Method and control device for charging a battery of a vehicle

• US 9,744,873 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2012
• Issued: 08/29/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG), Volkswagen AG
• Original Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG), Volkswagen AG
• Inventors: Riley, Jessica, Camhi, Jaime, Tippelhofer, Mario, Kwong, Karric
• Primary Examiner(s): SMITH, JELANI A
• Application Number:
  US13/547,332
• Publication Number:
  US 20130096751A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,874 Days
• Field of Search: 701 22, 701123, 701 291, 701 36, 701408, 701439, 701537, 703 18, 705 17, 705 261, 320101, 320106, 320109
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/68 Traffic data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/72 Charging station selection relying on external data
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/12 by confirmation, e.g. of the input
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/18 by enquiring driving style
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/20 by driver identification
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/52 drive range estimation, e.g. of estimation of available travel distance
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/54 Energy consumption estimation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/12 Recording operating variables ; Monitoring of operating variables
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• 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 58/12 responding to state of charge [SoC]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• 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 10/126 : the energy generation units being or involving electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV], i.e. power aggregation of EV or HEV, vehicle to grid arrangements [V2G]
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

A method for charging a battery of a vehicle including at least one electric power train, the battery adapted to supply electrical energy to the electric power train, includes: predicting a charging location for charging the battery after at least one next trip of the vehicle; and transmitting the charging location to a power grid.

Claims

1. A method for charging a battery of a vehicle including at least one electric power train, the battery adapted to supply electrical energy to the electric power train, comprising:

predicting, by a processing unit within the vehicle, an existing charging location for charging the battery after at least one next trip of the vehicle, wherein the predicted existing charging location is based, at least in part, on traffic data and load on a power grid;

transmitting, by a transmitter, the predicted existing charging location to the power grid;

receiving, at the processing unit, a plurality of energy rates from the power grid based on the transmitted predicted existing charging location;

reserving, with the processing unit, the predicted existing charging location at a desired energy rate;

coupling the battery, by a plug-in connector, to the power grid at the predicted existing charging location; and

providing power to charge the battery by the plug-in connector at the reserved desired energy rate.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the predicting of the charging location includes predicting a required charge amount and/or a charging time window for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle, and wherein the transmitting of the charging location includes transmitting the required charge amount and/or the charging time window to the power grid.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the predicting of the required charge amount, the charging location, and the charging time window includes:

receiving the required time window and the charging location from a user of the vehicle; and

predicting the required charge amount for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle based on the received required time window and the charging location.

4. The method according to claim 2, further comprising determining power grid parameters based on the required charge amount, the charging location, and the charging time window.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the power grid parameters includes cost for the required electrical charge, availability of the required electrical charge, availability of a charging station at the charging location, a charging profile for providing the required electrical charge, an alternative charging location, an alternative charging time window, an alternative charging profile, and/or an alternative cost for the electrical charge at the alternative charging location, alternative charging time window, and/or alternative charging profile.

6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising:

displaying the power grid parameters to a user of the vehicle;

selecting at least a charging location and a charging time window from the power grid parameters; and

transmitting a reservation for charging to the power grid based on the selected power grid parameters.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the selecting is performed by a user of the vehicle.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the predicting of the charging location includes:

providing previous data of previous trips of the vehicle; and

predicting the charging location for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle based on the previous data.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the previous data includes data of a former charging location, a former driving route, a former driving style of at least one driver of the vehicle, and/or a former driving time schedule.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the traffic data includes current traffic data of a planned route of the vehicle and/or within a predefined range around the vehicle.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the traffic data is obtained from a traffic database server which is connected via a wireless communication to a navigation system of the vehicle.

12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising charging the vehicle according to a charging profile, the charging rate varying over time based on the load on the power grid.

13. A control device for charging a battery of a vehicle including at least one electric power train, the battery adapted to supply electrical energy to the electric power train, comprising:

a processing unit of the vehicle adapted to predict an existing charging location for charging the battery after at least one next trip of the vehicle, wherein the predicted existing charging location is based, at least in part, on traffic data and load on a power grid;

a transmitter adapted to transmit the predicted existing charging location to the power grid; and

a plug-in connector adapted to couple the battery to the power grid at the predicted existing charging location, and adapted to provide power to charge the battery,

wherein;

the processing unit is further configured to (i) receive a plurality of energy rates from the power grid based on the transmitted predicted existing charging location and (ii) reserve the predicted existing charging location at a desired energy rate, and

the power to charge the battery is provided at the reserved desired energy rate.

14. The control device according to claim 13, wherein the processing unit is adapted to predict a required charge amount and/or a charging time window for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle, and the transmitter is adapted to transmit the required charge amount and/or the charging time window to the power grid.

15. The control device according to claim 14, further comprising a user input unit adapted to receive the required time window and the charging location from a user of the vehicle, the processing unit adapted to predict the required charge amount for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle based on the received required time window and charging location.

16. The control device according to claim 14, further comprising a receiver adapted to receive power grid parameters determined by the power grid based on the required charge amount, the charging location, and the charging time window.

17. The control device according to claim 16, wherein the power grid parameters include cost for the required electrical charge, availability of the required electrical charge, availability of a charging station at the charging location, a charging profile for providing the required electrical charge, an alternative charging location, an alternative charging time window, an alternative charging profile, and/or an alternative cost for the electrical charge at the alternative charging location, the alternative charging time window, and/or the alternative charging profile.

18. The control device according to claim 16, further comprising:

a display unit adapted to display the power grid parameters to a user of the vehicle; and

an user input unit adapted to receive from the user a selection of at least a charging location and a charging time window from the power grid parameters;

wherein the transmitter is adapted to transmit a reservation for charging to the power grid based on the selected power grid parameters.

19. The control device according to claim 13, further comprising a previous data unit adapted to determine and store previous data of previous trips of the vehicle, the processing unit adapted to predict the charging location for charging the battery after the at least one next trip of the vehicle based on the previous data from the previous data unit.

20. The control device according to claim 19, wherein the previous data includes data relating to a former charging location, a former driving route, a former driving style of at least one driver, and/or a former driving time schedule.