JP2000092620A - Electric vehicle charging device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the vertical positioning of a power feeding coupler with a small power and with high precision and suppress the deterioration of the precision which is caused by large size of a device. SOLUTION: A lifting unit 12 is provided on a base B. A horizontal two-arm manipulator 10 is attached to the lifting unit 12. A power feeding coupler is attached to the tip of the manipulator 10. The manipulator 10 and the lifting unit 12 are made to ascend/descend to couple the power feeding coupler with the power receiving coupler of a car automatically. At that time, counter-weights 50 are hung from the lifting unit 12. As the inertia force of the counter-weights is added when the lifting unit 12 is moved vertically, the driving force itself of a driving device for the lifting unit 12 can be small. Therefore, the size of the driving device can be reduced and hence the size of a whole charging device can be reduced, so that the deterioration of positioning precision which is caused by the large size of the device can be suppressed. Further, when the lifting unit 12 is stopped, as the lifting unit 12 is balanced with the counter- weights 50, the operation of the driving device for the lifting unit 12 can be stopped to stop the lifting unit 12, so that power consumption can be saved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric vehicle charger for charging a battery (power storage battery) of an electric vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In this type of electric vehicle charging apparatus, an electric vehicle is manually or automatically moved to a predetermined position of a charging port and stopped, and a power supply coupler is connected to a charging coupler of the electric vehicle in that state. It is a form to charge.

At the time of connection, it is very difficult for the electric vehicle to stop accurately at a predetermined position, and the power supply coupler shifts with respect to the charging position.

For this reason, it is necessary to correct the position of the power supply coupler in accordance with the deviation, and there is a charging device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-207602 that can perform the correction.

[0005] However, the configuration itself is such that a movable member having a power supply coupler is attached to an XY table,
Only horizontal positioning is performed, but no vertical positioning is considered. The charging position also shifts up and down due to the mounting weight of the vehicle, the air pressure of the tires, and the like, and therefore, it is necessary to detect the vertical position shift.

For this purpose, the XY table must be moved in the vertical direction. In the XY table system, a table having the same size as the range of the horizontal movement is required. Since such an object is an object, a large power is required to move such a heavy object up and down, and a driving device for that purpose is increased in size, resulting in an increase in size and weight of the entire charging device. As the size of the device increases, the accuracy deteriorates and the cost increases.

Therefore, the present invention takes the above points into consideration,
An object of the present invention is to make it possible to accurately position a power supply coupler in a vertical direction with a small power, and to suppress deterioration in accuracy due to an increase in the size of a device.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an elevating body provided on a base, and the elevating body is provided with horizontal positioning means to which the power supply coupler is attached. The positioning means and the lifting / lowering body are operated to connect the power supply coupler to the charging coupler, and a balancer is suspended from the lifting / lowering body. They were going up and down together.

With this configuration, when the elevating body, which is the means for positioning the power supply coupler in the vertical direction, moves up and down, the inertial force of the balancer is applied. Therefore, the driving force of the driving device for the elevating body can be reduced. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the size of the driving device of the lifting / lowering body, and further reduce the size of the entire device, and it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the positioning accuracy due to the increase in the size of the device. Further, when the elevating body is stopped, the elevating body is balanced with the balancer, so that the drive source for elevating the elevating body can be stopped to stop the elevating body, thereby saving power.

At this time, a manipulator is used as the horizontal positioning means, and the manipulator is provided with a first arm that is rotatable at one end thereof on the elevating body, and a horizontal arm is provided at the tip of the first arm. A second arm is rotatably provided at one end thereof, so that the raising and lowering of the elevating body and the rotation of the first and second arms can be automatically controlled, and the power supply coupler is attached to a tip of the second arm. Can be adopted.

