Patent Application
20140055080
The present invention relates to a charging apparatus that charges a power storage device incorporated in a vehicle.
A conventional charging apparatus that charges a power storage device incorporated in a vehicle is configured so that power required for rapidly charging the power storage device is supplied from a power supply facility installed on the ground. For example, in a traffic system described in Patent Literature 1, an alternating-current (AC) circuit breaker, a transformer for a rectifier, a rectifier, an electric double-layer capacitor, a chopper circuit, and a direct-current circuit (DC) breaker are provided on a ground side. The AC circuit breaker that is connected to a power system of a power company is closed, AC power is converted by the rectifier into DC power to charge the electric double-layer capacitor (a power storage device on the ground side), and the DC circuit breaker placed between the electric double-layer capacitor and an electric vehicle is closed, thereby discharging the power in the electric double-layer capacitor to charge an electric double-layer capacitor incorporated in the electric vehicle (a power storage device on a vehicle side).
Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2006-232102
As described above, the conventional charging apparatus that charges the power storage device incorporated in the vehicle is configured to switch between charging/discharging controls by closing and opening of the AC circuit breaker and the DC circuit breaker.
Particularly when the power storage device on the vehicle side is to be charged, it is necessary to perform rapid charging with a large current and in a short time because of time constraints and thus the large current flows in a charging path. Therefore, an expensive DC circuit breaker with high performance needs to be selected and there is a problem that the cost and the size of the apparatus are increased.
Further, in this charging apparatus, because at least closing and opening of the DC circuit breaker needs to be controlled each time the respective power storage devices on the ground side and on the vehicle side are charged, it is difficult to extend the lifetime of the DC circuit breaker. This leads to reduction in reliability of the whole apparatus and also the maintenance cost is increased.
The present invention has been achieved in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a charging apparatus that can achieve further downsizing, lightening, and cost reduction, and higher reliability of the apparatus.
In order to solve above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, a charging apparatus according to the present invention includes a power receiving unit that includes a rectifier at an output stage, receives AC power, and converts the AC power into DC power; a power storage device that has DC power stored therein; a DC/DC converter that can execute a bidirectional power-flow control including a control of charging to the power storage device and a control of discharging from the power storage device using an output of the rectifier; and a control unit that controls operations of the power receiving unit and the DC/DC converter, wherein an output voltage of the rectifier is set different from an output voltage of the DC/DC converter that is applied to an output terminal of the rectifier when the power storage device is discharged.
According to the charging apparatus of the present invention, a DC circuit breaker can be omitted, and it is possible to realize further downsizing, and lightening, and cost reduction, and higher reliability of the apparatus.
A charging apparatus and a power supply system according to embodiments of the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments.
In
The charging apparatus 1 includes a power receiving unit 70 and a charging control device 80. The power receiving unit 70 includes an AC circuit breaker 3, a transformer 4, and a rectifier 5, and receives the AC power 2 and converts it into DC power. The charging control device 80 includes a DC/DC converter 6, a power storage device 7, a first current detector 8, a first voltage detector 9, a control unit 10, a second current detector 11, and a second voltage detector 12.
The AC circuit breaker 3 inputs or interrupts the received AC power 2. The transformer 4 steps down an AC voltage that is input via the AC circuit breaker 3 to a predetermined AC voltage. The rectifier 5 converts an AC voltage (AC power) into a predetermined DC voltage (DC power). The power storage device 7 stores therein DC power.
The first current detector 8 detects an output current of the rectifier 5, and the first voltage detector 9 detects an output voltage of the rectifier 5. The second current detector 11 detects an output current of the DC/DC converter 6, and the second voltage detector 12 detects an output voltage of the power storage device 7.
The DC/DC converter 6 is a bidirectional DC/DC converter that can execute a bidirectional power-flow control, and executes a control of charging the power storage device 7 using the DC power converted by the rectifier 5. The output current of the rectifier 5 detected by the first current detector 8, the output voltage of the rectifier 5 detected by the first voltage detector 9, the output current of the DC/DC converter 6 detected by the second current detector 11, the output voltage of the power storage device 7 detected by the second voltage detector 12, an external operation command, and information about the power storage device 7 (for example, information about a charging state of the power storage device (State Of Charge, hereinafter “SOC”) and information of a temperature of the power storage device or around the power storage device) are input to the control unit 10. Further, state information of the AC circuit breaker 3, the rectifier 5, the DC/DC converter 6, and the like is input to the control unit 10. The control unit 10 controls the rectifier 5, the DC/DC converter 6, and the AC circuit breaker 3 using these pieces of information.
