JP2018042434A - Automatic power supply device and automatic power supply system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an automatic power supply apparatus and an automatic power supply system that can improve the safety by reducing the influence of radio waves at the time of power supply without increasing the cost, and can operate a moving body even during power supply. In an automatic power feeding system, an automatic power feeding device that feeds power to the autonomous mobile device in a non-contact manner includes position information indicating the position of an object existing around the autonomous mobile device. A second communication unit 24 that receives power from the power transmission control unit 23 that determines the power supply level based on the position of the object, and a power transmission unit 21 that transmits power to the autonomous mobile device 10 based on the power supply level. [Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic power supply apparatus and an automatic power supply system that supply power to a moving body without contact.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an automatic power supply apparatus that performs non-contact power supply to a moving body (for example, an automobile, an autonomous mobile device, etc.) has been developed.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for preventing leakage of radio waves during power feeding by driving a cylindrical member provided between a transmission unit of an automatic power feeding device and a power receiving unit of a moving body.

  Further, for example, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for preventing leakage of radio waves from affecting the human body by stopping power feeding when a human approach is detected.

JP 2010-226946 A

Park Nao, “Safety detection by detecting human approach and metallic foreign objects, Pioneer's non-contact charging system for EV”, [online], October 4, 2012, MONOist, [Search August 3, 2016] , Internet <URL: http://monoist.atmarkit.co.jp/mn/articles/1210/04/news011.html>

  However, the technique of Patent Document 1 described above has a problem in that it is necessary to provide a driving mechanism for driving the cylindrical member, which is costly.

  On the other hand, the technique of Non-Patent Document 1 described above has a problem that the autonomous mobile device cannot be operated during power feeding.

  An object of the present invention is to improve the safety by reducing the influence of radio waves at the time of power feeding without increasing the cost, and to enable the movable body to be operated even during power feeding.

  An automatic power supply apparatus according to the present invention is an automatic power supply apparatus that supplies power to a moving body in a non-contact manner, and includes a communication unit that receives position information indicating a position of an object existing around the moving body; A power transmission control unit that determines a power supply level based on the position of an object and a power transmission unit that transmits power to the mobile body based on the power supply level are adopted.

  An automatic power supply system according to the present invention is an automatic power supply system including a moving body and an automatic power supply apparatus that supplies power to the mobile body in a non-contact manner. A power receiving unit that receives electric power, a detection unit that detects a position of an object existing around the moving body, and a first communication unit that transmits position information indicating the position of the object to the automatic power feeding device, The automatic power feeding apparatus includes: a second communication unit that receives the position information from the first communication unit; a power transmission control unit that determines a power supply level based on a position of the object; and the mobile body based on the power supply level. And a power transmission unit that transmits power to the power source.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the influence of leaked radio waves and improve safety without costing, and to operate a moving body even during power feeding.

Schematic which shows the structural example of the automatic electric power feeding system which concerns on embodiment of this invention The block diagram which shows the structural example of the automatic electric power feeding system which concerns on embodiment of this invention Schematic showing an example of an area used for power supply level determination processing The sequence chart which shows the operation example of the automatic electric power feeding system which concerns on embodiment of this invention Graph showing the relationship between the power supply level and the distance between the autonomous mobile device and the obstacle Schematic which shows an example of the area which concerns on a modification

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  First, the configuration of the automatic power supply system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration example of an automatic power feeding system 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the automatic power feeding system 1 of the present embodiment.

  The automatic power supply system 1 includes an autonomous mobile device 10 and an automatic power supply device 20 that performs non-contact power supply to the autonomous mobile device 10. In the present embodiment, the autonomous mobile device 10 will be described as an example of a mobile body to which power is supplied. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be, for example, a vehicle such as an automobile having an automatic driving function. .

  First, the autonomous mobile device 10 will be described.

  The autonomous mobile device 10 includes an obstacle detection sensor 11, a power reception unit 13, a rechargeable battery 14, a drive unit 15, a first communication unit 16, and an operation unit 17.

