CHARGING STATION FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Abstract

A charging station for electric vehicles having a tray assembly and a lid assembly. The tray assembly has at least one power module, a first charging control circuit, and at least one charging outlet. The lid assembly is adapted to receive at least one communication module and at least one user interface module.

Claims

1. A charging station for electric vehicles comprising: a tray assembly and a lid assembly, wherein the tray assembly comprises at least one power module, a first charging control circuit, and at least one charging outlet; and wherein the lid assembly is arranged to accommodate at least one communication module and at least one user interface module.

2. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the tray assembly has a tray-shaped housing and side walls of the housing embrace the power module circumferentially.

3. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the tray assembly has a bottom.

4. The charging station according to claim 3, wherein the power module is formed as a circuit board which is mounted floatingly in a plane substantially parallel to the bottom.

5. The charging station according to claim 3, wherein the power module has a power connection, wherein the power connection is arranged in a recess in the bottom.

6. The charging station according to claim 5, wherein the power connection is enclosed by a circumferential shroud, wherein the power connection is embraced by the circumferential shroud and the circumferential shroud extends through the bottom facing away from the interior of the tray assembly

7. The charging station according to claim 3, wherein the bottom has a recess for receiving a charging socket.

8. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the tray assembly comprises a receptacle for a charging socket, wherein the receptacle comprises fixing means for detachably fixing the charging socket to the tray assembly, in particular wherein the fixing means are arranged to receive different charging sockets, in particular a type 1, type 2, type 3 or CCS charging socket according to IEC 62196 or a Chademo charging socket.

9. The charging station according to claim 8, wherein the fixing means are formed by comb-shaped flanges with openings aligned with each another, so that comb-shaped flanges arranged on the charging socket can engage in the flanges of the fixing means and can be fixed thereto by a pin guided through the openings.

10. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein bottom-side webs extend away from the interior of the tray assembly, wherein the webs are arranged to engage in recesses at a docking station, and in particular wherein the webs can be fixed positively to the docking station.

11. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the power module comprises at least one circuit breaker.

12. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the power module comprises the first charging control circuit, the charging outlet, and the circuit breaker on a circuit board.

13. The charging station according to claim 12, wherein the first charging control circuit on the power module is arranged for communication with an electric vehicle on an energy conductor, in particular by means of pulse width modulation, in particular wherein the first charging control circuit supports communication in accordance with DIN61851.

14. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the charging outlet is connected to a charging cable arranged on the tray assembly and led out of the tray assembly or that the charging outlet is connected to a charging socket.

15. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the lid assembly accommodates the communication module and the user interface module in such a way that, coming from the lid surface, first the user interface module and then the communication module are arranged.

16. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the communication module and the user interface module are each formed on a separate circuit board.

17. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the lid assembly corresponds to the tray assembly over its entire surface area and in particular can be connected to the tray assembly by means of latching elements which latch on the inside of the side walls of the tray assembly.

18. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the communication module and the user interface module are arranged in a first area of the lid surface and wherein a shutter is arranged on the lid surface in a second area corresponding to the charging socket in the tray assembly.

19. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the user interface module is fixed to the inside of the lid surface so that signal generators and/or signal sensors on the user interface module are immovable relative to control elements located on the outside of the lid surface.

20. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the communication module and/or the user interface module are mechanically connected to the power module exclusively indirectly via a connection between the lid assembly and the tray assembly.

21. The charging module according to claim 1, wherein the communication module and/or the user interface module are electrically connected to the power module by a flexible cable.

22. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the communication module comprises a second charging control circuit for communication with an electric vehicle via a pilot conductor at the charging outlet.

