further includes: a control unit that detects an abnormality in the installation state of the wireless power transmitter based on at least one of the position information and the corrected tilt information, and generates a control signal to stop the radiation of the radio waves from the antenna; and a switch that stops the radiation of the radio waves from the antenna based on the control signal.

[0095] (10) The wireless power transmitter according to (9), wherein the control unit notifies the notification unit that an abnormality has occurred in an installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

[0096] (11) The wireless power transmitter according to (6), wherein the antenna unit further includes the sensor unit.

[0097] (12) The wireless power transmitter according to (6), wherein the power transmission unit further includes the sensor unit.

[0098] (13) The wireless power transmitter according to (6), further comprising: a coaxial cable connecting the power transmitting unit and the antenna unit.

[0099] (14) The wireless power transmitter according to (7), wherein the antenna unit further includes a filter unit that removes noise from the power distributed by the distributor.

[0100] (15) The wireless power transmitter according to (7), wherein the antenna unit further includes a power storage unit that stores the power rectified into the direct current by the rectifier circuit.

[0101] (16) The wireless power transmitter according to (15), wherein the antenna unit further includes a backflow prevention unit located between the rectifier circuit and the power storage unit and configured to prevent a backflow of power from the power storage unit to the rectifier circuit.

[0102] (17) A management system including a plurality of wireless power transmitters according to any one of (1) to (16) above, a server device, and an administrator terminal, wherein the server device collects and aggregates information on the installation status from each of the plurality of wireless power transmitters, and the administrator terminal displays the information on the installation status of the plurality of wireless power transmitters aggregated by the server device.

[0103] 1 Distributed wireless power supply system 10, 10-1 to 10-6, 210, 410 Wireless power transmitter 20 Installer terminal 30 Network 40 Server device 50 Administrator terminal 110, 510 Power transmission unit 120 Coaxial cable 130, 330 Antenna unit 131 Distributor 133 Filter unit 135 Rectifier circuit 137 Control unit 139 Switch 141 Antenna 143 Power storage unit 145 Backflow prevention unit 150 Sensor unit 151 Position detection unit 153 Tilt detection unit 155 Vibration detection unit 170 Notification unit

Claims

1. A wireless power transmitter that transmits power wirelessly, comprising a sensor unit that detects information relating to the installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

2. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the sensor unit has a position detection unit that detects the position of the wireless power transmitter.

3. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 2, wherein the sensor unit further comprises a tilt detection unit that detects the tilt of the wireless power transmitter.

4. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 3, wherein the sensor unit further includes a vibration detection unit that detects vibration of the wireless power transmitter.

5. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 4, further comprising a notification unit that notifies at least one of position information indicating the position detected by the position detection unit and corrected tilt information indicating a corrected tilt obtained by removing the vibration component detected by the vibration detection unit from the tilt detected by the tilt detection unit.

6. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 5, further comprising: a power transmission unit that transmits power; and an antenna unit having an antenna that radiates the power transmitted from the power transmission unit as radio waves.

7. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 6, wherein the power transmitted from the power transmission unit is AC, the antenna unit further has a distributor that distributes the power, and a rectifier circuit that rectifies the power distributed by the distributor into DC, and the power rectified into DC is input to the sensor unit.

8. A wireless power transmitter according to claim 7, wherein the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit is stopped while the radio waves are being emitted by the antenna, and when the vibration detection unit detects vibrations exceeding a threshold value of the wireless power transmitter, the input of the DC rectified power to the position detection unit is resumed even if the radio waves are being emitted by the antenna.

9. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 6, wherein the antenna unit further comprises: a control unit that detects an abnormality in the installation state of the wireless power transmitter based on at least one of the position information and the corrected tilt information, and generates a control signal to stop the radiation of the radio waves from the antenna; and a switch that stops the radiation of the radio waves from the antenna based on the control signal.

10. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 9, wherein the control unit notifies the notification unit that an abnormality has occurred in the installation state of the wireless power transmitter.

11. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 6, wherein the antenna unit further includes the sensor unit.

12. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 6, wherein the power transmission unit further includes the sensor unit.

13. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 6, further comprising a coaxial cable connecting the power transmitting unit and the antenna unit.

14. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 7, wherein the antenna section further comprises a filter section that removes noise from the power distributed by the distributor.

15. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 7, wherein the antenna unit further comprises a power storage unit that stores the power rectified into DC by the rectifier circuit.

16. The wireless power transmitter according to claim 15, wherein the antenna unit further comprises a backflow prevention unit located between the rectifier circuit and the power storage unit, and preventing a backflow of power from the power storage unit to the rectifier circuit.

17. A management system comprising a plurality of wireless power transmitters according to any one of claims 1 to 16, a server device, and an administrator terminal, wherein the server device collects and consolidates information relating to the installation status from each of the plurality of wireless power transmitters, and the administrator terminal displays the information relating to the installation status of the plurality of wireless power transmitters consolidated by the server device.

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