In this case, the manipulator resembles a human arm in which a plurality of arms are connected by an articulated structure, and requires extra space as compared with the XY table system which performs the same horizontal positioning. Since it is light and does not need to be taken, the driving force of the elevating body can be reduced, which contributes to miniaturization, weight reduction, and improvement in accuracy of the entire apparatus.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. A charging device D of this embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has a main shaft M erected on a disk-shaped base B, and the main shaft M is provided with a lifting body 12 disposed in a cylindrical case C. The manipulator 10 having the power supply coupler 2 is attached to the lifting body 12.

The manipulator 10 has first and second two horizontal arms 4 and 5, and the first arm 4 is rotatably attached to the upper end of the elevating body 12 with one end thereof. A second arm 5 is rotatably mounted on one end of the arm 4 at one end thereof, and the power supply coupler 2 is mounted on a distal end of the second arm 5.

The manipulator 10 positions the power supply coupler 2 in the horizontal direction, and the elevating body 12 positions the power supply coupler 2 in the vertical direction.

That is, at the time of charging, the elevating body 12 is raised and lowered, and the two horizontal arms 4 and 5 of the manipulator 10 are rotated to connect the feeding coupler 2 to the charging coupler (see reference numeral 6 in FIG. 11). To charge. Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 7, the mechanism of the elevating body 12 which is the main feature of the present invention will be described first.

FIG. 2 shows the elevating body 12 disposed inside the spindle M of FIG. 1 with the cylindrical case C removed. On the base B, a base frame 11 having a U-shape in a plan view is erected. The linear guides 13 of the elevating body 12 are attached to both edges of the plate 11a corresponding to the U-shaped upright sides of the base frame 11, and the elevating body 12 can be moved up and down via the linear guides 13. It is provided in.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5, a ball screw 17 supported by upper and lower two bearings 16, 16 is provided on the outside of the plate 11a corresponding to the U-shaped upright side of the base frame 11. The elevating body 12 is disposed vertically,
The ball screw 17 is attached via a bracket 17a. And the screw shaft 1 of the ball screw 17
The lower end of 8 is connected via a coupling 15 to a servomotor 14 provided below the plate 11a. The elevating body 12 is moved up and down by the ball screw 17 by the driving of the servo motor 14.

FIGS. 2 and 5 show the base frame 11.
As shown in FIG. 7, a counter weight 50 is provided on each of the outer surfaces of both side plates 11b, 11b corresponding to the opposite sides of the U-shape via a linear guide 51 as the balancer, which is a feature of the present invention, so as to be movable up and down. Have been. The weight 50 is connected to the stainless steel wire 5 via a pulley 53.
2 is connected to the lifting body 12. The weights of the two counterweights 50, 50 are substantially the same as the total weight of the elevating body 12, the manipulator 10 attached to the elevating body, and the attached parts of the manipulator 10, whereby the elevating servo Motor 14
Can raise and lower the elevating body 12 smoothly with a small capacity.

When the lift 12 is stopped, the lift 12 is balanced with the counterweight 50.
The servomotor 14 for raising and lowering the motor is stopped, and the elevating body 12 can be stopped, thereby saving power.

As described above, according to the present invention, the balancer (counter weight 50) is attached to the elevating body 12 for positioning in the vertical direction to reduce the size of the apparatus.
In this embodiment, the horizontal two-armed manipulator 10 is used as the horizontal positioning means in order to reduce the size and weight of the apparatus. The manipulator resembles a human arm in which a plurality of arms are connected by an articulated structure, and does not take extra space as in the XY table described above, and is light and highly accurate. It is. Hereinafter, the manipulator employed in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

First, FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view of the front of the manipulator 10 and has the first and second two horizontal arms 4 and 5 as described above. One arm 4 is rotatably mounted at one end thereof, and a second arm 5 is rotatably mounted at one end of the first arm 4 at one end thereof.
The power supply coupler 2 is attached to the tip of the.

