SEG (smart energy gateway) for optimized energy flow control

• US 8,401,779 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2010
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lear Corporation
• Inventors: Troncoso, Ignacio Alvarez, Fabregas, Antoni Ferre, Fernandez, Jose Gabriel
• Primary Examiner(s): Danneman, Paul
• Application Number:
  US12/782,220
• Publication Number:
  US 20100312430A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,036 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/123
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/03 for supply of electrical power to vehicle subsystems or for circuit arrangements for charging batteries H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 1/10 Parallel operation of dc sources
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/46 for ICE-powered road vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/35 with light sensitive cells

Abstract

A smart energy gateway (SEG) operable to optimize energy consumption in a manner that optionally reduces user costs and/or emissions. The SEG may include a controller operable to manage energy distribution between one or more sources and one or more loads include within a vehicle according to one or more energy distribution schedules, such as but not limited to energy distribution schedules weight according to monetary and/or emission-based valuation metrics.

Claims

1. A controller for managing distribution of electrical energy within a vehicle having a solar energy source operable to generate electric energy from solar energy, a byproduct energy source operable to generate electric energy from “

free”

energy created by operation of the vehicle, an alternator operable to generate electric energy from operation of a fuel-driven engine, and at least one passive energy source operable to store electrical energy and output previously stored electrical energy, the controller being operable to;

determine an amount of current available from each of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source based on current vehicle operating conditions, including vehicle speed;

determine a cost to provide the amount of current from each of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source for the current vehicle operating conditions, the cost for at least one or more of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source being determined to be greater when the vehicle speed is a first vehicle speed than when the vehicle speed is a second vehicle speed;

determine a current demand of one or more current consuming vehicle systems for the current vehicle operating conditions;

identify at least two schedules for meeting the current demand, each schedule including a different combination of at least one of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source providing at least a portion of the amount of current available therefrom; and

manage distribution of current according to the one of the at least two schedules having a lowest cost based on the cost to provide current determined for each of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source.

2. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to determine the cost to provide the amount of current from the alternator based on a cost of a fuel used by the fuel-driven engine to generate the amount of current.

3. The controller of claim 2 being further operable to determine the cost of the fuel from signals generated by a user interface included with the vehicle in response to user inputs.

4. The controller of claim 2 being further operable to determine the cost of the fuel from a wireless message provided from a fuel source used to fill a fuel tank of the vehicle from which the fuel used by the fuel-driven engine is taken.

5. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to determine the cost to provide the amount of current from the passive energy source according to a cost previously accumulated to charge the passive energy source.

6. The controller of claim 5 being further operable to:

update the cost to provide the amount of current from the passive energy source after each time current is provided to the passive energy source as part of a charging event, the updated cost equaling an average cost for a predefined number of charging events; and

operable to set the predefined number of charging events to equal the number of previous charging events undertaken to achieve a current state of charge (SOC) of the passive energy source.

7. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to determine the cost to provide the amount of current from the solar energy source to be zero regardless of the amount of current available from the solar energy source.

8. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to determine the passive energy source to be included as one of the vehicle systems requiring current, and at least part of the current demand, whenever a state of charge (SOC) of the passive energy sources is below a predefined threshold and more current is available than the current demanded by the other vehicle systems.

9. The controller of claim 8 being further operable to determine the predefined threshold as a function of at least one of an age of the passive energy source, a temperature of the passive energy source, and an amount of current needed from the passive energy source to re-start the fuel-driven engine.

10. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to manage distribution of the current according to the one of the at least two schedules other than the schedule having the lowest cost based on an anticipated driving terrain of the vehicle, the cost for at least one or more of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source being determined to be greater when the anticipated driving terrain is a first terrain type than when the anticipated driving terrain is a second terrain type.

11. The controller of claim 10 being further operable with a global position system (GPS) used by the vehicle for navigation to determine the anticipated driving terrain of the vehicle.

12. The controller of claim 11 being further operable to determine based at least in part on the GPS whether the vehicle is to engage in highway driving or city driving, the controller operable to manage distribution of current according to the one of the at least two schedules other than the schedule having the lowest cost only in the event the vehicles is to engage in city driving, the first terrain type being highway driving and the second terrain type being city driving.

13. The controller of claim 1 being further operable to determine the cost to provide the amount of current from each of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source for the current vehicle operating conditions from a cost table, the cost table cross-referencing differing costs for at least one or more of the solar energy source, the byproduct energy source, the alternator, and the passive energy source to provide current at each of the first and second vehicle speeds.

14. A controller for managing distribution of electrical energy within a vehicle having a plurality of energy sources and a plurality of loads, the plurality of loads being powered by energy from the plurality of energy sources, the vehicle including a battery configured to be one of the energy source san done of the loads, the controller being operable to:

determine an amount of current available from each of the plurality of energy sources;

determine an emissions cost to provide the amount of current from each of the plurality of energy sources;

determine a current demand for each to be powered load for present vehicle operating conditions;

generate at least a first schedule and a second schedule for meeting the current demand at the present vehicle operating conditions, each of the first schedule and the second schedule including a different combination of at least one of the plurality of energy sources providing current, wherein a total emissions cost for the first schedule is greater than a total emissions cost for the second schedule, the total emissions cost for each of the first schedule and the second schedule comprising a summation of emissions costs associated with each of the plurality of energy sources providing current for the corresponding one of the first and second schedules; and

manage distribution of current according to the second schedule when a state of charge (SOC) of the battery is at least equal to a threshold SOC and according to the first schedule when the SOC is less than the threshold SOC.

15. The controller of claim 14 being further operable to determine at least a first load to be demanding current for the present vehicle conditions and to generate the first schedule such that the first load disconnected to prevent the first load from drawing current in order to in order to prioritize charging of the battery, the second schedule including providing current to the first load.

16. The controller of claim 14 being further operable to generate the first schedule based on an anticipated driving terrain of the vehicle such that the total emissions cost for the first schedule is a first amount when the anticipated driving terrain is downhill and a second amount when the anticipated driving train is uphill, the first amount being less than the second amount.

17. The controller of claim 14 being further operable to generate the first schedule based on a historical driving pattern for a driver identified to be currently driving the vehicle such that the total missions cost for the first schedule is a first amount when the driver is a first driver and a second amount when the identified driver is a second driver, the first amount being less than the second amount.

18. A smart energy gateway (SEG) for use in a vehicle having a plurality of energy sources and a plurality of loads, the SEG comprising

a plurality of power switches that are controlled by commands to control energy flow in the vehicle between the plurality of energy sources and the plurality of loads;

and

a controller operable to;

(i) determine an amount of current available from each of the plurality of energy sources;

(ii) determine a cost to provide the amount of current from each of the plurality of energy sources;

(iii) determine a current demand for each to be powered load;

(iv) generate a plurality of schedules for meeting the current demand, each schedule including a different combination of at least one of the plurality of energy sources providing at least a portion of the amount of current available from each; and

(v) command the plurality of power switches according to the one of the plurality of schedules having a lowest cost, wherein the schedule determined to have the lowest cost varies according to a current vehicle speed such that one of the schedules determined to have the lowest cost at a first vehicle speed is different from another one of the schedules determined to have the lowest cost at a second vehicle speed.

19. The SEG of claim 18 wherein the controller is further operable to:

(i) determine an emissions cost to provide the amount of current from each of the plurality of energy sources; and

(ii) to manage distribution of current according to the one of the at least two schedules having a lowest emissions cost in the event at least two of the plurality of schedules have approximately the same cost.

20. The SEG of claim 18 wherein the controller is further operable to assign a zero cost to at least one of the plurality of sources.