JP7743844B2 - Power System - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to power systems.

Patent Document 1 discloses a power grid system in which storage batteries in vehicles and storage batteries in homes exchange power.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2022-156569

The amount of electricity that can be generated by solar power generation equipment installed in vehicles (hereinafter referred to as "on-board PV (Photovoltaic)") is increasing daily as solar power generation equipment is developed. In addition, when on-board PV can secure enough electricity to run the vehicle, technology is being developed to utilize surplus electricity.

Patent Document 1 discloses a power grid system in which power is shared between vehicle-side and residential-side storage batteries. However, this method of sharing power between the vehicle and residential sides results in significant power loss, so a system with less loss is needed.

This disclosure has been made to solve these problems, and aims to provide a power system that sufficiently reduces the loss of power generated by on-board PV.

The power system disclosed herein controls the supply of power between a vehicle and equipment external to the vehicle. The vehicle is equipped with a solar power generation device and a power storage device. The power system measures the current power generation amount (first power generation amount) of the solar power generation device and predicts the future power generation amount (second power generation amount). Based on the first power generation amount and the second power generation amount, the power system supplies power to a first power consumer in the vehicle prior to a second power consumer in the equipment. The system predicts surplus power after power supply and determines whether to store the surplus power in the power storage device or supply it to the first power consumer and the second power consumer in advance. This makes it possible to provide a power system that sufficiently reduces the loss of power generated by on-board PV.

This disclosure makes it possible to provide a power system that sufficiently reduces the loss of power generated by onboard PV.

1 is a configuration diagram of a power system according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating control of the power system according to the present embodiment. 3 is a flowchart of control of the power system according to the present embodiment.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 shows a power system according to this embodiment.

The power system 1 shown in FIG. 1 controls the supply of power to a vehicle 10 and equipment 20 external to the vehicle. The vehicle 10 is equipped with a solar power generation device 11 and a power storage device 12. An example of the equipment 20 external to the vehicle 10 is the vehicle user's home. Note that a solar power generation device mounted on a vehicle may be referred to as an "on-board PV (Photovoltaic)" hereinafter.

The power system 1 according to this embodiment is used in a state in which the power consumption object (first power consumption object) in the vehicle 10 and the power consumption object (second power consumption object) in the facility 20 are each connected to the power storage device 12.

In the example shown in this embodiment, the first power consumption objects include an air conditioning unit and a surveillance camera installed in the vehicle 10, and the second power consumption objects include an anti-freeze unit, a ventilation system, an electric water heater, etc.

Next, the control of the power system 1 according to this embodiment will be described using Figure 2. Figure 2(a) shows the daily changes in the amount of power generated by the solar power generation device 11 (first power 100), the amount of power consumed by the air conditioning unit (first power consumption 101), and the amount of power consumed by the surveillance camera (second power consumption 102). Figure 2(b) shows the daily changes in the amount of power consumed by the anti-freeze unit (third power consumption 203), the amount of power consumed by the ventilation system (fourth power consumption 204), and the amount of power consumed by the electric water heater (fifth power consumption 205), which will be described later.

The amount of power (first power 100) generated by the solar power generation device 11 increases during the day due to the amount of solar radiation, and since no power is generated after sunset, it changes as shown by the curve in Figure 2(a).

The power system 1 according to this embodiment measures the current amount of power generated by the solar power generation device 11 (first amount of power generation) and predicts the future amount of power generation (second amount of power generation). For example, at time t in FIG. 2(a), the power system 1 measures the amount of power generated by the solar power generation device 11 to be as shown by the solid line in the first power 100. Then, based on information such as the weather for that day, the power system 1 predicts that after time t, the solar power generation device 11 will generate power as shown by the dotted line in the first power 100.

In this way, the power system 1 can obtain information on the amount of power (first power 100) generated by the solar power generation device 11, enabling it to control the power supply as described below.

The first power consumption 101 by the air conditioning unit installed in the vehicle 10 is used for pre-air conditioning, and is therefore the power consumed when the user uses the vehicle 10. On the other hand, since the surveillance camera constantly monitors the vehicle 10, the second power consumption 102 by the surveillance camera remains constant.

The third power consumption 203 by the anti-freeze unit installed in the equipment 20 is used, for example, in winter to control the freezing prevention of windows, water pipes, etc., and is therefore power consumed from night to early morning. The fourth power consumption 204 by the ventilation system remains constant if the equipment 20 is constantly ventilated. The fifth power consumption 205 by the electric water heater is power consumed at night, for example, to provide bath water.

