Patent Publication Number: US-2020282856-A1

Title: Automated electric vehicle charging

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/981,468, filed May 16, 2018, which claims benefit to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/506,890, filed on May 16, 2017, the entire contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     Embodiments relate generally to charging an electric vehicle. 
     SUMMARY 
     Utility providers charge consumers for electricity consumed at different rates for different times. For example, a utility provider may charge a higher rate during on-peak hours (for example, during the day) and a lower rate during off-peak hours (for example, during the night). Chargers for electric vehicles, once plugged in, may perform charging operation without differentiating between on-peak and off-peak rates, thereby, increasing cost to the user. 
     Thus, one embodiment provides a method for automated charging including storing, in a memory, a rate profile of a power grid and determining, using an electronic processor, a time to full charge. The method also includes determining, using the electronic processor, a target time for completion of charging and generating, using the electronic processor, a charging profile. The method further includes charging, using a charging controller, based on the charging profile. 
     One embodiment provides a charger for automated charging including an electronic processor coupled to a memory, a transceiver, and a charging controller. The electronic processor is configured to store, in the memory, a rate profile of a power grid and determine a time to full charge. The electronic processor is also configured to determine a target time for completion of charging and generate a charging profile. The electronic processor is further configured to charge, using the charging controller, based on the charging profile. 
     One embodiment provides a method for automated charging including receiving, at a server, charging information from each of a plurality of electric vehicle chargers within a geographic boundary served by a single utility provider and generating, using a server electronic processor of the server, a plurality of charging profiles one for each of the plurality of electric vehicle chargers based on the charging information received from the plurality of electric vehicle chargers. The charging profile is generated to minimize load on the utility provider. The method also includes transmitting, using a server transceiver of the server, the plurality of charging profiles to the plurality of electric vehicle chargers. The electric vehicle chargers perform charging based on a charging profile from the plurality of charging profiles. 
     Other aspects of the application will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an automated charging system in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of an electric vehicle charger of the charging system of  FIG. 1  in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an electronic device of the charging system of  FIG. 1  in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating a method of the charging system of  FIG. 1  in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 5  is a block diagram of an automated charging network in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 6  is a block diagram of a server of the charging network of  FIG. 5  in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 7  is a flowchart illustrating a method of the charging network of  FIG. 5  in accordance with some embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Before any embodiments of the application are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the application is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The application is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of one embodiment of an automated charging system  100 . In the example illustrated, the automated charging system  100  includes a main switchboard  110  that receives power from a power grid  120 , for example, a power grid of a utility company, solar panels, or the like. An electric vehicle (EV) charger  130  used to charge an electric vehicle  140  is connected to the main switchboard  110  to receive operating power. The automated charging system  100  also includes an electronic device  150  that allows a user to set charging parameters of the EV charger  130 . The electronic device  150  may be, for example, a smart telephone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, and the like. The EV charger  130  and the electronic device  150  may communicate over a communication network  160 . 
     The communication network  160  may be a wireless communication network such a wide area network (WAN) (e.g., the Internet, a TCP/IP based network, a cellular network, such as, for example, a Global System for Mobile Communications [GSM] network, a General Packet Radio Service [GPRS] network, a Code Division Multiple Access [CDMA] network, an Evolution-Data Optimized [EV-DO] network, an Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution [EDGE] network, a 3GSM network, a 4GSM network, a Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications [DECT] network, a Digital AMPS [IS-136/TDMA] network, or an Integrated Digital Enhanced Network [iDEN] network, etc.). In other embodiments, the network is, for example, a local area network (LAN), a neighborhood area network (NAN), a home area network (HAN), or personal area network (PAN) employing any of a variety of communications protocols, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ZigBee, etc. In yet another embodiment, the network  160  includes one or more of a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), a neighborhood area network (NAN), a home area network (HAN), or personal area network (PAN). In some embodiments, the electronic device  150  may communicate through a server hosted on a manufacturer&#39;s website. That is, the electronic device  150  and the EV charger  130  may connect the server over a local area network and/or over a wide area network. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of one embodiment of the EV charger  130 . In the example illustrated, the EV charger  130  includes an electronic processor  210 , a memory  220 , a transceiver  230 , and a charging circuit  240 . The electronic processor  210 , the memory  220 , the transceiver  230 , and the charging circuit  240  may communicate over one or more control and/or data buses (for example, a communication bus  250 ). 
