Patent Publication Number: US-2023144929-A1

Title: Power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Pat. Application No. 63/276,866, filed Nov. 08, 2021, which is incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Technical Field 
     The present disclosure relates to a power integration system, and more particularly to a power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function. 
     Description of Related Art 
     The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and do not necessarily constitute prior art. 
     The current light electric vehicle system includes a motor driver and a charger, wherein the charger is divided into the on-board charger and the off-board charger. Since the chargers have different battery specifications, various manufacturers will introduce dedicated off-board chargers for users to use, and the disadvantage is that the chargers are not compatible with different vehicles, which makes it inconvenient to carry. 
     SUMMARY 
     An objective of the present disclosure is to provide a power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function to solve the problems of existing technology. 
     In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function includes a motor, a power integration circuit, and a battery. The power integration circuit includes an inverter and a charger. The inverter includes multi-phase bridge arms. Each bridge arm includes an upper switch and a lower switch, and each bridge is correspondingly coupled to each phase winding of the motor. The charger includes a charging unit having at least a switch, an inductor, or a diode, and the upper switch and the lower switch of at least one bridge arm of the shared inverter. The battery is coupled to the power integration circuit. The power integration circuit receives a DC power provided by a DC power apparatus, and the charger converts the DC power to charge the battery, and the battery provides power required to drive the motor through the inverter. 
     Accordingly, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function is provided to realize the structure that the power switches of a three-phase motor driver are shared in the charger, which can reduce the number of external components, thereby reducing the size and achieving high efficiency. 
     Another objective of the present disclosure is to provide a power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function to solve the problems of existing technology. 
     In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function includes a motor, a power integration circuit, and a battery. The power integration circuit includes an inverter and a charger. The inverter includes multi-phase bridge arms. Each bridge arm includes an upper switch and a lower switch, and each bridge is correspondingly coupled to each phase winding of the motor. The charger includes a charging unit having at least a switch, an inductor, or a diode, and the upper switch and the lower switch of at least one bridge arm of the shared inverter. The battery is coupled to the power integration circuit. The charging unit includes an energy-storing inductor and a sub path. The energy-storing inductor is coupled to the shared lower switch. The sub path is coupled to the energy-storing inductor. The power integration circuit receives a DC power provided by a DC power apparatus, and the charger converts the DC power to charge the battery, and the battery provides power required to drive the motor through the inverter. 
     Accordingly, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function is provided to realize the structure that the power switches of a three-phase motor driver are shared in the charger, which can reduce the number of external components, thereby reducing the size and achieving high efficiency. 
     It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary, and are intended to provide further explanation of the present disclosure as claimed. Other advantages and features of the present disclosure will be apparent from the following description, drawings and claims. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
       The present disclosure can be more fully understood by reading the following detailed description of the embodiment, with reference made to the accompanying drawing as follows: 
         FIG.  1    is a block diagram of a power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function used with a DC power apparatus and a power-receiving apparatus according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  2    is a block diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function used with the DC power apparatus according to the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  3    is a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  4    is a block circuit diagram of a charger in  FIG.  3    according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  5    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  6    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  7    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  8    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  9    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a sixth embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  10    is a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  11    is a block circuit diagram of a charger in  FIG.  10    according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  12    is a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  10    according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  13    is a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function having a charger of a first embodiment according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  14    is a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function having the charger of a second embodiment according to the third embodiment of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Reference will now be made to the drawing figures to describe the present disclosure in detail. It will be understood that the drawing figures and exemplified embodiments of present disclosure are not limited to the details thereof. 
     Due to the versatility of Type-C transmission cables and the convenience of USB-PD chargers, the present disclosure proposes an integrated (shared components) bidirectional charger structure as shown in  FIG.  1   , which combines the traditional three-phase motor driver and charger to form an integration system. The system can be directly connected to an external USB-PD through a Type-C transmission cable for charging. In addition to the charging function, the battery energy can also be provided to external apparatuses (or power-receiving apparatuses) through Type-C transmission cables, such as but not limited to light electric vehicles (such as electric scooters, electric bicycles, electric wheelchairs, electric skateboards, etc.). Accordingly, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function is provided to realize the structure that the power switches of a three-phase motor driver are shared in the charger, which can reduce the number of external components, thereby reducing the size and achieving high efficiency. 