  The obstacle detection sensor 11 (an example of a detection unit) performs sensing of an area around the autonomous mobile device 10 (for example, the sensing region 12 illustrated in FIG. 1). In the example of FIG. 1, only the semicircular region of the front portion of the obstacle detection sensor 11 in the horizontal plane on which the autonomous mobile device 10 is arranged is illustrated as the sensing region 12. The surroundings may be the sensing area 12.

  As the obstacle detection sensor 11, a laser radar capable of scanning a horizontal plane can be used. The laser radar oscillates a laser beam with respect to the sensing area 12, and when an obstacle (also referred to as an object. The object includes, for example, a person or an animal) exists in the sensing area 12, the obstacle and the laser radar. By measuring the distance between the two, the position information of the obstacle (hereinafter referred to as obstacle position information) is acquired. The laser radar, for example, measures a range of ± 90 ° left and right with respect to the traveling direction at a measurement distance of 30 m every 0.5 °. The obstacle detection sensor 11 is not limited to the laser radar, and other types of sensors may be used.

  The obstacle detection sensor 11 outputs information indicating the sensing result (hereinafter referred to as sensing result information) to the first communication unit 16. When there is an obstacle in the sensing area 12, the obstacle is detected, so the sensing result information includes obstacle position information. On the other hand, when there is no obstacle in the sensing area 12, no obstacle is detected, and therefore the obstacle position information is not included in the sensing result information.

  The power receiving unit 13 receives power from the power transmission unit 21 of the automatic power feeding device 20 and sends the power to the rechargeable battery 14.

  The rechargeable battery 14 accumulates power from the power receiving unit 13.

  The drive unit 15 drives (moves) the autonomous mobile device 10 using the electric power stored in the rechargeable battery 14.

  The first communication unit 16 communicates with the second communication unit 24 of the automatic power supply apparatus 20. In the present embodiment, a case where the first communication unit 16 and the second communication unit 24 directly communicate with each other will be described as an example. However, between the first communication unit 16 and the second communication unit 24 will be described. The communication may be performed via a central control device that controls them, or may be performed by combining a plurality of communication paths.

  The operation unit 17 receives various operations by the user (for example, an operation for designating a destination of the autonomous mobile device 10). The operation unit 17 may be, for example, a touch panel, a physical button, or a combination thereof.

  The autonomous mobile device 10 has been described above.

  Next, the automatic power supply apparatus 20 will be described.

  The automatic power supply apparatus 20 includes a power transmission unit 21, a power supply 22, a power transmission control unit 23, and a second communication unit 24.

  The power transmission unit 21 rectifies the power supplied from the power source 22. In addition, the power transmission unit 21 transmits power to the power reception unit 13 of the autonomous mobile device 10 according to the power supply level (details will be described later) determined by the power transmission unit control 23. Details of the power supply level determination process by the power transmission control unit 23 will be described later.

  The second communication unit 24 communicates with the first communication unit 16 of the autonomous mobile device 10.

  The automatic power supply apparatus 20 has been described above.

  Next, an area used for power supply level determination processing will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an area. Moreover, FIG. 3 has shown the state which looked at the autonomous mobile apparatus 10 and the automatic electric power feeder 20 from right above. FIG. 3 shows a state where the autonomous mobile device 10 is present at a power feeding position (a position where power feeding can be performed) in front of the automatic power feeding device 20.

  In FIG. 3, the distance between the automatic power supply device 20 (power transmission unit 21) and the autonomous mobile device 10 (power reception unit 13) is, for example, about 1 cm to 20 cm.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the first area and the second area are set in advance around the autonomous mobile device 10.

  The first area is an area adjacent to the power feeding position of the autonomous mobile device 10, and the second area is an area adjacent to the first area outside the first area.

  The first area and the second area are set according to the size of the autonomous mobile device 10. The first area is set so as to include the autonomous mobile device 10 when viewed from directly above, and the second area is set outside the first area.

  In addition, in FIG. 3, the case where the shape of the 1st area and the 2nd area is a semi-ellipse is shown as an example, However, those shapes are not limited to a semi-ellipse, It is set to a semicircle or a rectangle etc. Also good.

  The area information indicating the range of the first area and the range of the second area is stored in, for example, a predetermined storage unit (not shown), and the power transmission control unit of the automatic power supply apparatus 20 is used during power supply level determination processing described later. 23 is read from the storage unit.

