JP7643365B2 - Electric vehicle management device - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a management device for electric vehicles.

For example, the energy management system described in JP 2017-005787 A (Patent Document 1) is provided with an operation unit that accepts input operations by the user to allow or deny acceptance of a power saving request from a power company. If the acceptance of the power saving request is permitted by the user of the main household, power saving control is performed to supply power to consumers from electric vehicles or the like.

JP 2017-005787 A

In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, as described above, power saving control (power control) is performed when the user allows acceptance of a power saving request. Therefore, it is necessary to request permission from the user each time power saving control is requested. In this case, it may be difficult to perform power control (external charging and external power supply) smoothly between the power grid and the electric vehicle. Therefore, there is a demand for an electric vehicle management device that can perform power control smoothly between the power grid and the electric vehicle.

This disclosure has been made to solve these problems, and aims to provide an electric vehicle management device that can smoothly control power (external charging and external power supply) between the power grid and the electric vehicle.

An electric vehicle management device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is an electric vehicle management device that manages an electric vehicle configured to be capable of power control including at least one of feeding to a power grid or charging from the power grid, and includes a control unit that performs control to acquire identification information of an electric vehicle that has entered a specified area, and a storage unit that stores the identification information and payee information regarding the payee of a reward for implementing power control to a user of the electric vehicle in association with each other, and the control unit allows the electric vehicle to perform power control regardless of user operation when the electric vehicle enters the specified area, and decides to pay a reward to the user based on the payee information associated with the identification information of the electric vehicle.

In the electric vehicle management device according to the above aspect, as described above, when the electric vehicle enters a predetermined area, the control unit permits the electric vehicle to perform power control, regardless of the user's operation. This eliminates the need to request permission for the power control from the user of the electric vehicle when power control (external charging and external power supply) is performed by the electric vehicle. As a result, the power control can be performed smoothly between the power grid and the electric vehicle.

The control unit also decides to pay a reward to the user based on the payee information associated with the identification information of the electric vehicle, as described above. This eliminates the need for the user to send their own personal information to the management device (e.g., by inputting information into the management device) in order to communicate the payee information to the management device (control unit). As a result, it is possible to reduce the burden on the user.

According to the present disclosure, power control (external charging and external power supply) can be performed smoothly between the power grid and the electric vehicle.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a power system according to an embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a vehicle ID and payment destination information according to one embodiment. FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing control of a server according to an embodiment.

The following describes in detail the embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the drawings. Note that the same or corresponding parts in the drawings are given the same reference numerals and their description will not be repeated.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a management system 200 and a server 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the management system 200 includes a server 100 and a plurality of imaging devices 10. The imaging devices 10 are, for example, cameras. The server 100 is an example of a "management device" of the present disclosure.

Server 100 is a server managed by an aggregator. An aggregator is an electric utility that provides energy management services by bundling multiple power adjustment resources in a region, a specific facility, etc.

Here, a VPP (Virtual Power Plant) area 110 is set within the range managed by the management system 200.

The VPP area 110 is provided with multiple EVSEs 20. EVSE stands for Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment. The electric vehicle 30, which will be described later, is configured to be electrically connectable to the EVSEs 20. For example, a charging cable connected to the EVSEs 20 is connected to an inlet of the electric vehicle 30, thereby enabling power to be exchanged between the EVSEs 20 and the electric vehicle 30. The number of EVSEs 20 provided in the VPP area 110 is arbitrary, and may be about 5, 10 or more, or 100 or more.

In this embodiment, a DC type EVSE is used as the EVSE 20. Therefore, DC power is supplied from the electric vehicle 30 to the EVSE 20, and DC/AC conversion is performed by an inverter built into the EVSE 20. A charger/discharger (not shown) that adjusts the charging/discharging power of the battery 32 (described later) of the electric vehicle 30 is configured to adjust the charging/discharging power, for example, by a DC/DC converter. However, it is not essential that the EVSE 20 be of the DC type, and it may be of the AC type.

