US-20260128606-A1 - WIRELESS CHARGING SYSTEM WITH MULTI-COIL SCANNING AND LEARNING

US20260128606A1US 20260128606 A1US20260128606 A1US 20260128606A1US-20260128606-A1

Abstract

A system, recharge apparatus, and method includes transmit coils positioned in a pattern to allow at least one of the transmit coils to establish a wireless link with a receive coil positioned in proximity of the recharge apparatus. A power source is coupled to the transmit coils and configured to selectively energize ones of the transmit coils to transfer power to the receive coil. An energy efficiency detection circuit is configured to detect an electrical response of each one of the transmit coils when energized by the power source, the electrical response indicative of an energy efficiency between the one of the transmit coils and the receive coil. The power source selectively energizes ones of the transmit coils, selected according to a statistical analysis of an historical record and the electrical response indicative of the energy efficiency meeting a minimum efficiency criterion for energy transfer to the receive coil.

Inventors

Summer L. Schneider

Assignees

NIKE, INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20260105

Claims (20)

1 . A system, comprising: a recharge apparatus, comprising a plurality of transmit coils positioned to allow at least one of the plurality of transmit coils to establish a wireless link with a receive coil positioned in proximity of the recharge apparatus; a power source coupled to the plurality of transmit coils and configured to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils to transfer power to the receive coil at an energy efficiency based, at least in part, on a relationship of each of the plurality of transmit coils to the receive coil; an electronic data storage configured to iteratively store data indicative of the energy efficiency for each of the plurality of coils; and a controller, coupled to the electronic data storage and the power source, configured to cause the power source to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils according to a statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to determine a predetermined sequence of the plurality of transmit coils based on the statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency, and wherein the controller selects the next transmit coil of the plurality of transmit coils by selecting an immediately subsequent one of the plurality of transmit coils from the predetermined sequence.
3 . The system of claim 2 , wherein the predetermined sequence is further based, at least in part, on an amount of time since individual ones of the plurality of transmit coils were selected.
4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the amount of time is based, at least in part, on a number of times the controller has selectively energized at least one of the plurality of transmit coils without energizing an individual one of the plurality of transmit coils.
5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the recharge apparatus has a recharge surface on which a wearable article including the receive coil is configured to be placed to place the receive coil in proximity of at least one of the plurality of transmit coils.
6 . The system of claim 5 , wherein the plurality of transmit coils is a first plurality of transmit coils and further comprising a second plurality of transmit coils coupled to the power source, wherein the recharge surface includes a first recharge section corresponding to the first plurality of recharge coils and a second recharge section corresponding to the second plurality of recharge coils, wherein the controller is configured to cause the power source to concurrently selectively energize individual ones of the first plurality of transmit coils and individual ones of the second plurality of transmit coils based on receive coils being placed in proximity of the first and second recharge sections, respectively.
7 . The system of claim 1 , further comprising a current meter and wherein the energy efficiency is based, at least in part, on a current induced through the individual ones of the plurality of transmit coils.
8 . A recharge apparatus, comprising: a plurality of transmit coils positioned to allow at least one of the plurality of transmit coils to establish a wireless link with a receive coil positioned in proximity of the recharge apparatus; a power source coupled to the plurality of transmit coils and configured to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils to transfer power to the receive coil at an energy efficiency based, at least in part, on a relationship of each of the plurality of transmit coils to the receive coil; an electronic data storage configured to iteratively store data indicative of the energy efficiency for each of the plurality of coils; and a controller, coupled to the electronic data storage and the power source, configured to cause the power source to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils according to a statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency.
9 . The recharge apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the controller is further configured to determine a predetermined sequence of the plurality of transmit coils based on the statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency, and wherein the controller selects the next transmit coil of the plurality of transmit coils by selecting an immediately subsequent one of the plurality of transmit coils from the predetermined sequence.
10 . The recharge apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the predetermined sequence is further based, at least in part, on an amount of time since individual ones of the plurality of transmit coils were selected.
11 . The recharge apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the amount of time is based, at least in part, on a number of times the controller has selectively energized at least one of the plurality of transmit coils without energizing an individual one of the plurality of transmit coils.
12 . The recharge apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the recharge apparatus has a recharge surface on which a wearable article including the receive coil is configured to be placed to place the receive coil in proximity of at least one of the plurality of transmit coils.
13 . The recharge apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the plurality of transmit coils is a first plurality of transmit coils and further comprising a second plurality of transmit coils coupled to the power source, wherein the recharge surface includes a first recharge section corresponding to the first plurality of recharge coils and a second recharge section corresponding to the second plurality of recharge coils, wherein the controller is configured to cause the power source to concurrently selectively energize individual ones of the first plurality of transmit coils and individual ones of the second plurality of transmit coils based on receive coils being placed in proximity of the first and second recharge sections, respectively.
14 . The recharge apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the energy efficiency detection circuit comprises a current meter and wherein the electrical response is a current induced through the individual ones of the plurality of transmit coils.