     Please refer to  FIG.  1   , which shows a block diagram of a power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function used with a DC power apparatus and a power-receiving apparatus according to the present disclosure. The power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function (hereinafter referred to as the power integration system) includes a motor  10 , a power integration circuit  20 , and a battery  30 . The power integration circuit  20  includes an inverter  21  and a charger  22 . The inverter  21  has multi-phase (for example, three-phase) bridge arms, each phase bridge arm includes an upper switch and a lower switch, and each phase bridge arm is correspondingly coupled to each phase winding of the motor  10 . The charger  22  includes a charging unit having at least a switch, an inductor, or a diode, and the upper switch and the lower switch of at least one bridge arm of the shared inverter  21 . In other words, the power integration circuit  20  is a shared-component circuit structure having the inverter  21  and the charger  22 . Specifically, the part of the shared component is the upper switch and the lower switch of the at least one bridge arm, which will be described in detail later. The battery  30  is coupled to the power integration circuit  20 . 
     The power integration system shown in  FIG.  1    is a bidirectional structure. Therefore, the power integration circuit  20  receives DC power provided by a DC power apparatus  40 , and the charger  22  of the power integration circuit  20  converts the DC power to charge the battery  30   so that the DC power can charge the battery  30 . In one embodiment, the DC power apparatus  40  is, for example, but not limited to, USB-PD. Take the light electric vehicle - electric bicycle as an example, the motor  10 , the power integration circuit  20 , and the battery  30  are installed (disposed) inside the electric bicycle, and the DC power provided by the DC power apparatus  40  is an external USB-PD DC power. Therefore, when the electric bicycle is plugged into the USB-PD DC power for charging, the charger  22  of the power integration circuit  20  converts the USB-PD DC power to charge the battery  30  installed inside the vehicle body of the electric bicycle. 
     Moreover, the battery  30  provides power required by a power-receiving apparatus  50  through the charger  22 . As mentioned above, the power-receiving apparatus  50  is, for example, but not limited to, a portable mobile apparatus (such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, etc.). When the user is outdoors, the user can plug a mobile phone, a power bank, or an electric bicycle (i.e., the power-receiving apparatus  50 ) into the charger  22  of the power integration circuit  20  installed inside another electric bicycle for charging, the battery  30  supplies (provides) the power required by the mobile phone through the charger  22  to charge the mobile phone, the power bank, or the electric bicycle. 
     Moreover, the battery  30  provides power required to drive the motor  10  through the inverter  21 . When the user rides the electric bicycle outdoors, the power required to drive the motor  10  is supplied by the battery  30 . 
     Moreover, the power-receiving apparatus  50  charges the battery  30  through the charger  22 . When the electric bicycle is not in the riding state and no DC power (the USB-PD DC power) provided by the DC power apparatus  40  charges the battery  30 , the battery  30  is charged by the power provided from the power-receiving apparatus  50  (i.e., the mobile phone, the power bank, or the electric bicycle). For example, when the user rides the electric bicycle outdoors and the battery  30  cannot provide the power required by the electric bicycle, the battery  30  can be charged by the power provided from the power-receiving apparatus  50  so that the electric bicycle can be ridden in a short time to the nearest place with the DC power apparatus  40  to be fully charged. 
     Therefore, the power integration system shown in  FIG.  1    provides a bidirectional power path, including that the DC power apparatus  40  charges the battery  30  or the power-receiving apparatus  50  charging the battery  30 , and the battery  30  supplies power to the power-receiving apparatus  50  or the battery  30  supplies power to the motor. 