     In some embodiments, the electronic processor  210  is implemented as a microprocessor with separate memory, such as the memory  220 . In other embodiments, the electronic processor  210  may be implemented as a microcontroller (with memory  220  on the same chip). In other embodiments, the electronic processor  210  may be implemented using multiple processors. In addition, the electronic processor  210  may be implemented partially or entirely as, for example, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), and application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and the like and the memory  220  may not be needed or be modified accordingly. In the example illustrated, the memory  220  includes non-transitory, computer-readable memory that stores instructions that are received and executed by the electronic processor  210  to carry out functionality of the EV charger  130  described herein. The memory  220  may include, for example, a program storage area and a data storage area. The program storage area and the data storage area may include combinations of different types of memory, such as read-only memory and random-access memory. 
     The transceiver  230  enables wireless communication from the EV charger  130  to, for example, the electronic device  150  or a remote server over the communication network  160 . In other embodiments, rather than a transceiver  230 , the EV charger  130  may include separate transmitting and receiving components, for example, a transmitter, and a receiver. In yet other embodiments, the EV charger  130  may not include transceiver  230  and may communicate with the electronic device  150  via a network interface and a wired connection to the communication network  160 . 
     The charging circuit  240  receives power from the main switchboard  110  and provides a charging current to the electric vehicle  140 . The charging circuit  240  may include sensors and/or detectors to detect parameters of the EV charger  130  and/or a connected electric vehicle  140 . For example, the charging circuit  240  may include a state of charge detector to detect a state of charge (SOC) of the electric vehicle  140 , a temperature sensor to detect a temperature of the EV charger  130 , and the like. In some embodiments, the charging circuit  240  may include a load shedder (not shown) to reduce a charge rating (i.e., charging current) of the EV charger  130 . The charging circuit  240  may receive control signals from the electronic processor  210  instructing the charging circuit  240  to, for example, start charging, stop charging, detect a state of charge (SOC), or the like. 
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of one embodiment of the electronic device  150 . In the example illustrated, the EV charger  130  includes a device electronic processor  310 , a device memory  320 , a device transceiver  330 , and an input/output interface  340 . The device electronic processor  310 , the device memory  320 , the device transceiver  330 , and the input/output interface  340  may communicate over one or more control and/or data buses (for example, a device communication bus  350 ). 
     The device electronic processor  310  may be implemented in various ways including ways that are similar to those described above with respect to the electronic processor  210 . Likewise, the device memory  320  may be implemented in various ways including ways that are similar to those described with respect to the memory  220 . The device memory  320  may store instructions that are received and executed by the device electronic processor  310  to carry out the functionality described herein. In addition, the device memory  320  may also store a charger application  325 . 
     The device transceiver  330  enables communication (for example, wireless communication) from the electronic device  150  to, for example, the EV charger  130  or a remote server over the communication network  160 . In other embodiments, rather than a device transceiver  330 , the electronic device  150  may include separate transmitting and receiving components, for example, a transmitter, and a receiver. In yet other embodiments, the electronic device  150  may not include a device transceiver  330  and may communicate with the EV charger  130  via a network interface and a wired connection to the communication network  160 . 
     The input/output interface  340  (for example, a user interface) may include one or more input mechanisms (for example, a touch screen, a keypad, a button, a knob, and the like), one or more output mechanisms (for example, a display, a speaker, and the like), or a combination thereof. 
       FIG. 4  is a flowchart illustrating one example method  400  for automated charging. It should be understood that the order of the steps disclosed in method  400  could vary. Additional steps may also be added to the control sequence and not all of the steps may be required. As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the method  400  includes storing, in the memory  220 , a rate profile of the power grid  120  (at block  410 ). The rate profile provides a mapping between a plurality of rates charged by a utility company and the time period at which the rates are charged. For example, a utility provider operating the power grid  120  may charge a relatively higher rate per kilowatt-hour during the day (for example, $0.50 per kW-h between 7 AM and 7 PM) and may charge a relatively lower rate per kilowatt-hour during the night (for example, $0.20 per kW-h between 11 PM and 5 AM). 
