Electric power supply system

• US 7,582,979 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2006
• Issued: 09/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Oyobe, Hichirosai, Ishikawa, Tetsuhiro, Minezawa, Yukihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Gonzalez; Julio
• Application Number:
  US11/920,056
• Publication Number:
  US 20090058097A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,204 Days
• Field of Search: 290/1.R, 290/4.A, 290/4.R, 290/1.A, 429/12, 429/13, 701/22, 701/36, 705/412, 320/109
• US Class Current: 290/1.00R
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/46 Series type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/20 AC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/16 with provision for separate direct mechanical propulsion
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/62 charged by low-power generators primarily intended to support the batteries, e.g. range extenders
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/68 Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 55/00 Arrangements for supplying energy stored within a vehicle to a power network, i.e. vehicle-to-grid [V2G] arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/40 for controlling a combination of batteries and fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/08 including control of electric propulsion units, e.g. motors or generators
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 20/00 Control systems specially adapted for hybrid vehicles hybrid vehicle design, B60K6/00; electric vehicles B60L
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2530/209 Fuel quantity remaining in tank
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00009 using pulsed signals
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/38 Arrangements for parallely feeding a single network by two or more generators, converters or transformers
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/1423 with multiple batteries
• 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 10/62 Hybrid vehicles
• 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: Y02T 90/40 : Application of hydrogen technology to transportation, e.g. using fuel cells
• 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 30/12 : Remote or cooperative charging
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/121 : using the power network as support for the transmission

Abstract

Vehicles are connected to respective receptacles of houses and are capable of generating commercial AC power to supply the generated electric power to a power transmission line. The vehicles communicate with a management server via the houses and the power transmission line. The vehicles output to the management server such information items concerning the vehicles as vehicle ID, amount of generated electric power and remaining amount of fuel. When electric power shortage occurs, the management server generates a start command and a power generation command for the vehicles based on the information concerning the vehicles to output the generated commands to the vehicles.

Claims

1. An electric power supply system comprising:

at least one vehicle capable of generating commercial electric power to supply the generated commercial electric power to the outside of the vehicle;

at least one connection apparatus provided correspondingly to said at least one vehicle and connecting said at least one vehicle to a commercial electric power system; and

a management apparatus managing electric power generation by said at least one vehicle connected to said commercial electric power system, wherein

said at least one vehicle each includes;

an electric power generation apparatus generating electric power from an energy source that is fuel;

an electric power generation unit generating, according to a given command, said commercial electric power by using the electric power generated by said electric power generation apparatus;

a communication apparatus communicating with said management apparatus; and

a control apparatus outputting to said communication apparatus a command for instructing to transmit information concerning the vehicle to said management apparatus and, according to a request from said management apparatus that is received via said communication apparatus, providing to said electric power generation unit a command for instructing to generate said commercial electric power,

said information includes a remaining amount of fuel of said electric power generation apparatus, and

when the remaining amount of fuel included in said information becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined amount, the remaining amount of fuel being included in said information received from the vehicle connected to said commercial electric power system, said management apparatus transmits to the vehicle a command for instructing to stop the generation of said commercial electric power.

2. The electric power supply system according to claim 1, wherein

said communication apparatus communicates with said management apparatus via said corresponding connection apparatus and said commercial electric power system.

3. The electric power supply system according to claim 1, wherein

said electric power generation apparatus includes:

an internal combustion engine; and

an electric power generator generating electric power by using motive power that is output from said internal combustion engine.

4. The electric power supply system according to claim 1, wherein

said electric power generation apparatus includes a fuel cell.

5. The electric power supply system according to claim 1, wherein

a plurality of said vehicles are connected to said commercial electric power system, and

according to an amount of electric power shortage of said commercial electric power system, said management apparatus selects from said plurality of vehicles a vehicle that is to be requested to supply said commercial electric power.

6. An electric power supply system comprising:

at least one vehicle capable of generating commercial electric power to supply the generated commercial electric power to the outside of the vehicle;

at least one connection means provided correspondingly to said at least one vehicle for connecting said at least one vehicle to a commercial electric power system; and

management means for managing electric power generation by said at least one vehicle connected to said commercial electric power system, wherein

said at least one vehicle each includes;

electric power generation means for generating electric power from an energy source that is fuel;

an electric power generation unit generating, according to a given command, said commercial electric power by using the electric power generated by said electric power generation means;

communication means for communicating with said management means; and

control means for outputting to said communication means a command for instructing to transmit information concerning the vehicle to said management means and, according to a request from said management means that is received via said communication means, providing to said electric power generation unit a command for instructing to generate said commercial electric power,

said information includes a remaining amount of fuel of said electric power generation means, and

when the remaining amount of fuel included in said information becomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined amount, the remaining amount of fuel being included in said information received from the vehicle connected to said commercial electric power system, said management means transmits to the vehicle a command for instructing to stop the generation of said commercial electric power.

7. The electric power supply system according to claim 6, wherein

said communication means communicates with said management means via said corresponding connection means and said commercial electric power system.

8. The electric power supply system according to claim 6, wherein

said electric power generation means includes:

an internal combustion engine; and

an electric power generator generating electric power by using motive power that is output from said internal combustion engine.

9. The electric power supply system according to claim 6, wherein

said electric power generation means includes a fuel cell.

10. The electric power supply system according to claim 6, wherein

a plurality of said vehicles are connected to said commercial electric power system, and

according to an amount of electric power shortage of said commercial electric power system, said management means selects from said plurality of vehicles a vehicle that is to be requested to supply said commercial electric power.