     Please refer to  FIG.  2   , which shows a block diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function used with the DC power apparatus according to the present disclosure. The major difference between the embodiment shown in  FIG.  2    and the embodiment shown in  FIG.  1    is that the former does not have the power-receiving apparatus  50 . In other words, the power integration system shown in  FIG.  2    is applied (operated) without the power-receiving apparatus  50 . Therefore, the power integration system shown in  FIG.  2    provides a unidirectional power path, including the DC power apparatus  40  charging the battery  30 , and the battery  30  supplying power to the motor  10 . 
     For other operations that are the same as those of the first embodiment shown in  FIG.  1   , refer to the foregoing description, and the detail description is omitted here for conciseness. 
     Hereinafter, different embodiments of the power integration circuit of the first embodiment shown in  FIG.  1    will be described. 
     Please refer to  FIG.  3   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The charging unit  22 A of the charger  22  includes an energy-storing inductor L 4  and a sub path  221 . The energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . The sub path  221  is coupled to the energy-storing inductor L 4 , and forming an H-bridge arm with the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  4   , which shows a block circuit diagram of a charger in  FIG.  3    according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first switch Q 7  and a second switch Q 8 . A first end of the energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to the common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 , and a second end of the energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the first switch Q 7  and the second switch Q 8 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  5   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first switch Q 7  and a first diode D 1 . A first end of the energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to the common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 , and a second end of the energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the first switch Q 7  and the first diode D 1 . 
     For the circuits (i.e., the H-bridge arm circuits) shown in  FIG.  4    and  FIG.  5   , when a voltage of the battery  30  is greater than a reference voltage value, the charging unit  22 A operates in a boost (step-up) mode to charge the battery  30 , and when the voltage of the battery  30  is less than the reference voltage value, the charging unit  22 A operates in a buck (step-down) mode to charge the battery  30 . Moreover, the battery  30  provides power required by the power-receiving apparatus  50  through the charger  22 , or the power-receiving apparatus  50  charges the battery  30  through the charger  22 . Moreover, the charger  22  operates in a boost mode or a buck mode to make the battery  30  discharge to the power-receiving apparatus  50 . 
     In addition to the H-bridge arm structure, the present disclosure also provides a half-bridge arm structure. Correspondingly, the charging unit  22 A of the charger  22  includes an energy-storing inductor L 4  and a sub path  221 . The energy-storing inductor L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . The sub path  221  is coupled to the energy-storing inductor L 4  through the upper switch Q 5  or the lower switch Q 6 , and forming a half-bridge arm with the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  6   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first switch Q 7 . The first switch Q 7  is coupled to the shared lower switch Q 6 , and coupled to the energy-storing inductor L 4  through the lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  7   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first switch Q 7 . A first end of the first switch Q 7  is coupled to the DC power apparatus  40  and the power-receiving apparatus  50 , and a second end of the first switch Q 7  is coupled to a common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6  through the energy-storing inductor L 4 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  8   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first diode D 1 . The first diode Di is coupled to the shared lower switch Q 6 , and coupled to the energy-storing inductor L 4  through the lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  9   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  3    according to a sixth embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  221  of the charging unit  22 A includes a first diode D 1 . A first end of the first diode D 1  is coupled to the DC power apparatus  40  and the power-receiving apparatus  50 , and a second end of the first diode D 1  is coupled to a common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6  through the energy-storing inductor L 4 . 
