Patent ID: 7609022

Claim:
A power supply system for a vehicle, comprising: a first rotating electric machine capable of generating first m-phase AC power upon receiving mechanical power from an internal combustion engine, where m represents a natural number which is at least 3; a second rotating electric machine driving a wheel upon receiving second m-phase AC power equal to said first m-phase AC power in number of phases; a matrix converter converting said first m-phase AC power and outputting resultant AC power as at least a portion of said second m-phase AC power, said matrix converter including m×m switching elements connected between each of m-phase outputs of said first rotating electric machine and each of m-phase inputs of said second rotating electric machine; a battery; an inverter converting DC power obtained from said battery and outputting resultant power as at least a portion of said second m-phase AC power; a first switch electrically connecting said battery to said inverter; and a control unit controlling power conversion by said matrix converter and controlling opening and closing of said first switch in association with a state of power conversion by said matrix converter.