FR3011688A1 - ELECTRICAL SOCKET SECURED IN TEMPERATURE - Google Patents

Abstract

Secure electrical socket (4) comprising power contacts (8) adapted to cooperate with complementary power contacts (9) of a complementary electrical socket (6), the electrical socket (4) comprising a first temperature sensor (10) ) mounted near the power contacts (8) of the electrical socket (4) and capable of delivering a first variable signal depending on the temperature of the power contacts (8) and the ambient temperature. The electrical socket comprises a second temperature sensor (11) offset relative to the power contacts (8) of the electrical socket (4) and able to measure a second variable signal as a function of the ambient temperature, and control means ( 12) of a power failure according to the measured temperatures.

Description

The invention relates to charging and recharging a battery of a motor vehicle, and more particularly to an electrical outlet whose operation depends on its temperature. Motor vehicles with at least partially electric traction are increasingly present on the market. Most electric traction vehicles or hybrid vehicles comprise an electrical energy storage unit such as a battery that makes it possible to supply electricity to one or more electrical machines supplying a certain amount of mechanical power necessary for the motricity of the vehicle. vehicle. In some cases, the vehicle comprises a connection or electrical outlet, such as a base or a plug, which recharges the battery by connecting the base or the plug respectively to a plug or an electrical base of a appropriate external power distribution network. The infrastructure needed to electrically recharge the battery of a motor vehicle with at least partially electrical traction may include means capable of delivering a current of relatively high intensity to facilitate the charging of the battery and reduce its charging time. For example, a fast charging infrastructure enables the delivery of a 400 V three-phase AC voltage with a current rating of 63 A.

Since such infrastructures are not always accessible, users of a motor vehicle with at least partially electric traction can use a domestic power supply network to recharge the battery of their vehicle. The domestic supply network is then limited to a single-phase 220 V AC voltage with a maximum current of 13 A. Regardless of the type of infrastructure used and the load current levels, the deterioration of the contact connection between the load and load socket contacts can lead to thermal runaway by increased resistance. electrical, which can cause the fusion of plastic and metal parts of the catches and the risk of burns in the user. To overcome this drawback, it is known to use a temperature sensor near the plugs of the electrical outlet of the connection means on the motor vehicle to prohibit the charging of the battery if the temperature is too high, the high temperature may damage the plug. It is particularly known from WO 2012/139778 a charging system comprising in particular a cable having at each of its two ends a male electrical socket configured to cooperate with an electrical base or a corresponding socket, one of the electrical bases being mounted on the motor vehicle whose battery must be charged and the other base being mounted on an external terminal and connected to a power supply network. At least one of the electrical connections of the charging system includes a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature near an electrical conductor of an electrical connection during a charge cycle of the battery. The measured temperature is compared with a fixed predetermined threshold, the charging current delivered by the power supply network is modified and in particular decreased according to the measured temperature so as to maintain the charge of the battery while not exceeding a temperature. critical for the electrical connection, then shut down if thermal runaway persists.

One of the problems of such a charging system is that the measured temperature is not sufficiently characteristic of the plugs farthest from the sensor and that the load cut-off threshold is not easily determinable. It is indeed difficult to protect by a single temperature sensor the charging bases mounted on the motor vehicle and having sockets adapted to receive male electrical outlets, as well as plugs that come to connect, against runaways thermal whatever the operating temperature. For example, a typical operating temperature defined by IEC 6219622 for an electrical outlet of a charging system is -30 ° C to 50 ° C. The temperature sensor is used to cause the reduction or interruption of the electrical charge from a trip threshold, obtained when the power contacts of the electrical base and the plastic parts surrounding its contacts reach a maximum acceptable temperature. The charging is interrupted by the charging terminal, via the feedback of the sensor information to a computer of the vehicle, and the transmission of information from this computer, via the charging cord, to the charging terminal. . The threshold value of this temperature sensor, which depends both on the temperature of the contacts and on the ambient temperature, must meet two contradictory and often non-reconcilable requirements: - it must be sufficiently high in order to avoid a break in the load at rated speed. This situation is imperative and all the more critical as the ambient temperature is important. - it must be low enough to allow the load to be switched off before the contacts and plastic housing surrounding the contacts reach their maximum permissible temperature. This situation is all the more critical as the ambient temperature is low.