23. The charging station according to claim 1, wherein the communication module comprises an encryption circuit, wherein the encryption circuit receives a measured value from a smart meter arranged in a docking station and transmits the measured value in an encrypted form to a billing center.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0090] Below, the subject matter is explained in more detail with the help of a drawing showing examples of embodiments. In the drawing show:

[0091] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a charging station;

[0092] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a charging station with docking station and charging station;

[0093] FIG. 3 is a view of an open docking station;

[0094] FIG. 4 is a view of a closed docking station;

[0095] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a tray assembly;

[0096] FIG. 6 is a tray assembly in a partially assembled state;

[0097] FIG. 7 is a bottom view of a tray assembly;

[0098] FIG. 8a-c are assembled tray assemblies without covers;

[0099] FIG. 9 is a view of a lid assembly;

[0100] FIG. 10 is a bottom view of a lid assembly; and

[0101] FIG. 11 is a sectional view of a lid assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0102] FIG. 1 shows a charging station with a charging column 2, in which a receptacle 2a is provided. The receptacle 2a of the charging column 2 is designed to accommodate a docking station 4 and a charging station 6. The docking station 4 can be fixed in the receptacle 2a in a manner not described in detail. An electrical connection to a power supply system can be routed into the docking station 4 via the charging column 2. The charging station 6 can be assembled as an assembly with a tray assembly and a lid assembly, which are described in more detail below, and can be placed on the docking station 4 and mechanically fixed to the docking station 4.

[0103] Together with the mechanical fixation, the charging station can be electrically coupled to the docking station 4 via a plug/socket. A communication link can be established via at least one patch cable between the docking station 4 and the charging station 6.

[0104] When installed, the docking station 4 is completely accommodated in the receptacle 2a and the charging station 6 essentially completely embraces the outer edge of the docking station 4 and is also at least partially recessed in the receptacle 2 with its side edges.

[0105] If required, however, the docking station 4 can also be mounted directly on a wall without the need for the charging station 2 with the receptacle 2a. In this case, too, the side walls of the docking station are at least partially embraced by side walls of charging station 6.

[0106] As can be seen in FIG. 1, the footprints of docking station 4 and charging station 6 are approximately congruent to each other, so that when assembled, charging station 6 completely covers docking station 4 when viewed from the front.

[0107] The modular design of docking station 4 and charging station 6 is shown in FIG. 2.

[0108] FIG. 2 shows the docking station 4, which has a cable entry 8 in a side wall 10. The docking station 4 is at least partially closed by a protective housing cover 12 on the side facing the charging station 6. The cover 12 is provided with recesses 14a, 14b, which are described in more detail below.

[0109] The charging station 6 may comprise a tray assembly 20 and a lid assembly 26.

[0110] Openings 16 can be provided between the cover 12 and the side wall 10. Through these openings 16, webs 18 of the tray assembly 20 can be inserted into the docking station 4, so that the tray assembly 20 can be fixed to the docking station 4 via the webs 18.

[0111] As already explained, the tray assembly 20 can be coupled to the docking station 4. The tray assembly 20 is part of the charging station 6, which additionally comprises the lid assembly 26. The tray assembly 20 accommodates a power module 22 and a charging socket 24. The tray assembly 20 is essentially closed with a bottom on the bottom side and is closed on the lid side by the lid assembly 26.

[0112] Lid assembly 26 can be fixed to locking means 30 in the side walls of tray assembly 20 using locking means 28. The lid assembly 26 can comprise a shutter 32 and control elements, such as a display 34.

[0113] In the assembled state, the lid assembly 26 is mechanically joined to the tray assembly 20 and thus closes the tray assembly 20 at a top side. At the bottom side, the tray assembly 20 is joined to the docking station 4 and the side walls 10 provide a seal between the docking station 4 and the tray assembly 20.

[0114] A sealing is formed between the lid assembly 26 and the tray assembly 20 along the outer edge facing the lid assembly 26. The docking station 4 serves as a connection level and can be connected to a power supply network independently of the charging station 6. As long as the charging station 6 is not coupled to the docking station 4, it is voltage-free. The charging station 6 is connected to the energy supply network by coupling of the charging station 6 with the docking station 4. The charging station 6 can be understood as a supply level, which has charging technology and other “intelligence”. This modular design makes it possible to first assemble the docking station 4 by a qualified fitter without the need to immediately install a charging station 6.

