Zoox, Inc.

Bryan Emrys Booth

Timothy David Kentley-Klay

Moritz Boecker

Richard Luke Osellame

Kyle Matthew Foley

Robert Alan Ng

Vamsi Krishna Pathipati

Da Liu

Christopher John Stoffel

Thomas Andrew Stoddart

Jaime Andres Ocampo Villegas

A charging system includes one or more inductive charging elements arranged in a charging space. A lift mechanism, such as a lever arm, is configured to lift the charging elements into position for transferring current to vehicle charging elements. Sensor(s) may detect a location of the charging element relative to the vehicle charging element, and adjustments may be made to align the charging element and the vehicle charging element (passively and/or actively). The sensor(s) may also determine characteristic(s) of the vehicle, such as ground clearance, make/model, etc. to align the charging element and the vehicle charging element and/or to control power transfer to the vehicle.

Lift mechanism for aligning charging elements to charge vehicle

Wirelessly charging a vehicle battery may be performed using a plurality of charging coils. The offboard coils and the onboard coils may be spaced apart by different amounts, such that, when the vehicle is positioned in a vehicle charging space, at least one pair of an onboard coil and an offboard coil may still be substantially aligned for wireless charging, even when other coils are misaligned. The offboard coils may include sizes that are conducive to charge smaller capacity systems in some arrangements and are combinable to charge larger capacity systems in other arrangements. In addition, the use of relatively small coils may allow for flexibility in thermal management.

Multi-coil inductive charging for vehicles

Wirelessly charging a vehicle battery may be performed using a plurality of charging coils. In some examples, the offboard coils and the onboard coils may be spaced apart by different amounts, such that, when the vehicle is positioned in a vehicle charging space, at least one pair of an onboard coil and an offboard coil may still be substantially aligned for wireless charging, even when other coils are misaligned. In some examples, the offboard coils may include sizes that are conducive to charge smaller capacity systems in some arrangements and are combinable to charge larger capacity systems in other arrangements. In addition, the use of relatively small coils may allow for flexibility in thermal management.

An electrical system can include a power supply configured to provide electrical power to components at a time at which the electrical system experiences an electrical fault. The electrical system can include a first battery electrically coupled in parallel to a second battery via an electrical bus, whereby the first and second batteries can provide electrical power to a first electrical load and a second electrical load. Upon experiencing a fault, a first circuit element can electrically decouple the first battery and the second battery by opening a circuit provided by the electrical bus, thereby isolating the first battery from the second battery. Next, the battery experiencing the fault can include a second circuit element that can electrically decouple the battery experiencing the fault from a respective electrical load, while the battery isolated from the fault can continue to provide electrical power to components.

Fail operational vehicle power supply

Operations associated with charging a vehicle may generate thermal energy. A passive thermal management solution may dissipate the thermal energy without requiring additional active components and without adding significant thermal loads to an existing thermal management system. In some examples, a passive heat exchanger may include a cold plate coupled to power electronics. In addition, the passive heat exchanger may include a condenser that is fluidly coupled to the cold plate and is positioned in an airflow path.

Thermal management for vehicle charging systems

Electric vehicle charging device

A system for charging a battery carried by a vehicle may include a charging box for coupling to a vehicle chassis and including interface electrical contacts electrically coupled to the battery. The system may also include a charge coupler including coupler electrical contacts for electrically coupling to the interface electrical contacts from under the vehicle and configured to be coupled to an electrical power supply. The charging box may include an interface activation surface, and the charge coupler may include a housing for enclosing the coupler electrical contacts and including a base for supporting the coupler electrical contacts, a coupler activation surface opposite the base, an opening, and a door configured to open the opening to expose the coupler electrical contacts as the interface activation surface contacts the coupler activation surface and moves the coupler activation surface toward the base.

Charge coupler and method for autonomously charging vehicle batteries

A system for charging one or more batteries of a vehicle may include a charging box mounted to a vehicle to facilitate connection to a charge coupler from under the vehicle. The charge coupler may be configured to provide an electrical connection between an electrical power source and the charging box. A vehicle including the charging box may maneuver to a position above the charge coupler, after which electrical contacts of the charging box and the charge coupler may be brought into contact with one another. The charge coupler and/or the charging box may be configured to provide electrical communication between the electrical power source and the one or more batteries, so that the electrical power source may charge one or more of the batteries. Thereafter, the electrical contacts may be separated from one another, and the vehicle may maneuver away from the charge coupler.

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Bryan Emrys Booth