JPH06343204A - Electric car battery charger - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To break a charging current of a charger through a means of communication immediately after a loose connector is detected during battery charging. CONSTITUTION:When a loose-connection detector 105 detects a connector 102 loose during charging of a battery 104, a transmitter 106 sends looseness information to a charger 100. When the looseness information on the connector 102 is received by a receiver 107, the charger 100 immediately breaks the charging current by a breaker 108.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a charging device for charging a battery of an electric vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With the spread of electric vehicles, a charging station equipped with a charger for charging an in-vehicle battery has been installed. As shown in FIG. 12, the charging cable 2 is attached to the charger 1 of the charging station, and the connector 3 at the tip of the charging cable 2 is connected to the connector 5 of the electric vehicle 4 to charge the in-vehicle battery 6. Done.

By the way, since the on-vehicle battery 6 is charged by DC power, if the connector is removed during charging, the DC current is interrupted and a spark is generated, which may cause a contact failure of the connectors 3 and 5. Connector 3,5
May shorten the service life of the. Therefore, it is necessary to cut off the charging current immediately when looseness of the connectors 3 and 5 is detected during charging.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a charging device for an electric vehicle that immediately cuts off the charging current of the charger via the communication system when looseness of the connection connector is detected during charging of the battery.

[0005]

The present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1, which is a claim correspondence diagram, and the present invention is based on a battery mounted on an electric vehicle 103 from a power source 101 of a charger 100 through a connector 102. It is applied to a charging device for an electric vehicle that charges a battery 104 by supplying a charging current to the battery 104. Then, the slack detecting means 105 for detecting the slack of the connector 102, and the slack detecting means 10
The electric vehicle 103 is provided with a transmission means 106 for transmitting the slack information detected by 5 to the charger 100, a receiving means 107 for receiving the slack information from the transmission means 106, and a slack information received by the receiving means 107. The charging means 1 for cutting off the charging current when the charger 1
00, thereby achieving the above object.

[0006]

When the looseness of the connector 102 is detected during charging, the looseness information is transmitted to the charger 100. Charger 100
Then, when the looseness information of the connector 102 is received, the charging current is immediately cut off. This allows the connector 102
Since the charging current is cut off before the connector comes off, even if the connector 102 comes off during charging, no spark is generated at the connector portion.

[0007]

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the structure of an embodiment. The figure shows an electric vehicle 10 for charging a battery.
2 shows a state in which a cable 25 is connected to the charger 20 of the charging station. A battery 11 is mounted on the electric vehicle 10, and charging power of the battery 11 is supplied to a traveling motor 13 via a switch 12 during traveling. The battery controller 14 includes a microcomputer and its peripheral components, a drive circuit, and the like, and controls charging of the battery 11. The electric vehicle 10 is also equipped with an auxiliary battery 15 for supplying control power to various electric components and an interlock relay 16 during charging. Further, the controller 17 is a traveling controller that controls traveling of the electric vehicle 10.

Charger 20 installed at the charging station
Is a high voltage power supply 21 for rectifying AC power supplied from the outside to output DC power, a switch 22 for opening and closing a charging current, a sensor 23 for detecting a charging voltage v and a charging current i, and a charging Is provided with a charger controller 24. Further, a cable 25 is attached to the charger 20, and a connector 26 at the tip of the cable is charged during charging.
Is connected to the connector 18 of the electric vehicle 10.