The power system 1 according to this embodiment controls the first power 100 generated by the on-board PV so that the power necessary for the vehicle 10 to travel is secured, and then the first power consumption target provided on the vehicle 10 is given priority.

The curve representing the second power 110 shown in Figure 2(b) is the amount of power obtained by subtracting the power supplied to the vehicle 10 from the first power 100. The power system 1 sets the amount of power to be supplied to the facility 20 based on the measured first power generation amount, the predicted second power generation amount, and information on the second power 110, and supplies power to the facility 20.

Furthermore, if the second power 110 is expected to be greater than the power required by the second power consumer in the facility 20, surplus power will be generated after the power supply. In this case, the power system 1 determines whether to store this surplus power in the power storage device 12 provided in the vehicle 10, or to supply power in advance to the future first power consumer and second power consumer.

In the example shown in FIG. 2(b), the supply of advanced power is achieved by supplying advanced power 206 to the fifth consumed power 205 used by the electric water heater.

The above determination made by the power system 1 is made by comparing the case where the power supply provided in the facility 20 supplies power to the second power consumption target with the case where surplus power is used to advance the advance power 206, and selecting the case where the loss is smaller. If the loss is smaller in the former case, the power system 1 controls the surplus power to be stored in the power storage device 12. On the other hand, if the loss is smaller in the latter case, the power system 1 controls the surplus power to be used to advance the advance power 206.

In this way, the power system 1 performs control to ensure that the power necessary for the vehicle 10 to run is secured, and then surplus power is supplied to the equipment 20, and the surplus power can be utilized, thereby minimizing power loss.

The control of the power system 1 according to this embodiment will be explained using FIG. 3. The flowchart shown in FIG. 3 represents the control performed by the power system 1 after measuring the current power generation amount (first power generation amount) of the solar power generation device 11 and predicting the future power generation amount (second power generation amount). In the following explanation, the power generation amount of the solar power generation device 11 (on-board PV) takes into account the first power generation amount and the second power generation amount.

First, the power system 1 predicts the power consumption of the first power consumer in the vehicle 10 and the second power consumer in the equipment 20. For the predicted power consumption, a comparison is made between the loss when power is supplied from the on-board PV and the loss when power is supplied from the power sources provided in the vehicle 10's power storage device 12 and the equipment 20 (S101). If the loss is greater when power is supplied from the on-board PV, power is not supplied to the vehicle 10 and the equipment 20, and the power generated by the on-board PV is controlled to be stored in the power storage device 12, and the process ends (S102).

If supplying power from the on-board PV results in less loss, surplus power will be generated after the power is supplied. Therefore, a comparison is made between the loss when the surplus power is used for forward output and the loss when it is used for storage (S103). If forward supply results in less loss, the power generated by the on-board PV is supplied to the vehicle 10 and equipment 20, and the surplus power is further forward output (S104). On the other hand, if storing the power results in less loss, the power generated by the on-board PV is supplied to the vehicle 10 and equipment 20, and the surplus power is further stored (S105).

In this way, it is possible to provide a power system that sufficiently reduces the loss of power generated by onboard PV.

Note that this disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. This disclosure also contributes to carbon neutrality, decarbonization, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

REFERENCE SIGNS 1 Power system 10 Vehicle 11 Photovoltaic power generation device 12 Power storage device 20 Equipment 100 First power 110 Second power 101 First power consumption 102 Second power consumption 203 Third power consumption 204 Fourth power consumption 205 Fifth power consumption 206 Advance power

Claims (1)

An electric power system that controls a supply of electric power between a vehicle and equipment outside the vehicle,
the vehicle is equipped with a solar power generation device and a power storage device,
The power system includes:
measuring a current power generation amount (first power generation amount) of the solar power generation device and predicting a future power generation amount (second power generation amount);
supplying power to a first power consumer in the vehicle with priority over a second power consumer in the facility with respect to the first power generation amount and the second power generation amount;
predicting power consumption after power is supplied to the first power consumption object and the second power consumption object;
comparing the predicted power consumption with a power loss when the power is supplied from the solar power generation device provided in the vehicle and when the power is supplied from the power storage device provided in the vehicle and a power source provided in the facility;
When the loss of power is smaller when the power is supplied from the solar power generation device, the power system compares the loss of power when surplus power generated after the power is supplied is used in advance with the loss of power when the power is used for storage, and determines whether to store the surplus power in the storage device or to supply it in advance to the first power consumption object and the second power consumption object in the future.