Patents by Inventor Kouji Kurayama

Kouji Kurayama has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9318902
    Abstract: Provided is a power supply device which uses a simplified device configuration to reliably detect anomalies such as fused contacts, and which eliminates overcharging and secondary battery hazards caused by overcharging. The power supply device (1) is provided with: a control unit (7) for monitoring and controlling the operation of the power supply device (1), and for monitoring anomalies in the power supply device (1); a secondary battery (3) connected to the control unit (7), and for discharging electricity which has been charged; a main contact (9) connected to a battery circuit network (8) formed between the secondary battery (3) and a load (13); an auxiliary contact (10) connected in series to the main contact (9), and which is always on; and an anomaly detection circuit (11a).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignee: Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventor: Kouji Kurayama
  • Patent number: 8963501
    Abstract: A voltage equalization device of a power storage device provided with battery packs in which a plurality of secondary cells are connected, power converters provided in association with the battery packs, and controllers that control the power converters, and in which the battery packs are connected in parallel via the individual power converters includes a decision portion and a voltage-adjusting portion. The decision portion obtains battery-pack information regarding the states of charge/discharge of the individual battery packs and decides, for each battery pack, whether or not to perform voltage adjustment on the basis of the battery-pack information. When the decision portion decides that the voltage adjustment is to be performed, the voltage-adjusting portion generates offset instructions for adjusting the states of charge/discharge and outputs the offset instructions to the controllers of the power converters associated with the battery packs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc
    Inventors: Tetsuro Shigemizu, Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Masaaki Minami, Keiichiro Tanaka, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Patent number: 8917060
    Abstract: A secondary cell control system includes a plurality of cells; a charging circuit section and a discharging circuit section. The charging circuit section charges cells selected from among said plurality of cells, and the discharging circuit section discharges cells selected from among said plurality of cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Tetsuro Shigemizu, Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Hidehiko Tajima, Katsuaki Kobayashi, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Hiroyuki Shibata, Kouji Kurayama
  • Patent number: 8742617
    Abstract: A battery apparatus includes a row battery group including a plurality of series-connected row batteries including one or more battery cells; a plurality of battery management sections, corresponding to the individual row batteries, for managing the battery statuses of the corresponding row batteries; a central management section for granting unique identification information to the individual battery management sections and acquiring information about the battery statuses of the row batteries from the respective battery management sections for management; second communication lines with which the plurality of battery management sections are daisy-chained; a first communication line with which, of the plurality of battery management sections, the battery management section located at one end is connected to the central management section; and a plurality of connection switching sections, provided in the individual second communication lines between the battery management sections, for switching the connection
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2014
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Patent number: 8729861
    Abstract: It is an object to provide a battery system whose life can be extended. A cell pack having at least one lithium secondary battery that uses a manganese-based cathode material and a control unit that controls charging and discharging of the cell pack are provided, and the control unit controls charging and discharging within a low-degradation voltage range that is set on the basis of a target cell degradation rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Katsuaki Kobayashi, Tomoh Akiyama, Katsuo Hashizaki, Hidehiko Tajima, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Hiroyuki Shibata, Kouji Kurayama
  • Patent number: 8653792
    Abstract: An object is to reliably conduct cell balancing operation while suppressing deterioration of batteries and maintaining operating efficiency. When the cell balance control by the cell balancing circuit 3 is started, the system control device 30 sets an on/off device corresponding to the arm where the cell balance control is conducted to the open state; and when the cell balance control is completed, and the difference between the terminal voltage of a battery pack of the arm where the cell balance control has been conducted and the terminal voltages of the battery packs of the other arms falls within a preset allowable range, sets the on/off device, which has been in the open state, to the closed state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2014
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Tetsuro Shigemizu, Katsuo Hashizaki, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Patent number: 8598843
    Abstract: An object is to reliably conduct cell balancing operation while suppressing deterioration of batteries and maintaining operating efficiency. When the cell balance control by the cell balancing circuit 3 is started, the system control device 30 sets an on/off device corresponding to the arm where the cell balance control is conducted to the open state; and when the cell balance control is completed, and the difference between the terminal voltage of a battery pack of the arm where the cell balance control has been conducted and the terminal voltages of the battery packs of the other arms falls within a preset allowable range, sets the on/off device, which has been in the open state, to the closed state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 30, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2013
    Assignees: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Tetsuro Shigemizu, Katsuo Hashizaki, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Publication number: 20130241496
    Abstract: Provided is a power supply device which uses a simplified device configuration to reliably detect anomalies such as fused contacts, and which eliminates overcharging and secondary battery hazards caused by overcharging. The power supply device (1) is provided with: a control unit (7) for monitoring and controlling the operation of the power supply device (1), and for monitoring anomalies in the power supply device (1); a secondary battery (3) connected to the control unit (7), and for discharging electricity which has been charged; a main contact (9) connected to a battery circuit network (8) formed between the secondary battery (3) and a load (13); an auxiliary contact (10) connected in series to the main contact (9), and which is always on; and an anomaly detection circuit (11a).
