Electric vehicle sharing system

• US 6,181,991 B1
• Filed: 04/27/1999
• Issued: 01/30/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/28/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Takei, Akihiko, Kondo, Shugo, Ogura, Masami
• Primary Examiner(s): Cuchlinski, Jr., William A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hernandez, Olga
• Application Number:
  US09/300,270
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/30, 701/1, 701/123, 701/200, 701/29
• US Class Current: 701/22
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 25/102 a signal being sent to a remote location, e.g. a radio signal being transmitted to a police station, a security company or the owner
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 15/00 Arrangements or apparatus for collecting fares, tolls or entrance fees at one or more control points handling coins or valuable papers, e.g. banknotes, G07D; apparatus for vending or hiring articles or services activated by coins, credit cards, paper currency or the like G07F7/00, G07F17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 15/04 in which the quantity mechanism is set forward automatically by the insertion of a coin
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 15/12 in which metering is on a time basis
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0014 for vending, access and use of specific services not covered anywhere else in G07F17/00 meter-controlled dispensing of liquid, gas or electricity G07F15/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/0235 the arrangements being full-front touchscreens
• 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 30/14 Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

When a user enters a destination using a touch panel display unit, a system control unit calculates a predicted travel distance from a present position to the destination, determines an electric vehicle having a remaining battery capacity required to travel the calculated predicted travel distance, and supplies the determined electric vehicle to the user.

Claims

1. An electric vehicle sharing system comprising:

a plurality of shared electric vehicles operable by electric power supplied from a battery;

a standby station for keeping said shared electric vehicles;

operating means for performing a lending process for the electric vehicles;

remaining battery capacity detecting means for detecting remaining battery capacities of the electric vehicles kept in said standby station; and

vehicle determining means for determining an electric vehicle to be lent to said user among the electric vehicles based on the detected remaining battery capacities.

2. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for determining an electric vehicle having a remaining battery capacity equal to or greater than a predetermined level as said electric vehicle to be lent to said user.

3. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 2, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for determining an electric vehicle having a minimum remaining battery capacity among a plurality of electric vehicles having remaining battery capacities equal to or greater than said predetermined level, as said electric vehicle to be lent to said user.

4. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 2, wherein said predetermined level comprises a battery capacity required for an electric vehicle to travel to a destination.

5. An electric vehicle sharing system comprising:

a plurality of shared electric vehicles operable by electric power supplied from a battery;

a standby station for keeping said shared electric vehicles;

operating means for performing a lending process for the electric vehicles;

destination entering means for entering the destination of a user of an electric vehicle;

remaining battery capacity detecting means for detecting remaining battery capacities of the electric vehicles kept in said standby station; and

vehicle determining means for determining an electric vehicle to be lent to said user among the electric vehicles based on the entered destination and the detected remaining battery capacities.

6. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 5, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for determining an electric vehicle having a maximum remaining battery as said electric vehicle to be lent if the destination of the user is not entered via said destination entering means.

7. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 6, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for indicating that no electric vehicle can be lent if there are no electric vehicles having a battery capacity equal to or greater than a predetermined level.

8. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 5, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for calculating a distance from said standby station to said destination, and determining the electric vehicle to be lent based on the calculated distance and the detected remaining battery capacities.

9. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 5, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for calculating a predicted route from said standby station to said destination, and determining the electric vehicle to be lent based on the distance along said predicted route and the detected remaining battery capacities.

10. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 9, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises map information holding means for holding map information covering said destination, and calculating the distance along said predicted route based on said map information.

11. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 5, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for calculating a battery capacity required for an electric vehicle to travel to said destination, and means for determining an electric vehicle having a remaining battery capacity greater than said calculated battery capacity as said electric vehicle to be lent.

12. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 11, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for determining an electric vehicle having a minimum remaining battery capacity greater than said calculated battery capacity as said electric vehicle to be lent.

13. An electric vehicle sharing system according to claim 11, wherein said vehicle determining means comprises means for indicating that no electric vehicle can be lent if there are no electric vehicles having a battery capacity equal to or greater than said calculated battery capacity.