PRIMARY-SIDE CHARGING DEVICE, SECONDARY-SIDE CHARGING DEVICE AND METHOD OF CHARGING A BATTERY FOR A VEHICLE HAVING AN ELECTRIC DRIVE

Abstract

A primary-side charging device (10) is disclosed for charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37). The primary-side charging device (10) comprises at least one primary coil (13) and a primary-side charging module (14) in which the primary coil (13) is arranged. The primary-side charging module (14) has at least three side surfaces (15) and each of the side surfaces (15) encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the primary-side charging module (14). In addition, the at least one primary coil (13) is connected to a power supply unit (16). Furthermore, a secondary-side charging device (19) for charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37), a charging system (24) and a method of charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37) are disclosed.

Claims

1. A primary-side charging device (10) for charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37), comprising: at least one primary coil (13), and a primary-side charging module (14) in which the primary coil (13) is arranged, wherein the primary-side charging module (14) has at least three side surfaces (15) and each of the side surfaces (15) encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the primary-side charging module (14), and the at least one primary coil (13) is connected to a power supply unit (16).

2. The primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, wherein the primary-side charging module (14) has a shape which is complementary to a secondary-side charging module (36).

3. The primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, in which the at least three side surfaces (15) of the primary-side charging module (14) form side surfaces of a truncated pyramid or truncated cone.

4. The primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, in which each primary coil (13) can be separately controlled by the power supply unit (16).

5. The primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, in which a cooling module (17) is arranged in the primary-side charging module (14).

6. The primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, comprising an adjusting part (18) having the primary-side charging module (14), the adjusting part (18) being able to be moved in at least one adjustment direction (z).

7. A secondary-side charging device (19) for charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37), comprising: at least one secondary coil (20), and a secondary-side charging module (36) in which the secondary coil (20) is arranged, wherein the secondary-side charging module (36) has at least three side surfaces (21) and each of the side surfaces (21) encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the secondary-side charging module (36), and the at least one secondary coil (20) is electrically coupled to the battery (11) of the vehicle (12).

8. The secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7, in which the secondary-side charging module (36) has a shape which is complementary to a primary-side charging module (14).

9. The secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7, in which the at least three side surfaces (21) of the secondary-side charging module (36) form side surfaces of a truncated pyramid or truncated cone.

10. The secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7, in which each secondary coil (20) is coupled to a converter (22).

11. The secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7, in which the secondary-side charging module (36) has a contact area (23) which is thermally coupled to the battery (11).

12. The secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7, comprising an adjusting part (18) having the secondary-side charging module (36), the adjusting part (18) being able to be moved in at least one adjustment direction (z).

13. A charging system (24) for charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37), comprising: a primary-side charging device (10) according to claim 1, and a secondary-side charging device (19) according to claim 7.

14. The charging system (24) according to claim 13, in which an air gap (25) remains between the primary-side charging module (14) and the secondary-side charging module (36) during charging the battery (11).

15. The charging system (24) according to claim 13, in which the at least one primary coil (13) has a number of windings which differs from that of the at least one secondary coil (20).

16. The charging system (24) according to claim 13, in which the cooling module (17) and the contact area (23) are in thermal contact during charging the battery (11).

17. A method of charging a battery (11) for a vehicle (12) having an electric drive (37), comprising the steps of: positioning a primary-side charging module (14) having at least one primary coil (13) and positioning a secondary-side charging module (36) having at least one secondary coil (20), applying an AC voltage to the at least one primary coil (13), and converting an AC voltage induced in the at least one secondary coil (20) into a DC voltage for charging the battery (11), wherein the at least one primary coil (13) is connected to a power supply unit (16), the at least one secondary coil (20) is electrically coupled to the battery (11) of the vehicle (12), the primary-side charging module (14) has at least three side surfaces (15) and each of the side surfaces (15) encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the primary-side charging module (14), the secondary-side charging module (36) has at least three side surfaces (21) and each of the side surfaces (21) encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the secondary-side charging module (36), and the side surfaces (15) of the primary-side charging module (14) are adapted to the side surfaces (21) of the secondary-side charging module (36) so that an air gap (25) remains between the primary-side charging module (14) and the secondary-side charging module (36) during charging the battery (11).

18. The method according to claim 17, in which a cooling module (17) is arranged in the primary-side charging module (14) and a contact area (23) is arranged in the secondary-side charging module (36), with the contact area (23) being thermally coupled to the battery (11) and the cooling module (17) and the contact area (23) being in thermal contact during charging the battery (11).

Description

[0098] The primary-side charging device described here, the secondary-side charging device, the charging system and the method of charging a battery for a vehicle having an electric drive will be explained in more detail below with the aid of exemplary embodiments and the associated figures.

[0099] FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 show exemplary embodiments of the charging system comprising the primary-side charging device and the secondary-side charging device. FIG. 1 also explains the method described here in more detail.

[0100] FIGS. 6 and 7 show schematic sectional views of an exemplary embodiment of a primary-side charging module.

