Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60L—PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL; MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
  • B60L53/00—Methods of charging batteries, specially adapted for electric vehicles; Charging stations or on-board charging equipment therefor; Exchange of energy storage elements in electric vehicles
  • B60L53/30—Constructional details of charging stations
  • B60L53/35—Means for automatic or assisted adjustment of the relative position of charging devices and vehicles
  • B60L53/36—Means for automatic or assisted adjustment of the relative position of charging devices and vehicles by positioning the vehicle
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60L—PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL; MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
  • B60L3/00—Electric devices on electrically-propelled vehicles for safety purposes; Monitoring operating variables, e.g. speed, deceleration or energy consumption
  • B60L3/04—Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60L—PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL; MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
  • B60L53/00—Methods of charging batteries, specially adapted for electric vehicles; Charging stations or on-board charging equipment therefor; Exchange of energy storage elements in electric vehicles
  • B60L53/60—Monitoring or controlling charging stations
  • B60L53/66—Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60L—PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL; MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
  • B60L53/00—Methods of charging batteries, specially adapted for electric vehicles; Charging stations or on-board charging equipment therefor; Exchange of energy storage elements in electric vehicles
  • B60L53/60—Monitoring or controlling charging stations
  • B60L53/67—Controlling two or more charging stations
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60W—CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
  • B60W60/00—Drive control systems specially adapted for autonomous road vehicles
  • B60W60/001—Planning or execution of driving tasks
  • B60W60/0015—Planning or execution of driving tasks specially adapted for safety
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H02—GENERATION; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
  • H02J—ELECTRIC POWER NETWORKS; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS OR SYSTEMS FOR SUPPLYING OR DISTRIBUTING ELECTRIC POWER; SYSTEMS FOR STORING ELECTRIC ENERGY
  • H02J7/00—Circuit arrangements for charging or discharging batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
  • H02J7/40—Circuit arrangements for charging or discharging batteries or for supplying loads from batteries characterised by the exchange of charge or discharge related data
  • H02J7/42—Circuit arrangements for charging or discharging batteries or for supplying loads from batteries characterised by the exchange of charge or discharge related data with electronic devices having internal batteries, e.g. mobile phones
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60L—PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL; MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
  • B60L2260/00—Operating Modes
  • B60L2260/20—Drive modes; Transition between modes
  • B60L2260/32—Auto pilot mode
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60W—CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
  • B60W2556/00—Input parameters relating to data
  • B60W2556/45—External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02T—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
  • Y02T10/00—Road transport of goods or passengers
  • Y02T10/60—Other road transportation technologies with climate change mitigation effect
  • Y02T10/70—Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02T—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
  • Y02T10/00—Road transport of goods or passengers
  • Y02T10/60—Other road transportation technologies with climate change mitigation effect
  • Y02T10/7072—Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors

Definitions

• the present disclosure generally relates to recharging assemblies for autonomous automatic guided vehicles ("Automatic Guided Vehicles” (AGV) in English), and more particularly, self-docking and recharging assemblies for vehicles with autonomous navigation.
• AGV Automatic Guided Vehicles
• AGV automatic guided vehicles
• autonomous vehicles are equipped with an on-board battery which is recharged on a base or a docking station.
• autonomous vehicles are configured to determine the position of the docking station in order to be able to dock there autonomously using guidance means.
• Another solution consists in equipping the docking stations with a beacon or a laser beam emitter to guide the autonomous vehicles.
• a beacon or a laser beam emitter to guide the autonomous vehicles.
• the security information is processed by security radio transmission systems separate from the docking station which require their own power supply and a dedicated communication mode, forming a fragmented architecture, relatively complex and expensive, and not very suitable in the event of a facility that includes a plurality of autonomous vehicles and a plurality of docking stations.
• the present disclosure aims to remedy these drawbacks by proposing a new charging assembly architecture for autonomous vehicles which makes it possible to integrate and combine in a single physical entity the functions of location and transmission of different types of information. , including dependability information.
• a new charging assembly architecture for autonomous vehicles which makes it possible not to multiply the infrastructure requirements, unlike conventional solutions which must be equipped on the one hand with chargers connected to the mains, stationary location beacons powered for example by an Ethernet network, and radio transmission systems safe.
• Another objective of the present disclosure is to provide a refill assembly having a reduced size and final cost.
