Charging control device to prevent supplied power from exceeding contract demand

• US 9,293,938 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2012
• Issued: 03/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kasaya, Masato, Ueno, Satoru
• Primary Examiner(s): Levin, Naum B
• Application Number:
  US14/114,585
• Publication Number:
  US 20140062419A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,405 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/80 Time limits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0069 relating to the isolation, e.g. ground fault or leak current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/04 Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/18 Cables specially adapted for charging electric vehicles
• 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: B60L 53/68 Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/12 The local stationary network supplying a household or a building
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 Regulation of charging current or voltage
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• 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
• 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 20/222 : Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/12 : Remote or cooperative charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

When a communication control unit (14) in this charging control device (1) receives an inhibition command sent by a power monitoring device (2), the communication control unit instructs a signal processing unit (10) to lower a current capacity (an upper limit for a charging current). The signal processing unit (10) reduces the duty ratio of a pilot signal. As a result, the charging power supplied to an electric vehicle (200) decreases, thus making it possible to prevent the supplied power from exceeding a contract demand and minimize problems stemming from the charging of a rechargeable battery.

Claims

1. A charging control system, comprising:

one or more charging control devices, each of the charging control devices being configured to control charging of a battery with a supply power supplied from a power system and including an adjusting unit configured to adjust a charging power supplied to the battery such that the supply power is equal to or lower than a threshold value;

a power monitoring device configured to monitor the supply power; and

a notification device connected to the power monitoring device and including an operation unit;

wherein, in response to a manipulation of the operation unit, the notification device generates a charging forbidding command or a charging forbiddance canceling command and, in response thereto, the charging of the battery is enabled and disabled by each of the charging control devices.

2. The charging control system of claim 1, wherein the adjusting unit adjusts the charging power by instructing a change of an upper limit of a charging current of the battery.

3. The charging control system of claim 2,

wherein the power monitoring device includes:

a measuring unit configured to measure a supply current supplied from the power system; and

a control unit configured to calculate a value of the supply power based on the measured supply current and notify the charging control devices of the calculated value of the supply power.

4. The charging control system of claim 3, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit sets a priority order with respect to the charging control devices, and first adjusts the charging power of the charging control device with a lower priority order.

5. The charging control system of claim 3, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit uniformly adjusts the charging powers of the charging control devices.

6. The charging control system of claim 3, wherein the notification device is configured to notify stage-by-stage a state in which the adjusting unit adjusts the charging power.

7. The charging control system of claim 2,

wherein the power monitoring device includes:

a measuring unit configured to measure a supply current supplied from the power system; and

a control unit configured to calculate a value of the supply power based on the measured supply current and control the adjusting unit to adjust the charging power such that the calculated value of the supply power is equal to or lower than the threshold value.

8. The charging control system of claim 7, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit sets a priority order with respect to the charging control devices, and first adjusts the charging power of the charging control device with a lower priority order.

9. The charging control system of claim 7, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit uniformly adjusts the charging powers of the charging control devices.

10. The charging control system of claim 7, wherein the notification device is configured to notify stage-by-stage a state in which the adjusting unit adjusts the charging power.

11. The charging control system of claim 1,

wherein the power monitoring device includes:

a measuring unit configured to measure a supply current supplied from the power system; and

a control unit configured to calculate a value of the supply power based on the measured supply current and notify the charging control devices of the calculated value of the supply power.

12. The charging control system of claim 11, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit sets a priority order with respect to the charging control devices, and first adjusts the charging power of the charging control device with a lower priority order.

13. The charging control system of claim 11, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit uniformly adjusts the charging powers of the charging control devices.

14. The charging control system of claim 11, wherein the notification device is configured to notify stage-by-stage a state in which the adjusting unit adjusts the charging power.

15. The charging control system of claim 14, wherein the notification device notifies the measured value of the supply power.

16. The charging control system of claim 1,

wherein the power monitoring device includes:

a measuring unit configured to measure a supply current supplied from the power system; and

a control unit configured to calculate a value of the supply power based on the supply current measured by the measuring unit and control the adjusting unit to adjust the charging power such that the calculated value of the supply power is equal to or lower than the threshold value.

17. The charging control system of claim 16, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit sets a priority order with respect to the charging control devices, and first adjusts the charging power of the charging control device with a lower priority order.

18. The charging control system of claim 16, wherein-the number of the charging control devices is two or more and the control unit uniformly adjusts the charging powers of the charging control devices.

19. The charging control system of claim 16, wherein the notification device is configured to notify stage-by-stage a state in which the adjusting unit adjusts the charging power.

20. The charging control system of claim 19, wherein the notification device notifies the measured value of the supply power.