  The area used for the power supply level determination process has been described above.

  Next, the operation when the automatic power supply apparatus 20 supplies power to the autonomous mobile apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a sequence chart showing an operation example of the automatic power feeding system 1.

  When the autonomous mobile device 10 moves to a charging place in front of the automatic power feeding device 20, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the obstacle detection sensor 11 starts sensing, and the first communication unit 16 automatically transmits sensing result information. It transmits to the electric power feeder 20 (step S101). The period in which the obstacle detection sensor 11 acquires the sensing result is, for example, about once every 0.1 second. Further, as described above, the sensing result information includes obstacle position information when an obstacle is detected, and does not include obstacle position information when an obstacle is not detected.

  In the automatic power supply apparatus 20, when the second communication unit 24 receives the sensing result information (step S102), the power transmission control unit 23 determines whether the second power transmission unit 23 is based on the sensing result information and the area information read from the predetermined storage unit. It is determined whether an obstacle exists in either the first area or the second area (steps S103 and S104). Steps S103 to S106 correspond to power supply level determination processing.

  For example, when there is no obstacle in either the first area or the second area (step S103: NO, step S104: NO), the power transmission control unit 23 determines the power supply level as the first power supply level (step S105). ).

  The first power supply level is a normal power amount when power is supplied in a non-contact manner, and is about 500 W, for example.

  For example, when there is an obstacle in the first area (step S103: YES), the power transmission control unit 23 determines the power supply level as the second power supply level (step S106).

  The second power supply level is the minimum amount of power required to operate the obstacle detection sensor 11 and the operation unit 17 and is, for example, about 100 W. The second power supply level is set assuming that the user operates the autonomous mobile device 10.

  For example, when there is an obstacle in the second area (step S103: NO, step S104: YES), the power transmission control unit 23 determines the third power supply level (step S107).

  The third power supply level is a minimum amount of power necessary for operating the obstacle detection sensor 11 and maintaining the autonomous mobile device 10 in the standby state, and is about 30 W, for example.

  When the obstacle exists across both the first area and the second area, the power transmission control unit 23 determines that the obstacle exists in the first area.

  The power transmission unit 21 performs power transmission according to the power supply level determined by the power transmission control unit 23 (step S108).

  The power receiving unit 13 receives the power from the power transmitting unit 21 and outputs it to the rechargeable battery 14 (step S109). Thereby, the electric power for driving the autonomous mobile device 10 is accumulated in the rechargeable battery 14.

  The operation example of the automatic power supply system 1 has been described above.

  Next, the relationship between the power supply level and the area described above will be described with reference to FIG. In the graph of FIG. 5, the horizontal axis indicates the distance from the autonomous mobile device 10 (obstacle detection sensor 11) to the obstacle, and the vertical axis indicates the power supply level. The horizontal axis indicates that the position of the obstacle moves away from the autonomous mobile device 10 as it goes to the right. In FIG. 5, it is assumed that 0 cm to 50 cm is the first area, and 50 cm to 200 cm is the second area. Further, it is assumed that 200 cm or more is an area outside the second area (hereinafter referred to as a third area).

  As shown in FIG. 5, when an obstacle is present in the first area (0 cm to 50 cm), power supply (power transmission and power reception; the same applies hereinafter) at the second power supply level is performed. Further, when an obstacle is present in the second area (50 cm to 200 cm), power feeding at the third power feeding level is performed. In addition, when an obstacle is present in the third area (200 cm or more), power supply is performed at the first power supply level.

  When an obstacle (for example, a person, an animal, etc.) moves from the second area to the third area, the power supply level may be immediately switched from the third power supply level to the first power supply level, or FIG. As shown by the slope s, the first power supply level may be gradually approached according to the distance.

  In the third area, the slope s of FIG. 5 may be changed according to the angle at which the obstacle exists.

  Specifically, in the third area within 60 degrees on the left and right with respect to the straight line connecting the center of the autonomous mobile device 10 and the center of the automatic power supply device 20 shown in FIG. 3, the radio waves emitted from the automatic power supply device 20 are autonomous. It is blocked by the moving device 10. Therefore, when there is an obstacle in the third area, since the possibility that the radio wave has an influence on the obstacle is low, the slope s may be increased to reach the power supply level 1 earlier.

