Abstract:
A charger configured to charge at least one battery used in transportation means or stationary equipment, includes a plurality of power connections configured to couple to a plurality of power sources. The charger is adapted to receive power from the plurality of power sources simultaneously.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/174,329, filed Apr. 30, 2009, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes. 
     
    
     TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The present disclosure is directed to a vehicle to grid infrastructure and, more particularly, to a vehicle communications system that requires minimal to no upgrades to the existing electrical grid system. 
         [0003]    The growing need to reduce air pollutants and the dependence on oil as an energy source has triggered the development of hybrid and battery electric vehicles. Energy storage and electric propulsion theories and technologies are in constant progress to facilitate the new infrastructure demanded to realize this development. 
         [0004]    To facilitate the increased need for energy to charge hybrid and battery electric vehicles, a more efficient infrastructure is needed which preferably does not require an upgrade to today&#39;s grid system that includes approximately 200,000 miles of power lines, much of which has been in use for more than 50 years. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0005]    Hybrid and battery electric vehicles and commercial vehicles may have the capability to carry a battery capacity varying from 1 kWh to over 100 kWh. This capacity can be used to balance an overloaded grid and supply local spinning reserves and regulation. Regulation is the process of stabilizing the grid. During peak periods, certain locations need extra energy and the utility company has to increase production or engage backup generators (spinning reserves) to address the need. Vehicle to grid can supply local regulation. For example, if 10 households need additional energy during the morning hours, a vehicle in the local grid can accommodate that need. By doing so, the grid does not have peaks and the energy losses are much lower than conventional ways of transferring energy across the grid. 
         [0006]    Communication within the grid is critical during vehicle to grid connection. An investment of 1.2-1.5 trillion USD has been deemed necessary to upgrade the grid to facilitate vehicle to grid in its current form. 
         [0007]    Vehicle charge points have to be flexible and not purely limited to a residence or workplace. Charge points dependent on smart cards and online accounts may be developed, but are costly to deploy. Also, all electric and hybrid vehicles require an infrastructure that makes flexible charging possible at a minimum investment. 
         [0008]    One aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a charger in a hybrid or battery electric vehicle configured to connect to multiple power sources to enable simultaneous charging of one or more rechargeable batteries. The charger can accept any one or combination of available power sources, such as 110V, 220V and 400V inputs and it has a plurality of charger modules each of which is connected to a charger management unit. Each of the charger modules may have a separate AC/DC converter, or they may share one converter. The charger can be configured to provide charge to multiple charger modules simultaneously. This configuration increases efficiency as each charger module may charge the battery packs coupled to it independent of the other charger modules. 
         [0009]    In order to supply the grid with energy, the charger is capable of bi-directional energy flow. The charger management unit may be configured to set the energy flow direction (regulation up or down) when the charger is connected to the power grid and in response to an external command (e.g., from the utility company or the vehicle user). The charger management unit may also set the energy flow based on a plurality of factors such as battery packs&#39; state of health (SoH) and battery packs&#39; state of charge (SoC). Due to increased heat from high voltage charging, advanced heat dissipation technology is use as a component of the charger. 
         [0010]    Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to two methods of recognizing the location of a vehicle without the need for grid upgrades. The vehicle transmits a signal into the grid in a wired fashion and simultaneously transmits a wireless signal through the GPS/GSM/Radio telemetric system. The first method may use a signal processor in a vehicle&#39;s charger that monitors the utility companies&#39; supervisory protocol and generates a series of binary pulses and sends it through the socket into the grid (i.e., in a wired fashion). The pulse can be detected by the utility companies to locate and confirm the presence of the vehicle. To the extent that utility companies are capable of monitoring and identifying equipment and appliances in a building via individual sockets within the building, no upgrade the power grid using this technique would be needed. The energy for this pulse may be supplied by a capacitor in the charger or by the battery. 
