JP2000157643A - Chargeable physical training device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To effectively use electric energy by efficiently accumulating the electric energy by converting kinetic energy of a physical training device into the electric energy. SOLUTION: A chargeable physical training device connected to a generator 1 as a load through a motive power transmission device 8, has a capacitor bank for accumulating electricity by connecting plural capacitors C, a charge control means 2 for charging the capacitor bank by power generation output of the generator 1 by controlling a charging current and output means 5, 6 for taking out electric energy as DC or AC electric power from the capacitor bank. The charging current is controlled by the charge control means 2 while accumulating electric energy by charging the capacitor bank by the power generation output of the generator 1. Thus, a load is adjusted, and the electric energy stored in the capacitor bank can be taken out of the output means 5, 6.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rechargeable physical training apparatus in which a generator is connected as a load via a power transmission device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There are stationary bicycle types and room runners as indoor physical training devices. A stationary bicycle-type physical training apparatus that performs physical training under a load generally uses friction or an electromagnetic brake as a load.However, with an advanced apparatus, for example, a sensor detects a user's pulse and detects a load. Some control the size by a sensor signal.
In these devices, a battery is used as a power source of a computer or the like to be controlled, or a household power source is used to control an electromagnetic brake of a load.

[0003] In addition, in the method of supplying power from the outside, the use cost is high. Therefore, a secondary battery is mounted as a means for reducing the use cost, and a generator is mounted as a load of the training device. A device that charges a secondary battery with an output and uses the secondary battery as an energy source of a load adjusting device and a power source of other control systems has also been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 5-317457, Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 6-317457). No. 57270).

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional stationary bicycle-type physical training apparatus, in the case of a low-cost friction model that does not use electricity such as an external power supply or a secondary battery, the weight of the load is reduced. The adjustment is not smooth or there is a rough sound. For this reason, there is a problem in that smooth running feeling and comfort are lacking as compared with an expensive electromagnetic brake type model using an external power supply or a secondary battery as a power supply.

In the case of an expensive electromagnetic brake type model, the weight of the pedal is smooth and can be freely adjusted from a light load to a heavy load limit. However, many devices use a household power supply. I have. Therefore, the energy consumed in training corresponds directly to the consumption of household power. In other words, when the training load is increased, the consumption of home electric power is correspondingly increased. In order to solve such a contradiction, the above-mentioned proposal is a method in which a generator and a secondary battery are mounted and energy generated during training is used. However, secondary batteries require certain maintenance to maintain their performance. For example, if left for a long time with complete discharge, problems such as deterioration are inevitable. In addition, when a number of deep charge / discharge cycles are repeated, the secondary battery deteriorates faster due to a characteristic limit called charge / discharge cycle life, and the secondary battery needs to be replaced more frequently.

Further, although it depends on the sensitivity of the person, the emptiness remains in that the energy is wasted in the physical training apparatus. In order to wipe it out, various measures have been taken, such as setting a target value such as mileage, calorie use, or running time, and managing it with a computer.However, with a conventional stationary bicycle-type physical training device, the pedal is depressed. The energy generated at the site was simply discarded.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to convert kinetic energy of a physical training apparatus into electric energy, efficiently accumulate the electric energy, and effectively use the electric energy.

For this purpose, the present invention relates to a rechargeable physical training apparatus in which a generator is connected via a power transmission device as a load, and a capacitor bank for connecting and storing a plurality of capacitors and controlling a charging current. Charge control means for charging the capacitor bank with the power output of the generator, and output means for extracting DC or AC power from the capacitor bank, wherein the capacitor bank is generated by the power output of the generator. The charge control is performed by controlling the charging current by the charging control means while storing the electric energy by charging the battery, and the electric energy stored in the capacitor bank is extracted from the output means. Further, a table for detecting the terminal voltage of the capacitor bank and displaying it as a charged amount or a remaining amount. Comprising means, the capacitor bank is characterized in that it has a bypass means for bypassing the charging current at full charge voltage.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a rechargeable physical training apparatus according to the present invention, wherein 1 is a generator, 2 is a load control / charger, 3 is a parallel monitor, 4 is a fuel gauge, 5 is a converter, Reference numeral 6 denotes an inverter, 7 denotes a control device, 8 denotes a power transmission device, and C denotes a capacitor.

In FIG. 1, a generator 1 is connected to a power transmission device 8 such as a pedal, a belt, a chain, or the like, and is a means for generating power by depressing a pedal to convert kinetic energy into electric energy. The capacitor C is, for example, an electric double-layer capacitor that is charged by the power output of the generator 1 and stores electric energy. Several or several tens of capacitors are connected in series or in parallel to form a capacitor bank. The parallel monitor 3 is connected in parallel with the capacitor C to monitor the terminal voltage of the capacitor C, and bypasses the charging current near the full charge so that the charging of each capacitor C does not become uneven. . The load control / charger 2 controls a load of a pedal as a physical training device by controlling a charging current of the electric energy generated by the generator 1 to the capacitor C. For example, the load control / charger 2 is composed of a charging switching converter. By controlling the output current, when the load of the pedal is increased, the current taken out of the generator 1, that is, the charging current of the capacitor C is increased. ,
To reduce the pedal load, the charging current is reduced. Therefore, the load of the physical training device can be adjusted only by controlling the output current of the charging switching converter in a wide range from a small current to a large current, and the electric energy converted by the generator 1 from the kinetic energy can be adjusted. It can be stored in the capacitor C without wasting.