15 . A method, comprising: positioning a plurality of transmit coils to allow at least one of the plurality of transmit coils to establish a wireless link with a receive coil positioned in proximity of the recharge apparatus; coupling a power source to the plurality of transmit coils and configured to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils to transfer power to the receive coil at an energy efficiency based, at least in part, on a relationship of each of the plurality of transmit coils to the receive coil; iteratively storing, in an electronic data storage, data indicative of the energy efficiency for each of the plurality of coils; and causing, with a controller coupled to the electronic data storage and the power source, the power source to selectively energize ones of the plurality of transmit coils according to a statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency.
16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the controller is further configured to determine a predetermined sequence of the plurality of transmit coils based on the statistical analysis of the data indicative of energy efficiency, and wherein the controller selects the next transmit coil of the plurality of transmit coils by selecting an immediately subsequent one of the plurality of transmit coils from the predetermined sequence.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the predetermined sequence is further based, at least in part, on an amount of time since individual ones of the plurality of transmit coils were selected.
18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the amount of time is based, at least in part, on a number of times the controller has selectively energized at least one of the plurality of transmit coils without energizing an individual one of the plurality of transmit coils.
19 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the housing of the recharge apparatus has a recharge surface on which a wearable article including the receive coil is configured to be placed to place the receive coil in proximity of at least one of the plurality of transmit coils.
20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the plurality of transmit coils is a first plurality of transmit coils and further comprising positioning, in the housing, a second plurality of transmit coils coupled to the power source, wherein the recharge surface includes a first recharge section corresponding to the first plurality of recharge coils and a second recharge section corresponding to the second plurality of recharge coils, wherein the controller is configured to cause the power source to concurrently selectively energize individual ones of the first plurality of transmit coils and individual ones of the second plurality of transmit coils based on receive coils being placed in proximity of the first and second recharge sections, respectively.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/662,136, filed May 13, 2024, which application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/137,117, filed Apr. 20, 2023, issued on May 14, 2024 as U.S. Pat. No. 11,984,741, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/237,771, filed Apr. 22, 2021, issued on May 30, 2023 as U.S. Pat. No. 11,664,669, which application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/736,206, filed Jan. 7, 2020, issued on Apr. 27, 2021 as U.S. Pat. No. 10,992,179, which application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/878,032, filed Jan. 23, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,594,156, which issued on Mar. 17, 2020, which application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/449,460, filed Jan. 23, 2017, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. TECHNICAL FIELD The subject matter disclosed herein generally relates to a wireless charging system with multi-coil scanning and learning. BACKGROUND Wearable articles, such as footwear, apparel, bracelets, watches, and other wearable electronic devices, often include an internal power source. The internal power source may include a rechargeable battery and a recharge system for wirelessly receiving power to recharge the battery. The recharge system may include an external transmit coil that couples, e.g., inductively, with an internal receive coil and utilize current induced in the receive coil to recharge the battery. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded view illustration of components of a motorized lacing system for an article of footwear, in an example embodiment. FIG. 2 illustrates generally a block diagram of components of a motorized lacing system, in an example embodiment. FIGS. 3A-3C are depictions of a recharge apparatus, in an example embodiment. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of electronic components of a recharge system, in an example embodiment. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for operating a recharge system, in an example embodiment. FIGS. 6A-6D are images of a system where the wearable articles are articles of footwear incorporating the motorized lacing system, in example embodiments. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for making a recharge apparatus, in an example embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Example methods and systems are directed to a wireless charging system with multi-coil scanning and learning. Examples merely typify possible variations. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, components and functions are optional and may be combined or subdivided, and operations may vary in sequence or be combined or subdivided. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of example embodiments. It will be evident to one skilled in the art, however, that the present subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. Wireless charging systems for wearable articles may include more than one primary transmit coil. The transmit coils may be placed in or on an article so that the transmit coils cover a larger area than may be achieved by a single transmit coil. Thus, for instance, the transmit coils may be positioned on or in a mat with the centers of the coils spaced apparat with respect to one another. In such a configuration, the wearable article may be placed on a surface of the mat and the recharge system may energize one or more of the transmit coils to induce the recharge current in the receive coil. The recharge system may optionally determine that a particular one of the transmit coils are best able to efficiently transfer power to the receive coil based on the current that may be driven through each transmit coil and, as a result, select that particular one of the transmit coils to energize. To determine the current being driven through each transmit coil, the recharge system may sequentially energize each coil, measure the current induced in the transmit coil, and then select the one of the transmit coils with the highest current. However, doing so may inevitably and inherently require a noticeable amount of time to sequentially go through the various transmit coils. For instance, if it takes one (1) second to assess the efficiency of any given transmit coil, and five (5) transmit coils are included in the recharge system, then five (5) seconds may be needed to identify the most efficient transmit coil. In various implementations of the recharge system in relation to a wearable article, such as with footwear with a rechargeable battery, delays in starting efficient recharging may be noticeable and particularly undesirable. For instance, the wearer may seek to recharge the footwear while wearing the footwear or may seek to recharge the footwear relatively quickly during a sport