Method and apparatus for providing charging state alerts

• US 8,849,742 B2
• Filed: 01/24/2012
• Issued: 09/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Lovett, Karin, Dalrymple, Beth Ann, Hayes, David, Pham, Thanh Duc, Cardoso, Jesus, Acevski, Darko
• Primary Examiner(s): CHANG, LI WU
• Application Number:
  US13/357,072
• Publication Number:
  US 20130191321A1
• Time in Patent Office: 980 Days
• US Class Current: 706/58
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/00 Methods of charging batteries, specially adapted for electric vehicles; Charging stations or on-board charging equipment therefor; Exchange of energy storage elements in electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/53 Batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/60 Monitoring or controlling charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 5/04 Inference or reasoning models
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/085 using electronic data carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00716 in response to integrated charge or discharge current
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 Regulation of charging current or voltage
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

A computer implemented method includes determining whether a time of day corresponds to a charging window, responsive to a determination that a vehicle is in a non-charging state. The method also includes retrieving a start time and charge requirement for an upcoming journey. The method further includes determining if sufficient time remains to charge a vehicle to the charge requirement, responsive to a determination that the time of day corresponds to the charging window. Also, the method includes alerting a user to the non-charging state, responsive to a determination that insufficient time remains to charge the vehicle to the charge requirement.

Claims

1. A computer implemented process comprising:

determining whether a time of day corresponds to a charging window, responsive to a determination that a vehicle is in a non-charging state;

retrieving a start time and charge requirement for an upcoming journey;

determining if sufficient time remains to charge a vehicle to the charge requirement, responsive to a determination that the time of day corresponds to the charging window;

alerting a user to the non-charging state, responsive to a determination that insufficient time remains to charge the vehicle to the charge requirement; and

alerting a user that a charge requirement cannot be met, responsive to a determination that a point in time past which a charge requirement cannot be met was prior to or is within a threshold range of a current time.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the alerting the user further includes waiting until a predetermined period of non-charging time has passed, following the determination that the vehicle is in the non-charging state, prior to alerting the user of the non-charging condition.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, if the predetermined period of non-charging time does not pass in an uninterrupted block of the vehicle remaining in the non-charging state, an instance of the alerting is cancelled.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the alerting is further responsive to a determination that a vehicle is not currently charged to or above the charge requirement.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

approximating a start time based on observed previous behavior, if an attempt to retrieve a start time is unsuccessful.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

approximating a charge requirement based on observed previous behavior, if an attempt to retrieve a charge requirement is unsuccessful.

7. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium, storing instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the method comprising:

determining whether a time of day corresponds to a charging window, responsive to a determination that a vehicle is in a non-charging state;

retrieving a start time and charge requirement for an upcoming journey;

determining if sufficient time remains to charge a vehicle to the charge requirement, responsive to a determination that the time of day corresponds to the charging window;

alerting a user to the non-charging state, responsive to a determination that insufficient time remains to charge the vehicle to the charge requirement; and

alerting a user that a charge requirement cannot be met, responsive to a determination that a point in time past which a charge requirement cannot be met was prior to or is within a threshold range of a current time.

8. The machine readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the alerting the user further includes waiting until a predetermined period of non-charging time has passed, following the determination that the vehicle is in the non-charging state, prior to alerting the user of the non-charging condition.

9. The machine readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein, if the predetermined period of non-charging time does not pass in an uninterrupted block of the vehicle remaining in the non-charging state, an instance of the alerting is cancelled.

10. The machine readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the alerting is further responsive to a determination that a vehicle is not currently charged to or above the charge requirement.

11. The machine readable storage medium of claim 7, further comprising:

approximating a start time based on observed previous behavior, if an attempt to retrieve a start time is unsuccessful.

12. The machine readable storage medium of claim 7, further comprising:

approximating a charge requirement based on observed previous behavior, if an attempt to retrieve a charge requirement is unsuccessful.

13. A system comprising:

a processor, in communication with a vehicle network;

a local storage, in communication with the vehicle network;

a vehicle power source, in communication with the vehicle network; and

a transceiver, in communication with at least the processor, wherein the processor is configured to determine whether a time of day corresponds to a charging window, responsive to a determination that a vehicle is in a non-charging state, based at least in part on information retrieved from the vehicle network,

retrieve a start time and charge requirement for an upcoming journey from the local storage, determine if sufficient time remains to charge a vehicle to the charge requirement, responsive to a determination that the time of day corresponds to the charging window, based at least in part on a difference between a current time and the start time, and at least in part on an observed rate of charging,

alert a user to the non-charging state, responsive to a determination that insufficient time remains to charge the vehicle to the charge requirement, utilizing at least the transceiver to send a message for transmission to the user; and

alert a user that a charge requirement cannot be met, responsive to a determination that a point in time past which a charge requirement cannot be met was prior to or is within a threshold range of a current time.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor alerting the user further includes waiting until a predetermined period of non-charging time has passed, following the determination that the vehicle is in the non-charging state, prior to alerting the user of the non-charging condition.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein, if the predetermined period of non-charging time does not pass in an uninterrupted block of the vehicle remaining in the non-charging state, an instance of the processor alerting the user is cancelled.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor alerting the user is further responsive to a determination that a vehicle is not currently charged to or above the charge requirement.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to approximate a start time based on observed previous behavior, if an attempt to retrieve a start time is unsuccessful.