         [0011]    The second method involves using a telemetric unit that utilizes GPS/GSM and radio signals. The location of the vehicle can be independently determined with each of GPS, GSM and radio and the results can be compared to one another to more accurately pin-point the location of the vehicle. In locations where GPS is not available (e.g., in tunnels or underground parking structures), GSM and Radio can be used to determine the location of the vehicle. A WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System) chip may also be used in the telemetric unit to achieve even greater accuracy in locating the vehicle. 
         [0012]    Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to use of the telemetric unit to transfer data such as the location of the vehicle along with other parameters such as state of the battery and billing information to the utility company via a third party service operator. The telemetric unit records and transfers information such as state of the battery, level of charge, location of vehicle and information about the owner of the vehicle to a third party. All this information may be used by: (1) the third party to process the billing transaction (i.e., bill the vehicle owner&#39;s account in case of taking charge from the grid or credit the owner&#39;s account in case of providing charge to the grid), and (2) the utility company to determine the availability of a vehicle for regulation up or down. Utilizing this system, the vehicle can be connected to the power grid anywhere and the billing transaction can be handled at that location in real time. 
         [0013]    In another aspect of the present disclosure, the signal processor in the charger is configured to communicate with the telemetric unit and send information such as state of the charge and state of the health of the battery to the utility company via sequences of binary pulses. 
         [0014]    Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a safety protocol for immediate shut down of flow of charge between the charger and the grid via a low frequency shut off command sent by a third party or the utility company that operates in a frequency band that ensures the delivery of the shut down command. 
         [0015]    Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a surveillance system that include video cameras coupled to the telemetric unit, to capture video from the inside and/or outside perimeter of the vehicle. The telemetric unit is configured to archive the captured video for a predetermined amount of time and to wirelessly transmit the video to a third party automatically or upon request. 
         [0016]    The following detailed description and the accompanying drawings provide a better understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is diagrammatic and schematic illustration of an exemplary vehicle communication system according to an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  is a schematic illustration of the internal system in the vehicle illustrated in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a more detailed schematic illustration of battery charger  144  in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a schematic illustration of the telemetric unit demonstrated as part of the vehicle communication system, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a schematic illustration of the information transaction illustrated in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0022]      FIG. 6  is a schematic illustrating the sequence of events initiated upon plugging a vehicle into the grid, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is an illustration of the energy flow within the batter charger illustrated in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0024]      FIG. 8  is a sequential illustration of the low frequency shut off command illustrated in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0025]      FIG. 9  is a sequential illustration of the pulse illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0026]      FIG. 10  is an illustration of the signal interaction within the telemetric unit illustrated in  FIG. 1 , in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; 
           [0027]      FIG. 11  is an illustration of charging utilizing multiple plugs, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; and 
           [0028]      FIG. 12  is an illustration of the cameras connection to the telemetric unit and black box, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0029]      FIG. 1  illustrates an example of a vehicle plugged into the grid utilizing the vehicle communication system according to an embodiment of the invention. Vehicle  148  may be a hybrid or battery electric vehicle having available battery storage and plug in capabilities. Vehicle batteries  144  may be any type of rechargeable battery. 
         [0030]    Charger  142  may be configured to accept any one or a combination of available power sources, such as 110V, 220V and 400V inputs. Charger  142  may be modular, with each charger module  366  ( FIG. 3 ) independently connected through the modular connection  372  to charger management unit  360 . Charger management unit  360  may in turn be connected to a telemetric unit (not shown in  FIG. 3 ) via connection  318 . Each charger module  366  may have an AC/DC converter, or two or more of charger modules may share one converter. Due to increased heat from high voltage charging, charger  142  may have a magnesium casing with heat dissipation capabilities. For example, upon plugging in to a charge socket, vehicle  148  may plug into multiple 110V, 220V outlets. By allowing multiple plugs to connect simultaneously, charger  142  may double or triple the line capacity thereby reducing charge times significantly. By engaging multiple charger modules  366  ( FIG. 3 ), the charger may increase efficiency as each charger module  366  may individually charge attached battery packs  344 . Management Unit  360  may determine available battery and line capacity to adjust charge algorithm. As illustrated in  FIG. 11 , charger  11002  may be able to accept multiple connections simultaneously. Multiple power lines  11006  may be connected to charger modules  110002  via vehicle charge spots  110004 . Based upon available line capacity, management unit  360  ( FIG. 3 ) may establish how many modules should accept energy input or provide energy output. 