[0115] At any later point in time, the charging station 6 can be particularly easily coupled to the docking station 4 also by a technical layman, mechanically and without tools, whereby the charging station 6 is then automatically electrified. As explained above, the charging station 6 is particularly flexible and modular due to its special design comprising a tray assembly 20 and lid assembly 26 and can be adjusted to the respective application.

[0116] The docking station 4 is shown in detail in FIG. 3. The docking station 4 has a bottom and side walls 32. A main board 34 and an interface board 36 are located on the bottom of the docking station 4. On the main board 34 there is a connection strip 38 for connecting a power supply cable.

[0117] On the side walls 32 and/or the bottom, scale lines 40 can be provided.

[0118] In addition to the connection strip 38, a power connector 42 is provided as a socket on the main board 34.

[0119] Furthermore, a receptacle 44 is provided between the side walls 32. The receptacle 44 can be closed by a cover. A measuring device, e.g. a smart meter or an iMS can be anchored in a latched manner into the receptacle 44. Not shown are cable bushings through the side walls of the receptacle 44 to wire the measuring device. The receptacle 44 can be sealed via suitable drill holes which is not shown in detail.

[0120] On the interface board 36, connectors 46, 48 are provided for a network cable and for a CAN bus and/or a GPIO bus. In addition, there may also be connection sockets for a connection to the modules inside the charging station.

[0121] The external wiring to a local network is done via a connection strip, which is then accessible via an RJ45 socket. In particular, sufficient contacts are provided here to connect to at least two independent local networks. For example, a first local network can be formed with a central unit and a second local network between master and slave units, i.e. between a charging station with a master controller with at least one, preferably several charging stations with only one slave controller. The two local networks can be connected together via a single patch cable to charging station 6 or the modules arranged in it.

[0122] To install the docking station 4, it is first mechanically fixed either in the receptacle 2 or, for example, screwed to a wall. Then, a multicore power cable is inserted through the cable entry 8 into the interior of the docking station 4. This cable has in particular large cable cross sections and a rigid cable core. Therefore, the cables are difficult to handle. To ensure that the cables are always cut to the correct length, the technician can place the cable against the scale 40 and cut it to length immediately. This enables the technician to correctly adjust the connection cable so that he can subsequently lay it on the connection strip 38 without any problems.

[0123] Depending on the assembly, a measuring device can be arranged in the receptacle 44. This measuring device is wired via flexible cables originating from the connection strip 38. Originating from the measuring device again a wiring via flexible cables towards a power connection 42 is done. If no measuring device is installed, the wiring is done directly via a flexible cable between the connection strip 38 and the power connection 42. A connection strip is also provided at the power connection 42 to accommodate the respective cables.

[0124] A network cable can also be inserted into the housing of the docking station 4 via the cable entry 8 and be connected to the connections 48.

[0125] After the electrical wiring has been carried out, the housing of the docking station 4 is closed with a cover 12 as shown in FIG. 4.

[0126] In FIG. 4 it can be seen that in addition to the recess 14a for the power connection 42, the cover 12 has at least one further recess 14b for the communication connections of the interface board 36, in particular an RJ45 connector as well as a GPIO connector and a CAN bus connector. Via the RJ45 socket 46, an RJ45 plug can establish a connection with two separate LAN networks.

[0127] Openings 16 are provided at the side edges of the protective housing cover 12. The openings 16 are located between the cover 12 and the side wall 10 of the docking station 4. Through the openings 16, the webs 18 of the tray assembly 20 can be inserted into the docking station 4, so that these webs 18 are completely accommodated by the side wall 10 of the docking station 4. Thus, the charging station 6 is mechanically anchored within the docking station 4 by the tray assembly 20.

[0128] After the docking station 4 has been installed in the manner shown, it can first remain unequipped, protected by the protective housing cover 12, and can be equipped at any later time with a charging station 6 comprising tray assembly 20 and lid assembly 26.