The imaging devices 10 are provided, for example, at the four corners of the VPP area 110. The VPP area 110 is, for example, a part of a parking lot used by employees at a work facility. Note that the number and locations of the imaging devices 10, and the location of the VPP area 110 are not limited to the above example.

The server 100 also includes a processor 1, a memory 2, and a communication unit 3. The server 100 manages the electric vehicle 30. The electric vehicle 30 is configured to be capable of control (hereinafter simply referred to as "power control") including at least one of power supply to the power grid PG (external power supply) and charging from the power grid PG (external charging). The processor 1 and memory 2 are examples of the "control unit" and "storage unit" of the present disclosure, respectively.

The memory 2 stores the programs executed by the processor 1 as well as information used by the programs (e.g., maps, formulas, and various parameters). The communication unit 3 includes various communication I/Fs. The processor 1 is configured to communicate with the outside world through the communication unit 3.

The electric vehicle 30 includes, for example, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), a battery electric vehicle (BEV), and a fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV). The electric vehicle 30 may also include at least one of an individual owned vehicle (POV) and a vehicle managed by a Mobility as a Service (MaaS) operator (MaaS vehicle).

The electric vehicle 30 includes a driving motor 31 and a battery 32 that supplies power to the driving motor 31. The battery 32 includes a secondary battery that stores power for driving. The secondary battery is a battery pack that includes multiple lithium ion batteries or multiple nickel-metal hydride batteries. Note that other power storage devices such as an electric double layer capacitor may be used instead of the secondary battery.

The power system PG is a power grid constructed by power plants and power transmission and distribution facilities (not shown). In this embodiment, the power company serves as both the power generation business operator and the power transmission and distribution business operator. The power company corresponds to a general power transmission and distribution business operator, and maintains and manages the power system PG. The power company corresponds to the administrator of the power system PG. The server 120 manages the supply and demand of the power system PG (power network). The server 120 belongs to the power company.

The server 120 transmits to the server 100 a request (supply and demand adjustment request) to adjust the power demand of the power system PG based on the power generation and consumption by each power adjustment resource managed by the server 120. For example, when the power generation or power consumption of the power adjustment resource is expected to be higher than normal (or is currently higher), the server 120 transmits to the server 100 a request to increase or decrease the power demand compared to normal.

As one means for increasing or decreasing the power demand of the power grid PG, the server 100 requests (demands) the electric vehicle 30 to perform power control such as external charging or external power supply. The server 100 transmits a request signal for making the above request to the electric vehicle 30 to the electric vehicle 30 or a mobile terminal 33 owned by the user of the electric vehicle 30.

The server 100 is also configured to manage information on the registered electric vehicles 30 (hereinafter also referred to as "vehicle information"), information on each registered user (hereinafter also referred to as "user information"), and information on each registered EVSE 20 (hereinafter also referred to as "EVSE information"). The user information, vehicle information, and EVSE information are stored in the memory 2, distinguished by identification information (ID).

The user ID is identification information for identifying a user, and also functions as information (terminal ID) for identifying the mobile terminal 33 carried by the user. The server 100 is configured to store information received from the mobile terminal 33 separately for each user ID. The user information includes the communication address of the mobile terminal 33 carried by the user and the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 belonging to the user.

The vehicle ID is identification information for identifying the electric vehicle 30. The vehicle ID may be a license plate or a vehicle identification number (VIN). The vehicle information includes the planned activities of each electric vehicle 30. The vehicle ID is an example of "identification information" in this disclosure.

The EVSE-ID is identification information for identifying the EVSE 20. The EVSE information includes the communication address of each EVSE 20 and the status of the electric vehicle 30 connected to each EVSE 20. The EVSE information also includes information indicating the combination of the electric vehicle 30 and the EVSE 20 that are connected to each other (for example, the combination of the EVSE-ID and the vehicle ID).

The electric vehicle 30 may be configured to directly communicate wirelessly with the server 100. The electric vehicle 30 may include a DCM (Data Communication Module) or a communication I/F compatible with 5G (fifth generation mobile communication system).