The consequence is the obligation to have a high trigger threshold that does not trigger sufficiently early at low temperatures. The invention aims to effectively protect the load receptacles and the socket outlets against heat runaway whatever the ambient temperature. According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a secure electrical outlet comprising power contacts capable of cooperating with complementary power contacts of a complementary electrical outlet, the electrical outlet comprising a first temperature sensor mounted near the contacts. power of the electrical outlet and adapted to deliver a first variable signal according to the temperature of the power contacts and the ambient temperature.

According to a general characteristic, the electrical outlet comprises a second remote temperature sensor relative to the power contacts of the connection and capable of measuring a second variable signal as a function of the ambient temperature, and control means of a power failure. according to the measured temperatures. The second current sensor thus makes it possible to determine the ambient temperature and thus to determine the heating part of the electrical outlet actually generated by the passage of the charging current.

Preferably, the control means comprise a first comparison module able to compare the first signal with a threshold temperature, the threshold temperature depending on the second signal and the control means controlling the power failure if the first signal is greater than the first signal. threshold temperature.

Thus, the power failure can be triggered at a higher temperature when the ambient temperature is high, which allows to maintain a load at a higher temperature of the electrical outlet than in the prior art while remaining in conditions of security. And it is also possible to trigger a power failure more quickly, that is to say for a lower electrical outlet temperature, when the ambient temperature is very low, and thus more easily prevent the risk of thermal degradation for the electrical outlet. Advantageously, the control means comprise a processing module able to measure a first temperature gradient from a succession of first received signals, and a second temperature gradient from a succession of second received signals, and a second comparison module adapted to compare the first temperature gradient with a threshold gradient, the threshold gradient dependent on the second temperature gradient and the control means controlling the power failure if the first gradient is greater than the threshold gradient. By calculating the temperature gradient for the first signal at least, it is possible to visualize how fast the temperature rises. The temperature gradient thus makes it possible to prevent a possible rapid rise in the temperature of the electrical outlet beyond the threshold temperature due to a high intensity of current flowing through the electrical outlet. By adjusting the gradient threshold it is thus possible to cut the power supply even before the temperature has reached too high temperatures. The trigger may depend only on the temperature gradient of the first signal, or the temperature gradient of the two signals or the temperature gradient of at least the first signal and the signal value of the first and / or second signal . The electrical socket may advantageously comprise a control line adapted to be connected to a control line complementary to said complementary electrical socket, the control means controlling via said control line the opening of a power supply relay of a charging terminal. connected to a power supply network. The electrical outlet may also include a housing having the power contacts, the second temperature sensor being mounted outside the housing. The second sensor can be mounted on the outside of the housing or remote from the housing so as to be mounted on the motor vehicle or on the charging terminal or on an extension cord between the two electrical outlets of the extension .

In one embodiment, the second sensor may include a cabin temperature sensor. The cabin temperature sensor is already mounted in the motor vehicle and used for climate control of the passenger compartment, the manufacturing cost of the electrical outlet and its size are reduced. In a variant, the first sensor may comprise a plurality of temperature sensors connected electrically in series or in parallel. In one embodiment, the electrical outlet corresponds to an electrical base of a charging terminal for a motor vehicle. In another embodiment, the socket corresponds to an electric charging base mounted on a motor vehicle. In yet another embodiment, the electrical outlet corresponds to a male or female electrical outlet of an extension cord comprising a control box comprising the control means.

Advantageously, the control unit may comprise the second temperature sensor. Other advantages and characteristics of the invention will appear on examining the detailed description of an embodiment and an embodiment of the invention, in no way limiting, and the appended drawings, in which: Figure 1 schematically shows a motor vehicle connected to a charging terminal according to a first embodiment; Figure 2 schematically shows a motor vehicle connected to a charging terminal according to a second embodiment; Figure 3 schematically shows a motor vehicle connected to a charging terminal according to a third embodiment.

In Figure 1 is shown schematically a motor vehicle 1 connected to a charging terminal 2 via an extension cord 3 according to a first embodiment of the invention.