         [0031]    In  FIG. 1 , Charger  142  may be designed for inorganic electrolyte batteries. Each charger module  366  ( FIG. 3 ) may accept energy input from multiple power sources (e.g., one or more of 110V, 220V or 400V power sources  794  ( FIG. 7 )). AC power  796  may be converted through a full wave rectifier to high energy DC power  702  which may in turn be used to charge each battery pack  744  rapidly to 50-55% of battery capacity. After 55%, battery packs  744  may develop sludge  704  in the battery electrolyte due to fast charging. In order to complete the charge process, stored sludge energy may be drawn (as depicted by reference numeral  700 ) from battery packs  744  into a capacitor  762 . Capacitor  762  may redistribute the sludge energy to battery packs  744 . As an additional safety feature, charger  142  may have a SO2 capture system. In case of battery short circuit, SO2 gas may leak from battery packs  744 . Capture system may capture the SO2 gas in a sealed enclosure or an absorbent material. Based upon a low energy connection, battery sludge  704  may not be a factor and regular charging may commence as the electrolyte may remain stable. 
         [0032]      FIG. 2  illustrates an exemplary connection between charger  242  and telemetric unit  238 . Charger  242  is configured to receive one or a combination of available power sources.  FIG. 2  shows 110V/220V/400V as possible power sources, but charger may be adapted to receive power sources with different voltage levels than those shown in  FIG. 2 . Charger management unit  260  may be arranged as the main connection with telemetric unit  238 . Charger  242  may communicate with telemetric unit  238  information about the battery State of Health (SoH) through charger management unit  260 . Management Unit  260  may be configured to set the direction of the energy flow. Based upon battery State of Health and battery State of Charge (SoC), management unit  260  may initiate either regulation up (supply) or regulation down (charging).  FIG. 2  also illustrates the communication between telemetric unit  238 , charger management unit  260  and power grid  210 . While plugged into the power grid, any hybrid or battery electric vehicle  148  ( FIG. 1 ) may charge the batteries or supply power grid  210  through charger  242 . That is, charger  242  may be configured to receive energy from or supply energy to grid  210 . For example, battery packs may have available capacity of 35 kWh. Telemetric unit  238  may be remotely instructed by utility company  158  ( FIG. 1 ) to initiate supplying energy to the grid via a charge socket modified to enable energy supply power grid  210 . Grid upgrades are not needed, however installing a grid control switch at the dedicated supply socket&#39;s fuse box may be needed for regulation up. Information, such as, battery status, plug location and general vehicle diagnostics, or any other suitable information, may be conveyed between charger management unit  260  and the onboard telemetric unit  238 . This information may be transferred through the telemetric unit&#39;s input/output (I/O) channels. In one embodiment, telemetric unit  242  has 32 I/O channels. 
         [0033]    In one embodiment, there are two separate communication channels between the vehicle and utility Company  358  ( FIG. 3 ). The initial communication occurs when a vehicle is plugged into the grid. In order for utility company  358  to locate the exact location of the plugged-in vehicle, the vehicle may respond to the utility company&#39;s monitoring and supervisory protocols. As often as 60 times a second to every 6th second, the utility company may send out a monitory signal on to the grid. Signal processor  370  ( FIG. 3 ) may be passive and may be activated to respond upon receiving a known signal protocol from the utility company transmitted through the grid. By configuring signal processor  370  to read and respond to the signal protocols (a communication process that is currently in use by utility companies to communicate with their substations over the grid), the utility company may detect the location of the vehicle. Signal processor  370  may be updated to allow for different monitoring protocols through the onboard telemetric unit  238  ( FIG. 2 ). Upon acknowledgment, signal processor  370  may respond by relaying a binary pulse  106  ( FIG. 1 ) in to the grid. Pulse  368  may draw energy from capacitor  362  located within the charger, or from vehicle batteries  344 . 