The cable 25 has two power lines 30 and 3.
One and six control lines 32-36 are included. In addition, illustration of the ground line in the control line is omitted. Power line 3
Reference numerals 0 and 31 are power lines for supplying charging power from the charger 20 to the battery 11 of the electric vehicle 10, and have a large cross-sectional area for supplying a large charging current. The control line 32 is a control line for detecting the connection state of the connectors 18, 26, and the charger 20 side is connected to the ground and the electric vehicle 10 side is connected to the coil 16c of the interlock relay 16. Further, the control lines 33 to 36 are
It is a control line for transmitting various control signals between the battery controller 14 of the electric vehicle 10 and the controller 24 of the charger 20. The control line 33 is used for the charger 20.
Is a dedicated control line for transmitting a charging start signal and a stop signal from the electric vehicle 10 to the electric vehicle 10, and the control line 34 is a dedicated control line for transmitting a charging permission signal and a prohibition signal from the electric vehicle 10 to the charger 20. . Further control lines 35, 36
Is a communication line for exchanging various charging information between the battery controller 14 of the electric vehicle 10 and the charger controller 24 of the charger 20 according to a predetermined communication format.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the charger side connector 26,
FIG. 4 is a front view of the electric vehicle side connector 18. In addition, FIG. 5 shows the XX of the charger side connector 26 shown in FIG.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view, and FIG. 6 is an electric vehicle side connector 18 shown in FIG.
3 is a sectional view taken along line YY of FIG. 30q to 37q are female pins of the charger side connector 26 connected to the power lines 30 and 31 and the control lines 32 to 37, respectively. Also 30p-3
7p are power lines 30 and 31 and control lines 32-
It is a male pin of the electric vehicle side connector 18 connected to 37. The control line 37 is a ground line not shown in FIG. In a state where both connectors 18 and 26 are connected, the male pins 30p to 37p engage with the female pins 30q to 37q, respectively, and a charging current flows through the power lines 30 and 31, and a control current flows through the control lines 32-37. . Although not shown, the structure of the male and female pins of the power line 31 is the same as that of the power line 30, and the structure of the male and female pins of the control lines 33, 34, 36, 37 is the pin of the control line 35. It is similar to the structure.

The female pin 32q and the male pin 32p of the control line 32 for detecting the connection state of the connectors 18 and 26 are
Other female pins 30q, 35q, ... And male pins 30p, 35
Compared with p, ..., the protruding length toward the tip of the connector is shorter. As a result, the connection between the connectors 26 and 18 is loosened, and when the charger side connector 26 is disengaged from the electric vehicle side connector 18, the male pin 32p and the female pin 32q of the control line 32 are disengaged first, and the control line 3
The control current flowing through 2 is cut off. However, at that time, the male and female pins of the other power lines 30 and 31 and the control lines 33 to 37 are still in the engaged state, and
A charging current and various control currents flow through 31 and the control lines 33 to 37. When the slack of both connectors 18 and 26 becomes larger, the power lines 30 and 31 and the control lines 33 to 3
7 is disengaged, the charging current and control current that were flowing are cut off, and a large spark is generated. Therefore, in this embodiment, the control current flowing through the control line 32 is detected, and when the control current is interrupted, it is determined that the connectors 18 and 26 are loosened, and the charging current flowing through the power lines 30 and 31 is immediately interrupted. Then, the charging current can be interrupted before the connectors 18 and 26 are detached, and no spark is generated when the connectors 18 and 26 are disconnected.

The interlock relay coil 16c of the electric vehicle 10 is supplied with power from the auxiliary battery 15 and is charged by the charger 20 via the connectors 18, 26 and the control line 32.
Connected to ground on the side. Therefore, in the state where the charger side connector 26 is completely connected to the electric vehicle side connector 18, the auxiliary battery 15 is connected to the coil 1
An exciting current flows through 6c, the interlock relay 16 is turned on, the normally open contact 16a is closed, and the normally closed contact 16b is opened. As a result, a control signal indicating that the charger side connector 26 and the electric vehicle side connector 18 are in a completely connected state is transmitted to the battery controller 14.
And the excitation circuit of the switch coil 12c is opened. That is, during charging, the switch 12 connected between the battery 11 and the traveling motor 13 is opened, and the power supply from the battery 11 to the traveling motor 13 is cut off.

7 and 8 are flowcharts showing a control program executed by the charger controller 24. The operation of the charger 20 will be described with reference to this flowchart. The microcomputer of the charger controller 24 starts executing this control program when a main switch (not shown) of the charger 20 is turned on. First, in step S1, a charging start signal is output to the battery controller 14 of the electric vehicle 10 via the control line 32. In subsequent step S2, the charging preparation completion information and the battery 1 are transmitted from the electric vehicle 10 via the control lines 35 and 36.
It is determined whether or not the remaining amount information of 1 is received, and if received, the process proceeds to step S3, and if not received, step S4.
Go to. In step S4, if the charging preparation completion information of the electric vehicle 10 and the remaining amount information of the battery 11 cannot be received even after waiting for a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S23 in FIG. If the switch 22 is turned on, the coil 22c is released and the switch 22 is opened. Further, in step S20, the control line 33
A charge stop signal is output to the electric vehicle 10 via the.