As shown in FIG. 2, the memory 2 of the server 100 stores, for each electric vehicle 30, a vehicle ID and payment destination information relating to the payment destination to the user of the electric vehicle 30, which are associated (linked) with each other. For example, the memory 2 stores in advance a map (table) in which the vehicle ID and the payment destination information are associated. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle IDs A1, B1, C1, D1, and E1 are associated with the payment destination information A2, B2, C2, D2, and E2, respectively.

The processor 1 also recognizes the range of the VPP area 110. The processor 1 then determines whether the electric vehicle 30 has entered the VPP area 110 (and whether it has left the VPP area 110) based on the image captured by the imaging device 10. The server 100 (processor 1) acquires the above image from the imaging device 10 through communication by the communication unit 3. The processor 1 may also determine whether the electric vehicle 30 has entered the VPP area 110 (and whether it has left the VPP area 110) using a sensor or the like provided in the VPP area 110.

The processor 1 (see FIG. 1) also controls the acquisition (determination) of the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110. Specifically, the processor 1 acquires (determines) the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 based on the license plate information (description) displayed in the images captured by the multiple imaging devices 10. Then, the processor 1 identifies the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 from among the multiple electric vehicles 30 registered in the server 100 based on the acquired vehicle ID.

The processor 1 may also acquire (determine) the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 based on information other than the license plate information (description). For example, the processor 1 may identify the electric vehicle 30 and acquire (determine) the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 by analyzing images captured by multiple imaging devices 10 using artificial intelligence (AI). The processor 1 may also acquire (determine) the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 based on, for example, the connection of the electric vehicle 30 to the EVSE 20.

In the present embodiment, as described above, an example is described in which the processor 1 of the server 100 identifies the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The imaging device 10 may identify the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 based on an image captured by the imaging device 10 itself, and may transmit information about the identified electric vehicle 30 to the server 100.

Here, if permission from the user (permission for a request to perform power control) is required each time the above-mentioned power control (external charging and external power supply) is performed, it may become difficult to perform power control smoothly between the power system PG and the electric vehicle 30.

Therefore, in this embodiment, when the electric vehicle 30 enters the VPP area 110, the processor 1 allows the electric vehicle 30 to perform the above-mentioned power control, regardless of the user's operation. In other words, the processor 1 automatically allows the electric vehicle 30 to perform the above-mentioned power control based on the electric vehicle 30 entering the VPP area 110. Therefore, the processor 1 can allow the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 to perform the above-mentioned power control without receiving a response from the user, etc.

Specifically, the processor 1 identifies an electric vehicle 30 (vehicle ID) that has entered the VPP area 110 from among the multiple electric vehicles 30 registered in the server 100, based on license plate information displayed in images captured by the multiple imaging devices 10. The processor 1 then permits the identified electric vehicle 30 to perform the above-mentioned power control. For example, the processor 1 may enable power control by the identified electric vehicle 30 by controlling the EVSE 20 in the VPP area 110.

In addition, in this embodiment, the processor 1 determines to pay a reward to the user for implementing power control based on the payee information associated with the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30. Specifically, the processor 1 acquires the payee information associated with the vehicle ID of the electric vehicle 30 identified as having entered the VPP area 110. For example, when an electric vehicle 30 with a vehicle ID of B1 (see FIG. 2) has entered the VPP area 110, the processor 1 determines that the payee information of the electric vehicle 30 is B2 (see FIG. 2). The processor 1 then performs control to pay the reward so that the reward is paid to the payee indicated by the payee information.

In detail, the processor 1 transmits the acquired (determined) payee information to the PC 130 through communication by the communication unit 3. The PC 130 is a PC such as a payer of the work facility where the VPP area 110 is located. The processor 1 also transmits information regarding the remuneration payment amount together with the payee information to the PC 130 through communication by the communication unit 3.

