JP2003289628A - Cordless apparatus system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cordless apparatus system which can be charged quickly. <P>SOLUTION: The cordless apparatus system 20, capable of mounting to and removal from a charger 10, is mounted on a charger 10 prior to charge. This system possesses a first capacitor 12 which can be charged by DC power source contained in the charger 10, a first charge and discharge circuit 13 which controls the charge and discharge of the first capacitor 12, a second capacitor 21 which is contained in the cordless apparatus 20, and a second charge and discharge control circuit 22 which controls the charge and discharge of the second capacitor 21. At the mounting of the cordless apparatus 20, at least the second capacitor 21 is charged from the first capacitor 12. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cordless device system in which a cordless device detachable from a charger is attached to the charger for charging.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, among cordless devices, the number of cordless devices with built-in batteries is rapidly increasing. As a built-in battery, a disposable primary battery such as a dry battery or a rechargeable secondary battery is often used. However, it takes time to replace the primary battery when electricity is exhausted and to replace it. There is also the problem of disposal of exhausted batteries. Therefore, a device such as a flashlight for business uses a battery cost and a maintenance cost.

Further, when electricity is exhausted when it is desired to use the secondary battery immediately, it is necessary to charge the secondary battery at a relatively low current for a long time because of the characteristic of utilizing the chemical reaction of the secondary battery. The device could not be used while charging. Further, the secondary battery can be repeatedly charged and discharged, which cannot be performed by the primary battery, but it has a limit and needs to be replaced at the end of its life. In this case, the same problem as the above-mentioned primary battery occurs.

Therefore, it has been considered to use the electric double layer capacitor instead of the secondary battery by taking advantage of the characteristics of the large current charge and discharge of the electric double layer capacitor. The electric double layer capacitor has a structure in which positive and negative electric charges are made to face and accumulate in an electric double layer formed when an electrode and an electrolytic solution are brought into contact with each other. Therefore, because it does not involve the chemical reaction of batteries,
Rapid charge / discharge becomes possible. However, electric double layer capacitors have a smaller capacity per volume than secondary batteries,
The usage time and usage are severely restricted.

In the configuration of the device using the conventional electric double layer capacitor, the device having the electric double layer capacitor is charged by, for example, a charger. The charger operates from an AC power source. At present, as a device using an electric double layer capacitor as a power source, an electric vehicle that can be mounted even if the volume of the electric double layer capacitor is large has been prototyped if the device has the same capacity as a conventional secondary battery. .

On the contrary, when the capacity is small and the capacity of the secondary battery is too large, it is applied to a power source for backup of a semiconductor memory device of a computer. However, the use of electric double layer capacitors, which have a smaller capacity per volume than secondary batteries, is not yet feasible to replace conventional secondary batteries with electric double layer capacitors in applications such as small cordless devices. The current situation is not.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above points, it is an object of the present invention to provide a cordless equipment system capable of effectively and effectively performing rapid charging.

[0008]

A cordless device system of the present invention is a cordless device system in which a cordless device detachable from a charger is attached to the charger for charging, and is included in the charger. A first power storage unit that can be charged by a DC power source, a first charge / discharge control circuit that controls charging / discharging of the first power storage unit, a second power storage unit included in a cordless device, and a second power storage unit. A second charge / discharge control circuit for controlling charge / discharge of the power storage unit, wherein at least the first power storage unit is charged to the second power storage unit when the cordless device is attached. To do.

In the cordless equipment system of the present invention, the first power storage unit and the second power storage unit are preferably constituted by an electric double layer capacitor or an electrochemical capacitor.

In the cordless equipment system of the present invention, it is preferable that the second power storage unit can be charged by the first power storage unit or the DC power supply.

In the cordless equipment system of the present invention, the charging path for the second power storage unit is switched to the first power storage unit or the DC power supply according to the charge output of the first power storage unit. It is advantageous.

In the cordless equipment system of the present invention, the second charge / discharge control circuit is included in the cordless equipment or the charger.

Further, in the cordless equipment system of the present invention, a plurality of the first power storage units are preferably connected in parallel to the DC power supply.

