Vehicle

• US 9,834,109 B2
• Filed: 11/26/2013
• Issued: 12/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kosetsu, Shintaro
• Primary Examiner(s): Garbowski, Leigh
• Application Number:
  US14/647,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20150298569A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,470 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/20 for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/14 Synchronous machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/421 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/441 Speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/80 Time limits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/14 by input of vehicle departure time
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/58 Departure time prediction
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/12 Recording operating variables ; Monitoring of operating variables
• 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 53/00 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 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• 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 58/10 for monitoring or controlling batteries
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 Preventing overcharging
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0071 : with a programmable schedule
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/02 : for charging batteries from ac mains by converters
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 : Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• 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 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 vehicle is configured to carry out external charging operation in which an in-vehicle battery is charged with electric power from a device outside the vehicle. The vehicle includes the in-vehicle battery, a charger and a control device. The charger is configured to output electric power from the device outside the vehicle to the in-vehicle battery. The control device is configured to control the charger so that the external charging operation is completed by time set by a user. Furthermore, the control device is configured to preferentially allocate a period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out in order of a priority time period set by the user, an immediate time period immediately after the priority time period and a preceding time period immediately before the priority time period.

Claims

1. A vehicle configured to carry out external charging operation in which an in-vehicle battery is charged with electric power from a device outside the vehicle, the vehicle comprising:

the in-vehicle battery;

a charger configured to output electric power from the device outside the vehicle to the in-vehicle battery; and

a control device configured to control the charger so that the external charging operation is completed by a time set by a user, and configured to preferentially allocate a period of time during which an external charging operation is carried out in order of at least one priority time period set by the user, an immediate time period immediately after the at least one priority time period and a preceding time period immediately before the at least one priority time period, the priority time period set by the user being a time period in which the external charging operation is preferred to be carried out, wherein

when the control device determines that an amount of time required to complete the external charging operation is shorter than a total time of the at least one priority time period, the control device is configured to preferentially allocate the time during which the external charging operation is carried out to a latest part within the at least one priority time period, and

when the control device determines that an amount of time required to complete the external charging operation is longer than a total time of the at least one priority time period but shorter than a total time of the at least one priority time period plus the immediate time period, the control device is configured to preferentially allocate the time during which the external charging operation is carried out to an entirety of the at least one priority time period and an earliest part of the immediate time period.

2. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein

the control device is configured to, when the at least one priority time period is a plurality of priority time periods and when the required period of time is longer than the total time of the plurality of priority time periods and the time period immediately after a latest priority time period of the plurality of priority time periods and is shorter than a total time of the plurality of priority time periods, the time period immediately after the latest priority time period and the time period immediately before the latest priority time period, allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the entirety of the plurality of priority time periods, an entirety of the time period immediately after the latest priority time period and a part of the time period immediately before the latest priority time period, the part being adjacent to the latest priority time period.

3. The vehicle according to claim 2, wherein

the control device is configured to, when the required period of time is longer than the total time of the plurality of priority time periods, immediate time periods respectively immediately after the corresponding priority time periods and preceding time periods respectively immediately before the corresponding priority time periods and is shorter than a total time of the plurality of priority time periods, the immediate time periods, the preceding time periods and another time period, allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the entirety of the plurality of priority time periods, an entirety of the immediate time periods, an entirety of the preceding time periods and a part of the another time period, and

the control device is configured to set the another time period as a time period that excludes the entirety of the priority time periods, the entirety of the immediate time periods, the entirety of the preceding time periods and the charging prohibited time period from a time period between present time and estimated charging completion time.

4. The vehicle according to claim 3, wherein

the control device is configured to, when the required period of time is longer than the total time of the plurality of priority time periods, the immediate time periods, the preceding time periods and the another time period, allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the entirety of the plurality of priority time periods, the entirety of the immediate time periods, the entirety of the preceding time periods and an entirety of the another time period.

5. The vehicle according to claim 2, wherein

the control device is configured to, when the control device allocates the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the part of another time period and when the another time period is adjacent to the priority time period other than the latest priority time period, preferentially allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to an adjacent part to the priority time period other than the latest priority time period and,

the control device is configured to, when the control device allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the part of the another time period and when the another time period is not adjacent to the priority time period other than the latest priority time period, preferentially allocates the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to a later part of the another time period.

6. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein

the control device is configured not to allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to a charging prohibited time period, when the charging prohibited time period is set by the user.

7. A vehicle configured to carry out external charging operation in which an in-vehicle battery is charged with electric power from a device outside the vehicle, the vehicle comprising:

the in-vehicle battery;

a charger configured to output electric power from the device outside the vehicle to the in-vehicle battery; and

a control device configured to

control the charger so that the external charging operation is completed by a time set by a user, and configured to preferentially allocate a period of time during which an external charging operation is carried out in order of at least one priority time period set by the user, an immediate time period immediately after the at least one priority time period and a preceding time period immediately before the at least one priority time period, the priority time period set by the user being a time period in which the external charging operation is preferred to be carried out, wherein

when the control device determines that an amount of time required to complete the external charging operation is shorter than a total time of the at least one priority time period, the control device is configured to preferentially allocate the time during which the external charging operation is carried out to a latest part within the at least one priority time period, and

when the control device determines that an amount of time required to complete the external charging operation is longer than a total time of the at least one priority time period but shorter than a total time of the at least one priority time period plus the immediate time period, the control device is configured to preferentially allocate the time during which the external charging operation is carried out to an entirety of the at least one priority time period and an earliest part of the immediate time period

when the required period of time is longer than a total time of the priority time period, the immediate time period and the preceding time period and is shorter than the total time of the priority time period, the immediate time period, the preceding time period and another time period, allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to an entirety of the priority time period, an entirety of the immediate time period, an entirety of the preceding time period and a later part of the another time period, and

set the another time period as a time period that excludes the entirety of the priority time periods, the entirety of the immediate time periods, the entirety of the preceding time periods and a charging prohibited time period set by the user from a time period between present time and estimated charging completion time.

8. The vehicle according to claim 7, wherein

the control device is configured to, when the required period of time is longer than the total time of the priority time period, the immediate time period, the preceding time period and the another time period, allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to the entirety of the priority time period, the entirety of the immediate time period, the entirety of the preceding time period and an entirety of the another time period.

9. The vehicle according to claim 7, wherein

the control device is configured not to allocate the period of time during which the external charging operation is carried out to a charging prohibited time period when the charging prohibited time period is set by the user.