In order to eliminate the potential safety hazard that arises when metal foreign objects intervene in the wireless charging area of electric vehicles, this paper proposes that a metal foreign object detection method be applied to the wireless charging system of electric vehicles based on the optimal design of the array detection coil. Firstly, the equivalent circuit model of the metal foreign object detection system is established, then the principle of the foreign object detection system is analyzed, and the scale factor β is introduced as the optimization index of the detection coil. Secondly, the change of the scale factor β with the circuit parameters is analyzed and the appropriate circuit parameters are compared and selected. Thirdly, on the basis of the planar square spiral coil, Ansys Maxwell finite element simulation software is used to optimize its structural parameters, combination mode, and resonant circuit, as well as design the anti-series and anti-parallel enhanced detection coil sets with the decoupling and elimination of detection blind spots. Finally, the feasibility of the proposed detection method of metal foreign objects is verified by experiments. The results show that the two array detection coil sets can detect small-sized common metal foreign objects such as paper clips and the proposed double-layer reinforced structure can significantly improve the detection sensitivity of the system.

In the electric vehicle wireless power transmission system, the high-frequency alternating magnetic field between the transmitter and receiver can have a certain impact on the health of living organisms and may even lead to lesions. In addition, metal foreign objects in an alternating magnetic field can cause their own heating or even cause fires due to the eddy current effect, so foreign object detection is an essential function in the wireless power transmission system of electric vehicles. In order to prevent metals and living organisms from entering the charging area and causing harm to the charging system and living organisms, this paper proposes a method for detecting living organisms and metal foreign objects. Firstly, the equivalent circuits for the detection systems of the living organism foreign objects and metal foreign objects are established, respectively, and the working theory of the detection system is analyzed by deriving equations. Secondly, the comb capacitor simulation model was constructed, and the comb capacitor electrode spacing, wire thickness, and capacitor spacing were designed based on the scale factor γ to explore the effects of the height and bottom area of the living organism’s foreign object on the comb capacitor. We constructed a simulation model of the detection coil and designed the inner diameter D, the number of turns N, and the wire spacing S of the detection coil according to the scale factor β. An arrayed detection coil and comb capacitor combination mode is proposed to realize the function of the simultaneous detection of metal and living organism foreign objects, and a compensation capacitor is introduced to keep the detection system in a resonant state. Lastly, a platform for foreign object detection experiments was set up to detect metal screws and beef chunks compared to the detection area without foreign objects. Metal screws entering the detection area cause a 20% voltage drop in the detection circuit resistor, and beef chunks entering the detection area cause a 30% voltage drop in the detection circuit resistor, so the detection method is effective in detecting both metals and living organisms. The feasibility of the combined mode of arrayed detection coils and comb capacitors was verified.

In order to improve wireless charging power and reduce heating problems, the optimal design of the high-current wireless charging coil has always been the research focus of wireless charging system research. This paper proposes a multi-branch and multi-capacitance current sharing method for series–series (SS) receiving coils. Firstly, the current sharing model with n branches that are connected parallel to multiple compensation capacitors is established. The current sharing situation of parallel coils with three branches and three capacitors with independently resonant compensation is analyzed. Then, the wireless charging system with the parallel coils of 48 V/100 A receiving coils is simulated. The results show that when one capacitor is used for compensation, the three-coil currents highly differ; when three capacitors are compensated independently, the three-coil currents are basically equal. The simulation results show that the current sharing method can effectively improve the charging power of the system and reduce the maximum temperature of the receiving coil, which proves the effectiveness of this method. Finally, through the experimental comparison, it is verified that the current sharing measure can make the current of each wire basically equal.