         [0034]    As illustrated in  FIG. 9 , upon connection to the grid, signal processor  370  ( FIG. 3 ) may read the monitoring protocol initiated by utility company  958 . Upon reading the protocol, signal processor  370  may respond with a series of pulses into the grid through a socket. Pulse  368  ( FIG. 3 ) may be compatible with utility standards such as SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition), IEEE Synchrophaser C37.118, IEC60870, and IEC 61850 (communication networks and systems in substations). Pulse  368  travels on the power lines and utility company  958  may read and detect the vehicle&#39;s location, charge capacity and identify the owner of the vehicle. Pulse  368  ( FIG. 3 ) may be utilized in conjunction with the telemetric unit to ensure the redundancy of the communication process. Power line communication may be used for identifying the exact charge socket and used in case of arbitrary situations. Exact charge location may be important to ensure that the correct responsible party is billed and that the utility company  358  has precise real time information in order to balance the grid. Local regulation may be of significant importance in order to achieve a balanced grid. 
         [0035]    The utility company may communicate with the vehicle during utility company&#39;s standard grid surveillance procedure initiated as often as 60 times a second up to every 6th second. The utility company may record time and date according to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Upon the end of the charge/discharge sequence, signal processor  370  may send out another pulse and utility company  358  may record the time and date and measure the charge/discharge sequence. 
         [0036]    The second and primary communication channel between utility company  158  and vehicle  148  is telemetric unit  138  ( FIG. 1 ). Telemetric unit  138  may triangulate the vehicle&#39;s exact position within one cubic foot through Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS) Satellites  520 ,  522 ,  524  ( FIG. 5 ) corresponding to satellites  120 ,  122  and  124  of  FIG. 1 , Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) networks  192  ( FIG. 1 ) and Radio signals  136 . GSM  192  and Radio signal  136  are configured so that vehicle  148  may triangulate its position in locations where GPS satellite signals are unavailable, such as parking structures and underground tunnels. 
         [0037]      FIG. 10  illustrates how telemetric unit  138  may pinpoint the vehicle&#39;s exact location. GPS  10022  in combination with Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS)  10024  may triangulate the vehicles location  10028  within one cubic foot. By adding in both radio and GSM signals, vehicle&#39;s location  10028  may be pinpointed with greater accuracy. Radio Signal  136  may operate in the FM commercial broad cast, Very High Frequency (VHF) band, Ultra High Frequency (UHF) band and the 900 MHz bands. Telemetric unit  138  may support common radio communication protocols including POCSAG, ERMES, TAP, FLEX, reFLEX, GOLAY and NTT. 
         [0038]    Telemetric unit  138  may record the exact position when a vehicle is plugged into the grid, capacity charged or discharged, vehicle status and diagnostics. Vehicle plug chip  108  may triangulate the plugs&#39; exact position through the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) chip. The chip may enable locating the plug&#39;s exact position through WAAS reference stations. Combination of GPS, WAAS, Radio and GSM may allow vehicle  148  to have its exact position recorded at all times. Telemetric unit  438  ( FIG. 4 ) may transfer data packet  452  to billing and provisioning center  454  over Internet Protocol (IP) on a set schedule. Billing and provisioning center  454  may evaluate and decode the data and forward the information through Independent Service Operator (ISO)  456  or directly to utility company  458 . Utility company  458  may identify the customer, charge socket used, and credit the customer for regulation up or charge for regulation down (charging). Secondly, the utility company  458  may debit the socket owner that was initially charged and credit the vehicle owner in those cases where the socket owner and vehicle owner are different. 