• a charging assembly for autonomous vehicles comprising:
• a charging docking station configured to be fixedly disposed in a work area, said charging docking station comprising a battery charger, a first safety controller configured to generate and output safety information and a first wireless communication transmitter configured to receive said dependability information transmitted by the first dependability controller and to generate and transmit a security frame comprising said dependability information;
• an autonomous navigation vehicle configured to move in the work area, said vehicle comprising an electric rechargeable battery adapted to be electrically connected to the terminals of the battery charger, a second safety controller connected to the electric recharge battery, and a second wireless communication transmitter configured to receive said security frame comprising said security information transmitted by the first wireless communication transmitter and for transmitting said security information to the second dependability controller, said second dependability controller being configured to process said dependability information.
• the first wireless communication transmitter is configured to transmit positioning information from the docking station to the second wireless communication transmitter and the vehicle further comprises a navigation controller configured to calculating the location of the vehicle with respect to the charging docking station in the work area from said positioning information.
• the assembly comprises a plurality of charging docking stations and a plurality of autonomous vehicles, each autonomous vehicle being configured to receive positioning information from at least three of the stations recharging reception of the work area in order to calculate the location of said autonomous vehicle by triangulation.
• the first wireless communication transmitter and the second communication transmitter are wireless radio transmitters, the radio communication between the first transmitter and the second transmitter being established periodically.
• the first communication transmitter is configured to encapsulate the security information from the first dependability controller in a security frame and the second communication transmitter is configured to decapsulate the security frame to extract the security information.
• the first wireless communication transmitter and the second wireless communication transmitter are wireless radio transmitters and receivers configured to transmit and receive information. Communication between the two transmitters is bi-directional. Thus, the communication between the charging docking station and the vehicle is two-way.
• the second wireless communication transmitter can be configured to transmit vehicle status information and vehicle location information in the work area to the first wireless communication transmitter.
• vehicle status information can indicate for example that the engine is off and the vehicle is stationary.
• vehicle status information can also indicate for example that the vehicle has received an impact.
• the assembly further comprises an emergency stop button connected to the first operational safety controller.
• the assembly further comprises an electrical network suitable for supplying said charging docking station.
• the stopping of the autonomous vehicle is produced according to the following steps:
• the safety information is generated by an emergency stop button connected to the first safety controller of a charging docking station.
• FIG. 1 schematically represents a charging assembly for an autonomous vehicle according to one embodiment, comprising a charging docking station and an autonomous vehicle.
• Figure 2 schematically represents a variant of the autonomous vehicle charging assembly of Figure 1.
• FIG. 3 schematically represents another embodiment of a charging assembly comprising three charging docking stations and an autonomous vehicle.
• FIG. 4 represents a charging management method according to one embodiment.
• FIG. 5 represents a method for managing the stopping of the autonomous vehicle according to one embodiment.
• the same references denote identical or similar elements.
• the environment denotes, for example, a warehouse, a production plant, or any other industrial space in which a light vehicle moves.
• the light vehicle with autonomous navigation which moves autonomously in an environment can for example be an industrial truck or any other rolling handling machine or an autonomous mobile robot.
• operation safety information means a security order which requires the vehicle to be stopped. This safety information is generated by a stop button located at the docking station when activated by an operator.
• positioning information means a set of coordinates indicating the location of the docking stations in a work area. This information is used to feed the navigation algorithms of the mobile autonomous vehicle in order to determine the positioning of the vehicle in relation to the docking stations located in the work area in which the vehicle is moving to allow an on-board computer of the vehicle to calculate a navigation path to move towards a predefined docking station.
• FIG. 1 a charging assembly for autonomous motor vehicle 1 according to one embodiment is shown.
• Such a set 1 comprises for example a charging docking station 20, an electric autonomous vehicle 10.
• This set can further comprise an electrical network 3 supplying the docking station 20.
• This set is installed in an area work, for example an article storage warehouse.
• the charging assembly 1 comprises three docking stations 20 and an autonomous vehicle 10.
• the number of docking stations and the number of autonomous vehicles circulating in the work area are not limiting.
• each autonomous vehicle can be associated with at least three docking stations 20.
• the autonomous vehicle operates in the work area and can be recharged at one of the fixed docking stations, by connecting electrically to the terminals of the on-board charger in the docking station.
• the electric autonomous vehicle 10 generally comprises one or more wheels not shown in Figure 1, coupled to an electric motor to provide a traction or propulsion function to the movement of the vehicle.
• the wheel may be a non-directional drive wheel which moves the vehicle forward or backward in one direction principle of movement related to the vehicle, the direction of movement being perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the non-directional wheels.
• the wheel can be a directional motor.
• the wheel is steerable by pivoting about a vertical pivot axis, in order to steer the vehicle along its path.
• several layouts of drive wheels can be considered to ensure the correct operation of the drive wheel(s).
• each charging docking station 20 comprises a battery charger 21 provided with two connection terminals 25, a first operational safety controller 22 and a first wireless communication transmitter 23.
