Information provision device and information provision method

• US 8,996,196 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2011
• Issued: 03/31/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Nakazawa, Takuji
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheung, Calvin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Martinez Borrero, Luis A
• Application Number:
  US13/641,823
• Publication Number:
  US 20130035804A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,448 Days
• Field of Search: 701/22, 701/1, 701/99, 701/29, 701/31.4, 701/34.4, 701/533, 701/113, 701/102, 320/108, 320/104, 320/145, 320/101, 320/150
• US Class Current: 701/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/3469 Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096716 where the received information does not generate an automatic action on the vehicle control
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/096775 where the origin of the information is a central station
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00036 Charger exchanging data with battery
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00047 with provisions for charging different types of batteries
• 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: 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: 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]

Abstract

In order to suppress charge amount shortage in a predetermined area, an information provision device has an acquisition means that acquires travelling information of an electric vehicle on which a secondary battery 204 is mounted; a charge output estimation means that estimates, on the basis of the travelling information, a charge output value of a charging device which is provided in a predetermined area; a judgment means that judges, on the basis of the estimated charge output value, whether there is a risk that shortage of a charge amount will occur in the predetermined area; and an information provision means that provides recommendation information concerning charge of the vehicle to the electric vehicle according to a judgment result of the judgment means.

Claims

1. An information provision device comprising:

an acquisition unit configured to acquire travelling information of an electric vehicle on which a secondary battery is mounted;

a charge output estimation unit configured to estimate, on the basis of the travelling information, a charge output value of a charging device which is provided in a predetermined area and charges the secondary battery of the electric vehicle, the charging device being separate from the electric vehicle and from the information provision device;

a judgment unit configured to judge, on the basis of the estimated charge output value, whether there is a risk that shortage of a charge amount of the charging device will occur in the predetermined area; and

an information provision unit configured to provide recommendation information concerning charge of the electric vehicle to the electric vehicle according to a judgment result of the judgment unit.

2. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes at least one of a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle, topographical information of a road on which the electric vehicle travels, traffic information of a road on which the electric vehicle travels or weather information of a place where the electric vehicle travels.

3. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the recommendation information includes at least one of position information of the charging device, information of a charge amount of the electric vehicle, information of type of the charging device, information of a travelling route of the electric vehicle, information of a waiting time of charge of the charging device or information of a charge time of the charging device.

4. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides position information of a charging device that is provided outside the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels toward the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide position information of the charging device that is provided outside the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels toward the predetermined area.

5. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides position information of a charging device that is provided outside the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels in the predetermined area and requires no charge in the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide position information of the charging device that is provided outside the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels in the predetermined area and requires no charge in the predetermined area.

6. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides information of a charge amount required to travel at least to an outside of the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is currently being charged in the predetermined area or an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide information of a charge amount required to travel at least to an outside of the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is currently being charged in the predetermined area or an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area.

7. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides information of type of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide information of type of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area.

8. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides information of a travelling route that does not include the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels toward the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide information of a travelling route that does not include the predetermined area, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that travels toward the predetermined area.

9. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides information of a waiting time of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide information of a waiting time of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area.

10. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the travelling information includes a remaining capacity of the secondary battery, information of a predetermined travelling route of the electric vehicle and position information of the electric vehicle, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit provides information of a charge time of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area, and

when the judgment unit judges that there is not the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, the information provision unit does not provide information of a charge time of the charging device, as the recommendation information, to an electric vehicle that is going to be charged in the predetermined area.

11. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the judgment unit is configured to judge that, when the charge output value is greater than a predetermined charge output threshold value, there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, and

the charge output threshold value is set on the basis of a rated output value of the charging device provided in the predetermined area.

12. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the judgment unit is configured to judge whether there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, on the basis of the charge output value, a maximum power supply value in the predetermined area and electric power demand except the charging device in the predetermined area.

13. The information provision device as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the judgment unit is configured to judge that, when the charge output value is greater than a predetermined charge output threshold value, there is the risk that shortage of the charge amount will occur in the predetermined area, and

the charge output threshold value is set on the basis of the travelling information.

14. An information provision method for a system including an information provision device, the method comprising:

a step that, by a CPU, the system acquires travelling information of an electric vehicle on which a secondary battery is mounted;

a step that, by a CPU, the system estimates, on the basis of the travelling information, a charge output value of a charging device which is provided in a predetermined area and charges the secondary battery of the electric vehicle, the charging device being separate from the electric vehicle and from the information provision device;

a step that, by a CPU, the system judges, on the basis of the estimated charge output value, whether there is a risk that shortage of a charge amount of the charging device will occur in the predetermined area; and

a step that, by a CPU, the system provides recommendation information concerning charge of the vehicle to the electric vehicle according to a judgment result.