Electric Vehicle Posture Control for Stable Charging Contact
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Solution Overview
Problem
The contact state between an electric vehicle's energizing arm and external power lines becomes unstable due to changes in the vehicle's posture during travel, leading to potential arcing and disruptions in charging or power supply.
Innovation Solution
The electric vehicle is equipped with a power source, an energizing arm with a fixed and free end, a conductive member, an angle detector, a contact detector, and a posture control device that adjusts the vehicle's posture to maintain a stable contact angle with the external power lines, using a steering reaction force control device, toe angle control actuator, drive power distribution mechanism, and braking force distribution mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the energizing arm is extended to contact external power lines during vehicle travel, then charging or power supply can be performed, but the contact state becomes unstable due to vehicle posture changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs a feedback control mechanism where the posture control device continuously monitors the energizing arm's angle via the angle detector and adjusts vehicle posture (through steering, toe angle, drive power distribution, or braking force distribution) to maintain the arm at a target angle that ensures stable contact with power lines
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adapts to changing vehicle conditions during travel by actively controlling vehicle posture in real-time. The posture control device modifies steering angle, toe angle, drive power distribution, or braking force distribution based on detected arm angle deviations, allowing the system to maintain stable contact despite vehicle movement and posture changes
2Reliability
If the vehicle posture is adjusted to maintain stable contact, then arcing and disruptions are prevented, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The posture control device leverages existing multi-functional vehicle systems (steering system, toe angle control, drive power distribution mechanism, braking force distribution mechanism) to achieve arm angle control. By utilizing these existing systems for dual purposes (vehicle operation and charging contact maintenance), the patent avoids adding dedicated complex control hardware while still achieving reliable contact stability
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an electric vehicle in which the state of contact between an electric connection arm and an external power line can be stabilized during traveling of the electric vehicle. In the electric vehicle, when the free end of an electric connection arm contacts an external power line during traveling of the electric vehicle, a posture control device controls the posture of the vehicle body so that the rotation angle of the electric connection arm approaches a target rotation angle or a target rotation angle range.