Charging control apparatus, charging control method, and computer program implementing such

• US 9,221,353 B2
• Filed: 08/11/2015
• Issued: 12/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Pioneer Corporation
• Inventors: Oishi, Hirokazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Muralidar, Richard V
• Application Number:
  US14/823,242
• Publication Number:
  US 20150343917A1
• Time in Patent Office: 140 Days
• Field of Search: 320/106, 320/108, 320/109, 180/65.1, 180/65.21, 180/65.29, 701/22
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/10 DC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/30 AC to DC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2210/40 DC to AC converters
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/70 Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/80 Time limits
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/10 by alarm
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/16 by display
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/0046 relating to electric energy storage systems, e.g. batteries or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 3/04 Cutting off the power supply under fault conditions protective devices and circuit arrangements in general H01H; H02H
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/12 Inductive energy transfer
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/126 Methods for pairing a vehicle and a charging station, e.g. establishing a one-to-one relation between a wireless power transmitter and a wireless power receiver
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/32 by charging in short intervals along the itinerary, e.g. during short stops
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/39 with position-responsive activation of primary coils
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/65 involving identification of vehicles or their battery types
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 58/10 for monitoring or controlling batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/48 for electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV]
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/20 using microwaves or radio frequency waves
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/40 using two or more transmitting or receiving devices H02J50/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 : involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 : involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 : Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• 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: 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: Y04S 30/14 : Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing

Abstract

A charging control apparatus (310) controls wireless charging between one charging apparatus (10) and a vehicle (20) which communicates with the one charging apparatus via a communication relay apparatus (30). The charging control apparatus is provided with: an outputting device (320, 330) for transmitting a first signal which is a signal for designating a signal outputted from the one charging apparatuses, to of the one charging apparatuses; a detecting device (320, 330) for detecting a third signal which is transmitted by wireless communication from the vehicle and which is a signal corresponding to a second signal which is a signal outputted from the one charging apparatus due to the transmitted first signal; and a distinguishing device (310) for correlating the one charging apparatus with the vehicle on the basis of the transmitted first signal and the detected third signal.

Claims

1. A charging control apparatus for controlling a plurality of charging apparatuses, each of the charging apparatuses being configured to be capable of supplying electric power to a vehicle through a predetermined power supplying path, wherein

the charging control apparatus comprises a controller which is configured to make at least one first charging apparatus output a first electric power having predetermined power pattern through the predetermined power supplying path, the first charging apparatus is not yet used to charge any vehicle,

the controller is configured to perform pairing between new-vehicle and one of the at least one first charging apparatus based on a signal outputted from the new vehicle which detects the first electric power, the first electric power is supplied from the one of the at least one first charging apparatus to the new vehicle via the predetermined power supplying path.

2. The charging control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the controller is configured to make a plurality of first charging apparatuses output the first electrical powers whose electrical patterns are different from each other, respectively.

3. The charging control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the controller is configured to make a plurality of first charging apparatuses output the first electrical powers sequentially at predetermined time intervals, respectively.

4. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium recording thereon a computer program, wherein

the computer program makes a computer function as the charging control apparatus according to claim 1.

5. A charging control apparatus for controlling a plurality of charging apparatuses, each of the charging apparatuses being configured to be capable of supplying electric power to a vehicle through a predetermined power supplying path, wherein

the charging control apparatus comprises a controller which is configured to make at least one second charging apparatus output a first electric power having predetermined power pattern through the predetermined power supplying path, the second charging apparatus is not yet subject to pairing with any vehicle,

the controller is configured to perform the pairing between new vehicle and one of the at least one second charging apparatus based on a signal outputted from the new vehicle which detects the first electric power, the first electric power is supplied from the one of the at least one second charging apparatus to the new vehicle via the predetermined power supplying path.

6. The charging control apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the controller is configured to make a plurality of second charging apparatuses output the first electrical powers whose electrical patterns are different from each other, respectively.

7. The charging control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the controller is configured to make a plurality of second charging apparatuses output the first electrical powers sequentially at predetermined time intervals, respectively.

8. A charging control method of controlling a plurality of charging apparatuses, each of the plurality of charging apparatuses being configured to be capable of supplying electric power to a vehicle through a predetermined power supplying path, wherein

the charging control method makes at least one first charging apparatus output a first electric power having predetermined power pattern through the predetermined power supplying path, the first charging apparatus is not yet used to charge any vehicle,

the charging control method performs pairing between new vehicle and one of the at least one first charging apparatus based on a signal outputted from the new vehicle which detects the first electric power, the first electric power is supplied from the one of the at least one first charging apparatus to the new vehicle via the predetermined power supplying path.