Network as Automation Platform for Collaborative E-Car Charging at the Residential Premises

• US 20120235646A1
• Filed: 09/09/2011
• Published: 09/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens Corp. (Siemens AG), Siemens Industry Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Lo, George, Ludwig, Hartmut, Dalloro, Livio, Terricciano, Paul, Al Faruque, Mohammad Abdullah, Contrael, Barry R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,957,634 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/137
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0013 acting upon several batteries simultaneously or sequentially H02J7/1423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/3225 Demand response systems, e.g. load shedding, peak shaving
• 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 10/92 Energy efficient charging or discharging systems for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors specially adapted for vehicles
• 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 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

A system and method are provided for the collaborative charging of electric vehicles. The collaborative charging manages the disbursement of power from a neighborhood transformer so as to increase the efficiency of electric vehicle charging at the residences without significantly altering the existing power distribution and residential infrastructures. Time-flexible loads are shed in order to efficiently allocate energy distribution without compromising the comfort or security of the user. The identities of individual residential power demands can be concealed to protect the user'"'"'s privacy or made available to further optimize power allocation. The power allocation negotiation may be performed in a residential local demand management client separate from the residential charging station.

Claims

1. A method for charging a plurality of electric vehicle batteries connected to a step-down transformer powering a plurality of residences, the method comprising:

determining a summation of a plurality of residential power demands, wherein;

at least one of the residential power demands is a charging of an electric vehicle battery,

the summation of the residential power demands is greater than an upper power limit of the transformer, and

identities of individual residential power demands are concealed;

at a beginning of a time slot, lessening the charging of at least one electric vehicle battery from the residential power demands so that a recalculated summation of the residential power demands does not exceed the upper power limit of the transformer;

charging the electric vehicle batteries according to the lessening for the duration of the time slot; and

repeating the above for subsequent time slots until the upper power limit of the transformer is sufficient for simultaneous operation of all residential power demands.

2. A method as in claim 1, wherein the lessening the charging results in shedding the charging of at least one electric vehicle battery.

3. A method as in claim 1, wherein the lessening the charging results in lowering an amperage supply to at least one electric vehicle battery.

4. A method as in claim 1, wherein the charging of each electric vehicle battery takes place in multiple non-consecutive time slots.

5. A method as in claim 1, wherein no electric vehicle battery is starved by the shedding.

6. A method for charging a plurality of electric vehicle batteries connected to a step-down transformer powering a plurality of residences, the method comprising:

identifying a plurality of residential power demands, wherein;

at least one of the residential power demands is a charging of an electric vehicle battery, and

a summation of the residential power demands is greater than an upper power limit of the transformer;

identifying a time-critical subset of the residential power demands and a time-flexible subset of the residential power demands, wherein the time-flexible subset includes the charging of the electric vehicle batteries;

allocating, at a beginning of a time slot, power from the transformer among all time-critical residential power demands and a portion of the time-flexible residential power demands so as not to exceed the upper power limit of the transformer for a duration of the time slot;

charging the electric vehicle batteries according to the allocating for the duration of the time slot; and

repeating the above for subsequent time slots until the upper power limit of the transformer is sufficient for simultaneous operation of all residential power demands.

7. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating the portion of the time-flexible residential power demands comprises lowering an amperage supply to at least one electric vehicle battery.

8. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating the portion of the time-flexible residential power demands comprises shedding at least one time-flexible residential power demand from the residential power demands.

9. A method as in claim 6, wherein the charging of each electric vehicle battery takes place in multiple non-consecutive time slots.

10. A method as in claim 6, wherein no residence is deprived of power for consecutive time slots.

11. A method as in claim 6, wherein at least one of the time-flexible residential power demands is operation of an HVAC system.

12. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating prioritizes a shedding of the charging of the electric vehicle batteries over a shedding of the remaining time-flexible residential power demands.

13. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating maximizes a number of the electric vehicle batteries being charged simultaneously.

14. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating minimizes demand peaks to the transformer.

15. A method as in claim 6, wherein no electric vehicle battery is starved by the allocating.

16. A method as in claim 6, wherein the identifying the residential power demands, the identifying the time-flexible residential power demands and the time-critical residential power demands, and the allocating power are performed by each of a plurality of local demand management clients, the local demand management clients synchronized at the beginning of each of the time slots.

