System and method for managing vehicle charging stations

• US 10,245,967 B2
• Filed: 10/17/2013
• Issued: 04/02/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Liberty Plugins, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Liberty Plugins, Inc.
• Inventors: Outwater, Christopher Scott, Redmann, William Gibbens
• Primary Examiner(s): Von Buhr, M. N.
• Application Number:
  US14/436,753
• Publication Number:
  US 20160176306A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,993 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/34 Cabin temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/70 Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/72 Charging station selection relying on external data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/31 Charging columns specially adapted for electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/665 Methods related to measuring, billing or payment
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/68 Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 55/00 Arrangements for supplying energy stored within a vehicle to a power network, i.e. vehicle-to-grid [V2G] arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/144 Demand-response operation of the power transmission or distribution network
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/322 the battery being on-board an electric or hybrid vehicle, e.g. vehicle to grid arrangements [V2G], power aggregation, use of the battery for network load balancing, coordinated or cooperative battery charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/92 : Energy efficient charging or discharging systems for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors specially adapted for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 : Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 : Plug-in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 : Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/167 : Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/126 : the energy generation units being or involving electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV], i.e. power aggregation of EV or HEV, vehicle to grid arrangements [V2G]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/222 : Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/242 : Home appliances
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/12 : Remote or cooperative charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

A system and method for managing vehicle charging stations such that when at least two of a plurality of electric vehicle charging stations (also known as electric vehicle service equipment, or EVSE) occupied with vehicles awaiting a charge, the present system manages the charging of individual vehicles in cases where the aggregated demand for charging exceeds the capacity of the circuits supplying the plurality of EVSE. By cycling so that only a few of the vehicles are charging at a time, the demand on the circuits is kept below a predetermined limit. In cases where a load shedding event is in progress, the limit can be further reduced. In cases where the cost of electricity is varying dynamically, the system considers a driver'"'"'s explicit charging requirements (if any) and preferences for opportunistic charging when the price of electricity is not too high.

Claims

1. A system for managing banks of Electric Vehicle Service Equipment (EVSEs) comprising:

a controller, the controller having control over a plurality of EVSEs in a bank, the controller having a queue of requests for charging corresponding to at least one of the EVSEs in the bank,

wherein the controller determines a load-shed state and

if the load-shed state is no on-going load-shed event, then the controller selects, from the queue of requests, a first set of corresponding EVSEs to be active, the first set having a first aggregate draw up to a first predetermined limit,

otherwise, the controller selects, from the queue of requests, a second set of corresponding EVSEs to be active, the second set having a second aggregate draw that does not exceed a second predetermined limit, the second predetermined limit being less than the first predetermined limit.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller further has access to user preferences indicating a minimum energy requirement and the controller removes a corresponding request from the queue once the minimum energy requirement has been met.

3. The system of claim 2 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and to provide the user preferences to the controller.

4. The system of claim 2 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and transmit the user preferences to a server, wherein the controller has communication with the server.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller further has access to a price feed and user preferences indicating a minimum energy requirement and an acceptable price for additional energy, the controller skipping a corresponding request in the queue while the price feed indicates a current price for electricity that exceeds the acceptable price and the minimum energy requirement has been met.

6. The system of claim 5 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and provide the user preferences to the controller.

7. The system of claim 5 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and transmit the user preferences to a server, wherein the controller has communication with the server.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller further has access to a price feed and user preferences indicating an acceptable price for energy, the controller skipping a corresponding request in the queue while the price feed indicates a current price for electricity that exceeds the acceptable price.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and provide the user preferences to the controller.

10. The system of claim 8 further comprising a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and transmit the user preferences to a server, wherein the controller has communication with the server.

11. The system of claim 1 further comprising an at least one current meter;

wherein the aggregate draw is determined with the at least one current meter.

12. The system of claim 1 further comprising an at least one power meter;

wherein the aggregate draw is determined with the at least one power meter.

13. A system for managing Electric Vehicle Service Equipment (EVSEs) comprising:

a controller, the controller having control over a plurality of EVSEs, the controller having a queue of requests for charging corresponding to at least one of the EVSEs in the bank;

wherein the controller determines a load-shed state and

if the load-shed state is that a load-shed event is in progress, then the controller selects, from the queue of requests, a first set of corresponding EVSEs to be active, wherein a first aggregate demand by the first set results in a first draw from an electrical main not to exceed a first limit,

otherwise, the controller selects, from the queue of requests, a second set of corresponding EVSEs to be active, wherein a second aggregate demand by the second set results in a second draw from the electrical main up to a second limit, the first limit being less than the second limit.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the controller further has access to user preferences indicating a minimum energy requirement and the controller removes a corresponding request from the queue once the minimum energy requirement has been met.

15. The system of claim 14 further comprising:

a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and to provide the user preferences to the controller.

16. The system of claim 14 further comprising:

a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and transmit the user preferences to a server, wherein the controller has communication with the server.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the controller further has access to a price feed and user preferences indicating a minimum energy requirement and an acceptable price for additional energy, the controller skipping a corresponding request in the queue while the price feed indicates a current price for electricity that exceeds the acceptable price and the minimum energy requirement has been met.

18. The system of claim 17 further comprising:

a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and provide the user preferences to the controller.

19. The system of claim 17 further comprising:

a user interface on a mobile device to set the user preferences and transmit the user preferences to a server, wherein the controller has communication with the server.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the controller further has access to a price feed and user preferences indicating an acceptable price for energy, the controller skipping a corresponding request in the queue while the price feed indicates a current price for electricity that exceeds the acceptable price.