  On the other hand, the radio waves emitted from the automatic power supply device 20 are not blocked in the third area of 60 degrees or more on the left and right. Therefore, when there is an obstacle in the third area, the radio wave is highly likely to affect the obstacle. Therefore, the slope s may be reduced and the power supply level 1 may be reached over time.

  The relationship between the power supply level and the area has been described above.

  In the present embodiment, a plurality of areas are set according to the distance from the autonomous mobile device, and the first power supply level to the third power supply level are set according to which area the obstacle detected by the autonomous mobile device exists. Is determined, and power is supplied based on the determined power supply level. As a result, when an obstacle is present near the autonomous mobile device, the power supply level can be reduced, so that the influence of radio waves on the obstacle can be reduced and safety can be improved.

  Moreover, in this Embodiment, since it is not necessary to provide the automatic power supply apparatus 20 with the physical mechanism for suppressing the leakage of an electromagnetic wave like patent document 1, cost does not start.

  In the present embodiment, even when an obstacle is present in the first area closest to the autonomous mobile device 10, power is supplied at the second power supply level. 10 can be operated.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the configurations and methods specifically shown in the embodiments. Hereinafter, various modifications will be described.

(Modification 1)
The first area or the second area may be set in consideration of an obstacle in advance. The automatic power feeding device 20 is assumed to be installed near a pre-fixed building structure or device (hereinafter referred to as a fixed obstacle) where the influence of radio waves during power feeding does not become a problem. A specific example of area setting in this case will be described below with reference to FIG.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 6, when the automatic power feeding device 20 is installed in the vicinity of a wall 30 (an example of a fixed obstacle), the second area has an installation portion of the wall 30 (a movable obstacle such as a person is present). It may be set except for a range that cannot be performed. Thereby, it can avoid determining with the wall 30 existing in a 2nd area, and can implement | achieve the determination process of the electric power feeding level with higher precision.

(Modification 2)
When there is an obstacle in the second area, the power supply power is weakened because the lowest third power supply level is determined. Therefore, when an obstruction (for example, garbage such as an empty can) is inadvertently placed in the second area, power supply at the first power supply level that should be originally performed is hindered.

  Therefore, the automatic power supply apparatus 20 (for example, the power transmission control unit 23) determines that there is an obstacle in the second area for a certain time (preset time; the same applies hereinafter) based on the obstacle position information. In this case, an error may be notified.

  As a method for notifying an error, for example, a method of turning on an illuminating lamp provided in the automatic power supply apparatus 20, a method of outputting a warning sound or a sound from a speaker provided in the automatic power supply apparatus 20, or a predetermined terminal device (for example, And a method of transmitting a message or the like to a computer of a management company of the automatic power supply apparatus 20 and displaying the message. Moreover, you may combine these methods.

  In the above description, the case where there is an obstacle in the second area for a certain period of time has been described as an example. However, the automatic power supply apparatus can also be used when an obstacle exists in the first area for a certain period of time. 20 may notify an error.

  Further, in the above description, the case where the automatic power supply apparatus 20 determines whether or not an obstacle exists in the second area (or the first area) for a certain period of time based on the obstacle position information is taken as an example. Although described above, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the automatic power supply device 20 (for example, the power transmission control unit 23) determines whether or not the execution time of power supply at the third power supply level (or the second power supply level) exceeds a certain time, and the execution time is a certain time. If it exceeds, error notification may be performed.

(Modification 3)
In this embodiment, power is supplied at any one of the first to third power supply levels. However, since the radio wave during power supply is not visible to the human eye, the user is supplied with any power supply level. Cannot recognize whether

  Therefore, the automatic power supply apparatus 20 (for example, the power transmission control unit 23) may notify at which power supply level power supply is being performed at the time of power supply. For example, the automatic power supply apparatus 20 is configured to include red, blue, and green lamps. When the automatic power supply apparatus 20 supplies power at the first power supply level, the automatic power supply apparatus 20 turns on the red lamp and at the second power supply level. The green lamp may be turned on when power is supplied, and the blue lamp may be turned on when power is supplied at the third power supply level. Thereby, the user can recognize the power supply level.