17. A method as in claim 16, wherein the allocating is accomplished by voting by the local demand management clients.

18. A method as in claim 6, wherein the identifying the residential power demands, the identifying the time-flexible residential power demands and the time-critical residential power demands, and the allocating power are performed by a master local demand management client, the master local demand management client selected from a plurality of local demand management clients.

19. A method as in claim 6, wherein the allocating further comprises:

issuing a signal from a utility control center to the plurality of residences, wherein the signal is a utility-specific demand response signal or a pricing signal;

receiving the signal at the plurality of residences;

selecting an at least one preferred charging schedule at an at least one corresponding one of the plurality of residences based on the signal;

communicating the at least one preferred charging schedule to the utility control center; and

modifying the upper power limit according to the at least one preferred charging schedule.

20. A method for charging a plurality of electric vehicle batteries each connected to a corresponding one of a plurality of charging stations at a residence, the method comprising:

identifying a plurality of residential power demands, wherein;

at least one of the residential power demands is a charging of an electric vehicle battery, and

a summation of the residential power demands is greater than an upper power limit of the residence;

identifying a time-critical subset of the residential power demands and a time-flexible subset of the residential power demands, wherein the time-flexible subset includes the charging of the electric vehicle batteries;

allocating, at a beginning of a time slot, power to the residence among all time-critical residential power demands and a portion of the time-flexible residential power demands so as not to exceed the upper power limit of the residence for a duration of a time slot;

charging the electric vehicle batteries according to the allocating for the duration of the time slot; and

repeating the above for subsequent time slots until the upper power limit of the transformer is sufficient for simultaneous operation of all residential power demands.

21. A method as in claim 20, wherein the allocating the portion of the time-flexible residential power demands comprises lowering an amperage supply to at least one electric vehicle battery.

22. A method as in claim 20, wherein the allocating the portion of the time-flexible residential power demands comprises shedding at least one time-flexible residential power demand from the residential power demands.

23. A method as in claim 20, wherein the charging of each electric vehicle battery takes place in multiple non-consecutive time slots.

24. A method as in claim 20, wherein the allocating maximizes a number of the electric vehicle batteries being charged.

25. A method as in claim 20, wherein the allocating minimizes demand peaks at the residence.

26. A method as in claim 20, wherein no electric vehicle battery is starved by the allocating.

27. A method as in claim 20, wherein at least one of the time-flexible residential power demands is operation of an HVAC system.

28. A method as in claim 27, wherein the allocating activates the HVAC system in every alternative time slot.

29. A system for charging a plurality of electric vehicle batteries each electrically connected to a corresponding one of a plurality of charging stations at a residence, the system comprising a local demand management client located at the residence, wherein:

the local demand management client is separate from the charging stations;

the local demand management client is capable of monitoring and controlling residential power demands; and

the local demand management client is in communication with a plurality of appliances at the corresponding residence and in communication with the plurality of charging stations.

30. A system as in claim 29, wherein alterations to existing electrical and residential infrastructures are minimized.

31. A system as in claim 29, wherein the local demand management client is in communication with the plurality of appliances via a load control communication center.

32. A system as in claim 29, wherein the local demand management client is located in a gateway control device.

33. A system as in claim 29, wherein the local demand management client is in communication with a plurality of additional local demand management clients each associated with a plurality of additional residences electrically connected to a common step-down transformer.

34. A system as in claim 33, wherein the local demand management clients communicate with each other in a peer-to-peer network.

35. A system as in claim 33, wherein the local demand management clients are each located in a gateway control device in a corresponding one of the residences.

36. A system as in claim 33, further comprising a mechanism for obtaining a summation of residential power demands on the transformer such that identities of individual residential power demands are concealed, the mechanism in communication with the local demand management clients.

37. A system as in claim 36, wherein the mechanism is located at a utility control center.

38. A system as in claim 36, wherein the mechanism is a plurality of sensors each electrically connected to a corresponding one of a plurality of distribution lines at a neighborhood distribution pole, each distribution line electrically connected at one end to the transformer and at a second end to a corresponding one of a plurality of residences.