When the charging preparation completion information of the electric vehicle 10 and the remaining amount information of the battery 11 can be received, step S
At 3, the charger performance, that is, information on the allowable output voltage and the allowable output current of the charger 20 is transmitted to the electric vehicle 10 via the control lines 35 and 36. In the following step S5, it is determined whether or not the charging permission signal is sent from the electric vehicle 10 via the control line 34, and if the charging permission signal is input, the process proceeds to step S6, and if not, the process proceeds to step S7. In step S7, if the charging permission signal is not input even after waiting for a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S23 in FIG. 8 and the communication abnormality process is performed as described above.

When the charging permission signal is input, the preparation completion information of the charger 20 is sent to the control line 35 in step S6.
It transmits to the electric vehicle 10 via 36. In a succeeding step S8, it is determined whether or not the charge command information and the battery remaining amount information are received from the electric vehicle 10 via the control lines 35 and 36. The charge command information includes a charge mode command of a constant voltage charge mode in which a constant voltage is applied to the battery 11 for charging, or a constant current mode in which a constant current is applied to the battery 11 for charging, and a constant voltage charge mode. The set voltage and target current in the case, the set current and target voltage in the constant current charging mode, and the like are included. If the charge command information and the battery remaining amount information are received, the process proceeds to step S9, and if not, the process proceeds to step S10. In step S10, if the charging command information and the battery remaining amount information cannot be received even after waiting a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S23 in FIG. 8 and the communication abnormality process is performed as described above.

When the charge command information and the battery remaining amount information are received, the charge initial condition is set in step S9.
That is, the charging voltage and the charging current are set in the high-voltage power supply 21 based on the charging mode command, the voltage or current setting value, the voltage or current target value, and the battery remaining amount sent from the electric vehicle 10. Next, step S in FIG.
15, the switch coil 22c is excited to switch 22
Is turned on and the high voltage power supply 21 is controlled to start charging. In step S16, the set value of the voltage or current according to the charging mode and the charging voltage and current detected by the sensor 23 are transmitted to the electric vehicle 10 via the control lines 35 and 36.

In step S17, it is determined whether or not an abnormality such as an electric leakage in the charger 20, a failure of the high-voltage power supply 21, overheating, or a power failure has occurred. Go to. If there is something wrong with the charger 20, in step S18, the high voltage power supply 21
Then, the switch coil 22c is released, the switch 22 is opened, and charging is stopped. Then, the process proceeds to step S19 and the charging end information is sent to the control lines 35, 2
After transmission to the electric vehicle 10 via 6, step S2
When the charging stop signal is 0, the electric vehicle 10 is transmitted through the control line 33.
Output to.

If the charger 20 is operating normally,
In step S21, it is determined whether or not the charging prohibition signal is input from the electric vehicle 10 via the control line 34. If the charging prohibition signal is input, the process proceeds to step S18, and if not, the process proceeds to step S22. When the charge prohibition signal is sent from the electric vehicle 10, it means that some abnormality has occurred in the electric vehicle 10. Therefore, the above-described charge stop processing after step S18 is performed. If there is no abnormality in the electric vehicle 10, the process proceeds to step S22, and it is determined whether or not the charging end information is received from the electric vehicle 10 via the control lines 35 and 36. When the charging end information is sent from the electric vehicle 10, it is determined that the charging of the battery 11 is completed, the process proceeds to step S18, and the charging stop process is performed as described above. If the charging end information has not been received, step S
Returning to 16, the above process is repeated.

9 and 10 are flowcharts showing a control program executed by the battery controller 14. The operation of the electric vehicle 10 will be described with reference to this flowchart. When the electric vehicle 10 is in the charging permission state and all the driving systems are stopped by the driving controller 17, the charger side connector 26
Is connected to the electric vehicle side connector 18, the interlock relay 16 is turned on and the normally open contact 16a is closed, and the microcomputer of the battery controller 14 starts executing this control program. Here, the charging permission state means that the main switch is set to the OFF position, the parking brake is in the braking state,
Further, it means a state in which the select lever is set to the P or N position. At this time, the normally-closed contact 16b of the interlock relay 16 is opened at the same time, so that the excitation circuit of the switch coil 12c is forcibly cut off, and the drive signal of the switch coil 12c is output from the traveling controller 17 by any chance. Even if it is done, the switch 12 is not turned on. As a result, when the charger-side connector 26 is connected to the electric vehicle-side connector 18, the power supply from the battery 11 to the motor 13 is cut off, so that the electric vehicle 10 accidentally starts during charging. Is prevented.