(Modification 4)
When a person or the like enters the first area or the second area, the power supply power is weakened. Therefore, considering the power supply efficiency, it is better that the person does not enter the first area or the second area. However, a person cannot recognize the range of the first area or the second area.

  Therefore, for example, the automatic power supply device 20 may transmit area information to the autonomous mobile device 10, and the autonomous mobile device 10 may notify the respective ranges of the first area and the second area based on the area information. . For example, the autonomous mobile device 10 displays the range of the first area in blue using the light mounted on the autonomous mobile device 10 that can irradiate the ground with different colors of irradiation light, and the range of the second area. It may be displayed in red. Alternatively, stickers or the like indicating the ranges of the first area and the second area may be attached to the ground. In this way, the person can recognize the first area and the second area.

  In the above description, the case where both ranges of the first area and the second area are notified is described as an example, but only one of the ranges may be notified.

  The present invention is suitable for a technique for supplying power to a moving body in a non-contact manner.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Automatic power supply system 10 Autonomous mobile device 11 Obstacle detection sensor 13 Power receiving part 14 Rechargeable battery 15 Drive part 16 1st communication part 17 Operation part 20 Automatic power supply apparatus 21 Power transmission part 22 Power supply 23 Power transmission control part 24 2nd communication part 30 Wall

Claims (10)

An automatic power supply device that supplies power to a moving body without contact,
A communication unit that receives position information indicating a position of an object existing around the moving body;
A power transmission control unit for determining a power supply level based on the position of the object;
A power transmission unit that transmits power to the mobile body based on the power supply level,
Automatic power feeder. The power transmission control unit
Determining whether the object is present in a first area adjacent to the power feeding position of the mobile body or in a second area adjacent to the first area outside the first area;
If the object does not exist in either the first area or the second area, determine the first power supply level;
If the object is in the first area, determine a second power supply level;
If the object is present in the second area, determine a third feeding level;
The first power supply level is greater than the second power supply level and the third power supply level,
The third power supply level is smaller than the second power supply level;
The automatic power supply apparatus according to claim 1. The second power supply level is:
The minimum power required for operating the detection unit mounted on the moving body for detecting the object and the operation unit mounted on the automatic power supply device that receives a user operation,
The third power supply level is:
The minimum power required to operate the detection unit and maintain the moving body in a standby state.
The automatic power supply apparatus according to claim 2. At least one area of the first area or the second area is:
When a fixed object is included in the area, it is set except for the installation area of the fixed object.
The automatic electric power feeder of Claim 2 or 3. The power transmission control unit
When the time that the object exists in either the first area or the second area exceeds a certain time, an error is notified,
The automatic electric power feeder of any one of Claim 2 to 4. The power transmission control unit
When an execution time of power supply based on the second power supply level or the third power supply level exceeds a predetermined time, an error is notified.
The automatic electric power feeder of any one of Claim 2 to 4. The power transmission control unit
Informing whether power supply is being performed based on the first power supply level, the second power supply level, or the third power supply level;
The automatic electric power feeder of any one of Claim 2 to 6. An automatic power feeding system comprising a moving body and an automatic power feeding device that feeds power to the moving body in a non-contact manner,
The moving body is
A power receiving unit that receives power from the automatic power supply device;
A detection unit for detecting a position of an object existing around the moving body;
A first communication unit that transmits position information indicating the position of the object to the automatic power feeding device,
The automatic power feeder is
A second communication unit that receives the position information from the first communication unit;
A power transmission control unit for determining a power supply level based on the position of the object;
A power transmission unit that transmits power to the mobile body based on the power supply level,
Automatic power supply system. The power transmission control unit
Determining whether the object is present in a first area adjacent to the power feeding position of the mobile body or in a second area adjacent to the first area outside the first area;
If the object does not exist in either the first area or the second area, determine the first power supply level;
If the object is in the first area, determine a second power supply level;
If the object is present in the second area, determine a third feeding level;
The first power supply level is greater than the second power supply level and the third power supply level,
The third power supply level is smaller than the second power supply level;
The automatic power feeding system according to claim 8. The moving body is
Informing at least one of the first area and the second area;
The automatic power supply system according to claim 9.

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