     For the circuits (i.e., the half-bridge arm circuits) shown in  FIG.  6    to  FIG.  9   , according to a voltage of the battery  30 , the charging unit  22 A operate in a boost (step-up) mode or a buck (step-down) mode to charge the battery  30 . Moreover, according to a voltage of the battery  30 , the charging unit  22 A makes the battery  30  operate in a boost (step-up) mode or a buck (step-down) mode to discharge to the power-receiving apparatus  50 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  10   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. The charging unit  22 B of the charger  22  includes a plurality of energy-storing inductors L 4  and a sub path  222 . The plurality of energy-storing inductors is respectively coupled to common-connected nodes of the shared upper switches Q 5  and lower switches Q 6  of the multi-phase bridge arms. The sub path  222  is coupled to the plurality of energy-storing inductors L 4 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  11   , which shows a block circuit diagram of a charger in  FIG.  10    according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  222  of the charging unit  22 B includes a first switch Q 7  and a second switch Q 8 . A common-connected node of the first switch Q 7  and the second switch Q 8  are coupled to the plurality of energy-storing inductors L 4 , and forming an H-bridge arm with the shared upper switches Q 3 , Q 5  and lower switches Q 4 , Q 6 . As shown in  FIG.  11   , one energy-storing inductors L 4  is coupled to the upper switch Q 3  and the lower switch Q 4 , and the other energy-storing inductors L 4  is coupled to the upper switch Q 5  and the lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  12   , which shows a block circuit diagram of the charger in  FIG.  10    according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. The sub path  222  of the charging unit  22 B includes a first switch Q 7  and a second switch Q 8 . The first switch Q 7  and the second switch Q 8  are respectively coupled to the upper switches Q 3 , Q 5  and the lower switches Q 4 , Q 6  through the corresponding energy-storing inductors L 4 , and forming a half-bridge arm with the shared upper switches Q 3 , Q 5  and lower switches Q 4 , Q 6 . As shown in  FIG.  12   , one energy-storing inductors L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the upper switch Q 3  and the lower switch Q 4 , and the other energy-storing inductors L 4  is coupled to the upper switch Q 5  and the lower switch Q 6 . 
     Please refer to  FIG.  13    and  FIG.  14   , which show block circuit diagrams of the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function having a charger of a first embodiment and a second embodiment according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. The charging unit  22 C of the charger  22  includes an energy-storing inductors L 4  and a sub path  223 . A first end of the charger  22  is coupled to the battery  30 , the DC power apparatus  40 , and the power-receiving apparatus  50 , and a second end of the energy-storing inductors L 4  is coupled to a common-connected node of the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . The sub path  223  is coupled to the energy-storing inductors L 4  through the lower switch Q 6 . As shown in  FIG.  13   , the sub path  223  of the charging unit  22 C includes a first switch Q 7 . The first switch Q 7  is coupled to the DC power apparatus  40 , the power-receiving apparatus  50 , and the lower switch Q 6 , and forming a half-bridge arm with the shared upper switch Q 5  and lower switch Q 6 . As shown in  FIG.  14   , the sub path  223  of the charging unit  22 C includes a first switch Q 7  and a second switch Q 8 . The first switch Q 7  and the second switch Q 8  are respectively coupled to the DC power apparatus  40 , the power-receiving apparatus  50 , and the lower switches Q 4 , Q 6 , and forming a bridge arm circuit with the shared upper switches Q 3 , Q 5  and lower switches Q 4 , Q 6 . For the circuits shown in  FIG.  13    and  FIG.  14   , when a voltage of the battery  30  is greater than a reference voltage value, the charger  22  operates in a boost (step-up) mode to charge the battery  30 , and when the voltage of the battery  30  is less than the reference voltage value, the charger  22  operates in a buck (step-down) mode to charge the battery  30 . When the voltage of battery is equal to a reference voltage value, the charging unit  22 A provide the same voltage to charge the battery. Moreover, the battery  30  provides power required by the power-receiving apparatus  50  through the charger  22 , or the power-receiving apparatus  50  charges the battery  30  through the charger  22 . Moreover, the charger  22  operates in a boost mode or a buck mode to make the battery  30  discharge to the power-receiving apparatus  50 . 
     Accordingly, the power integration system with motor drive and battery charging and discharging function is provided to realize the structure that the power switches of a three-phase motor driver are shared in the charger, which can reduce the number of external components, thereby reducing the size and achieving high efficiency. 
     Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the details thereof. Various substitutions and modifications have been suggested in the foregoing description, and others will occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, all such substitutions and modifications are intended to be embraced within the scope of the present disclosure as defined in the appended claims.