METHOD FOR RECHARGING ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN GEOGRAPHICALLY DISTRIBUTED RECHARGING STATIONS

• US 20110202476A1
• Filed: 02/14/2011
• Published: 08/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Original Assignee: Kapsch TrafficCom AG (Datax Handelsgmbh)
• Inventors: Nagy, Oliver, Güner, Refi-Tugrul, Toplak, Erwin
• Granted Patent: US 8,446,124 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/412
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/70 Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres
• 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 53/64 Optimising energy costs, e.g. responding to electricity rates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/06 Energy or water supply
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/063 using wireless information transmission between the vehicle and a fixed station identification of vehicles G08G
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 15/003 for electricity
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 15/005 dispensed for the electrical charging of vehicles electrical charging as such, B60L50/00
• 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 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

A method for recharging an electric vehicle in a recharging station of a network of geographically distributed recharging stations. The method includes: communicating availability of a recharging station to a control centre of the network; transmitting a recharge request from an onboard unit of the electric vehicle via communication devices of a road toll system to the control centre; assigning the onboard unit to an available recharging station in the control centre; notifying the onboard unit of the assigned recharging station via the communication devices of the road toll system and notifying the recharging station of the onboard unit; and activating the recharging station to recharge the electric vehicle, when the assigned onboard unit is detected therein. The recharging in the recharging station is monitored and an image of the vehicle is recorded in the recharging station in an event of an interruption, interference or deviation in the recharging process from a given course.

Claims

1. A method for recharging an electric vehicle in a recharging station of a network of geographically distributed recharging stations, the method comprising:

communicating availability of a recharging station to a control centre of the network;

transmitting a recharge request from an onboard unit of the electric vehicle via communication devices of a road toll system to the control centre;

assigning the onboard unit to an available recharging station in the control centre;

notifying the onboard unit of the assigned recharging station via the communication devices of the road toll system and notifying the recharging station of the onboard unit; and

activating the recharging station to recharge the electric vehicle, when the assigned onboard unit is detected therein,

wherein the recharging in the recharging station is monitored and an image of the vehicle is recorded in the recharging station in an event of an interruption, interference or deviation in the recharging process from a given course.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the image of the vehicle is recorded in the recharging station by a camera at the beginning and at the end of the recharging.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein dedicated short-range communication (DSRC) or wireless access in a vehicle environment (WAVE) radio beacons of a DSRC or WAVE road toll system are used as communication devices.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the communication of the onboard unit with the DSRC or WAVE radio beacons occurs by mediation through onboard units of other vehicles, which form a vehicular ad-hoc network with said onboard unit.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the onboard unit is detected in the recharging station when the onboard unit enters a restricted communication zone of the recharging station.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the onboard unit is detected in the recharging station when the onboard unit is radio-located by a transceiver of the recharging station.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the onboard unit uses an omnidirectional transmit and receive mode for transmitting the recharge request and receiving the assignment notification, and a unidirectional transmit and receive mode for detection in the recharging station.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting vehicle-specific charging parameters from the onboard unit to the assigned recharging station to control the recharging.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting payment calculation parameters to the control centre or the assigned recharging station for calculating a cost for the recharging.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising clearing an entrance barrier to the recharging station when the onboard unit is detected in the vicinity of the recharging station.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising sending a short message concerning the recharging process via a mobile radio network.