According to the present invention, the first power storage unit is charged in advance by the DC power source built into the charger,
When the cordless device is connected, first, the power storage unit of the charger is charged to the power storage unit of the cordless device. After that, when the rated voltage is not reached, the circuit is switched to the supply from the DC power source, and charging is completed by the power source from the DC power source until the rated voltage is reached, and charging is completed. In the present invention, the power storage unit of the cordless device is preferably equipped with an electrochemical capacitor, so that it can be rapidly charged, and since its volume is smaller than that of a conventional electric double layer capacitor, it can be used in various cordless devices. Applicable.

The charge / discharge control circuit for the second power storage unit is
It can be placed on the cordless device side instead of the charger side. If the power storage unit of the charger of the present invention is composed of an electric double layer capacitor or an electrochemical capacitor, the power storage unit of the charger can also be rapidly charged. In addition, a plurality of second power storage units of the charger are connected in parallel to the DC power supply,
It can be switched and used, and when a cordless device is connected, it can be fully charged immediately by sequentially switching. Therefore, it is possible to realize a cordless device system that can always be rapidly charged.

[0016]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a specific configuration example of a cordless device system to which the present invention is applied.
In this embodiment, as a cordless device, the charger 10 has a guide rod 20 that can be attached to and detached from the charger 10.
It is configured to be attached to and charged by.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the structure of the charger 10.
The charger 10 includes a DC power source 11 that is supplied with power from a household power source or the like to generate a DC current, a power storage unit (first power storage unit) 12 that can be charged by the DC power source 11, and the power storage unit 12
Charging / discharging control circuit (first charging / discharging control circuit) 13 for controlling charging / discharging. These are arranged in the casing 14, and the DC power supply 11 is fed from the terminal 15. In addition, a charging terminal 16 to be connected according to attachment / detachment of the guide rod 20 is provided on the upper portion of the casing 14.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the structure of the guide rod 20. The guide rod 20 has a rod shape and is a power storage unit (second power storage unit).
21 and a charging / discharging control circuit (second charging / discharging control circuit) 22 that controls charging / discharging of power storage unit 21. Inside the light emitting unit 23, a plurality of light sources (for example, LEDs) 25 are arranged in a row by a retainer 24. The LED 25 is turned on and off by operating the switch 26. A charging terminal 27, which is connected to the charger 10 in accordance with attachment / detachment to / from the charger 10, is provided below the guide rod 20.

Here, FIG. 4 shows the configuration of a cordless device system including the charger 10 and the guide rod 20. The power storage unit 21 of the guide rod 20 is composed of an electrochemical capacitor. The electrochemical capacitor used here is
Ru, which is also called a pseudo-capacitor and is a platinum-based element
R that is an oxide of (ruthenium) or Ir (iridium)
The capacitor uses uO ₂ or IrO ₂ as an electrode and uses a pseudo capacity due to a redox reaction. As the capacity, a capacity per unit volume which is more than twice that of the electric double layer capacitor has already been put to practical use. The high-current charge / discharge capacity is comparable to that of electric double layer capacitors.

In this example, in the electricity storage unit 21, two electrochemical capacitors having a voltage of 2.3V-120F are connected in parallel. In the charger 10, the DC power supply 11 is 12V, 5A,
Further, the electric double layer capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 2.3V-
A unit of five units of 60F connected in series was further connected in four parallels (hereinafter, such a series-parallel connection is simply referred to as five-series and four-parallel). 11.5V-48F
Is.

The first charging / discharging control circuit 13 and the second charging / discharging control circuit 22 are controlled so that the voltage does not exceed a predetermined voltage (rated voltage) when charging the power storage unit 12 or the power storage unit 21 (overvoltage). Control function), and the power storage unit 12
Alternatively, when discharging from the power storage unit 21, control is performed so as to maintain a predetermined voltage (constant voltage control function).

In the above structure, the power storage unit 1 of the charger 10
2 is charged in advance by the DC power supply 11. Guide rod 2
By mounting 0 on the charger 10, the charging terminal 16 and the charging terminal 27 are connected, and first, the electricity stored in the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is rapidly charged to the power storage unit 21 of the induction rod 20. . In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 stores the time 1
It was fully charged in 0 seconds and could be used for 3 hours thereafter.

