Wireless power transmission apparatus and transmission method thereof

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9509374-B2
Application number	US-201113208281-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 11, 2011
Priority date	Aug 13, 2010
Publication date	Nov 29, 2016
Grant date	Nov 29, 2016

Abstract

Disclosed herein are a wireless power transmission apparatus and a transmission method thereof. The wireless power transmission apparatus is configured to include a wireless power transmitter generating a wireless power signal to be wireless transmitted, wirelessly transmitting the generated wireless power signal by a magnetic resonance manner, receiving a reflection wireless power signal to determine whether or not a load apparatus is presented, and supplying power to the load apparatus; and a wireless power receiver connected to the load apparatus and receiving the transmitted wireless power signal by the magnetic resonance manner and supplying it to the connected load apparatus and reflecting the remaining wireless power signal to the wireless power transmitter, whereby a transmission apparatus can recognize a receiving environment and resonance characteristics are improved, without a separate communication device or a system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A wireless power transmission apparatus, comprising:
a wireless power transmitter configured to receive an input power, generate a wireless power signal, wirelessly transmit the generated wireless power signal, receive a reflection wireless power signal to determine whether or not a loading is present, and, in response to a determination that loading is present, wirelessly transmit a reconfigured wireless power signal by using a substantially optimal impedance and a resonance frequency corresponding to the loading to supply power thereto for supplying and reflection of a remaining wireless power signal, that is not consumed, to the wireless power transmitter,
wherein the wireless power transmitter is configured to calculate a ratio of the transmitted wireless power signal to the reflection wireless power signal and determine presence of the loading according to the calculated ratio of the transmitted wireless power signal to the reflection wireless power signal, and
wherein the wireless power transmitter comprises
a frequency oscillator configured to receive the input power and generate the wireless power signal;
a power amplifier configured to output an amplified wireless power signal;
a transmitter configured to input and wirelessly transmit the wireless power signal or the amplified wireless power signal;
a transmitting controller configured to determine whether or not the loading is present; and
a power pass switch configured to connect the frequency oscillator to the transmitter in response to the transmitting controller determining whether or not the loading is present and connect the frequency oscillator to the power amplifier in response to the wireless power transmitter supplying power to the loading.

2. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the transmitter comprises:
a first resonance antenna including a variable capacitor circuit and a variable inductor circuit, the first resonance antenna configured to transmit the wireless power signal by using the substantially optimal impedance and the resonance frequency searched by varying the inductance and capacitance of the variable capacitor circuit and the variable inductor circuit, and receive and output the reflection wireless power signal;
an impedance matching device positioned between the power amplifier and the first resonance antenna to provide the impedance matching between the power amplifier and the first resonance antenna;
a directional power coupler positioned between the power amplifier and the impedance matching device or between the impedance matching device and the first resonance antenna and having directivity to output the wireless power signal input through a first port from the power amplifier or the impedance matching device to the first resonance antenna through a second port and to output the reflection wireless power signal input through the second port from the first resonance antenna through a third port;
an output power detector detecting and outputting the output power of the wireless power signal output from the second port of the directional power coupler; and
a reflection power detector configured to detect and output the reflection power of the reflection wireless power signal output from the third port of the directional power coupler;
wherein the transmitting controller is configured to calculate the ratio of the reflection power to the output power, determine whether or not a load apparatus is present according to the calculated output-reflection power ratio, and control the first resonance antenna so as to transmit the reconfigured wireless power signal by using the substantially optimal impedance and the resonance frequency corresponding to the load apparatus and the power pass switch.

3. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the impedance matching device comprises:
a transformer including a primary winding and a secondary winding; a plurality of first switches mounted at the primary winding;
a plurality of second switches mounted at the secondary winding; and
a first switch controller connected to the plurality of first and second switches and configured to control the plurality of first and second switches to vary the winding ratio of the primary winding to the secondary winding in order to control the real components of the impedance.

4. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 3 , wherein the transmitting controller is further configured to search substantially minimum turning points of the reflection wireless power signal received in the reflection power detector while changing the real components of the impedance of the impedance matching device to set the real components of impedance corresponding to the searched minimum turning points as the real components of the substantially optimal impedance of the impedance matching device.

5. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the first resonance antenna comprises:
a variable capacitor circuit configured to vary capacitance by connecting a plurality of capacitors in parallel and connecting a plurality of third switches to each of the plurality of capacitors in series,
a variable inductor circuit configured to vary inductance by connecting a plurality of inductors in series and connecting a plurality of fourth switches to each of the plurality of inductors in parallel; and
a second switch controller connected to the plurality of third and fourth switches and configured to control the plurality of third and fourth switches to vary the capacitance and the inductance in order to search the imaginary components of the resonance frequency and the substantially optimal impedance,
the variable capacitor circuit and the variable inductor circuit being connected in series or in parallel.

6. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 5 , wherein the transmitting controller is further configured to search a substantially minimum turning point of the reflection wireless power signal received in the reflection power detector while changing the imaginary components of the frequency and the impedance of the first resonance antenna, respectively, to set the imaginary components of the frequency and the impedance corresponding to each of the searched minimum turning points as the imaginary components of the resonance frequency and the substantially optimal impedance of the first resonance antenna.

7. The wireless power transmission apparatus as set forth in claim 3 , further comprising a wireless power receiver comprising:
a second resonance antenna including the variable capacitor circuit and the variable inductor circuit configured to receive the wireless power signals transmitted from the wireless power transmitter by using the substantially optimal impedance and the resonance frequency searched by varying the inductance and the capacitance of the variable capacitor circuit and the inductor circuit and to reflect the remaining wireless power signal to the wireless power transmitter;
a rectifier configured to rectify the wireless power signal received by the second resonance antenna;
a power signal converter connected to the load apparatus and configured to convert the wireless power signal rectified by the rectifier into the power signal according to a power supplying manner and to supply the converted power signal to the load apparatus; and
a receiving controller configured to perform a control to receive the wireless power signal in the second resonance antenna and supply power to the load apparatus and to reflect the remaining wireless power signal to the wireless power transmitter.

8. The wireless power transmission apparatus as

Assignees

• Kim Jeong Hoon
• Lee Kwang Du
• Park Chul Gyun
• Yoon Jung Ho
• Kim Eung Ju
• Hwang Sang Hoon
• Samsung Electro Mech

Inventors

• Kim Jeong Hoon
• Lee Kwang Du
• Park Chul Gyun
• Yoon Jung Ho
• Kim Eung Ju
• Hwang Sang Hoon

Classifications

• H02J50/80

  involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices · CPC title

• H02J50/10

  using inductive coupling · CPC title

• H02J50/12 Primary

  of the resonant type · CPC title

• H02J7/865

  Battery or charger load switching, e.g. concurrent charging and load supply (H02J7/50 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04B5/0081

  Electricity · mapped topic