In step S31, it is determined whether or not a charging start signal is sent from the charger 20 via the control line 33. If the charging start signal is input, the process proceeds to step S32, and if not, the process proceeds to step S33. Step S
In 33, if the charge start signal is not sent even after waiting for a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S49 in FIG. 10, and after performing communication abnormality processing such as an alarm, the process proceeds to step S50. In step S50, the charging end information is transmitted to the charger 20 via the control lines 35 and 36, and in the subsequent step S51, the control line 34
A charge prohibition signal is output to the charger 20 via the. Further, in step S52, the process waits until a charge stop signal is received from the charger 20 via the control line 33, and when the charge stop signal is received, the execution of the program ends.

When the charging start signal is input from the charger 20, the charging system on the electric vehicle side is started in step S32, and in the subsequent step S34, the electric vehicle preparation completion information is sent to the charger 20 via the control lines 35 and 36. And send the battery level information. In step S35, the control line 35,
It is determined whether or not the information on the charger performance, that is, the allowable output voltage and the allowable output current of the charger 20 is received from the charger 20 via 36, and if such information is received, the process proceeds to step S36 to receive the information. If not, the process proceeds to step S37. In step S37, if the charger performance information cannot be received even after waiting a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S49 in FIG. 10 and the above-mentioned communication abnormality process is performed.

When the charger performance information is received, a charge permission signal is output to the charger 20 via the control line 34 in step S36, and the charger 20 is charged via the control lines 35 and 36 in subsequent step S38. It is determined whether or not the ready information is received. If the charging preparation completion information of the charger 20 is received, the process proceeds to step S39, and if it is not received, the process proceeds to step S40. In step S40, if the charging preparation completion information cannot be received even after waiting a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S49 in FIG. 10 and the above-described communication abnormality processing is performed.

When the preparation completion information of the charger 20 is received, in step S39, the above-mentioned charge command information is determined based on the type of battery and the previously received charger performance information, and the control lines 35 and 36 are determined. The charging command information and the battery remaining amount information are transmitted to the charger 20 via the. For information on the type of battery, see Battery Controller 1
4 is previously stored in an EEPROM (not shown). Next, in step S41, it is determined whether or not the electric vehicle 10 has an abnormality such as an electric leakage, a battery failure, or a charging circuit failure.
If an abnormality has occurred, the process proceeds to step S53 in FIG.
Otherwise, it proceeds to step S45. Electric car 10
If there is any abnormality, the vehicle abnormality information is transmitted to the charger 20 via the control lines 35 and 36 in step S53. Then, the process proceeds to step S51, and the charge prohibition signal is output to the charger 20 as described above.

If there is no abnormality in the electric vehicle 10, the process proceeds to step S45, and it is determined whether or not the voltage or current set value and the voltage or current monitor value have been received from the charger 20 via the control lines 35 and 36. Then, if received, step S
If not, the process proceeds to step S47.
In step S47, if the set value and monitor value information cannot be received even after waiting for a predetermined time, the above-described step S49.
The subsequent communication abnormality processing is performed. When the information is received, the process proceeds to step S46, and it is determined whether or not the charging is completed based on the voltage and the remaining amount of the battery 11, and when the charging is completed, the process proceeds to step S50, and if not completed, the step S4.
Go to 8. When the charging is completed, the charging end information is transmitted to the charger 20 and the charging prohibition signal is output as described above. If charging is not completed, step S4
At 8, it is determined whether or not a charging end signal is received from the charger 20 via the control lines 35 and 36, and if received, step S
If not, the process returns to step S45 to repeat the above process.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing a connector loosening processing routine. As mentioned above, the microcomputer of the battery controller 14 is
The connector 26 on the charger side is the connector 18 on the electric vehicle side
When the interlock relay contact 16a is closed by being connected to, the execution of the control program shown in FIGS. During execution of this control program, if the connector is loosened for some reason, the interlock relay 16 is turned off and the normally open contact 16a is opened, an interrupt occurs in the microcomputer, and the microcomputer loosens the connector shown in FIG. Execute a processing routine. In step S61, a charge prohibition signal is output to the charger 20 via the control line 34, and in step S62, the charger 2 is output.
It waits until the charge stop signal is input from 0. Charger 2
When a charge stop signal is input from 0, all processing is ended.