At the time of charging by the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10,
If the power storage unit 21 does not reach the rated voltage, the switch 17
Causes the charging circuit to switch to charging by the DC power supply 11. Then, the DC power supply 11 supplies power to the power storage unit 21 until the rated voltage is reached, and charging is completed. In this case, charger 1
It is preferable that the timing of switching from 0 charging by the power storage unit 12 to charging by the DC power supply 11 is immediately before the current value of the power storage unit 12 falls below the rated current value of the DC power supply 11.

In the above case, the electric storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is an electric double layer capacitor (or an electrochemical capacitor) alone, and if the electric storage unit 21 on the cordless device side is to be charged, a large capacity electric double layer capacitor is used. Since a capacitor (electrochemical capacitor) is required, the charger 10 may be upsized and the cost may increase. On the other hand, when the capacity of the electric double layer capacitor (electrochemical capacitor) is reduced, if the power storage unit 21 on the cordless device side is to be charged, a large capacity DC power supply 11 is required. Therefore, the capacities of the power storage unit 12 and the DC power supply 11 are set to be appropriate depending on the charging conditions.

As a comparison between the power storage unit 21 of the cordless device and the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10, the voltage is the charger 1
It is preferable that the voltage of power storage unit 12 of 0 is higher. The larger the voltage difference, the faster the speed of movement of electricity. As for the capacity, it is preferable that the capacity of the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is higher, but there is no problem unless it is extremely small because additional charging by the DC power supply 11 is possible.

Power storage unit 1 with built-in DC power supply 11 and charger 10.
In comparison with 2, the voltage of the DC power supply 11 is
It is preferable that the charging voltage is equal to or higher than. The current value is preferably 2 A to 50 A, more preferably 5 A to 30 A. If the current value is smaller than 2 A, the charging time for the power storage unit 12 with the built-in charger 10 and the power storage unit 21 on the cordless device side will be long. If it is larger than 50A,
The power supply becomes large and the cost becomes high.

(Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Will be described. FIG. 5 shows the configuration of a cordless device system including the charger 10 and the guide rod 20 in this embodiment. In the electricity storage unit 21, two electrochemical capacitors having a voltage of 2.3V-120F were connected in parallel. In the charger 10, the DC power supply 11 is 12V, 5
A, and the electric double layer capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 2.3
V-60F with 5 series and 4 parallel connections, 11.5V
It is -48F. Particularly in this example, the charger 10 includes the second charge / discharge control circuit 18.

In the second embodiment, the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is charged in advance by the DC power supply 11. By attaching the guide rod 20 to the charger 10, the charging terminal 16
And the charging terminal 27 is connected, and first, the electricity stored in the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is rapidly charged in the power storage unit 21 of the induction rod 20. In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 was fully charged in 10 seconds and could be used for 3 hours thereafter.

(Third Embodiment) Next, the third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Will be described. FIG. 6 shows the configuration of a cordless device system including the charger 10 and the guide rod 20 in this embodiment. In the electricity storage unit 21, two electrochemical capacitors having a voltage of 2.3V-120F were connected in parallel. In the charger 10, the DC power supply 11 is 12V, 5
A, and the electrochemical capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 2.3V
-120F with 5 series and 2 parallel connection, 11.5V
It is -48F. Particularly in this example, the power storage unit 12 in the charger 10 is composed of an electrochemical capacitor.

In the third embodiment, the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is charged in advance by the DC power supply 11. By attaching the guide rod 20 to the charger 10, the charging terminal 16
And the charging terminal 27 is connected, and first, the electricity stored in the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is rapidly charged in the power storage unit 21 of the induction rod 20. In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 was fully charged in 10 seconds and could be used for 3 hours thereafter.

(Fourth Embodiment) Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Will be described. FIG. 7 shows the configuration of a cordless device system including the charger 10 and the guide rod 20 in this embodiment. In the electricity storage unit 21, two electrochemical capacitors having a voltage of 2.3V-120F were connected in parallel. In the charger 10, the DC power supply 11 is 12V, 5
A, and the electric double layer capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 2.3
V-60F with 5 series and 3 parallel connections 11.5V-3
3 units of 6F are connected in parallel. Particularly in this example, in the charger 10, a plurality of power storage units 12 are connected in parallel, and each of them is configured to be appropriately switched by the changeover switch 19.

In the fourth embodiment, the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is charged in advance by the DC power supply 11. By attaching the guide rod 20 to the charger 10, the charging terminal 16
And the charging terminal 27 is connected, and first, the electricity stored in the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is rapidly charged in the power storage unit 21 of the induction rod 20. In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 was fully charged in 8 seconds and could be used for 3 hours thereafter.

