# US 10,873,214 B2 · Connector and power supply system

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- Number: US 10,873,214 B2
- Document ID: US10873214B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/394,449
- Filed: 2019-04-25
- Published: 2019-10-31
- Granted: 2020-12-22
- Earliest claimed: 2018-04-27
- Assignees: Yazaki Corporation
- Applicants: Yazaki Corporation
- Inventors: Keisuke Ueta
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10873214B2

## CPC

- H01F 38/14: Inductive couplings
- B60L 53/122: Circuits or methods for driving the primary coil, e.g. supplying electric power to the coil
- B60L 53/34: Plug-like or socket-like devices specially adapted for contactless inductive charging of electric vehicles (positioning means for charging devices using inductive energy transfer B60L53/38)
- H01F 27/02: Casings
- H01F 38/18: Rotary transformers
- H01R 13/6633: {with inductive component, e.g. transformer}
- H02J 7/70: characterised by the mechanical construction
- H02J 50/10: using inductive coupling
- H02J 50/12: of the resonant type
- H04B 5/79: for data transfer in combination with power transfer
- H01F 2038/143: {for signals}
- Y02T 10/7072: Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
- Y02T 90/12: Electric charging stations
- H01F: MAGNETS; INDUCTANCES; TRANSFORMERS; SELECTION OF MATERIALS FOR THEIR MAGNETIC PROPERTIES
- B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES
- H01R: ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
- H02J: ELECTRIC POWER NETWORKS; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS OR SYSTEMS FOR SUPPLYING OR DISTRIBUTING ELECTRIC POWER; SYSTEMS FOR STORING ELECTRIC ENERGY
- H04B: TRANSMISSION
- Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION

## Abstract

A connector to be applied to a power supply system includes: a first connector main body having a first power transmission coil, a first signal transmission coil, and a first case; and a second connector main body having a second power transmission coil, a second signal transmission coil, and a second case. In the first connector main body and the second connector main body, the first case and the second case are relatively rotatable about a rotation axis along a fitting direction with a positional relation that the first power transmission coil and the second power transmission coil are opposed to each other and the first signal transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are opposed to each other in a state in which the first case and the second case are mutually fitted.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A connector, comprising:
a first connector main body including
a first power transmission coil capable of transmitting electric power in a non-contact manner,
a first signal transmission coil capable of transmitting a signal in a non-contact manner, and
a first case in which the first power transmission coil and the first signal transmission coil are provided; and
a second connector main body including
a second power transmission coil capable of transmitting electric power to and from the first power transmission coil in a non-contact manner,
a second signal transmission coil capable of transmitting a signal to and from the first signal transmission coil in a non-contact manner, and
a second case in which the second power transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are provided and which is fittable into the first case, wherein
in the first connector main body and the second connector main body, the first case and the second case are relatively rotatable about a rotation axis along a fitting direction, which is an axial direction, with a positional relation that the first power transmission coil and the second power transmission coil are opposed to each other and the first signal transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are opposed to each other in a state in which the first case and the second case are mutually fitted,
the first power transmission coil, the first signal transmission coil, the second power transmission coil, and the second signal transmission coil are disposed so as to have a positional relation that a power transmission coupling axial direction and a signal transmission coupling axial direction are orthogonal to each other,
the first power transmission coil and the second power transmission coil are opposed to each other in the axial direction along the fitting direction, with the power transmission coupling axial direction being in the axial direction, and
the first signal transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are opposed to each other in a radial direction, with the signal transmission coupling axial direction being in the radial direction.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The connector according to claim 1, wherein
one of the first case and the second case has a fitting recess formed into a columnar shape having a center axis that is the rotation axis, and
the other of the first case and the second case is formed into a cylindrical shape which is fittable to the fitting recess and has a center axis that is the rotation axis.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The connector according to claim 2, wherein
the one of the first case and the second case is the first case,
the other of the first case and the second case is the second case, and
the second connector main body includes a magnetic member provided to the second case and located between the second power transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil in the fitting direction.

### Claim 4

A power supply system, comprising:
a master-side device, which is a supply source of electric power;
a slave-side device, which is a supply destination of electric power from the master-side device; and
a connector configured to connect the master-side device and the slave-side device, wherein
the connector includes:
a first connector main body including
a first power transmission coil capable of transmitting electric power in a non-contact manner,
a first signal transmission coil capable of transmitting a signal in a non-contact manner, and
a first case in which the first power transmission coil and the first signal transmission coil are provided, the first connector main body being provided on one side of the master-side device and the slave-side device; and
a second connector main body including
a second power transmission coil capable of transmitting electric power to and from the first power transmission coil in a non-contact manner,
a second signal transmission coil capable of transmitting a signal to and from the first signal transmission coil in a non-contact manner, and
a second case in which the second power transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are provided, the second connector main body being provided on the other side of the master-side device and the slave-side device, and
in the first connector main body and the second connector main body, the first case and the second case are relatively rotatable about a rotation axis along a fitting direction, which is an axial direction, with a positional relation that the first power transmission coil and the second power transmission coil are opposed to each other and the first signal transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are opposed to each other in a state in which the first case and the second case are mutually fitted,
the first power transmission coil, the first signal transmission coil, the second power transmission coil, and the second signal transmission coil are disposed so as to have a positional relation that a power transmission coupling axial direction and a signal transmission coupling axial direction are orthogonal to each other,
the first power transmission coil and the second power transmission coil are opposed to each other in the axial direction along the fitting direction, with the power transmission coupling axial direction being in the axial direction, and
the first signal transmission coil and the second signal transmission coil are opposed to each other in a radial direction, with the signal transmission coupling axial direction being in the radial direction.