     In some embodiments, the rate profile may be manually entered by a user. For example, the user may input a specific dollar amount for several intervals during a single 24-hour period. Alternatively the user may input a relative price indication, for example, high, medium, low, or the like for several intervals during a single 24-hour period. That is, continuing with the above rate profile example, a user may input high for times between 7 AM and 7 PM, low between 11 PM and 5 AM, and medium for other times. The user may input the rate profile information on the input/output interface  340  of the electronic device  150 , which then transfers the rate profile to the EV charger  130  over the communication network  160 . In some embodiments, the rate profile may be automatically received from a utility provider. For example, the EV charger  130  may receive an address of the user and determine a utility provider based on the address. The EV charger  130  may then download a rate profile from a website of the utility provider. Other techniques may also be used to receive a rate profile of the power grid  120 . 
     The method  400  includes determining, using the electronic processor  210 , a time to full charge (at block  420 ). When the electric vehicle  140  is plugged in for charging, the electronic processor  210  may first determine an initial SOC of the electric vehicle  140 . The electronic processor  210  estimates an amount of time to fully charge the electric vehicle  140  based on the initial SOC of the electric vehicle  140  and a charging rate of the charging circuit  240 . For example, the electronic processor  210  may determine that the initial SOC is “20%.” Based on this initial SOC and a charging rate of the charging circuit  240 , the electronic processor  210  may determine that the electric vehicle  140  will be fully charged if continuously charged for “8” to “10” hours. 
     The method  400  includes determining, using the electronic processor  210 , a target time for completion of charging (at block  430 ). In one embodiment, the target time may be determined based on a user input. For example, a user may input, on the input/output interface  340  of the electronic device  150 , that the user will be leaving for work at 8 AM the next day. The electronic device  150  then transfers this information to the EV charger  130  over the communication network  160 . 
     The method  400  includes generating, using the electronic processor  210 , a charging profile (at block  440 ). The charging profile may be generated based on the rate profile of the power grid  120 , the time to full charge, and/or the target time for completion of charging. The electronic processor  210  may generate an optimum charging profile to minimize cost to the user. Continuing with the above examples, where the time to full charge is “8” hours and the user will be leaving at 8 AM, the electronic processor  210  may determine that the electric vehicle  140  may be charged between 9 PM and 5 AM to minimize the cost to the user. That is, the electric vehicle  140  will be charged at a medium rate between 9 PM and 11 PM and at a low rate between 11 PM and 5 AM based on the above rate profile example. Accordingly, the EV charger  130  may maximize charging during a low rate period of the power grid  120 . 
     In some embodiments, when the charging cannot be completed before the target time, the electronic processor  210  may generate a charging profile where the electric vehicle  140  is continuously charged between the time the electric vehicle  140  was plugged in and the target time. 
     The method  400  includes charging, using the charging circuit  240 , based on the charging profile (at block  450 ). The electronic processor  210  controls the charging circuit  240  to charge the electric vehicle  140  based on the charging profile. Continuing the above example, the electronic processor  210  may control the charging circuit  240  to turn off charging until 9 PM, turn on charging between 9 PM and 5 AM, and turn off charging after 5 AM. 
       FIG. 5  is a block diagram of one embodiment of an automated charging network  500 . In the example illustrated, the automated charging network includes a plurality of EV chargers  130  communicating with a server  510  over the communication network  160 . The server  510  is for example, a server operated by the manufacturer of the EV chargers  130 . As another example, the server  510  is a server operated by a utility provider and/or a utility aggregator. In some embodiments, the server  510  is a cloud based server that can communicate over the communication network  160 . In addition to communicating with the server  510 , the plurality of EV chargers  130  may also communicate with each other over the communication network  160 . The plurality of EV chargers  130  may be controlled to implement charging such that the load is distributed and balanced on a power grid. In some embodiments, the coordination may be implemented using a centralized system in which the determinations are performed by a central server, for example, the server  510 . In other embodiments, the coordination may be implemented using a decentralized system in which the determinations are distributed over the several EV chargers  130 , and the central server  510  may not be needed or may be modified accordingly. 
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram of one embodiment of the server  510 . In the example illustrated, the EV charger  130  includes a server electronic processor  610 , a server memory  620 , a server transceiver  630 , and an input/output interface  640 . The server electronic processor  610 , the server memory  620 , the server transceiver  630 , and the input/output interface  640  may communicate over one or more control and/or data buses (for example, a server communication bus  650 ). 
     The server electronic processor  610  may be implemented in various ways including ways that are similar to those described above with respect to the electronic processor  210  and device electronic processor  310 . Likewise, the server memory  320  may be implemented in various ways including ways that are similar to those described with respect to the memory  220  and the device memory  320 . The server memory  620  may store instructions that are received and executed by the server electronic processor  610  to carry out the functionality described herein. In addition, the server memory  320  may also store a charger co-ordination application  625 . 