A vehicle system 90 includes an overhead line 14, a rail 15, and the electric vehicle 20. The electric vehicle 20 includes the power storage device 23, a DC/DC converter 22, an inverter 24, a motor 25, a pantograph 21, and wheels 26 (
Of the charging apparatus 1 and the vehicle system 90 explained above, the power supply system according to the first embodiment includes the charging apparatus 1, and the overhead line 14 and the rail 15 that constitute a part of the vehicle system 90.
While a conductor that constitutes the overhead line 14 is shown by a line in
Next, a start-up operation, a charging control, and a discharging control of the charging apparatus 1 are explained with reference to
(Start-up Operation)
When an external operation command is input to the control unit 10, the control unit 10 closes the AC circuit breaker 3. When the AC circuit breaker 3 is closed, the AC power 2 is supplied to the transformer 4. The transformer 4 steps down the input AC voltage to supply AC power to the rectifier 5. The rectifier 5 converts the input AC power into DC power and outputs it to the overhead line 14. When recognizing that an output voltage of the rectifier 5 has been increased to a predetermined voltage based on an output of the first voltage detector 9 and that the voltage of the power storage device 7 is in a predetermined range based on an output of the second voltage detector 12, the control unit 10 starts a control of the DC/DC converter 6. With the operation explained above, the charging apparatus 1 starts.
(Charging Control)
When the charging apparatus 1 starts, the control unit 10 starts a charging control on the power storage device 7. The control unit 10 controls a charging current supplied to the power storage device 7 by the DC/DC converter 6 to charge the power storage device 7. At the time of executing the charging control, when charging is performed with a smaller current and in a longer time as compared to discharging, device capacities of the rectifier 5, the transformer 4, and the AC circuit breaker 3 can be reduced and also the amount of power contracted with the power company can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost. The control unit 10 determines a charging state of the power storage device 7 based on voltage information and/or SOC information of the power storage device 7. When determining that the power storage device 7 is in a full charge state, the control unit 10 switches the DC/DC converter 6 from the charging control state to a discharging control state, more specifically, to a discharging-controllable state. The SOC information of the power storage device 7 can be estimated by the control unit 10 without being received from the power storage device 7.
(Discharging Control)
When the DC/DC converter 6 is in a discharging-controllable state, the DC/DC converter 6 boosts up the voltage of the power storage device 7 to a predetermined voltage and applies the boosted voltage to the overhead line 14. At this time, an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is higher than an output voltage of the rectifier 5. Therefore, a voltage higher than the output voltage of the rectifier 5 (that is obtained by converting an AC voltage into a DC voltage) is applied to an output side of the rectifier 5. An output current from the rectifier 5 is thus blocked by a unidirectional conducting element (for example, a diode) that constitutes the rectifier 5 and stops. This discharging-controllable state continues until the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard and starts charging. When the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard and starts charging, the power of the power storage device 7 is then supplied from the DC/DC converter 6 and the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is charged.
In
When the operation shifts from the charging control period from A to B to the discharging waiting period from B to C, that is, when the DC/DC converter 6 becomes a discharging-controllable state, the DC/DC converter 6 performs a boost-up operation and the overhead line voltage becomes an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 (for example, a predetermined voltage higher than the rated voltage of 1500 volts).
When the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard and starts charging, the operation shifts from the discharging waiting period from B to C to the discharging control period from C to D. The DC/DC converter 6 performs rapid discharging with a large current and in a short time. When discharging of the power storage device 7 starts, the output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is reduced. Accordingly, the DC/DC converter 6 executes a constant voltage control so that the output voltage is not reduced and becomes a predetermined voltage. After charging of the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is completed, when an output voltage of the power storage device 7 is reduced and recharging is required as shown in
In the example of
However, when reduction in the output voltage of the power storage device 7 is small and a discharging control can be executed again in this state, the DC/DC converter 6 can wait in the discharging-controllable state without reducing the output voltage thereof until the next electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard and starts charging.
The display/operation screen 31 is a constituent unit that provides interfaces between a user (an operator of the charging apparatus 1) and the power-receiving control unit 32 and between the user and the DC/DC-converter control unit 33, and performs display of states of the respective devices (for example, the AC circuit breaker 3, the rectifier 5, and the DC/DC converter 6) and an operation input (for example, transmission of a operation command from the user).
The power-receiving control unit 32 controls working and stop of the AC circuit breaker 3 and the rectifier 5, and the like. The power-receiving control unit 32 receives state signals of the AC circuit breaker 3 and the rectifier 5 and transmits the signals to the display/operation screen 31.
The DC/DC-converter control unit 33 controls the DC/DC converter 6 based on detected currents of the first current detector 8 and the second current detector 11 and detected voltages of the first voltage detector 9 and the second voltage detector 12. Further, the DC/DC-converter control unit 33 receives a state signal of the DC/DC converter 6, monitors the detected currents of the first current detector 8 and the second current detector 11 and the detected voltages of the first voltage detector 9 and the second voltage detector 12, and transmits the respective state signals to the display/operation screen 31.
