Battery swapping equipment for electric vehicle and positioning method for battery swapping equipment

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12459396-B2
Application number	US-202017609201-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 7, 2020
Priority date	May 7, 2019
Publication date	Nov 4, 2025
Grant date	Nov 4, 2025

Abstract

Battery swapping equipment for an electric vehicle and a positioning method for battery swapping equipment. The battery swapping equipment includes: an unlocking mechanism configured to unlock a battery pack locked onto a fast swapping bracket of the electric vehicle; an image collection module to collect a first actual image containing the lock base during an unlocking process of the battery pack; a storage module configured to store a first standard image collected by the image collection module when the battery swapping equipment is located in a battery swapping position, the first standard image including the lock base; a positioning judgement module to judge whether the battery swapping equipment is located in the battery swapping position according to the first actual image and the first standard image; if not, generating a first moving instruction according to a judged result; a moving mechanism to move according to the first moving instruction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . Battery swapping equipment for an electric vehicle, comprising:
an unlocking mechanism configured to unlock a battery pack locked onto a fast swapping bracket of the electric vehicle, the fast swapping bracket comprising a lock base; an image collection module configured to collect a first actual image comprising the lock base during an unlocking process of the battery pack; a storage module configured to store a first standard image collected by the image collection module when the battery swapping equipment is located in a battery swapping position, the first standard image comprising the lock base; a moving mechanism; and a positioning judgement module configured to judge whether the battery swapping equipment is located in the battery swapping position according to the first actual image and the first standard image; if not, generating a first moving instruction according to a judged result and sending the first moving instruction to the moving mechanism, wherein the moving mechanism is configured to move according to the first moving instruction; wherein the fast swapping bracket further comprises a lock linkage movably connected to the lock base, and the battery swapping equipment further comprises a locking judgement module; the image collection module is further configured to collect a second actual image comprising the lock base and the lock linkage during a locking process of the battery pack; the storage module is further configured to store a second standard image comprising the lock base and the lock linkage and collected by the image collection module when the battery pack is locked on the fast swapping bracket in place, the lock base and the lock linkage are located in a standard locking position in the second standard image; and the locking judgement module is configured to judge whether the battery pack is locked on the fast swapping bracket in place according to the second actual image and the second standard image and if so, send a locking confirmation signal.

2 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the battery swapping equipment is configured to receive a second moving instruction from a battery swapping station when the electric vehicle is parked in a parking area, and the moving mechanism of the battery swapping equipment is movable toward the parking area according to the second moving instruction.

3 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the positioning judgement module is specifically configured to judge whether outer contour positions of the lock base in the first actual image and the first standard image are the same;
if so, the battery swapping equipment is located in the battery swapping position; if not, the battery swapping equipment is not located in the battery swapping position.

4 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 3 , wherein in the first actual image and the first standard image, the outer contours of the lock base comprise a first contour adjacent to the battery pack and a second contour intersecting with the first contour.

5 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the locking judgement module is specifically configured to:
judge whether a difference between a relative distance in the second actual image and a relative distance in the second standard image is within a preset range, wherein the relative distance is a distance between a plane where an end of the lock linkage is located and a side surface of the lock base closest to the end; and if so, judge that the battery pack is locked on the fast swapping bracket in place.

6 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 5 , wherein the preset range is set according to resolution of the image collection module and actual size of an image collected by the image collection module.

7 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the image collection module is arranged in an opposite position to the lock base adjacent to the end of the lock linkage.

8 . The battery swapping equipment for the electric vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the image collection module is configured to collect a third actual image comprising the lock base and the lock linkage when a result judged by the locking judgement module is yes, the storage module is configured to store the third actual image, and in the third actual image, the lock base and the lock linkage are located in an actual locking position.

9 . A positioning method for battery swapping equipment, the battery swapping equipment comprising an unlocking mechanism and a moving mechanism, the unlocking mechanism being configured to unlock a battery pack locked onto a fast swapping bracket of an electric vehicle, and the fast swapping bracket comprising a lock base, wherein the positioning method comprises:
collecting a first actual image comprising the lock base during an unlocking process of the battery pack, and storing a first standard image collected when the battery swapping equipment is located in a battery swapping position, the first standard image comprising the lock base; judging whether the battery swapping equipment is located in the battery swapping position according to the first actual image and the first standard image; if not, generating a first moving instruction according to a judged result and sending the first moving instruction to the moving mechanism; and the moving mechanism moving according to the first moving instruction, wherein the fast swapping bracket further comprises a lock linkage movably connected to the lock base; wherein the positioning method further comprises: storing a second standard image comprising the lock base and the lock linkage and collected when the battery pack is locked on the fast swapping bracket in place, and the lock base and the lock linkage are located in a standard locking position in the second standard image; wherein the positioning method further comprises: collecting a second actual image comprising the lock base and the lock linkage during the locking process of the battery pack; and judging whether the battery pack is locked on the fast swapping bracket in place according to the second actual image and the second standard image and, if so, sending a locking confirmation signal.

10 . The positioning method for the battery swapping equipment according to claim 9 , wherein before collecting the first actual image comprising the lock base by the image collection module, the positioning method further comprises:
a battery swapping station sending a second moving instruction to the battery swapping equipment when the electric vehicle is parked in a parking area; the moving mechanism of the battery swapping equipment moving toward the parking area according to the second moving instruction.

11 . The positioning method for the battery swapping equipment according to claim 9 , wherein the judging whether the battery swapping equipment is located in the battery swapping position comprises:
judging whether outer contour positions of the lock base in the first actual image and the first standard image are the same; if so, the battery swapping equipment being located in the battery swapping position; if not, the battery swapping equipment being not located in the battery swapping position.

12 . The positioning method for the battery swapping equipment according to claim 11 , wherein in the first actual image and the first standard image, the outer contours of the

Assignees

• Aulton New Energy Autom Tech Group

Inventors

• Zhang Jianping
• Huang Chunhua

Classifications

• B60L50/66

  Arrangements of batteries · CPC title

• Y02T10/7072

  Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors · CPC title

• Y02T10/70

  Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries · CPC title

• B60Y2200/91

  Electric vehicles · CPC title

• B60K1/04

  of the electric storage means for propulsion · CPC title