• the first dependability controller is configured to generate dependability information and to transmit the dependability information to the first wireless communication transmitter 23.
• the first wireless communication transmitter 23 is configured to transmit dependability information dependability and positioning information from the docking station in the direction of the vehicle 10.
• the first transmitter 23 is configured to generate a security frame 4 comprising the received dependability information and to transmit the security frame comprising safety information in the direction of the vehicle 10.
• the vehicle 10 comprises a battery 11 which stores and restores the energy necessary for the autonomous operation of the motorization system, a second operational safety controller 12 which is capable of processing safety information from the docking station to control the shutdown of the motor power supply and a second communication transmitter 13 configured to exchange data with the docking station. More precisely, the second transmitter 13 is configured to receive the security frame 4 comprising the operational safety information and the positioning information transmitted by the first transmitter 23. The operational safety information is transmitted to the second operational safety controller 12 to be processed.
• the first transmitter 23 and the second transmitter can be radio transmitters/receivers configured to transmit and receive information.
• the first transmitter 23 can for example transmit information in the direction of the vehicle and receive information from the vehicle and the second transmitter 13 can for example receive data from the charging docking station and transmit data in the direction of the docking station recharge.
• the communication between the charging docking station and the vehicle is bidirectional.
• the vehicle further comprises a navigation controller 14 which is capable of processing positioning information from one or more docking stations to locate the vehicle in the work area.
• the positioning information is transmitted by the second transmitter 13 to the navigation controller 14.
• the second safety controller 12 is configured to generate vehicle status information and transmit it to the second communication transmitter 13.
• the navigation controller 14 is configured to calculate the information location of the vehicle in the work area and transmit them to the second wireless communication transmitter 13.
• the second wireless communication transmitter 13 is configured to transmit this vehicle status information and this location information to the first transmitter communication 23.
• the vehicle status information may indicate for example that the engine is off and the vehicle is stationary.
• the vehicle status information can also indicate, for example, that the vehicle has received an impact.
• the battery 11 of the vehicle is equipped with two terminals 15 adapted to be connected to the terminals 25 of the battery charger 21 of the charging docking station 20 when the autonomous vehicle 10 is docked at the station.
• the battery 11 comprises rechargeable accumulators which are capable of storing and restoring the energy necessary for the autonomous operation of the motorization system.
• the accumulators comprise an Ni-MH battery.
• the accumulators comprise a Li-ion battery.
• a radio link 2 is established periodically between the vehicle 10 and the docking stations 20 of the work area.
• each vehicle communicates with at least one station in the work area.
• each vehicle can communicate with all the fixed docking stations present in the work area when the range of the radio link allows it.
• the radio communication link 2 between the first communication transmitter 23 and the second communication transmitter 13 makes it possible to transmit on the one hand the positioning information of the stations of reception, and on the other hand the information of operational safety.
• the transmitter 23 of the charging docking station 20 is configured to transmit positioning information from the associated station and the operational safety information to the second transmitter 13 of the vehicle 10.
• the dependability information is generated by the first dependability controller 22 of the charging docking station 20.
• the docking station may further comprise an emergency stop button 24 connected to the inputs of the first safety controller 22.
• an operator can activate the emergency stop button which sends a signal indicating the stopping of the vehicle to the first dependability controller 22 which generates dependability information and transmits it to the first communication transmitter 23.
• the communication transmitter 23 is configured to encapsulate the operational safety information to be transmitted to the vehicle on radio communication frames 4 so as to guarantee the safety of the information transmitted.
• the security frames 4 are received by the second security transmitter 13 which transmits them to the second operational safety controller 12 to control the vehicle engine. More precisely, the second transmitter 13 is configured to decapsulate the operating safety information coming from the transmitter before transmitting it to the second security controller.
• the second safety controller 12 is configured to control the stopping of the engine, and in particular to stop the engine when the safety information represents an emergency requiring the stopping of the engine.
• the positioning information from the docking stations is processed by the navigation controller 14 and allows the autonomous vehicle to determine its position in the work area relative to the docking stations and to calculate a trajectory to move to a predefined docking station on which the vehicle will recharge its battery.
• the navigation controller 14 is configured to control the navigation of the vehicle from station to docking station to dock there for recharging using location information from one or more docking stations.
• the navigation controller 14 is capable of determining the position of the vehicle from the data transmitted by the docking stations in the work area by triangulation and of calculating a trajectory to be carried out by the vehicle in the work area in the direction of the associated charging docking station.
• the safety information and the positioning information are thus processed by two separate controllers, the second operational safety controller 12 and the navigation controller 14 which are both integrated into the vehicle 10.