The motor vehicle 1 at least partially electrical traction comprises an electrical socket 4 in the form of an electrical base and the electrical terminal 2 comprises an electrical socket 5 in the form of an electrical base coupled to a network of electrical distribution network. The electrical base 4 is configured to cooperate with a first male electrical outlet 6 of the extension cord 3, the extension cord 3 comprising a second male electrical outlet 7. The second male electrical outlet 7 of the extension cord 3 is configured to cooperate with the electrical base 5 of the charging station 2. The electric base 4 mounted on the electric vehicle is connected to the vehicle battery so that, when the charging terminal 2 is connected to the electric vehicle via the extension cord, the battery can be recharged. The electrical base 4 comprises power contacts 8 made in the form of power sockets capable of cooperating with complementary power contacts 9, or pins, of the male electrical socket 6 of the extension cord 3. A power socket 8 is intended to to be coupled to a first phase Ph], a power socket 8 is intended to be coupled to a second phase Ph2 and a power socket 8 is intended to be coupled to the earth T. The electric base 4 also comprises sockets power to be coupled respectively to a third supply phase and a neutral phase, not shown in the figures. The electrical base 4 also comprises a first temperature sensor 10 mounted closer to the power sockets 8 and able to measure a temperature depending on the ambient temperature and the temperature of the power sockets 8.

The electrical base 4 also includes a second remote temperature sensor 11 capable of measuring the ambient temperature. The second temperature sensor 11 is electrically coupled to the electrical base 4 and is arranged in the motor vehicle 1 so as to be away from any source of heat.

Alternatively, the second temperature sensor 11 may be mounted on the outside of the electrical base 4, thermally isolated from the power sockets 8. In another variant, the second temperature sensor 11 may correspond to an outdoor ambient temperature sensor fixed for example on an outside mirror of the vehicle. The electrical base 4 comprises control means 12 able to control a power supply cut-off between the charging terminal 2 and the motor vehicle 1 as a function of the temperatures measured by the first temperature sensor 10 and the second temperature sensor 11. A variant is to have the control means 12 outside the socket base 4. The first temperature sensor 10 delivers a first variable signal as a function of the temperature of the power contacts and the ambient temperature, while the second temperature sensor 11 delivers a second variable signal as a function of the ambient temperature. The control means 12 comprise a first comparison module 13 making it possible to compare the first signal with a threshold temperature. The value of the threshold temperature is defined by a threshold module 14 receiving the second signal and outputting a threshold temperature value dependent on the value of the second signal that is to say dependent on the ambient temperature measured by the second temperature sensor 11. If the value of the first signal is greater than the threshold temperature, the control means 12 generate a control command signal which is transmitted to the charging terminal 2 via a control line comprising a control bushing 15 coupled to the control means 12 and arranged in the electrical base 4, a first control pin 16 arranged in the first plug 6 of the extension cord 3, a second control pin 17 arranged in the second plug 7, and a socket receiving terminal 18 arranged in the electrical base 5 of the charging terminal 2. The charging terminal 2 comprises power sockets 19 coupled to the power supply network. The power sockets 19 cooperate with power pins 21 arranged in the second plug 7 of the extension cord to deliver the supply current to the motor vehicle 1. The generation of the control command signal leads to opening of the relays 20 of the charging terminal 2 and thus a power failure. Alternatively, the relays 20 may be arranged outside the electrical base 5. Figure 2 schematically illustrates a second embodiment of the invention. The elements identical to the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 have the same references. The references of the different elements have been multiplied by ten. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the secure electrical outlet corresponds to the first male electrical socket 60 of the extension cord 30.

The electrical base 40 of the motor vehicle 1 is free of a control socket and comprises power sockets 8 adapted to cooperate with power pins 9 arranged in the first electrical plug 60 of the extension cord 30. The first plug 60 comprises a first temperature sensor 100 mounted closer to the power pins 9 and able to measure a temperature depending on the ambient temperature and the temperature of the power pins 9. The first electrical plug 60 also includes a second temperature sensor 110 deportee able to measure the ambient temperature. The second temperature sensor 110 is electrically coupled to the first male electrical plug 60 and is arranged on the extension cord 30 between the first male electrical plug 60 and the second male electrical plug 7 so as to be remote from any heat source.