Here, in the modified example of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 8, in the electric storage unit 21, two electric double layer capacitors were connected in parallel at a voltage of 2.3V-120F. In the charger 10, the direct current power supply 11 is 12V, 5A, and the electrochemical capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 11.5V-48F by connecting 2.3V-120F in 5 series and 2 parallel.

In this modification, power storage unit 12 of charger 10 is charged in advance by DC power supply 11. By mounting the induction rod 20 on the charger 10, the charging terminal 16 and the charging terminal 27 are connected, and first, the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is connected.
The electricity stored in the battery is rapidly charged in the power storage unit 21 of the guide rod 20. In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 operates for 6 hours.
It was fully charged in seconds and could be used for 1.5 hours.

In yet another modification of the present invention, in electric storage unit 21, the electric double layer capacitor has a voltage of 2.3.
Two V-60Fs were connected in parallel. In the charger 10, the DC power supply 11 is 12V, 5A, and the electric double layer capacitor of the power storage unit 12 is 11.5V-48F by connecting 2.3V-60F in 5 series and 4 parallel.

In this modification, power storage unit 12 of charger 10 is charged in advance by DC power supply 11. By mounting the induction rod 20 on the charger 10, the charging terminal 16 and the charging terminal 27 are connected, and first, the power storage unit 12 of the charger 10 is connected.
The electricity stored in the battery is rapidly charged in the power storage unit 21 of the guide rod 20. In this embodiment, the power storage unit 21 operates for 6 hours.
It was fully charged in seconds and could be used for 1.5 hours.

It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention, and those modifications are also included within the scope of the present invention. For example, the specific numerical values such as the voltage and the current described in the above embodiment show the suitable values, and can be appropriately changed as necessary. Also,
In the above embodiment, the guide rod was mainly described as the cordless device, but the cordless device system of the present invention is
It is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to any type of cordless equipment such as an electric shaver, an electric toothbrush, a small cleaner, and an electric drill, and the same effects as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, as compared with the charging time of the conventional secondary battery, there are advantages such as quick charging, miniaturization of the charger and cost reduction. Have

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a specific configuration example of a cordless device system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an internal configuration diagram of a charger in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of an inductor as a cordless device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a cordless device system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a cordless device system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a cordless device system according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a cordless device system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a modified example of the cordless device system of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 charger 11 DC power supply 12 First power storage unit 13 First charge / discharge control circuit 14 Box 15 terminals 16 charging terminals 20 induction rod 21 Second power storage unit 22 Second charge / discharge control circuit 23 Light emitting part 25 LED 27 charging terminal

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Akira Matsubara             16-17 Kita-mae, Chatan-cho, Nakagami-gun, Okinawa Prefecture             Limited company Sun Bridge (72) Inventor Toyota Ikeuchi             16-17 Kita-mae, Chatan-cho, Nakagami-gun, Okinawa Prefecture             Limited company Sun Bridge F-term (reference) 5G003 AA01 AA04 BA02 CA04 CA14

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A cordless device system in which a cordless device attachable to and detachable from a charger is attached to the charger for charging, and a first power storage unit that can be charged by a DC power source included in the charger. And a first charge / discharge control circuit for controlling charge / discharge of the first power storage unit, and a second charge / discharge control circuit included in the cordless device.
Power storage unit and a second power storage unit that controls charging and discharging of the second power storage unit.
And a charging / discharging control circuit for the cordless device, wherein at least the first power storage unit charges the second power storage unit when the cordless device is mounted. 2. The cordless device system according to claim 1, wherein the first power storage unit and the second power storage unit are configured by an electric double layer capacitor or an electrochemical capacitor. 3. The cordless device system according to claim 1, wherein the second power storage unit can be charged by the first power storage unit or the DC power supply. 4. According to the charge output of the first power storage unit,
The cordless device system according to claim 3, wherein a charging path for the second power storage unit is switched to the first power storage unit or the DC power supply. 5. The cordless device system according to claim 1, wherein the second charge / discharge control circuit is included in the cordless device or the charger. 6. The cordless device system according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the first power storage units are connected in parallel to the DC power supply.