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US 12,620,875 B2Granted
Battery-powered wheelbarrow
AssigneeMakita Corporation
InventorKouichi Takeda
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
One aspect of the present disclosure provides a battery-powered wheelbarrow including a battery housing, a motor, a wheel, a drive circuit, and a control circuit. The control circuit activates, during a drive requirement of the motor not being satisfied, dynamic braking. The control circuit decreases the dynamic braking through the drive circuit in accordance with a lapse of time in response to a first transition having occurred or occurring.
Claims20
A battery-powered wheelbarrow, comprising:
- a platform;
- a handle configured to be gripped by a user of the battery-powered wheelbarrow;
- a battery housing configured to accommodate a battery therein;
- a brushless DC motor including a first winding, a second winding, a third winding, a first terminal, a second terminal, and a third terminal, the first winding, the second winding, and the third winding being connected to the first terminal, the second terminal, and the third terminal;
- a front wheel configured to be driven by the brushless DC motor;
- a drive circuit configured to:
- connect the first terminal, the second terminal, and the third terminal to the battery in the battery housing so as to drive the brushless DC motor;
- and
- short-circuit at least two of the first terminal, the second terminal, and the third terminal so as to activate a dynamic braking in the brushless DC motor;
- a control circuit electrically connected to the drive circuit, the control circuit being programmed to:
- activate the dynamic braking through the drive circuit during (i) a drive requirement of the brushless DC motor not being satisfied, and also (ii) the brushless DC motor being stopped;
- in response to a first transition having occurred or occurring from the drive requirement not being satisfied to the drive requirement being satisfied, during the brushless DC motor being stopped, decrease the dynamic braking through the drive circuit in accordance with a lapse of time,
- in response to a rotational speed of the brushless DC motor having stayed at a threshold or lower for a preset period of time after the first transition occurs, drive the brushless DC motor;
- and
- in response to a second transition having occurred or occurring, from the drive requirement being satisfied to the drive requirement not being satisfied, during the brushless DC motor rotating, increase the dynamic braking through the drive circuit in accordance with a lapse of time;
- and
- a manual switch configured (i) to be manually operated by the user and (ii) to output a first signal to the control circuit in response to the manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated, the first signal requesting the control circuit to drive the brushless DC motor,
- wherein the drive requirement is satisfied with the manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated.
15 more elements
A battery-powered wheelbarrow, comprising:
- a battery housing configured to accommodate a battery therein;
- a motor including two or more windings and two or more terminals, the two or more windings being connected to the two or more terminals;
- a wheel configured to be driven by the motor;
- a drive circuit configured to:
- connect the two or more terminals to the battery in the battery housing so as to drive the motor;
- and
- short-circuit at least two of the two or more terminals so as to activate a dynamic braking in the motor;
- a control circuit configured to:
- activate the dynamic braking through the drive circuit during a drive requirement of the motor not being satisfied, and
- in response to a first transition having occurred or occurring from the drive requirement not being satisfied to the drive requirement being satisfied, decrease the dynamic braking through the drive circuit in accordance with a lapse of time;
- and
- a first manual switch configured (i) to be manually operated by a user of the battery-powered wheelbarrow and (ii) to output a first signal to the control circuit in response to the first manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated, the first signal requesting the control circuit to drive the motor,
- wherein the drive requirement is satisfied with the first manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated.
10 more elements
A method of controlling a dynamic braking in a battery-powered wheelbarrow, the method comprising:
- during a drive requirement of a motor of the battery-powered wheelbarrow being not satisfied, activating the dynamic braking of the motor to thereby inhibit the battery-powered wheelbarrow from moving, the drive requirement being satisfied with a manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated, the manual switch being configured to request the battery-powered wheelbarrow to drive the motor in response to the manual switch having been manually operated or being manually operated;
- and
- in response to the drive requirement being satisfied, decreasing the dynamic braking in accordance with a lapse of time to thereby allow the battery-powered wheelbarrow to move.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.