Alternatively, the second temperature sensor 110 may be mounted on the outside of the first male electrical socket 60, thermally isolated from the power pins 9. In another variant, the second temperature sensor 110 may be mounted in a unit. security, named in English EVSE for Electric Vehicle Safety Unit. The first male electrical socket 60 comprises control means 120 comprising a comparison module 130 whose operation is identical to that of the comparison module 13 of the first embodiment and a threshold module 140 whose operation is identical to that of the module. 14 In a variant, the secure electrical outlet may correspond to the second male electrical outlet of the extension cord coupled to the electrical base of the charging terminal. Figure 3 schematically illustrates a third embodiment of the invention. The elements identical to the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 have the same references. The third embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the secure electrical outlet corresponds to the electrical base 500 of the charging terminal 2. The electric base 400 of the motor vehicle 1 and the first plug 600 of the extension cord 300 are free of control bushing and control spindle respectively. The electrical base 400 of the motor vehicle 1 comprises power sockets 8 adapted to cooperate with power pins 9 arranged in the first male electrical socket 600 of the extension cord 300. The electrical base 500 of the charging terminal 2 comprises sockets 19 of the power socket 19 arranged to cooperate with power pins 21 arranged in the second male electrical socket 700 of the extension cord 300. The electrical base 500 of the charging terminal 2 comprises a first temperature sensor 1000 mounted closer to the sockets power 19 and able to measure a temperature depending on the ambient temperature and the temperature of the power sockets 19. The electrical base 500 of the charging terminal 2 also comprises a second remote temperature sensor 1100 able to measure the ambient temperature. The second temperature sensor 1100 is electrically coupled to the electrical base 500 of the charging terminal 2 and is mounted on the outside of the electrical base 500 so as to be remote from any source of heat.

The electrical base 500 comprises control means 1200 comprising a comparison module 1300 whose operation is identical to that of the comparison module 13 of the first embodiment and a threshold module 1400 whose operation is identical to that of the threshold module 14 of the first embodiment shown in Figure 1. The module 1200 can thus control the opening of the relays 20 according to the measured temperatures. The following Table 1 gives examples of the temperature sensor trigger temperature as a function of the measured ambient temperature.

Tambiante Tseuil -30 ° C 40 ° C -20 ° C 45 ° C -10 ° C 50 ° C 0 ° C 55 ° C + 10 ° C 60 ° C + 20 ° C 65 ° C + 30 ° C 70 ° C + 40 ° C 75 ° C + 50 ° C 80 ° C Table 1 The invention thus provides a solution for the charging or recharging of a battery of a motor vehicle traction at least partially electric to effectively protect charging sockets and charging socket outlets against thermal runaway whatever the ambient temperature.

Claims (11)

REVENDICATIONS1. Secure electrical socket (4) comprising power contacts (8) adapted to cooperate with complementary power contacts (9) of a complementary electrical socket (6), the electrical socket (4) comprising a first temperature sensor (10) ) mounted near the power contacts (8) of the electrical socket (4) and capable of delivering a first variable signal as a function of the temperature of the power contacts (8) and the ambient temperature, characterized in that it comprises a second temperature sensor (11) offset relative to the power contacts (8) of the electrical socket (4) and able to measure a second variable signal as a function of the ambient temperature, and control means (12) of a power failure according to the measured temperatures. 2. Electrical socket according to claim 1, wherein the control means (12) comprises a first comparison module (13) adapted to compare the first signal at a threshold temperature, the threshold temperature dependent on the second signal and the control means (12) controlling the power failure if the first signal is above the threshold temperature. 3. Electrical socket according to one of claims 1 or 2, wherein the control means (12) comprise a processing module adapted to measure a first temperature gradient from a succession of first received signals, and a second temperature gradient from a succession of second received signals, and a second comparison module able to compare the first temperature gradient with a threshold gradient, the threshold gradient depending on the second temperature gradient and the control means controlling the cutoff if the first gradient is greater than the threshold gradient. 4. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising a control line adapted to be connected to a control line complementary to said complementary electrical outlet (6), the control means (12) controlling vialadite line of controls the opening of a relay (20) supplying a charging terminal (2) connected to a power supply network. 5. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising a housing comprising the power contacts (9), the second temperature sensor (11) being mounted outside the housing. 6. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second temperature sensor (11) comprises a cabin temperature sensor. An electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first temperature sensor (10) comprises a plurality of temperature sensors electrically connected in series or in parallel. 8. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the electrical outlet corresponds to an electrical base of a charge terminal for a motor vehicle. 9. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the electrical outlet corresponds to a charging base (4) mounted on a motor vehicle (1). 10. Electrical outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the electrical outlet corresponds to a male or female electrical outlet of an extension cord comprising a control box comprising the control means. The electrical outlet of claim 10, wherein the control box comprises the second temperature sensor.