SATISFYING BUILDING ENERGY DEMAND USING MOBILE ENERGY STORAGE

• US 20170274780A1
• Filed: 03/22/2016
• Published: 09/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: de Hoog, Julian, Jalali, Fatemeh, Vishwanath, Arun
• Granted Patent: US 11,121,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/64 Optimising energy costs, e.g. responding to electricity rates
• 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 2207/20 Charging or discharging characterised by the power electronics converter
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/28 The renewable source being wind energy wind motors F03D
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00045 Authentication, i.e. circuits for checking compatibility between one component, e.g. a battery or a battery charger, and another component, e.g. a power source
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0025 Sequential battery discharge in systems with a plurality of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0063 with circuits adapted for supplying loads from the battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0071 with a programmable schedule
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/342 The other DC source being a battery actively interacting with the first one, i.e. battery to battery charging with circuits for polarity protection H02J7/0034
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/35 with light sensitive cells
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/76 Power conversion electric or electronic aspects
• 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 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

A mobile energy storage system and a method are provided for supplying power to entities at disparate locations. The system includes a set of vehicles. Each of the vehicles in the set includes a battery set having one or more batteries for storing power. Each of the vehicles in the set further includes a power connector having an end connected to the battery set and another end for connecting to a power transfer switch at the entities. The system also includes a central server for scheduling vehicles in the set to provide power to the entities responsive to energy charging requests issued by the entities.

Claims

1. A mobile energy storage system for supplying power to entities at disparate locations, the system comprising:

a set of vehicles, each including;

a battery set having one or more batteries for storing power; and

a power connector having an end connected to the battery set and another end for connecting to a power transfer switch at the entities; and

a central server for scheduling vehicles in the set to provide power to the entities responsive to energy charging requests issued by the entities.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a robotic arm to connect the other end of the power connector to the power transfer switch.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the power connector is comprised within at least part of the robotic arm.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle is an autonomous vehicle.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a Global Positioning System navigation system for locating the entities to which power is to be supplied.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a camera and computer processing system for at least one of vehicle navigation, vehicle parking, locating the power transfer switch, and connecting the other end of the power connector to the power transfer switch.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising proximity sensors for at least one of vehicle navigation, vehicle parking, locating the power transfer switch, and connecting the other end of the connector to the power transfer switch.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a solar panel for at least one of charging the battery set and powering on-board vehicle electronics.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising an inverter for connecting Direct Current power from the battery set to Alternating Current for use by the entities.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the central server is implemented in a cloud configuration.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein at least of the entities have disparate energy charging requirements.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the central server schedules vehicles using at least one of fair scheduling, round robin scheduling, location dependent scheduling, and price bidding dependent scheduling.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the central server receives vehicle specific data from each of the vehicles, and schedules the vehicles using the vehicle specific data, the vehicle specific data comprising a vehicle location, an energy availability, and cost information.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the central server receives traffic information, and schedules the vehicles using the traffic information.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the vehicles receives traffic information and modifies its path to a given one of the entities using the traffic information.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein each of the entities further comprises, in addition to the power transfer switch:

a panel meter for monitoring power usage; and

a local server for controlling the power transfer switch and for issuing the energy charging requests.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the power transfer switch at each of the entities is configured to receive power from a power grid, and switch to battery power at at least one of particular times and under particular conditions.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the particular times are dynamically variable.

19. A method for supplying mobile energy to entities at disparate locations, the method comprising:

configuring a set of vehicles to each include;

a battery set having one or more batteries for storing power; and

a power connector having an end connected to the battery set and another end for connecting to a power transfer switch at the entities; and

configuring a central server to schedule vehicles in the set to provide power to the entities responsive to energy charging requests issued by the entities.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the central server receives vehicle specific data from each of the vehicles, and schedules the vehicles using the vehicle specific data, the vehicle specific data comprising a vehicle location, an energy availability, and cost information.