The sequence processing unit 41 generates an operation enable signal 51 based on a operation command that is input through the display/operation screen 31 and a detected voltage of the first voltage detector 9. The operation enable signal 51 is a signal that causes a charging control and a discharging control to be executable, and input to the control-target computation unit 42. The sequence processing unit 41 monitors the detected voltage of the first voltage detector 9 and generates the operation enable signal 51 after detecting that an output voltage has appeared in the rectifier 5.
The sequence processing unit 41 also generates a charging/discharging switching signal 52 based on a detected current of the first current detector 8. The charging/discharging switching signal 52 is a control-system switching signal and input to the control-system switching unit 44. More specifically, when the power storage device 7 of the charging apparatus 1 is to be charged (that is, when a charging control is to be executed), the control-system switching unit 44 is switched to an “a” side, so that the control-target computation unit 42 is connected to the conduction-ratio computation unit 45. When the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged (that is, when a discharging control is to be executed), the control-system switching unit 44 is switched to a “b” side, so that the voltage control unit 43 is connected to the conduction-ratio computation unit 45. When the electric vehicle 20 is not stopped at a station or the rail yard, no current flows on an output side of the rectifier 5. Therefore, by monitoring the detected current of the first current detector 8, it is possible to determine a timing of switching from a discharging control system (a first control system: the “a” side of the switch) to a charging control system (a second control system: the “b” side of the switch) and a timing of switching from the charging control system to the discharging control system.
In the case of the charging control of charging the power storage device 7 of the charging apparatus 1, the control-target computation unit 42 generates a first current command 53 that is a command value of a charging current to the power storage device 7. On the other hand, in the case of the discharging control for charging the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20, the control-target computation unit 42 generates a target voltage 54 that is a target value of an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 (for example, a voltage higher than the rated voltage of 1500 volts). The voltage control unit 43 is operated at the time of the discharging control, and generates a second current command 55 that is a command value of a current for maintaining the overhead line voltage at a constant value based on a difference between the target voltage 54 and the detected voltage of the first voltage detector 9.
The conduction-ratio computation unit 45 computes a conduction-ratio command 56 that is a command value of a conduction ratio to a switching element included in the DC/DC converter 6 by using the first current command 53 or the second current command 55 that is input via the control-system switching unit 44, and inputs the command to the PWM circuit 46. In the case of the charging control for charging the power storage device 7 of the charging apparatus 1, the PWM circuit 46 generates a PWM signal 57 that causes a detected current of the second current detector 11 to be a predetermined constant current to control the DC/DC converter 6. On the other hand, when the discharging control for charging the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is executed, the PWM circuit 46 generates a PWM signal 58 that causes a detected voltage of the second voltage detector 12 to be a predetermined constant voltage to control the DC/DC converter 6.
As explained above, according to the charging apparatus of the first embodiment, when the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged, an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set higher than that of the rectifier 5 to reversely apply a voltage to the rectifier 5, thereby stopping an output of the rectifier 5. With this configuration, the DC circuit breaker provided in the technology described in Patent Literature 1 can be omitted, and further downsizing, lightening, and cost reduction, and higher reliability of the apparatus can be achieved.
According to the charging apparatus of the first embodiment, because the output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set higher than that of the rectifier 5 when preparation of the power storage device 7 incorporated in the charging apparatus 1 is completed, it is possible to determine whether the side of the charging apparatus 1 is in a discharging-controllable state only based on a level (a magnitude) of the overhead line voltage. According to the present embodiment, it is possible to determine the preparation state of the charging apparatus 1 from the electric vehicle 20 without providing a special interface between the charging apparatus 1 and the electric vehicle 20.
After the electric vehicle 20 enters a station or the rail yard by using the power of the power storage device 23 as a drive source with the pantograph 21 being lowered and stops, the pantograph 21 then can be raised to check the level (the magnitude) of the overhead line voltage, so that whether the side of the charging apparatus 1 is in the discharging-controllable state can be determined on the side of the electric vehicle 20.
According to the present embodiment, information of the overhead line voltage can be displayed on the display operation screen of the control unit 10. Accordingly, when a display device that displays the information of the overhead line voltage is placed at a location where the display device can be viewed from a stop position of the electric vehicle 20, the electric vehicle 20 can determine the state of the charging apparatus 1 without executing a control of raising the pantograph 21.
According to the charging apparatus of the first embodiment, when the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged, rapid discharging can be performed without opening the AC circuit breaker 3. Therefore, the lifetime of the AC circuit breaker 3 can be extended and higher reliability of the apparatus can be achieved.