[0129] A tray assembly 20 is shown in FIG. 5 in a configuration variant. The tray assembly 20 has a housing with side walls 20a and a bottom 20b. In the area of the side walls 20a and the bottom 20b, a power module 50 can be mechanically anchored to the bottom of the tray assembly 20. The power module 50 has a charging connection 52 and a charging control circuit 54. On the bottom side of the power module, as also shown in FIG. 5, there is a plug 56 which corresponds to the socket of the power connection 42. The plug 56 is surrounded by a shroud 58. The shroud 58 points away from the surface of the circuit board of the power module 50. In particular, the shroud 58 has an extension in this direction which is greater than the longest extension of any contact of plug 56.

[0130] Additional components for power monitoring and/or power control are provided on the power module 50. In addition, a connector 60 for a communication bus is arranged on the power module 50.

[0131] Connector 60 for the communication bus enables the communication bus to be connected to the power module 50. The communication bus can take up both a communication module and a user interface module, which are described in the following, in the kind of plug and play and connect it with the power module 50. This makes it possible to supplement the power module 50 with the help of the communication module and/or the user interface module in a modular way in order to be able to adapt charging station 6 to the respective requirements if necessary.

[0132] The power module 50 is located in a first area of the bottom 20b. In a second area of the bottom 20b, a fixing means 62 is provided, which is formed by flanges arranged in a comb-like manner with openings aligned to each other. The fixing means 62 is formed by two comb-like structures facing each other and enclosing an opening 64 in the base 20b. The fixing means 62 correspond to fixing means 66 of a receptacle 68 for a charging socket 70. The charging socket 70 is located directly above the opening 64 in the assembled state. Through the opening 64, it is possible to perform a manual emergency release at the charging socket 70 from the bottom of the tray assembly 20 through the base 20b.

[0133] To mount the fixing body 68 to the tray assembly 20, the mounting body 68 with its fixing means 66 is aligned with the fixing means 62 in such a way that pins 72 can be pushed through the aligned openings. Thereby the pins 72 fix the mounting body 68 to the housing of the tray assembly 20.

[0134] In a partially assembled state, the power module 50 is inserted into the bottom of the tray assembly 20, as shown in FIG. 6. Here, the plug 56 is pushed through the opening 74 at the bottom together with the shroud 58. The power module 50 is mechanically interlocked with the housing of the tray assembly 20 and can be supported floatingly. Alternatively or commutatively, it is possible that the main board 34 is supported floatingly in the housing of the docking station 4. The floating support has the advantage that when the tray assembly 20 is mounted on the docking station 4, the plug 56 can autonomously align itself with the socket of the power connection 42. This increases the operability, in particular it facilitates the assembly by a layman.

[0135] The bottom side of the tray assembly 20 is shown in FIG. 7. It can be seen that the webs 18 protrude from the bottom 20b pointing away from the tray assembly 20. Furthermore, the shroud 58 with the plug 56 can be seen protruding through the opening 74.

[0136] When assembled, the shroud 58 engages with the opening 14a. As can be seen in FIG. 4, an annular gap 74 is formed in the opening 14a between the socket of the power connection 42 and a shroud 78 projecting into the interior of the housing of the docking station 4. The shroud 78 provides touch protection for the docking station 4.

[0137] During assembly, the tray assembly 20 is placed on the docking station 4 and, as can be seen from the combination of FIGS. 4 and 7, the shroud 58 slides into the annular gap 76. The shroud 58 enters the annular gap 76 before a contact of the plug 56 comes into electrical contact with a contact of the socket of the power connection 42. This prevents that an electric shock can occur when mounting the tray assembly 20 on the docking station 4.

[0138] The receptacle body 68 is designed in such a way that it is equipped to accommodate a wide variety of charging sockets 70, or in other words, a wide variety of charging sockets 70 can be equipped with different receptacle bodies 68, whereby the fixing means 66 have the same distance from each other and thus form a uniform mechanical interface to the fixing means 62. This leads to the possibility of installing different charging sockets 70 in the same tray assembly 20, as shown in FIG. 8a-c.