The processor 1 may calculate the payment amount of the reward based on the behavior of the electric vehicle 30. In this case, the calculation method (calculation rules) of the payment amount of the reward may be stored in the memory 2 of the server 100.

For example, the processor 1 may determine the amount of the reward to be paid based on the length of time that the electric vehicle 30 stays in the VPP area 110. In this case, the longer the stay time, the larger the payment amount may be.

The processor 1 may also determine the amount of the remuneration to be paid based on the difference between the SOC (State Of Charge) of the electric vehicle 30 at the time of entering the VPP area 110 and the SOC of the electric vehicle 30 at the time of leaving the VPP area 110. In this case, the payment amount may be increased as the difference increases.

The processor 1 may also determine the amount of the remuneration to be paid based on the power state of the power system PG. For example, when the power system PG (server 120) is requesting an increase in the power demand of the power system PG, the processor 1 may increase the remuneration for external charging and decrease the remuneration for external power supply, compared to normal times and when a decrease in the power demand is requested.

The processor 1 may also store in the memory 2 a history of the power control by the user. The processor 1 updates the history every time the user performs the power control. The processor 1 may then determine the amount of the remuneration to be paid based on the history.

The control regarding the calculation of the remuneration payment amount may be performed by the PC 130. In this case, the server 100 transmits information required for determining the remuneration payment amount (for example, the above-mentioned stay time, the SOC difference, the power state and history of the power system PG, etc.) to the PC 130. The history of the power control may be updated by the PC 130.
(Management method of electric vehicles)
Next, a method for managing the electric vehicle 30 by the server 100 (management system 200) will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of FIG.

First, in step S1, an image captured by the imaging device 10 is transmitted to the server 100. Note that the process of step S1 (image transmission) is not limited to the timing before step S2 described below, but is performed continuously (always).

In addition, in step S2, the server 100 (processor 1) determines whether or not the electric vehicle 30 has entered the VPP area 110. Specifically, the processor 1 determines whether or not the vehicle that has entered the VPP area 110 is an electric vehicle 30 registered in the server 100, based on the information (description) of the vehicle's license plate displayed in the image acquired in step S1. Note that this process (determination) of step S2 is performed continuously (always), similar to step S1.

Here, in step S3, it is assumed that the electric vehicle 30 enters the VPP area 110 and the electric vehicle 30 and the EVSE 20 are connected. In this case, it is determined in step S2 that the electric vehicle 30 has entered the VPP area 110 (Yes in S2), and the process proceeds to step S4. Note that if the electric vehicle 30 has not entered the VPP area 110 (No in S2), the process of step S2 is repeated.

Next, in step S4, the server 100 (processor 1) acquires the vehicle ID (see FIG. 2) of the electric vehicle 30 based on the information (description) of the license plate of the electric vehicle 30 displayed in the image transmitted in step S1. As a result, the server 100 (processor 1) specifies (identifies) the electric vehicle 30 that has entered the VPP area 110 among the multiple electric vehicles 30 registered in the server 100. After acquiring the vehicle ID, the processor 1 may determine whether the electric vehicle 30 has entered the VPP area 110 based on the acquired vehicle ID.

Next, in step S5, the server 100 (processor 1) permits the electric vehicle 30 identified in step S4 to perform the above-mentioned power control (external charging and external power supply). The above-mentioned power control is permitted for the identified electric vehicle 30 regardless of the operation of the user of the electric vehicle 30.

In addition, in step S5, the server 100 (processor 1) decides to pay a reward to the user of the electric vehicle 30 identified in step S4. In this step S5, the server 100 (processor 1) refers to the correspondence between the vehicle ID and the reward payee information stored in the memory 2 (see FIG. 2) and acquires the payee information of the user of the electric vehicle 30 identified in step S4.

Next, in step S6, the server 100 (processor 1) determines whether the electric vehicle 30 that entered the VPP area 110 in step S3 has left the VPP area 110. Specifically, the processor 1 determines whether the electric vehicle 30 has left the VPP area 110 based on the image acquired in step S1.