The converter 5 extracts and uses the electric energy stored in the capacitor C as a DC output of a predetermined voltage. For example, capacitor C through converter 5
By extracting the electric energy stored from the controller as a DC power supply of 3 to 24 V, it can be used as a control power supply of the control device 7 and a power supply of an audio device such as a radio, a tape recorder, an MD, and a stereo. The inverter 6 extracts and uses the electric energy stored in the capacitor C with an AC output of a predetermined voltage and frequency, and can be used as a power source for home electric appliances. The control device 7 controls the physical fitness training device and includes, for example, a computer.

As a physical training apparatus, for example, 15
Since the electric power generated per minute is about 100 to 500 Wh, if 100 Wh of electric power is stored in the capacitor C, it is possible to watch a large-sized household television of AC 100 V (about 140 W) for 20 to 30 minutes. The fuel gauge 4 detects the terminal voltage of the capacitor C and displays the detected voltage as the remaining amount of stored electric energy. In the case of physical training, the amount of exercise is learned from the increase in the remaining amount, and the amount of power is calculated. When using it, the available amount can be known. Therefore, the fuel gauge 4 may be used to display the total amount of exercise converted from the terminal voltage, the amount of increase in exercise, and the like.

According to the present invention, as described above, kinetic energy from a physical training apparatus is converted into electric energy in a capacitor and stored in the capacitor instead of the secondary battery, so that the kinetic energy can be efficiently stored without wasting and effectively utilized. can do. The outline of the electric double layer capacitor used as the capacitor will be described below. Electric double layer capacitors can be rapidly charged by physical charging, like other capacitors, compared to chemical batteries that take a long time to charge, such as lead batteries and nickel-cadmium batteries. In addition, the electric double layer capacitor battery has a great advantage over a chemical battery in that it can store a large amount of energy. However, if an attempt is made to effectively use the battery by increasing the amount of stored power, Q = CV ^Two
/ 2 has a characteristic that the terminal voltage greatly fluctuates based on the relationship of / 2. ECS (E
A power storage device using an nergy capacitor system) has attracted attention as a power supply device for an electric vehicle or a large-scale power storage device because it can increase the amount of power stored in an electric double-layer capacitor and use it effectively.

The ECS has already been described in various documents (for example, electronic technology, 1994-12, p1-
3, Denki Kagaku B, Vol. 115, No. 5, 1995, p.
10 etc.). Here, the parallel monitor is
As described above, a plurality of capacitors are connected between the terminals of each capacitor of a capacitor bank connected in series and parallel, and the charging current is bypassed when the charging voltage of the capacitor bank exceeds a set value of a parallel monitor. . Therefore, the parallel monitor plays an extremely important role in making the capacitor bank usable up to the full withstand voltage, and is an indispensable device as a means for effectively utilizing the energy density. By connecting a parallel monitor, even when there is variation in the characteristics of the capacitors and the magnitude of the residual charge, equalization of the maximum voltage, prevention of backflow, detection and control of the charge termination voltage, and the like can be performed. Therefore, all the capacitors in the capacitor bank are charged evenly to the set voltage, and the storage capacity of the capacitors can be exerted almost 100%.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above embodiment, the electric energy stored in the capacitor is used as a power source for various devices and home electric appliances. However, in the case of a training gym or the like, it may be connected to a commercial power source so as to sell power to a power company. In addition, although the present invention is applied to the stationary bicycle-type physical training apparatus, it is needless to say that the physical training may be similarly applied to a so-called manually driven stationary rowing boat such as a hand or a foot, and other various physical training apparatuses. Nor.

[0016]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the generator is connected to the power transmission device of the physical training device, and the generated power is stored in the capacitor by charging. It can be converted into energy and charged quickly, and the kinetic energy of the physical training apparatus can be converted into electric energy and stored efficiently. In addition, the load as the physical training device can be easily adjusted by the charging current. Also, since the terminal voltage (charging voltage) of the capacitor is detected and the amount of power generation, the remaining amount of power storage, and the power consumption can be accurately and immediately displayed, the power generation effect, that is, the amount of charge, can be immediately confirmed as the amount of exercise. Furthermore, even if the battery is left in a discharged state, or even if the charge and discharge cycle is repeated many times, the battery does not deteriorate as in the secondary battery, has a long life, and can greatly reduce the load required for maintenance. Since the output density of a capacitor can be increased by combining it with a converter and an inverter, a large amount of power can be taken out even with a relatively small capacity and a small load.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a rechargeable physical training apparatus according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: generator, 2: load control / charger, 3: parallel monitor,
4: Fuel gauge, 5: Converter, 6: Inverter, 7: Control device, 8: Power transmission device, C: Capacitor

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A rechargeable physical training apparatus in which a generator is connected as a load via a power transmission device, wherein a capacitor bank for connecting and storing a plurality of capacitors and a charging current are controlled to control the generator. Charging control means for charging the capacitor bank with the power output of the power generator, and output means for taking out DC or AC power from the capacitor bank, and charging the capacitor bank with the power output of the generator. Recharging type physical training, wherein the charging current is controlled by the charging control means while the electric energy is being stored to adjust the load, and the electric energy stored in the capacitor bank is taken out from the output means. apparatus. 2. The rechargeable physical training apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means for detecting and displaying a terminal voltage of the capacitor bank. 3. The rechargeable physical training apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the capacitor bank has bypass means for bypassing a charging current at a full charge voltage.