• the second safety controller 12 is coupled to the engine of the vehicle 10 and configured to control the engine.
• the second safety controller 12 is capable of cutting off the electrical power supply to the motor to remove the torque in order to stop the vehicle.
• the second safety controller 12 is connected to the second communication transmitter 13 which receives the security frames from the docking station.
• the navigation control 14 is connected to the second communication transmitter 13 which receives positioning information from several docking stations and to the second operational safety controller 12.
• the location function and the security information are processed by separate modules.
• the location function is ensured for example by stationary location beacons powered for example by an Ethernet network.
• the transmission of safety information is ensured by safe radio transmission systems which require their own power supply and a dedicated communication mode.
• vehicle 10 When vehicle 10 detects that its battery charge level requires recharging or when it has completed its assigned operations, vehicle 10 moves to find a charging docking station.
• the transmitter 13 installed on the autonomous vehicle 10 which operates in the work area receives location information from the transmitter 23 installed on the docking station 20.
• the vehicle receives location information from three docking stations.
• the location information is transmitted by the second transmitter 13 of the vehicle to the navigation controller 14 and is processed to determine the geographical position of the autonomous vehicle 10 in the work area relative to the docking station 20.
• the controller navigation 14 determines from the geographical position of the vehicle the path to be traveled by the vehicle to the docking station 20 for recharging the battery.
• a docking and recharging step 120 the vehicle 10 moves along the path determined by the navigation controller 14, to approach the docking station 20 for docking and recharging its battery.
• the vehicle 10 moves until the terminals 15 of the battery 11 are connected to the terminals 25 of the charger 21 of the station.
• Recharging is carried out autonomously.
• the circuit inside the dock detects the established connection between the vehicle and the dock's charger and activates charging on its 25 terminals.
• security information can be generated by the first operational safety controller 22 of the docking station and which are transmitted to the autonomous vehicle.
• This security information indicates, for example, an order to stop the vehicle.
• the second safety controller 12 cuts off the electrical power supply to the electric motor of the vehicle 10 or activates a safety function (for example STO: Safe Torque Off, SS1: Safe Stop, or even SBC: Safe Brake Control) to stop the engines to immobilize the vehicle.
• STO Safe Torque Off
• SS1 Safe Stop
• SBC Safe Brake Control
• an emergency stop command is triggered, for example using an emergency stop button 24 connected to a secure input of a station.
• the dependability controller 22 of the station generates dependability information.
• the first dependability controller 22 of the station transmits the dependability information to the first communication transmitter 23.
• the dependability information is encapsulated by the first communication transmitter 23 in a security frame 4.
• the security frame 4 is transmitted by the first transmitter 23 of the station to the second transmitter 13 of the vehicle.
• a step 135 the security frame 4 is decapsulated by the second communication transmitter 13 and the operating safety information is extracted from the security frame by the second communication transmitter 13.
• the second transmitter 13 transmits the safety information to the second operational safety controller 12.
• the second safety controller 12 cuts off the power supply to the motor of the vehicle in response to the safety information received.
• the charging assembly of the present disclosure combines several functions:
• the geographical location function of the vehicle allowing the autonomous vehicle to determine its position in relation to the stations and to be able to navigate in the direction of the station chosen for recharging;
• the safety function allowing the vehicle to be stopped remotely, without the operator having to physically approach the vehicle to activate the emergency stop button located on the vehicle.
• the solution proposed by the present disclosure makes it possible to optimally and safely control workstations or production stations equipped with several autonomous vehicles, by offering the docking station the ability to remotely stop the vehicle operating in a work area.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Transportation (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Power Engineering (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Sustainable Development (AREA)
• Sustainable Energy (AREA)
• Automation & Control Theory (AREA)
• Human Computer Interaction (AREA)
• Control Of Position, Course, Altitude, Or Attitude Of Moving Bodies (AREA)
• Electric Propulsion And Braking For Vehicles (AREA)
• Charge And Discharge Circuits For Batteries Or The Like (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=81580437

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Family Cites Families (12)

• 2022
  • 2022-02-22 FR FR2201552A patent/FR3132879A1/fr active Pending
• 2023
  • 2023-02-22 EP EP23711507.6A patent/EP4482706A1/de active Pending
  • 2023-02-22 US US18/840,180 patent/US20250162437A1/en active Pending
  • 2023-02-22 JP JP2024549530A patent/JP2025512611A/ja active Pending
  • 2023-02-22 WO PCT/FR2023/050248 patent/WO2023161585A1/fr not_active Ceased
  • 2023-02-22 CN CN202380023136.1A patent/CN119053476A/zh active Pending

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