As shown in FIG. 9, a cylindrical rotary shaft 19 is vertically mounted on the upper surface of the elevating body 12 via a harmonic drive 24, and a first arm is mounted on the upper surface of the harmonic drive 24. The block 25 to which 4 is fixed is connected. A timing pulley 20 is fixed to an end of the rotating shaft 19 projecting downward from the harmonic drive 24. A servomotor 21 for rotating the first arm is attached to the elevating body 12, and a timing pulley 22 is also attached to an output shaft of the servomotor 21. A timing belt 23 is wound around the timing pulley 22 and the timing pulley 20 of the rotary shaft 19.

Under such a configuration, the servo motor 2
When 1 rotates, the rotating shaft 19 rotates via the timing pulley 22, the timing belt 23, and the timing pulley 20. Then, the speed is reduced by the harmonic drive 24, and the block 25, that is, the first arm 4 rotates on the horizontal plane.

As shown in FIG. 9, a cylindrical body 26 fixed to the elevating body 12 penetrates through the inside of the rotary shaft 19, and a timing pulley 2
7 is fixed. A drive shaft 28 penetrates through the inside of the cylindrical body 26, and a lower end of the drive shaft 28 is connected to an output shaft of a second arm rotation servomotor 29 fixed to the elevating body 12.
They are connected via a coupling 30. Drive shaft 28
A timing pulley 36 is fixed above the timing pulley 27 at the upper end of the pulley.

As shown in FIG. 10, a cylindrical rotary shaft 31 is provided at the tip of the first arm 4 in the harmonic drive 3.
2 and a rotating shaft 33 penetrates the rotating shaft 31 and is rotatably supported by bearings 34 of the arms 4 and 5. A timing pulley 35 is fixed to the rotary shaft 31, and a timing belt 37 is stretched between the pulley 35 and the timing pulley 36 of the drive shaft 28. The servo motor 29 drives the drive shaft 28, the pulley 36, and the timing belt 37. The rotation shaft 31 rotates via the belt 37 and the pulley 35. The rotation of the rotating shaft 31 is transmitted to the second arm 5 via the harmonic drive 32 at a reduced speed, and the second arm 5 rotates on a horizontal plane about the rotating shaft 31 (rotating rod 33).

Further, as shown in FIG.
6, a timing belt 39 is provided between the timing pulley 27 fixed to the rotating rod 33 and the timing pulley 38 fixed to the lower end of the rotating rod 33.
Timing pulley 4 fixed to rotating shaft 41 at the tip of arm 5
The timing belt 43 is stretched between the pulleys 27 and 38, and the respective pulleys 27 and 38 and 40 and 42 are set to the same size. Therefore, when the first arm 4 rotates, the pulley 27 does not move, so that the pulley 38 rotates around its rotation angle, and the rotating shaft 41 is connected to the first arm 4 via the rotating rod 33, the pulley 40, the belt 43, and the pulley 42. On the other hand, it turns in the opposite direction by the rotation angle. When the second arm 5 rotates with respect to the first arm 4, the rotation shaft 41 similarly rotates in the opposite direction with respect to the second arm 5 by the rotation angle. That is, the rotating shaft 41 to which the power supply coupler 2 is attached does not rotate absolutely spatially. For this reason, the power supply coupler 2
Regardless of the rotation of the first and second arms 4 and 5, they always face the same direction.

The tension of the timing belts 39 and 43 can be adjusted by turning bolts 39a and 43a of an intermediate turn buckle, respectively.

The power line 6 of the manipulator 10
0 and the signal line 61 rise from the upper surface of the base B into the base frame 11, and reach the power supply coupler 2 via the first arm 4 and the second arm 5. In the path, the rotating portion is wound a plurality of times, and the rotation of the arms 4 and 5 causes the winding diameter to expand and contract to absorb the twist.

