Adjusting electrified vehicle operation to balance electrical grid

• US 10,164,433 B2
• Filed: 01/19/2016
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Miller, Kenneth James, Martin, Douglas Raymond, Kapadia, Jimmy
• Primary Examiner(s): Chen, Sibin
• Application Number:
  US15/000,312
• Publication Number:
  US 20170207626A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,071 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00022 using wireless data transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/06 Controlling transfer of power between connected networks; Controlling sharing of load between connected networks
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/322 the battery being on-board an electric or hybrid vehicle, e.g. vehicle to grid arrangements [V2G], power aggregation, use of the battery for network load balancing, coordinated or cooperative battery charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• 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 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 10/14 Energy storage units
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/126 using wireless data transmission

Abstract

A method for balancing electrical grid production with electrical grid demand, according to an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure includes, among other things, adjusting operation of an engine of an electrified vehicle during a drive event to either conserve a state of charge of a battery pack in response to a first grid condition of an electrical grid or deplete the state of charge of the battery pack in response to a second grid condition of the electrical grid.

Claims

1. A method for balancing electrical grid production with electrical grid demand, comprising:

adjusting operation of an engine of an electrified vehicle during a drive event to either conserve or increase a state of charge of a battery pack in response to a first grid condition of an electrical grid or deplete the state of charge of the battery pack in response to a second grid condition of the electrical grid.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the first grid condition is an energy shortage of the electrical grid and the second grid condition is an energy surplus of the electrical grid.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, comprising adding power from the battery pack to the electrical grid at next plug event if the electrical grid has the energy shortage.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, comprising accepting power from the electrical grid to charge the battery pack at next plug event if the electrical grid has the energy surplus.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, comprising:

communicating vehicle data to the electrical grid prior to the adjusting step, the first grid condition and the second grid condition determined at least partially based on the vehicle data.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the first grid condition and the second grid condition are additionally determined based at least on a weather forecast.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, comprising:

confirming whether a wireless grid signal has been received by the electrified vehicle from the electrical grid.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, comprising:

determining whether the wireless grid signal indicates an energy shortage or an energy surplus.

9. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein, if the wireless grid signal indicates an energy shortage, the adjusting step includes:

increasing a power output of the engine or increasing a run time of the engine during the drive event.

10. The method as recited in claim 9, comprising:

adding energy from the battery pack to the electrical grid at next plug event to address the energy shortage.

11. The method as recited in claim 8, wherein, if the wireless grid signal indicates an energy surplus, the adjusting step includes:

decreasing a power output of the engine or decreasing a run time of the engine during the drive event.

12. The method as recited in claim 11, comprising:

charging the battery pack using energy from the electrical grid at next plug event.

13. The method as recited in claim 1, comprising:

actuating the engine ON during the drive event in response to an energy shortage condition of the electrical grid.

14. The method as recited in claim 1, comprising:

decreasing a power output of the engine or decreasing a run time of the engine during the drive event in response to an energy surplus condition of the electrical grid.

15. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the electrified vehicle is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

16. An electrified vehicle, comprising:

a set of drive wheels;

a battery pack configured to selectively power said drive wheels;

an engine configured to selectively power said drive wheels; and

a control system configured with instructions for adjusting operation of said engine during a drive event based on grid conditions of an electrical grid for balancing said-electrical grid.

17. The electrified vehicle as recited in claim 16, wherein said control system is configured to receive a wireless grid signal from said electrical grid, said wireless grid signal including said instructions.

18. The electrified vehicle as recited in claim 16, comprising a charging system configured to connect said battery pack to said electrical grid.

19. The electrified vehicle as recited in claim 16, wherein said control system is configured to run said engine during an energy shortage condition of said electrical grid and restrict operation of said engine during an energy surplus condition of said electrical grid.

20. The electrified vehicle as recited in claim 16, wherein said control system includes a transceiver configured to communicate with said electrical grid over a cloud.

21. A method, comprising:

adjusting operation of an engine of an electrified vehicle to conserve or increase a state of charge of a battery pack, including;

increasing a power output or run time of the engine during a drive event in response to an energy shortage of an electrical grid; and

decreasing the power output or the run time of the engine during the drive event in response to an energy surplus of the electrical grid.