Further, according to the charging apparatus of the first embodiment, in a case where charging of the power storage device 7 is not completed or where the SOC of the power storage device 7 has degraded when the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard, it is possible to stop the operation of the DC/DC converter 6, to supply power from the rectifier 5 to the electric vehicle 20 via the overhead line 14, and to charge the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20. Accordingly, the operating ratio of the charging apparatus 1 can be improved and also unnecessary waiting time for charging can be reduced.
It has been explained in the first embodiment that when the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged, an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set higher than that of the rectifier 5 to reversely apply a voltage to the rectifier 5, thereby stopping an output of the rectifier 5. In contrast, in a second embodiment, when the power storage device 23 of the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged, the AC circuit breaker 3 is opened and the output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set lower than that of the rectifier 5, which is explained with reference to
In
When the operation shifts from the charging control period from A to B to the discharging waiting period from B to C, that is, when the DC/DC converter 6 becomes a discharging-controllable state, the AC circuit breaker 3 is opened and the overhead line voltage becomes an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 (for example, a predetermined voltage lower than the rated voltage of 1500 volts).
When the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard and starts charging, the operation shifts from the discharging waiting period from B to C to the discharging control period from C to D. The DC/DC converter 6 performs rapid discharging with a large current and in a short time. When the discharging starts, the output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is reduced. Accordingly, the DC/DC converter 6 executes a constant voltage control so that the output voltage is not reduced. When the electric vehicle 20 starts charging, that is, along with shifting from the discharging waiting period from B to C to the discharging control period from C to D, a control of closing the AC circuit breaker 3 can be executed. By executing such a control, the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 can be charged using outputs of both the rectifier 5 and the DC/DC converter 6, which reduces the charging time. Because whether the side of the charging apparatus 1 is in a discharging-controllable state can be determined by the fact that the overhead line voltage is equal to or lower than a predetermined value in the discharging waiting period from B to C, it is possible to execute the control of closing the AC circuit breaker 3 in the discharging control period from C to D without any problem.
As explained above, according to the charging apparatus of the second embodiment, when the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20 is to be charged, a period during which the AC circuit breaker 3 is opened is provided immediately before charging to stop an output of the rectifier 5, and an output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set lower than that of the rectifier 5. According to the present embodiment, the DC circuit breaker 3 provided in the technology described in Patent Literature 1 can be omitted, and further downsizing, lightening, and cost reduction, and higher reliability of the apparatus can be achieved.
According to the charging apparatus of the second embodiment, because the output voltage of the DC/DC converter 6 is set lower than that of the rectifier 5 when preparation of the power storage device 7 incorporated in the charging apparatus 1 is completed, it is possible to determine whether the side of the charging apparatus 1 is in a discharging-controllable state only based on a level (a magnitude) of the overhead line voltage. According to the present embodiment, it is possible to determine the preparation state of the charging apparatus 1 from the electric vehicle 20 without providing a special interface between the charging apparatus 1 and the electric vehicle 20.
When the electric vehicle 20 enters a station or the rail yard using the power of the power storage device 23 as a drive source with the pantograph 21 being lowered and stops, the pantograph 21 then can be raised to check the level (the magnitude) of the overhead line voltage, whereby whether the side of the charging apparatus 1 is in the discharging-controllable state can be determined on the side of the electric vehicle 20.
According to the present embodiment, information of the overhead line voltage can be displayed on the display operation screen of the control unit 10. Accordingly, when a display device that displays the information of the overhead line voltage is placed at a location where the display device can be viewed from a stop position of the electric vehicle 20, the state of the charging apparatus 1 can be determined without executing a control of raising the pantograph 21.
According to the charging apparatus of the second embodiment, in a case where charging of the power storage device 7 is not completed or where the SOC of the power storage device 7 is degraded when the electric vehicle 20 stops at a station or the rail yard, it is possible to stop the operation of the DC/DC converter 6, to supply power from the rectifier 5 to the electric vehicle 20, and to charge the power storage device 23 incorporated in the electric vehicle 20. Therefore, the operating ratio of the apparatus can be improved and unnecessary waiting time for charging can be reduced.
The configurations described in the first and second embodiments are only exemplary configurations of the present invention. It is needless to mention that the configurations can be combined with other well-known technology and can be configured while modifying them without departing from the scope of the invention, such as omitting a part of the configurations.
While the case where the present invention is applied to a railway system has been explained above as an example, it is needless to mention that the present invention can be used in other movable bodies having a power storage device incorporated therein, such as an automobile, a motorcycle, a bicycle, a ship, and an aircraft, as well as in the field of a system in which a movable body stops at a particular location.
As described above, the present invention is useful as a charging apparatus and a power supply system that can achieve further downsizing, lightening, and cost reduction, and higher reliability of the apparatus.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2011/059983 | 4/22/2011 | WO | 00 | 10/22/2013 |