[0139] There, it can be seen that the fusing elements 62, 64 engage with each other and are mechanically latched together via pins 72. FIG. 8a shows a receptacle body 68 with a CCS charging socket 70, FIG. 8b shows a receptacle body 68 with a Chademo charging socket 70 and FIG. 8c shows a receptacle body 68 with a type 2 charging socket 70.

[0140] As can be seen in FIG. 8a-c, the receptacle body 68 makes it possible to accommodate a variety of charging sockets 70 without having to make any design changes to the housing of the tray assembly 20.

[0141] The charging sockets 70 do not necessarily need to be electrically connected to the charging connection 52, but can also remain potential-free. In this case, the charging sockets 70 can serve as a “plug garage”. The charging outlet 52 can be electrically connected to a charging cable permanently attached to the housing of the tray assembly 20. The charging cable can be led out in the area of a recess 80 in the side wall of the tray assembly 20.

[0142] If no permanently attached cable is used, the charging socket 70 can be electrically connected to the charging control circuit 54 via the charging connector 52. The charging connection 52 has three connections for one phase each on a connection strip, another connection strip with two connections for the neutral conductor and the protective conductor and, if necessary, a connection socket for a plug present (PP) contact and a pilot conductor (CP) contact.

[0143] For the installation of the charging socket 70, the receptacle body 68 is arranged on the tray assembly 20, the charging socket 70 is connected to the respective connections of the charging outlet 52 via pre-assembled cables and then the receptacle body 68 is fixed in the tray assembly 20 via the pins 72.

[0144] In addition to the tray assembly 20, the charging station 6 also includes the lid assembly 26 as shown in FIG. 9. The top side of lid assembly 26 can have various control elements 82 and/or a shutter 84 on a top side. The lid assembly 26 may have latching elements 86 on its side edges, which can engage with the inner side walls of the tray assembly 20. This allows the lid assembly 26 to be mounted on the pan assembly 20.

[0145] The latching elements 86 may be designed to snap into the side walls of the tray assembly 20 and, in particular, may only be released non-destructively when released from the bottom, coming from the bottom 20b of the tray assembly 20. This prevents the lid assembly 26 from being detached from the tray assembly 20 while the pan assembly 20 is still electrically connected to the main board 34 of docking station 4.

[0146] At the rear of lid assembly 26, as shown in FIG. 10, the shutter 84 is mounted in a way that it can be moved in a movement direction 88 to make the charging socket 70 accessible. As shown in FIG. 11, the shutter 84 is spring-loaded via a spring 98 so that it automatically moves into the shown closed position.

[0147] A communication module 90 and a user interface module 92 can be arranged in another area of the lid assembly 26. Both the communication module 90 and the user interface module 92 can be mechanically fixed to the lid assembly 26 or its housing.

[0148] The communication module 90 is connected to the power module 50 and the user interface module 92 via the communication bus.

[0149] The communication module 90 includes a charging control circuit not shown in detail, which has electrical access to the charging connection 52. The charging control circuit can override the charging control circuit 54 or at least be coupled to it, so that the two charging control circuits can control the charging process in a coordinated manner.

[0150] FIG. 11 shows the arrangement of the communication module 90 as well as the user interface module 92 in the lid assembly 26. The user interface module 92 faces the inside of the lid surface and is mechanically connected to the housing of the lid assembly 26 via click connections 94. The communication module 90, in turn, is also connected to the housing of lid assembly 26 via connections not shown in detail.

[0151] The user interface module 92 is fixed immovably to the inside of the lid assembly 26, so that an exact positioning of sensors and signal transmitters on the user interface module 92 in relation to the top of the lid assembly 26 is guaranteed. In particular, a display 96 can be optionally located in the lid assembly 26 and controlled via the user interface module 92 and/or the communication module 90.

[0152] All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.

[0153] The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) is to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.

[0154] Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.