         [0039]    An ISO is an organization typically formed at the direction or recommendation of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In the areas where an ISO is established, it typically coordinates, controls, and monitors the operation of the electrical power system, usually within a single US State, but sometimes encompassing multiple states. An ISO is usually an impartial link between power plants and the utilities that serve the consumers. 
         [0040]    In case of an emergency in the grid, such as power line maintenance or outages, charger management unit  360  ( FIG. 3 ) may accept a low frequency radio shut off command  150  ( FIG. 1 ) from the governing utility company or the ISO. During regulation up (vehicle supplying the grid), it is critical that the governing utility company has the ability to shut off regulation remotely to avoid injury to workers or customers in the vicinity of an exposed power line. Radio command  150  may be transmitted through Single Sideband Radio, in 4000 KHz and 8100 KHz frequencies. Low frequency may be used to ensure that command  150  is delivered in locations where high frequency can not be transmitted to. Command  150  may immediately shut down regulation up through the emergency shut off in charger management unit  360  ( FIG. 3 ). 
         [0041]    This is more clearly illustrated in  FIG. 8 . Upon connection to the grid, the vehicle may initiate regulation up as illustrated in step  1 . Step  2  illustrates the energy flow from the vehicle to the grid and the energy traveling along the grid. At point  3 , the power grid has a downed line. As illustrated by step  3 , upon recognizing the downed line, utility company  858  may immediately send out an emergency shut off command  850  through radio towers  832 . Upon receiving the shut off command, charger  842  may immediately terminate regulation up and stop the energy supply into to the grid. 
         [0042]    Customer support/service center  128  ( FIG. 1 ) may be set up as a twenty four hour customer support center that offers two way communication through telemetric unit  138  through GSM and Internet Protocol, such as voice (VoIP), email and SMS. Telemetric unit  138  may be configured to record and transmit video. Video may be recorded and used in case of charge location disputes and may also be an important tool in accident and security investigations. Video may be streaming and accessed online through a third party web portal or through recordings in the vehicle&#39;s black box  146 . Video may be recorded from a 360 degree angle outside or inside the vehicle. As illustrated in  FIG. 12 , telemetric unit  12002  and black box  12006  may be connected with the vehicle&#39;s outside cameras  12004  or inside cameras  12008 . Cameras inside the vehicle may be activated in case of vehicle theft or suspicion of fraudulent usage. Cameras outside the vehicle may be used to identify charge location and obtain footage of an accident. Video may be streamed from the vehicle to a third party portal using the ADACTUS protocol. ADACTUS may enable the vehicle to transmit live high definition video through multiple channels. Black box  146  located in telemetric unit  138  may store up to 72 hours of diagnostic data and video which can be physically accessed through the black box&#39;s hard drive. 
         [0043]      FIG. 6  illustrates the sequence of events starting with the vehicle connecting to the power grid as illustrated by step  674 . Upon connection, charger management unit  360  ( FIG. 3 ) may recognize battery and power line capacity (step  676 ). Signal processor  370  ( FIG. 3 ) may transmit the sequence of binary pulse into the grid (step  678 ). Charger  242  ( FIG. 2 ) may either draw power from the power grid or provide charge to the grid (step  680 ). Upon disconnecting from the grid, signal processor  360  ( FIG. 3 ) may send a sequence of binary pulses (step  682 ). The load statistics is recorded in the telemetric unit (step  684 ). Pending upload schedule, the telemetric unit may transfer the data to the billing and provisioning center  454  (step  686 ). Billing and provisioning center  454  decodes the charge/discharge statistics and may forward the data to the utility company or the ISO (step  688 ). The utility company  458  receives the information and may credit or debit the appropriate vehicle and/or socket owner (step  690 ). 
         [0044]    While the above description and the accompanying figures provide various embodiments, the invention is not limited only to the disclosed embodiments. For example, while most embodiments are described in the context of a vehicle such as a car, the various embodiments of the invention may be implemented in any transportation means or moving object that could benefit from use of rechargeable batteries, such as buses, trains, planes, ships, and motorcycles.