[0101] FIG. 8 shows a part of an exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module and a part of an exemplary embodiment of the secondary-side charging module.

[0102] FIG. 9 shows a part of another exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module and a part of another exemplary embodiment of the secondary-side charging module.

[0103] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a charging system 24, which comprises a primary-side charging device 10 and a secondary-side charging device 19. The secondary-side charging device 19 and a battery 11 are arranged in a vehicle 12. The vehicle 12 is arranged on a base plate 35. The primary-side charging device 10 is located below the base plate 35. The primary-side charging device 10 comprises a primary-side charging module 14. At least one primary coil 13 is arranged in the primary-side charging module 14. The primary side charging module 14 has the shape of a truncated pyramid with at least three side surfaces 15 and a surface 38. Each of the side surfaces 15 encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the primary-side charging module 14. In this embodiment, the base area of the primary-side charging module 14 is parallel to the main direction of extension of the base plate 35.

[0104] The primary-side charging device 10 also has an adjusting part 18. The adjusting part 18 comprises the primary-side charging module 14 and can be moved in an adjustment direction z. The adjustment direction z is perpendicular to the main direction of extension of the base plate 35. Thus, the primary-side charging module 14 can be moved toward the vehicle 12 by moving the adjusting part 18.

[0105] The primary-side charging device 10 also has a converter 22 to which the at least one primary coil 13 is connected. In addition, the primary-side charging device 10 has a back-up battery 26 with an automatic control 27 connected in parallel and a first charging control device 28. The first charging control device 28 is connected to a power supply unit 16. The first charging control device 28 is also connected to the back-up battery 26. The back-up battery 26 is connected to the converter 22. For example, the power supply unit 16 may be a power grid or another battery. The first charging control device 28 may include a power factor correction circuit or a rectifier circuit to maximize the active power for the primary-side charging module 14. The converter 22 may be a DC-AC converter, for example. If the primary-side charging module 14 has more than one primary coil 13, each primary coil 13 is connected to its own transformer 22.

[0106] Furthermore, the primary-side charging device 10 comprises two adjustment devices 30, which can be used to move the vehicle 12 to a position for charging the battery 11.

[0107] The secondary-side charging device 19 comprises a secondary-side charging module 36. At least one secondary coil 20 is arranged in the secondary-side charging module 36. The secondary-side charging module 36 has the shape of a recess with at least three side surfaces 21. The three side surfaces 21 form the side surfaces of a truncated cone. Each of the side surfaces 21 encloses an angle of greater than 0? and not more than 90? with a base area of the secondary-side charging module 36. In this exemplary embodiment, the base area of the secondary-side charging module 36 is parallel to the main direction of extension of the base plate 35, and the secondary-side charging module 36 has a shape which is complementary to the primary-side charging module 14.

[0108] Each of the secondary coils 20 is connected to its own converter 22 of the secondary-side charging device 19. The converter 22 is connected to the battery 11 of the vehicle 12. The battery 11 is connected to a drive 37 of the vehicle 12 and is located in the area of the floor of the vehicle 12.

[0109] For charging the battery 11 of the vehicle 12, the primary-side charging module 14 is approached to the secondary-side charging module 36 until a charging position is reached. For this purpose, the surface 38 of primary-side charging module 14 may be in direct contact with the vehicle 12. An air gap 25 remains between the side surfaces 15 of the primary-side charging module 14 and the side surfaces 21 of the secondary-side charging module 36 during charging. As soon as the charging position is reached, an AC voltage is applied to the at least one primary coil 13. For this purpose, the DC voltage provided by the back-up battery 26 is converted by the converter 22 into an AC voltage. An electromagnetic field is generated by the alternating voltage applied to the primary coil 13, which induces an alternating voltage in the secondary coil 20. This voltage is converted by the converter 22 of the secondary-side charging device 19 into a DC voltage with which the battery 11 of the vehicle 12 is charged.

[0110] In FIG. 1, the vehicle 12 is a land vehicle or a car.

[0111] FIG. 2 shows another exemplary embodiment of the charging system 24. The primary-side charging device 10 is arranged stationary under a base plate 35. The secondary-side charging device 19 is located in an aircraft or aeroplane. The setup of the primary-side charging device 10 and secondary-side charging device 19 is as shown in FIG. 1.

[0112] FIG. 3 shows another exemplary embodiment of the charging system 24. The primary-side charging device 10 is arranged stationary under a base plate 35. The secondary-side charging device 19 is arranged in a vessel or boat. The setup of the primary-side charging device 10 and the secondary-side charging device 19 is as shown in FIG. 1. In addition, an adjusting device 30 of the primary-side charging device 10 is connected to a connecting arm 31. The connecting arm 31 is also connected to the vehicle 12. This allows the vehicle 12, even when in water, to be held in a fixed position during charging by being connected to the connecting arm 31.

