Power grid load management for plug-in vehicles

• US 8,278,881 B2
• Filed: 07/22/2011
• Issued: 10/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Original Assignee: GM Global Technology Operations LLC (General Motors Company)
• Inventors: Woody, George R., Welchko, Brian A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fantu, Yalkew
• Application Number:
  US13/189,442
• Publication Number:
  US 20110282535A1
• Time in Patent Office: 438 Days
• Field of Search: 320/162
• US Class Current: 320/162
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 6/48 Parallel type
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/12 Induction machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/14 Synchronous machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/18 Reluctance machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/20 DC electrical machines
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/545 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/547 Voltage
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/549 Current
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/62 Vehicle position
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/622 by satellite navigation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/72 Charging station selection relying on external data
• 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 53/63 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 53/665 Methods related to measuring, billing or payment
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/68 : Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/15 : Preventing overcharging
• 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 10/26 : for electrical energy, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 10/28 : including control of fuel cells
• 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 20/13 : in order to stay within battery power input or output limits; in order to prevent overcharging or battery depletion
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2510/244 : Charge state
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/45 : External transmission of data to or from the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 2556/50 : of positioning data, e.g. GPS [Global Positioning System] data
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/44 : Methods for charging or discharging circuits for charging H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/48 : Accumulators combined with arrangements for measuring, testing or indicating the condition of cells, e.g. the level or density of the electrolyte constructional details of current conducting connections for detecting conditions inside cells or batteries, e.g. details of voltage sensing terminals, H01M50/569
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00002 : characterised by monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00024 : by means of mobile telephony
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 13/00026 : involving a local wireless network, e.g. Wi-Fi, ZigBee or Bluetooth
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 : for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/60 : Limiting power consumption in the network or in one section of the network, e.g. load shedding or peak shaving
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/14 : by switching loads on to, or off from, network, e.g. progressively balanced loading
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/00 : Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 : Energy storage using batteries
• 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 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

Methods and systems are provided for controlling the charging of an onboard energy storage system of a plug-in vehicle using a remote command center, such as a vehicle telematics service. An embodiment of such a method involves the transmission of a charge request for the onboard energy storage system to a remote command center associated with the plug-in vehicle. In response to the charge request, a charge command is received from the remote command center. The charging of the onboard energy storage system is regulated in accordance with the received charge command, which may be a charge enable command or a charge disable command.

Claims

1. A method of controlling charging of an onboard energy storage system of a plug-in vehicle, the method comprising:

wirelessly receiving, from the plug-in vehicle and using a cellular network service, a charge request for the onboard energy storage system, wherein the charge request is wirelessly received at a remote vehicle telematics system that supports bidirectional wireless data transfer with the plug-in vehicle;

obtaining vehicle location data that indicates a location of the plug-in vehicle, the vehicle location data conveyed in the charge request;

identifying, based on the vehicle location data, a power grid architecture to which the plug-in vehicle is connected;

analyzing current power loading conditions for the power grid architecture;

determining, from the charge request and the current power loading conditions, whether to charge the onboard energy storage system; and

in response to the determining step, transmitting charge commands to the plug-in vehicle using the cellular network service, the charge commands comprising data that regulates charging of the onboard energy storage system, wherein the charge commands are influenced by the vehicle location data and by the current power loading conditions for the power grid architecture.

2. The method of claim 1, the charge commands comprising a charge enable command for the onboard energy storage system.

3. The method of claim 1, the charge commands comprising a charge disable command for the onboard energy storage system.

4. The method of claim 1, the charge request comprising priority data that indicates a relative charging priority for the plug-in vehicle, wherein the priority data influences the step of determining whether to charge the onboard energy storage system.

5. A system for controlling charging of onboard energy storage systems of plug-in vehicles, each of the plug-in vehicles comprising a charge control module for its onboard energy storage system, the system comprising:

a remote vehicle telematics center configured to support bidirectional wireless data communication with the plug-in vehicles;

a power grid architecture for delivery of electrical energy; and

chargers coupled to the power grid architecture, the chargers being configured to provide charging energy from the power grid architecture to the onboard energy storage systems of the plug-in vehicles;

wherein

the remote vehicle telematics center is configured to remotely regulate charging of the onboard energy storage systems of the plug-in vehicles using charge commands transmitted from the remote vehicle telematics center to the plug-in vehicles, wherein the remote vehicle telematics system is configured to;

wirelessly receive charge requests from the plug-in vehicles using a cellular network service, each charge request conveying vehicle location data that indicates a location of a plug-in vehicle;

identify, based on the vehicle location data, a power grid architecture to which the plug-in vehicle is connected;

analyze current power loading conditions for the power grid architecture;

determine, from the charge request and the current power loading conditions, that an onboard energy storage system of the plug-in vehicle should be charged; and

wirelessly transmit charge commands to the plug-in vehicle using the cellular network service, the charge commands comprising data that regulates charging of the onboard energy storage system of the plug-in vehicle.

6. The system of claim 5, the remote vehicle telematics center being configured to transmit charge enable commands for processing by the charge control modules of the plug-in vehicles, the charge enable commands activating a charging state of the onboard energy storage systems.

7. The system of claim 5, the remote vehicle telematics center being configured to transmit charge disable commands for processing by the charge control modules of the plug-in vehicles, the charge disable commands activating a non-charging state of the onboard energy storage systems.

8. The system of claim 5, the remote vehicle telematics center being configured to generate a charging schedule for plug-in vehicles coupled to the power grid architecture, the charging schedule being influenced by power load conditions for the power grid architecture.