As described above, among the male pins and female pins of the connectors 18 and 26, the male pin 32p and the female pin 3 of the control line 32 for detecting the connection state of both connectors 18 and 26.
Since the protruding length of 2q toward the tip of the connector is formed shorter than other male pins and female pins, the connector 1
When the slack is generated in the connectors 8 and 26, the control line 32 is blocked earlier than the other power lines 30 and 31 and the control lines 33 to 37, and the slack in the connectors 18 and 26 can be detected. When looseness of the connectors 18, 26 is detected during charging, the control line 3 for communication
Controller 14 of electric vehicle 10 via 5, 36
The slack information is transmitted from the battery charger to the controller 24 of the charger 20, and the switch 22 of the charger 20 immediately cuts off the charging current. Therefore, even if the connectors 18, 26 are disconnected during charging, the connector portion A spark does not occur in the connector, resulting in poor contact of the connector or shortening the life of the connector. Also, connector 1
When the connection of 8 and 26 is detected, the power supply circuit from the battery 11 to the motor 13 is cut off, so that an accident such as accidentally starting the electric vehicle during charging can be prevented. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the charge start signal and the charge stop signal are sent to the control lines 35 and 3 for information communication.
6 is transmitted from the charger 20 to the electric vehicle 10 via a dedicated control line 33 different from 6, and the charging permission signal and the charging inhibition signal are transmitted via dedicated control lines 34 different from the information communication control lines 35 and 36. Since the electric vehicle 10 transmits the electric power to the charger 20, the charging can be stopped even if the communication system of the control lines 35 and 36 fails.

In the configuration of the above embodiment, the charger 20
Is a charger, a high voltage power source 21 is a power source, a connector 18,
26 is a connector, electric vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle,
The battery 11 constitutes a battery, the male pin 32p and the female pin 32q constitute slack detecting means, the battery controller 14 constitutes transmitting means, the charger controller 24 constitutes receiving means, and the switch 22 constitutes breaking means.

[0028]

As described above, according to the present invention, when looseness of the connector is detected during charging, the looseness information is transmitted to the charger, and when the looseness information is received at the charger side, the charging current is cut off. As a result, the charging current is cut off before the connector comes off, and even if the connector comes off during charging, the charging current is already cut off, so there is no spark at the connector part, so the connector The contact reliability is improved and the life is extended.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a complaint correspondence diagram.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a connector on the charger side.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the electric vehicle side connector.

5 is an XX cross-sectional view of the charger-side connector shown in FIG.

6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line YY of the electric vehicle-side connector shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a charger control program.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a charger control program following FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a charging control program for an electric vehicle.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a charge control program for an electric vehicle, following FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a connector slack processing routine.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a conventional charging device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Electric Vehicle 11 Battery 12 Switch 12c Coil 13 Motor 14 Battery Controller 15 Auxiliary Battery 16 Interlock Relay 16c Coil 16a Normally Open Contact 16b Normally Closed Contact 17 Running Controller 18 Connector 20 Charger 21 High Voltage Power Supply 22 Switch 22c Coil 23 Sensor 24 Charger controller 25 Cable 26 Connector 30,31 Power line 32-37 Control line 30p, 32p, 35p Male pin 30q, 32q, 35q Female pin 100 Charger 101 Power supply 102 Connector 103 Electric vehicle 104 Battery 105 Slack detection means 106 Transmission Means 107 Receiving Means 108 Blocking Means

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A slack detecting means for detecting slack of the connector in a charging device for an electric vehicle, which charges a battery mounted on an electric vehicle from a power source of a charger through a connector to charge a battery. The electric vehicle is equipped with a transmitting means for transmitting the slack information detected by the slack detecting means to the charger; a receiving means for receiving the slack information from the transmitting means, and the slack information for receiving the slack information by the receiving means A charging device for an electric vehicle, comprising: a cutoff unit that cuts off the charging current when received, in the charger.