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 28, 2013
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: Kyushu Electric Power Co.,Inc.
    Inventor: Kouji Kurayama
  • Publication number: 20110279085
    Abstract: A voltage equalization device of a power storage device provided with battery packs in which a plurality of secondary cells are connected, power converters provided in association with the battery packs, and controllers that control the power converters, and in which the battery packs are connected in parallel via the individual power converters includes a decision portion and a voltage-adjusting portion. The decision portion obtains battery-pack information regarding the states of charge/discharge of the individual battery packs and decides, for each battery pack, whether or not to perform voltage adjustment on the basis of the battery-pack information. When the decision portion decides that the voltage adjustment is to be performed, the voltage-adjusting portion generates offset instructions for adjusting the states of charge/discharge and outputs the offset instructions to the controllers of the power converters associated with the battery packs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 2, 2009
    Publication date: November 17, 2011
    Applicants: KYUSHU ELECTRIC POWER CO., INC., MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Tetsuro Shigemizu, Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Masaaki Minami, Keiichiro Tanaka, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Publication number: 20110273023
    Abstract: A battery apparatus includes a row battery group including a plurality of series-connected row batteries including one or more battery cells; a plurality of battery management sections, corresponding to the individual row batteries, for managing the battery statuses of the corresponding row batteries; a central management section for granting unique identification information to the individual battery management sections and acquiring information about the battery statuses of the row batteries from the respective battery management sections for management; second communication lines with which the plurality of battery management sections are daisy-chained; a first communication line with which, of the plurality of battery management sections, the battery management section located at one end is connected to the central management section; and a plurality of connection switching sections, provided in the individual second communication lines between the battery management sections, for switching the connection
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2009
    Publication date: November 10, 2011
    Applicant: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Publication number: 20110221394
    Abstract: A secondary cell control system includes a plurality of cells; a charging circuit section and a discharging circuit section. The charging circuit section charges cells selected from among said plurality of cells, and the discharging circuit section discharges cells selected from among said plurality of cells.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 30, 2009
    Publication date: September 15, 2011
    Applicants: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD., KYUSHU ELECTRIC POWER CO., INC.
    Inventors: Tetsuro Shigemizu, Takehiko Nishida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Hidehiko Tajima, Katsuaki Kobayashi, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Hiroyuki Shibata, Kouji Kurayama
  • Publication number: 20110127964
    Abstract: An object is to reliably conduct cell balancing operation while suppressing deterioration of batteries and maintaining operating efficiency. When the cell balance control by the cell balancing circuit 3 is started, the system control device 30 sets an on/off device corresponding to the arm where the cell balance control is conducted to the open state; and when the cell balance control is completed, and the difference between the terminal voltage of a battery pack of the arm where the cell balance control has been conducted and the terminal voltages of the battery packs of the other arms falls within a preset allowable range, sets the on/off device, which has been in the open state, to the closed state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2008
    Publication date: June 2, 2011
    Applicants: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD., KYUSHU ELECTRIC POWER CO., INC.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Tetsuro Shigemizu, Katsuo Hashizaki, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Kouji Kurayama, Hirofumi Fujita
  • Publication number: 20100207580
    Abstract: It is an object to provide a battery system whose life can be extended. A cell pack having at least one lithium secondary battery that uses a manganese-based cathode material and a control unit that controls charging and discharging of the cell pack are provided, and the control unit controls charging and discharging within a low-degradation voltage range that is set on the basis of a target cell degradation rate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2008
    Publication date: August 19, 2010
    Applicants: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD., KYUSHU ELECTRIC POWER CO., INC.
    Inventors: Takehiko Nishida, Katsuaki Kobayashi, Tomoh Akiyama, Katsuo Hashizaki, Hidehiko Tajima, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Hiroyuki Shibata, Kouji Kurayama
  • Publication number: 20100196749
    Abstract: Disclosed is a cell container offering improved vibration resistance and improved shock resistance as well as maintaining the battery performance and ensuring the reliability. Specifically disclosed is a cell container comprising: an insulative case (31) in which a plurality of unit cells are placed side by side; insulative wall portions (34) for partitioning between the plurality of unit cells; and support projections (35) projecting from at least either one of the case (31) or the wall portions (34) toward the unit cells to support the unit cells.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Publication date: August 5, 2010
    Applicants: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD., KYUSHU ELECTRIC POWER CO., INC.
    Inventors: Tadashi Yoshida, Katsuo Hashizaki, Masazumi Ohishi, Takehiko Nishida, Katsuaki Kobayashi, Kazuyuki Adachi, Shinji Murakami, Yoshihiro Wada, Kouji Kurayama