Managing electric current allocation between charging equipment for charging electric vehicles

• US 10,252,633 B2
• Filed: 03/06/2018
• Issued: 04/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Chargepoint, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Chargepoint, Inc.
• Inventors: Baxter, David, Hagenmaier, Jr., Carl F., Tormey, Milton T., Lowenthal, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Pacheco, Alexis B
• Application Number:
  US15/913,684
• Publication Number:
  US 20180194240A1
• Time in Patent Office: 399 Days
• Field of Search: 320132, 320107, 320108, 320109, 320106, 320134, 320112, 320149, 320150, 361 64, 705412, 324434, 34099527
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/72 Charging station selection relying on external data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/80 Time limits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0084 relating to control modules
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/12 Recording operating variables ; Monitoring of operating variables
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/40 using propulsion power supplied by capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/62 in response to charging parameters, e.g. current, voltage or electrical charge
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/64 Optimising energy costs, e.g. responding to electricity rates
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/66 Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/665 Methods related to measuring, billing or payment
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/67 Controlling two or more charging stations
• 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: G05B 13/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/12 The local stationary network supplying a household or a building
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0013 : acting upon several batteries simultaneously or sequentially H02J7/1423 takes precedence
• 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 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 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 first and second charging equipment for charging electric vehicles share a current capacity. A controller coupled with the first and second charging equipment limits a total amount of current drawn through the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment to not exceed the current capacity. A first and second current limit is communicated to a first and second electric vehicle respectively to limit the current draw of first and second electric vehicle to the first and second current limit respectively. A sum of the current drawn at the first and second current limit does not exceed the current capacity.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining a maximum amount of electric current capacity that is shared among at least a first charging equipment and a second charging equipment; and

dynamically allocating electric current to the at least the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment such that the maximum amount of electric current capacity is prevented from being exceeded, wherein dynamically allocating electric current to the at least the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment includes;

communicating a first current limit to a first electric vehicle coupled to the first charging equipment to cause the first electric vehicle to limit its current draw to not exceed the first current limit, and

communicating a second current limit to a second electric vehicle coupled to the second charging equipment to cause the second electric vehicle to limit its current draw to not exceed the second current limit; and

wherein a sum of current being drawn at the first current limit and the second current limit does not exceed the maximum amount of electric current capacity.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining an amount of electric current presently allocated to each of the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment; and

wherein dynamically allocating electric current to the at least the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment is further based on an amount of electric current presently allocated to each of the at least the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically allocating electric current includes dynamically adjusting electric current allocations to the at least the first charging equipment and the second charging equipment including increasing the electric current allocation to the first charging equipment and decreasing the electric current allocation to the second charging equipment while preventing the maximum amount of electric current capacity from being exceeded.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically allocating electric current is further based on a set of one or more charging session attributes associated with a first charging session for the first electric vehicle and a second charging session for the second electric vehicle, wherein the set of charging session attributes includes for each charging session charging session duration, type of account associated with that charging session, percentage of charging complete, percentage of charging remaining, battery temperature of the electric vehicle, priority of that charging session, time remaining on that charging session, or any combination thereof.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein dynamically allocating electric current includes transmitting the first current limit to the first charging equipment and transmitting the second current limit to the second charging equipment.

6. A method, comprising:

receiving, at a first charging equipment, a first message that indicates a first current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the first current limit, wherein the first charging equipment shares a current capacity with a second charging equipment, and wherein at a time of receipt of the first message the second charging equipment is not presently allocated electric current;

responsive to receiving the first message, the first charging equipment limiting an amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the first current limit;

receiving, at the first charging equipment, a second message that indicates a second current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the second current limit, wherein the second current limit is less than the first current limit and is a value that allows the second charging equipment to draw at least some electric current while not exceeding the current capacity; and

responsive to receiving the second message, the first charging equipment limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the second current limit.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first charging equipment limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the first current limit includes communicating a third current limit to an electric vehicle coupled to the first charging equipment that does not exceed the first current limit, and wherein the first charging equipment limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the second current limit includes communicating a fourth current limit to the electric vehicle coupled to the first charging equipment that does not exceed the second current limit.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein communicating the second current limit and the fourth current limit includes modulating a signal to the electric vehicle.

9. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving, at the first charging equipment, a third message that indicates a third current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the third current limit, wherein the third current limit is greater than the second current limit, and wherein the third message is received as a result of the second charging equipment no longer requiring to draw at least some electric current; and

responsive to receiving the third message, the first charging equipment limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the third current limit.

10. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor of a first charging equipment; and

a non-transitory machine-readable storage media of the first charging equipment that contains instructions, that when executed by the processor, cause said processor to perform the following operations;

receiving a first message that indicates a first current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the first current limit, wherein the first charging equipment shares a current capacity with a second charging equipment, and wherein at a time of receipt of the first message the second charging equipment is not presently allocated electric current;

responsive to receiving the first message, limiting an amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the first current limit;

receiving a second message that indicates a second current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the second current limit, wherein the second current limit is less than the first current limit and is a value that allows the second charging equipment to draw at least some electric current while not exceeding the current capacity; and

responsive to receiving the second message, limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the second current limit.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the first current limit includes communicating a third current limit to an electric vehicle coupled to the first charging equipment that does not exceed the first current limit, and wherein limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the second current limit includes communicating a fourth current limit to the electric vehicle coupled to the first charging equipment that does not exceed the second current limit.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein communicating the second current limit and the fourth current limit includes modulating a signal to the electric vehicle.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the non-transitory machine-readable storage media of the first charging equipment further contains instructions, that when executed by the processor, cause said processor to perform the following operations:

receiving a third message that indicates a third current limit in which the first charging equipment is to limit its current draw to not exceed the third current limit, wherein the third current limit is greater than the second current limit, and wherein the third message is received as a result of the second charging equipment no longer requiring to draw at least some electric current; and

responsive to receiving the third message, limiting the amount of current to be drawn through the first charging equipment to the third current limit.