Charging device for an electric vehicle, electric vehicle equipped with the charging device and control method for charging an electric vehicle

• US 8,063,605 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2006
• Issued: 11/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Ichishi, Masato, Oyobe, Hichirosai, Tonegawa, Hiromi, Fujitake, Yoshinori, Ishikawa, Tetsuhiro, Nakamura, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): TSO, EDWARD H
• Application Number:
  US12/085,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20090096416A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,813 Days
• Field of Search: 320/104, 320/107, 320/108, 320/115, 320/128
• US Class Current: 320/107
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 1/02 comprising more than one electric motor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/365 with the gears having orbital motion
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/445 Differential gearing distribution type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/007 Physical arrangements or structures of drive train converters specially adapted for the propulsion motors of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/54 Windings for different functions
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/62 Vehicle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/61 by batteries charged by engine-driven generators, e.g. series hybrid electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/22 Constructional details or arrangements of charging converters specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/24 Using the vehicle's propulsion converter for charging
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/30 Constructional details of charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• 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 53/665 Methods related to measuring, billing or payment
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/06 including control of combustion engines
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/24 including control of energy storage means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/26 for electrical energy, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/28 : including control of fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/00 : Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/15 : Control strategies specially adapted for achieving a particular effect
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2050/146 : Display means
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/244 : Charge state
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 : of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/007 : Regulation of charging or discharging current or voltage
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 : Regulation of charging current or voltage
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/62 : Hybrid vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 : Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• 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

An HV-ECU acquires electric power information from an electricity transmission line by using a modem. The electric power information includes information regarding the amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in the generating process of the commercial electric power supplied from an electricity transmission line. When the CO₂ emission amount is below a pre-set CO₂ emission amount, the HV-ECU inputs the commercial electric power, and outputs a command to charge an electricity storage device to a motive power output device, so that the motive power output device executes a charging control of the electricity storage device.

Claims

1. A charging device comprising:

an electric power input portion that receives a commercial electric power supplied from a commercial electric power source;

an electric power supply portion that supplies the commercial electric power input from the electric power input portion to an electricity storage device after converting the commercial electric power into such a state as to be able to charge the electricity storage device; and

a control portion that controls charging of the electricity storage device by the electric power supply portion on a basis of information regarding an amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating the commercial electric power.

2. The charging device according to claim 1, wherein the electric power supply portion is a voltage conversion portion constructed so as to be able to convert the commercial electric power input from the electric power input portion to a voltage level of the electricity storage device and charge the electricity storage device.

3. The charging device according to claim 2, further comprising a reception portion that receives the information regarding the amount of carbon dioxide which is transmitted via an electricity transmission line that transmits the commercial electric power.

4. The charging device according to claim 2, wherein the information includes the amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating the commercial electric power, and the control portion, when the amount of carbon dioxide included in the information is below a pre-set threshold value, outputs a command to charge the electricity storage device to the voltage conversion portion.

5. The charging device according to claim 2, wherein, the control portion, when the amount of carbon dioxide included in the information is below a pre-set threshold value and a price of the commercial electric power is below a pre-set price, outputs a command to charge the electricity storage device to the voltage conversion portion.

6. The charging device according to claim 2,

wherein the information includes a proportion accounted for by an electric power generated by a fire power generation in the commercial electric power, and

wherein the control portion, when the proportion is below a pre-set threshold value, outputs a command to charge the electricity storage device to the voltage conversion portion.

7. A mobile object comprising a charging device according to claim 1.

8. An electric vehicle comprising:

a chargeable-dischargeable electricity storage device;

an electric motor that generates a driving power of the vehicle by using an electric power from the electricity storage device;

an electric power input portion that receives a commercial electric power from a commercial electric power source;

a voltage conversion portion constructed so as to be able to convert the commercial electric power input from the electric power input portion to a voltage level of the electricity storage device and charge the electricity storage device; and

a control portion that controls charging of the electricity storage device by the electric power supply portion on a basis of information regarding an amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating the commercial electric power.

9. The electric vehicle according to claim 8, wherein the electric power supply portion is a voltage conversion portion constructed so as to be able to convert the commercial electric power input from the electric power input portion to a voltage level of the electricity storage device and charge the electricity storage device.

10. The electric vehicle according to claim 9, further comprising an internal combustion engine that operates as a motive power source of the vehicle,

wherein the control portion calculates an amount of carbon dioxide that the internal combustion engine emits.

11. The electric vehicle according to claim 8, further comprising a storage portion that stores information regarding the amount of carbon dioxide,

wherein the control portion further calculates a total emission amount of carbon dioxide on a basis of the information regarding the amount of carbon dioxide stored in the storage portion.

12. The electric vehicle according to claim 8, wherein the control portion further calculates a first amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in obtaining a vehicle driving power by the electric motor on a basis of an electric power consumption amount of the electric motor and a basic unit that represents the amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating a unit amount of the electric power stored in the electricity storage device.

13. The electric vehicle according to claim 12, further comprising an internal combustion engine that operates as a motive power source of the vehicle,

wherein the control portion further calculates a second amount of carbon dioxide that the internal combustion engine emits, and calculates a total emission amount of carbon dioxide by adding the calculated second amount of carbon dioxide to the first amount of carbon dioxide.

14. The electric vehicle according to claim 13, further comprising a communication device constructed so as to be able to communicate with an external device or the like outside the vehicle via the electric power input portion,

wherein when the electricity storage device is charged from the commercial electric power source, the communication device receives information regarding the amount of carbon dioxide transmitted from the external device or the like outside the vehicle via the electric power input portion, and transmits the total emission amount of carbon dioxide calculated by the control portion to the external device or the like outside the vehicle via the electric power input portion.

15. The electric vehicle according to claim 13, further comprising a indicating portion that indicates the total emission amount of carbon dioxide calculated by the control portion.

16. A charging control method comprising:

judging whether or not it is appropriate to charge an electricity storage device with commercial electric power on a basis of information regarding an amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating the commercial electric power; and

converting the commercial electric power into such a state as to be able to charge the electricity storage device, when it is judged that it is appropriate to charge the electricity storage device with the commercial electric power.

17. A charging control method of an electric vehicle equipped with an electric motor that generates a driving power of the vehicle by using an electric power from a chargeable-rechargeable electricity storage device, characterized by comprising:

judging whether or not it is appropriate to charge the electricity storage device with commercial electric power on a basis of information regarding an amount of carbon dioxide having been emitted in generating the commercial electric power; and

converting the commercial electric power into such a state as to be able to charge the electricity storage device, when it is judged that it is appropriate to charge the electricity storage device with the commercial electric power.