[0113] FIG. 4 shows another exemplary embodiment of the charging system 24. The primary-side charging device 10 is arranged stationary under a base plate 35 and above the base plate 35. The secondary-side charging device 19 is arranged in a land vehicle 12 as shown in FIG. 1. In contrast to the structure in FIG. 1, the primary-side charging module 14 has the shape of a recess. The side surfaces 15 of the primary-side charging module 14 enclose an angle of greater than 0? and less than 90? with the base plate 35. The secondary-side charging module 36 has the shape of a three-dimensional body, in this case the shape of a truncated pyramid. The secondary-side charging device 19 has an adjusting part 18, which comprises the secondary-side charging module 36. The adjusting part 18 can be moved in an adjustment direction z, which extends parallel to the main direction of extension of the base plate 35. Thus, the secondary-side charging module 36 for charging the battery 11 can be approached to the primary-side charging module 14 by means of the adjusting part 18. The side surfaces 21 of the secondary-side charging module 36 enclose an angle of greater than 0? and less than 90? with the adjustment direction z.

[0114] FIG. 5 shows a further exemplary embodiment of the charging system 24. The setup of the primary-side charging device 10 is the same as shown in FIG. 4. The setup of the secondary-side charging device 19 differs from the setup shown in FIG. 4 in that the secondary-side charging device 19 has no adjusting part 18. The entire vehicle 12 is moved in the adjustment direction z to approach the secondary-side charging module 36 to the primary-side charging module 14. The drive 37 of the vehicle 12 or the adjustment devices 30 can be used for this purpose.

[0115] FIG. 6 shows a schematic sectional view of an exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module 14. The primary-side charging module 14 has six primary coils 13. The base area of the primary-side charging module 14 is a hexagon with six equal sides. Thus, the primary-side charging module 14 has six side surfaces 15. Each of the primary coils 13 is arranged adjacent to one of the side surfaces 15. Instead of one primary coil 13, several primary coils 13 per side surface 15 may also be arranged in the primary-side charging module 14. In addition, each of the primary coils 13 is connected to a converter 22. Furthermore, the primary-side charging module 14 has six cooling sub-modules 33. Each of the cooling sub-modules 33 is arranged on one side of a primary coil 13 which faces away from the respective side surface 15. Thus, the cooling sub-modules 33 adjoin each other in the middle of the base area of the primary-side charging module 14. The primary-side charging module 14 is divided into six segments 32. Each of the segments 32 comprises a primary coil 13, a converter 22 and a cooling sub-module 33. Each of the segments 32 can be moved and controlled separately. It is also possible to apply AC voltages of different amplitude or frequency to the primary coils 13.

[0116] FIG. 7 shows a schematic sectional view of another exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module 14. The design of the primary-side charging module 14 is similar to FIG. 6 with the difference that the primary-side charging module 14 is not divided into segments 32. The primary coils 13 and the converters 22 are arranged as shown in FIG. 6. Instead of six cooling sub-modules 33, the primary-side charging module 14 comprises a cooling module 17 in the middle of the primary-side charging module 14.

[0117] FIG. 8 shows a schematic sectional view of a part of an exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module 14 and a part of an exemplary embodiment of the secondary-side charging module 36. A primary coil 13 is arranged in the primary-side charging module 14 and connected to a converter 22. The converter 22 can be connected to the back-up battery 26. An iron core 34 is arranged in the primary coil 13, which extends in the form of a horseshoe. The cooling module 17 of the primary-side charging module 14 is in thermal contact with a contact area 23 of the secondary-side charging module 36. The contact area 23 is in thermal contact with the battery 11 of the vehicle 12 to cool or heat said battery. A secondary coil 20 is arranged in the secondary-side charging module 36 and connected to a transformer 22. The converter 22 can be connected to the battery 11 of the vehicle 12. An iron core 34 is also arranged in the secondary coil 20.

[0118] In FIG. 8, the primary-side charging module 14 is in the charging position. In this position, an imaginary connecting axis through the primary coil 13 and the secondary coil 20 encloses an angle with the base area of the primary-side charging module 14 of greater than 0? and less than 90?. The surface 38 of the primary-side charging module 14 is in direct contact with the secondary-side charging module 36. An air gap 25 remains between the side surfaces 15 of the primary-side charging module 14 and the side surfaces 21 of the secondary-side charging module 36.

[0119] FIG. 9 shows a schematic sectional view of a part of another exemplary embodiment of the primary-side charging module 14 and a part of another exemplary embodiment of the secondary-side charging module 36. The primary-side charging module 14 is arranged in a ring shape between two parts of the secondary-side charging module 36. Two primary coils 13 are arranged in the primary-side charging module 14. A secondary coil 20 is arranged in the outer part of the secondary-side charging module 36. The inner part of the secondary-side charging module 36 is laterally surrounded by the primary-side charging module 14. A further secondary coil 20 is arranged in the inner part of the secondary-side charging module 36. During charging, one of the primary coils 13 can transmit energy to the secondary coil 20 in the outer part of the secondary-side charging module 36, and the other primary coil 13 can transmit energy to the secondary coil 20 in the inner part of the secondary-side charging module 36. This exemplary embodiment enables a compact arrangement of the primary-side charging module 14 and the secondary-side charging module 36.