This embodiment has the above configuration.
As shown in FIG. 11, when the electric vehicle A stops at a predetermined position of the charging port P, the stop is detected by sensors (not shown), and the first and second arms 4 and 4 shown in FIG.
Feeding coupler 2 at reference position (standby position) where 5 is folded
The position of the charging coupler 6 on the vehicle body with respect to the motor 1 is detected, and based on the detected value, the controller
4, 21 and 29 are driven, and the first and second arms 4 and 5 are driven.
Is rotated by a required amount, and the power supply coupler 2 is connected to the charging coupler 6 of the vehicle A for charging. When charging is completed, each motor 1
4, 21 and 29 are driven in the opposite direction to the above, and the first and second arms 4, 5 are returned to the standby position.

Incidentally, the moving range of the mounting shaft (rotary shaft 41) of the power supply coupler 2 of the second arm 5 is a portion surrounded by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 12, and therefore, according to the manipulator 10, It can be seen that it can be small and has a wide range of support.

In this embodiment, a horizontal two-arm manipulator is used as the means for positioning the power supply coupler 2 in the horizontal direction. However, an XY table may be used. When the balancer mechanism according to the present invention is attached, the power of the drive mechanism can be significantly reduced as compared with the case of ascending and descending only by the drive mechanism, and the size of the apparatus can be significantly reduced. Therefore,
It also contributes to the improvement of accuracy and also reduces the cost.

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention, the balancer is hung on the elevating body for positioning in the vertical direction, and when the elevating body moves up and down, the balancer is moved up and down by applying the inertia force of the balancer. In addition, the driving force of the driving mechanism of the lifting / lowering body can be small, and the apparatus can be downsized. Therefore, the positioning accuracy is high and the cost can be advantageous.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway overall perspective view of one embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a cutout of a main part of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a partial cutaway front view of a main part of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a left side view of a main part of the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a right side view of a main part of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the same embodiment taken along line XX of FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional front view of the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary front view of the same embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary front view of the same embodiment;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a use state of the embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a view showing an operation range of the manipulator of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List A electric vehicle B base C case D charging device P charging port 1 power supply 2 power supply coupler 4 first arm 5 second arm 6 charging coupler 10 manipulator 11 base frame 12 elevating body 13, 51 linear guide 14 elevating servomotor 17 ball Screw 19 Rotation shaft 20, 22, 27, 35, 36, 40, 42 Timing pulley 21 First arm rotation servomotor 23, 37, 39, 43 Timing belt 24, 32 Harmonic drive 26 Tubular body 28 Drive shaft 29 Second Arm rotation servo motor 31 Rotation axis 33 Rotating rod 50 Counter weight 60 Power line 61 Signal line

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued from the front page (71) Applicant 000005326 Honda Motor Co., Ltd. 2-1-1 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo (72) Inventor Masaaki Fujii 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya Co., Ltd. Inside the Harness Research Institute (72) Inventor Kunihiko Watanabe 1-7-10 Kikuzumi, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi Inside the Harness Research Institute (72) Inventor Kiyotaka Hayashi 1-4-1 Chuo Wako-shi Honda R & D Co., Ltd.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A charging coupler for an electric vehicle at a predetermined position,
What is claimed is: 1. An electric vehicle charging apparatus for connecting a power supply coupler by moving the power supply coupler from a predetermined position, comprising: an elevating body provided on a base; and the elevating body provided with horizontal positioning means to which the power supply coupler is attached; The positioning means and the lifting / lowering body are operated to connect the power supply coupler to the charging coupler, and a balancer is suspended from the lifting / lowering body, and the lifting / lowering body balances the balancer at the time of lifting / lowering. A charging device for an electric vehicle, wherein the charging device moves up and down. 2. A manipulator is used as the horizontal positioning means. The manipulator is provided with a horizontal first arm at one end of the lifting / lowering body so as to be rotatable at one end thereof, and a horizontal first arm at a tip of the first arm. The two arms are rotatably provided at one end thereof, so that the raising and lowering of the elevating body and the rotation of the first and second arms can be automatically controlled, and the power supply coupler is attached to a tip of the second arm. The charging device for an electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein: