Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America

Tsutomu Sakata

Atsushi Yamamoto

Hiroshi Kanno

Kenichi Asanuma

Eiji Takahashi

Satoru Amari

Satoru Kikuchi

Hiroshi Yamamoto

Hiroshi Iwai

Yoshio Koyanagi

Hideo Oosumi

Toshiteru Hayashi

Akio Hidaka

Hiromu Matsumoto

Hideaki Miyamoto

Toshiaki Kikui

Takeshi Nakayama

Kenichi Yamada

Hiroshi Suenaga

Eiji Takahasahi

A wireless power supply unit includes: a power transmitting coil; and a power receiving coil that wirelessly receives electric power from the power transmitting coil. One of the power transmitting coil and the power receiving coil is shaped so that, during use, a central portion thereof is located beyond an outer peripheral portion thereof, as viewed from another one of the power transmitting coil and the power receiving coil.

Wireless power supply unit and wireless power transmission system

A power transmission device includes an inverter, an oscillator, a foreign substance detector, and power transmission control circuitry. The foreign substance detector performs a series of multiple processes to determine whether or not a foreign substance is present between two resonators. The power transmission control circuitry repeats a foreign substance detection period and a power transmission period alternately. The foreign substance detection period is a period in which the foreign substance detector performs one of the series of multiple processes. The power transmission period is a period in which the inverter transmits AC power. The power transmission control circuitry also causes the foreign substance detector to divide the series of multiple processes and determine whether or not the foreign substance is present as a result of performing all of the divided series of multiple processes.

Power transmission device and wireless power transmission system

An electrodynamic apparatus includes a first arm extending in a first direction, a second arm supported by the first arm, a linear actuator that moves the second arm along the first direction with respect to the first arm, a support extending in a second direction that is different from the first direction and supporting the first arm, and a rotating mechanism that rotates the support about an axis of rotation parallel to the second direction. The first arm includes a power transmission antenna. The second arm includes a power reception antenna. The power transmission antenna supplies electric power to the power reception antenna wirelessly. In rotating the support, the linear actuator moves the center of gravity of the second arm to the axis of rotation first, and then the rotating mechanism rotates the support.

Electrodynamic apparatus

A relay apparatus in a wireless power transmission system includes a relay power reception antenna that receives power transmission alternating current power from a power transmission power transmission antenna, a relay rectifier that converts the power transmission alternating current power into relay direct current power, a relay inverter circuit that converts the relay direct current power into relay alternating current power, and a relay power transmission antenna that wirelessly transmits the relay alternating current power. When transmitting data to the power transmission apparatus through amplitude modulation, the relay apparatus varies amplitude of voltage of the power transmission alternating current power received by the relay power reception antenna between a first amplitude and a second amplitude and performs control for eliminating a difference between a third amplitude of the relay alternating current power and a fourth amplitude of the relay alternating current power.

Wireless power transmission system

A wireless power transmission system includes: a power transmitting device; a power receiving device; and a relay device. In a state where the relay side switch circuit has the relay side rectifier and the relay side load in a non-contact state, and the receiving side switch circuit has the receiving side rectifier and the receiving side load in a non-contact state, power is transmitted from the power transmitting device to the power receiving device via the relay device. After a DC voltage output from the receiving side rectifier reaching a requested voltage of the power receiving device, the receiving side switch circuit connects the receiving side rectifier to the receiving side load at a timing T2 that is different from a timing T1 at which the relay side switch circuit connects the relay side rectifier to the relay side load.

An object detecting device includes a coil array including coils, short-circuit switches connected in parallel with the coils, an oscillator circuit that outputs, to the coils, a voltage including an alternating current component, selection switches connected between the coils and the oscillator circuit, a detecting circuit that detects an object based on a change in a physical value such as voltage, and a control circuit that opens and closes the short-circuit switches and the selection switches. When a first selection switch is closed, a first short-circuit switch, which is connected to the first selection switch, is opened. The other selection switches are opened, and the other short-circuit switches are closed.

Foreign object detecting device, wireless power transmitting device, and wireless power transmission system

An electrodynamic apparatus includes a first arm extending in a first direction, a second arm supported by the first arm, and a first linear actuator that is provided in the first arm or the second arm and moves the second arm along the first direction with respect to the first arm. The first arm includes a first power transmission antenna. The second arm includes a first power reception antenna. The first power transmission antenna supplies electric power to the first power reception antenna wirelessly. The first power reception antenna supplies the supplied electric power to a load electrically connected to the first power reception antenna.