     The server transceiver  630  enables communication (for example, wireless communication) from the server  510  to, for example, the plurality of EV chargers  130  over the communication network  160 . In other embodiments, rather than a server transceiver  630 , the server  510  may include separate transmitting and receiving components, for example, a transmitter, and a receiver. In yet other embodiments, the electronic device  150  may not include a device transceiver  330  and may communicate with the EV charger  130  via a network interface and a wired connection to the communication network  160 . 
     The input/output interface  340  (for example, a user interface) may include one or more input mechanisms (for example, a touch screen, a keypad, a button, a knob, and the like), one or more output mechanisms (for example, a display, a speaker, and the like), or a combination thereof. 
       FIG. 7  is a flowchart illustrating one example method  700  for automated charging. It should be understood that the order of the steps disclosed in method  700  could vary. Additional steps may also be added to the control sequence and not all of the steps may be required. As illustrated in  FIG. 7 , the method  700  includes receiving, at the server  510 , charging information from each of the plurality of the EV chargers  130  (at block  710 ). The plurality of EV chargers  130  communicate with the server  510  over the communication network  160  to provide the charging information. The charging information includes, for example, a GPS location or address location of the EV charger  130 , a state of charge of an electric vehicle  140  being charged by the EV charger  130 , a target time for completing charging of the electric vehicle  140 , and the like. The server  510  can use the charging information to control the load distribution among the EV chargers  130  within a geographic boundary. Geographic boundary may refer to a location, for example, a neighborhood, a community, a district, or the like that are served by a single utility provider. In some embodiments, the server  510  groups a subset of the plurality of EV chargers  130  into groups based on the location information received from the plurality of EV chargers  130 . For example, the server  510  groups a subset of the plurality of EV chargers  130  into a group if they belong to the same neighborhood and are served by the same utility provider or belong to the same power grid  120 . At block  710 , the server  510  may receive charging information from a plurality of EV chargers  130  that are within a geographic boundary and served by a single utility provider. 
     The method  700  also includes generating, using the server electronic processor  610 , a plurality of charging profiles based on the charging information (at block  720 ). The server  510  analyzes the charging information received from the plurality of EV chargers  130  within the geographic boundary to optimize the load on the power grid  120 . For example, the electric vehicles  140  are typically connected to the EV chargers  130  around 6 PM after a work day and are assigned to be charged by 6 AM the next day. Accordingly, if all the electric vehicles  140  are charged at the same time, the power draw may overload the power grid  120 . The server  510  analyzes the charging information received from the plurality of EV chargers  130  to delay and distribute the load across the plurality of EV chargers  130  within the geographic boundary. The server  510  generates a charging profile for each of the plurality of EV chargers  130  based on the charging information received from the plurality of EV chargers  130 . The charging profile may include the time at which the EV charger  130  should begin charging and the amount of current draw (i.e., charge rating) the EV charger  130  should use. The charging profiles are generated to distribute the load on the power grid  120  over a period of time. That is, the charging profiles are generated to minimize the load on the power grid  120 . 
     The method  700  further includes transmitting, using the server transceiver  630 , the plurality of charging profiles to the plurality of EV chargers  130  (at block  730 ). The server  510  transmits a charging profile assigned to a particular EV charger  130  to that EV charger  130  over the communication network  160 . The EV charger  130  implements the charging profile upon receiving the charging profile from the server  510 . 
     One of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that the functionality described in method  400  may be performed by the electronic processor  210  or may be shared between the electronic processor  210  and the device electronic processor  310 . For example, in one embodiment, the device electronic processor  310  may generate the charging profile based on inputs received from the user and an initial SOC received from the EV charger  130 . The electronic device  150  may then transfer the charging profile to the EV charger  130 . In addition, although the method  400  is described as being performed by an EV charger  130 , the functionality may be performed by any charger or electrical appliance connected to the main switchboard  110 . 
     Similarly, one of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that the functionality described in method  700  may be performed by the EV chargers  130  that are within a geographic boundary. For example, the functionality described in method  700  may be distributed over the electronic processors  210  of the plurality of EV chargers  130  within the geographic boundary. 
     Thus, the application provides, among other things, automated electric vehicle charging.