Now, assume that the electric vehicle 30 that entered the VPP area 110 in step S7 has now left the VPP area 110. In this case, it is determined in step S6 that the electric vehicle 30 has left the VPP area 110 (Yes in S6), and the process proceeds to step S8. Note that if the electric vehicle 30 has not left the VPP area 110 (No in S6), the process of step S6 is repeated.

Next, in step S8, the server 100 (processor 1) calculates the remuneration payment amount for the electric vehicle 30 that has exited the VPP area 110. The method for calculating the remuneration payment amount is as described above, and therefore will not be described again. Note that if the remuneration payment amount is a fixed amount, step S8 is not necessary. In this case, the server 100 (processor 1) may transmit remuneration payment destination information to the PC 130 immediately after step S5 (before exiting the VPP area 110).

Next, in step S9, the server 100 (processor 1) transmits the remuneration payee information and the remuneration payment amount to the PC 130. Note that the server 100 (processor 1) may transmit the remuneration payee information to the PC 130 immediately after step S5.

Then, in step S10, the user of the PC 130 pays the reward to the user of the electric vehicle 30 based on the reward payment destination information and reward payment amount information transmitted from the server 100 in step S9.

As described above, in this embodiment, when the electric vehicle 30 enters the VPP area 110, the processor 1 allows the electric vehicle 30 to perform the above-mentioned power control, even if the user does not perform an operation to allow the power control. This makes it possible to consolidate the electric vehicles 30 within the VPP area 110, and reduces investment in the equipment for the above-mentioned power control.

In addition, because participants in the power control are recognized based on the image captured by the imaging device 10, the user does not need to perform a specific operation to participate in the power control. As a result, it is possible to reduce the user's effort.

In addition, by reusing (utilizing) a conventional system in which user information (personnel information) and payee information are associated, it is possible to easily build the system of this embodiment in which the vehicle ID and payee information are associated.

In addition, in the above embodiment, an example is shown in which the vehicle IDs of multiple electric vehicles 30 are stored in the server 100, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The server 100 may store the vehicle ID of only one electric vehicle 30.

In addition, in the above embodiment, an example has been shown in which the electric vehicle 30 is configured to be capable of both external charging and external power supply, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The electric vehicle 30 may be configured to be capable of only one of external charging and external power supply.

The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present disclosure is indicated by the claims rather than the description of the embodiments above, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

1 Processor (control unit), 2 Memory (storage unit), 30 Electric vehicle, 100 Server (management device), 110 VPP area (predetermined area), PG Power system.

Claims (2)

A management device for an electric vehicle that manages an electric vehicle configured to be capable of power control including at least one of feeding power to a power grid or charging from the power grid,
a control unit that performs control to acquire identification information of the electric vehicle that has entered a predetermined area;
a storage unit that stores the identification information and payee information relating to a payee of a reward for the implementation of the power control to a user of the electric vehicle in association with each other,
the control unit, when the electric vehicle enters the predetermined area, permits the electric vehicle to perform the power control regardless of an operation of the user, and determines to pay a reward to the user based on the payee information associated with the identification information of the electric vehicle ;
The control unit is configured to increase the reward as the duration of stay of the electric vehicle in the specified area increases. A management device for an electric vehicle that manages an electric vehicle configured to be capable of power control including at least one of feeding power to a power grid or charging from the power grid,
a control unit that performs control to acquire identification information of the electric vehicle that has entered a predetermined area;
a storage unit that stores the identification information and payee information related to a payee of a reward for the implementation of the power control to a user of the electric vehicle in association with each other,
the control unit, when the electric vehicle enters the predetermined area, permits the electric vehicle to perform the power control regardless of an operation of the user, and determines to pay a reward to the user based on the payee information associated with the identification information of the electric vehicle;
The control unit increases the reward as the difference between the SOC of the electric vehicle at the time the electric vehicle enters the specified area and the SOC of the electric vehicle at the time the electric vehicle exits the specified area after entering the specified area increases.

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