A power receiving device includes a power receiving antenna that receives AC power from a power transmitting antenna, a rectifier circuit that converts the AC power into DC power, a detection circuit that detects the DC power, a load driven by the DC power, a battery that charges the DC power, a switching circuit that provides i) connection and disconnection between the rectifier circuit and the load and ii) connection and disconnection between the load and the battery, and a control circuit that controls the power receiving device. The control circuit controls the switching circuit to disconnect the rectifier circuit from the load and connect the load to the battery if the DC power is less than or equal to a power threshold value, and drive the load by the DC power charged in the battery.

Power receiving device and wireless power transmission system

A power transmission device includes an inverter, an oscillator, a foreign substance detector, and a power transmission control circuitry. The power transmission control circuitry causes the foreign substance detector to perform a series of multiple processes and determine whether a foreign substance is present before a transmission of first AC power starts, and then causes the inverter to start the transmission of the first AC power. After the transmission starts, a detection period in which foreign substance detecting is performed and a power transmission period in which transmission of the first AC power is performed are repeated. The series of multiple processes is divided and performed in the multiple repeated detecting periods. The foreign substance detector is caused to divide and perform the series of multiple processes using the detecting periods and determine whether a foreign substance is present.

A wireless power transmission system includes a power transmitting device, power receiving device, and load. The power transmitting device includes an inverter circuit, power transmitting antenna, power transmission control circuit, and transmitting-side receiver. The power receiving device includes a power receiving antenna, rectifying circuit, and receiving-side transmitter. The power transmission control circuit causes the inverter circuit to output preliminary AC power to activate the power receiving device. The receiving-side transmitter transmits, to the power transmitting device, control information of the power receiving device including (i) a coupling coefficient between the power transmitting antenna and the power receiving antenna, (ii) requested voltage of the power receiving device, and (iii) load impedance of the load. The power transmission control circuit determines the control parameter based on the control information by referring to the table, based on the control information, and adjusts the voltage and frequency of the AC power output from the inverter circuit using the control parameter.

A power transmitter wirelessly transmits electric power to a power receiver that includes a reception antenna. The power transmitter includes: an inverter circuit; a transmission antenna which sends out the AC power having been output from the inverter circuit; and a control circuit which, based on measurement values of voltage and current to be input to the inverter circuit, determines a value of a control parameter defining an output voltage from the inverter circuit and controls the inverter circuit by using the determined value of the control parameter. When at least one of the measurement values of voltage and current to be input to the inverter circuit changes, the control circuit changes the value of the control parameter based on the measurement values of voltage and current so that a voltage to be output from the power receiving circuit is maintained within a predetermined range.

Power transmitter and wireless power transmission system including the power transmitter

A control method for a power transmitting device is provided, the power transmitting device including a power transmitting antenna, which transmits AC power wirelessly to the power receiving antenna of a power receiving device, and an oscillator. The method includes supplying pulse signals that control first and second switching element groups to the oscillator, and changing a phase shift amount between a first pulse signal and a second pulse signal. The method also includes causing the oscillator to change the voltage of the AC power output and to set an initial value of the phase shift amount. The method further includes causing the oscillator to output preliminary AC power of a voltage to reduce the phase shift amount from the initial value, fixing the phase shift amount, and causing the oscillator to output the AC power while maintaining the voltage corresponding to the fixed phase shift amount.

Power transmitting device and wireless power transmission system

A power transmission apparatus includes an inverter circuit, a power transmission antenna that wirelessly transmits alternating current power output from the inverter circuit, and a power transmission control circuit that causes the inverter circuit to output the alternating current power. The power transmission control circuit causes the inverter circuit to output the alternating current power as binary communication data by varying frequency of the alternating current power output from the inverter circuit between a first frequency and a second frequency, and performs amplitude control for eliminating a difference between amplitude of voltage of the alternating current power at a time when the frequency is the first frequency and amplitude of the voltage of the alternating current power at a time when the frequency is the second frequency.

Wireless power transmission system and power transmission apparatus

A relay apparatus in a wireless power transmission system includes a relay power reception antenna that receives power transmission alternating current power from a power transmission power transmission antenna, a relay rectifier that converts the power transmission alternating current power into relay direct current power, a relay inverter circuit that converts the relay direct current power into relay alternating current power, and a relay power transmission antenna that wirelessly transmits the relay alternating current power. When the relay apparatus has received binary relay received data, the relay apparatus reverses a sign of the binary relay received data and eliminates a difference between a first voltage of the relay direct current power and a second voltage of the relay direct current power on the basis of the reversed binary relay received data.

Growing community of inventors

Osaka, Japan

Tsutomu Sakata