Parking lot management device and parking lot management method

Abstract

The parking lot management device (50A) is provided with a third communication unit (51) and a third charging management information processing unit (523A). The third communication unit (51) is communicably connected to a charging device (PA) provided in a parking lot (X), and is not communicably connected to a vehicle control device (10) that recognizes the remaining charging amount of an electric vehicle (C) charged by the charging device (PA). And a vehicle management system (30) that acquires information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle (C) at predetermined time intervals from the vehicle control device (10). The third charging management information processing unit (523A) acquires information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle (C) from the vehicle management system (30) during execution of charging processing of the electric vehicle (C) by the charging device (PA), and stops the charging processing being executed when it is detected that the electric vehicle (C) has reached a full charge value on the basis of the acquired information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a parking lot management device and a parking lot management method for managing a parking lot equipped with charging equipment. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, electric vehicles using battery power as a power source have become popular, and as a result, charging equipment for charging the batteries of electric vehicles is required.

[0003] In view of this, by installing a charging facility in a parking lot in an apartment building or a large facility, the electric vehicle can be charged while the electric vehicle is parked in the parking lot (see Patent Document 1).

[0004] Prior art literature

[0005] Patent Literature

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-285022 Summary of the invention

[0007] Problems to be solved by the invention

[0008] When a charging facility is charging multiple electric vehicles, the remaining charge state of each electric vehicle at the start of use is different, so the time it takes for each electric vehicle to be fully charged through the charging process is different. However, the charging facility cannot grasp the remaining charge state of each electric vehicle during the charging process.

[0009] Therefore, if the same charging time is set for all electric vehicles, the charging process may continue even when the vehicle is fully charged, or the charging process may be terminated even when the vehicle is not fully charged, which may cause inefficient processing.

[0010] In addition, there are charging devices that can grasp the state of the remaining charge of the electric vehicle during the charging process by establishing a communication connection with the electric vehicle as the charging target. However, in this case, the scale of the equipment becomes large and the cost becomes high, so it is not realistic to install multiple devices in the parking lot.

[0011] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a parking lot management device and a parking lot management method that can efficiently charge an electric vehicle with a simple structure in a parking lot equipped with a charging facility.

[0012] Means for solving problems

[0013] The parking lot management device of the first embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it comprises: a communication unit, which is connected to a charging device installed in a parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not communicatively connected to a vehicle control device that identifies the remaining charge of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is communicatively connected to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals; and a charging management information processing unit, which obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system during the execution of the charging process of the electric vehicle by the charging device, and stops the charging process in progress when it is detected that the electric vehicle has reached a full charge value based on the obtained information.

[0014] The parking lot management device of the second embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that it comprises: a communication unit, which is connected to a charging device installed in a parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not connected to a vehicle control device for identifying the remaining charge of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is connected to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals; and a charging management information processing unit, which obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system, calculates the time required for charging processing until the electric vehicle reaches a full charge value based on the obtained information, generates charging plan information based on the calculated time, and causes the charging device to perform charging processing based on the generated charging plan information.

[0015] The third type of parking lot management method of the present invention is characterized in that the parking lot management device is connected to a charging device installed in the parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not communicatively connected to a vehicle control device that identifies the charging remaining amount of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is communicatively connected to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the charging remaining amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals. During the execution of the charging process of the electric vehicle by the charging device, the parking lot management device obtains the information on the charging remaining amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system, and stops the charging process in progress when it is detected that the electric vehicle has reached the full charge value based on the obtained information.

[0016] The parking lot management method of the fourth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the parking lot management device is connected to a charging device installed in the parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not communicatively connected to a vehicle control device that identifies the charging remaining amount of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is communicatively connected to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the charging remaining amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals, the parking lot management device obtains the information on the charging remaining amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system, calculates the time required for the charging processing of the electric vehicle to reach the full charging value based on the obtained information, generates charging plan information based on the calculated time, and causes the charging device to perform charging processing based on the generated charging plan information.

[0017] Effects of the Invention

[0018] According to the parking lot management device and the parking lot management method of the present invention, in a parking lot equipped with a charging facility, it is possible to efficiently charge an electric vehicle with a simple configuration. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 It is an overall diagram showing the configuration of the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0020] Figure 2 It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a vehicle management system in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0021] Figure 3 It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a central management system in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0022] Figure 4 It is a block diagram showing the configuration of a parking lot management device and various devices in a parking lot in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0023] Figure 5 The first use registration information stored in the first use registration information storage unit of the vehicle management system in the parking lot management system of the first embodiment and the second embodiment is shown as an example.

[0024] Figure 6 This is a sequence diagram showing the operation when a user registers the use of a parking lot in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0025] Figure 7 It is a sequence diagram showing the operation when the user performs charging setting in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0026] Figure 8 An example of registration information stored in the third utilization registration information storage unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment is shown.

[0027] Fig. 9 This is a sequence diagram showing the flow of a process for acquiring remaining charge amount information of an electric vehicle executed by a third charge management information processing unit of a parking lot management device in the parking lot management system of the first embodiment and the second embodiment.

[0028] Fig. 10A An example of parking lot management information stored in the parking lot management information storage unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment is shown.

[0029] Fig. 10B An example of the charging management information stored in the charging management information storage unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment is shown.

[0030] Fig.11 This is a flowchart showing the flow of a charging management information check process executed by a third charging management information processing unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment.

[0031] Fig.12 An example of registration information stored in the third utilization registration information storage unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the second embodiment is shown.

[0032] Fig.13 This is an example of charging management information generated by the third charging management information processing unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the second embodiment.

[0033] Fig.14 This is a flowchart showing the flow of a charging management information check process executed by a third charging management information processing unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the second embodiment.

[0034] Fig.15 This is an example of charging management information updated by the third charging management information processing unit of the parking lot management device in the parking lot management system according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] (First Embodiment)

[0036] (Structure of parking lot management system)

[0037] Reference Figure 1 to Figure 4 , the structure of the parking lot management system according to the first embodiment of the present invention is described. Figure 1 As shown, the parking lot management system 1A of this embodiment includes a first electric car C1, a second electric car C2, a third electric car C3, a first user terminal 20-1, a second user terminal 20-2, a third user terminal 20-3, a vehicle management system 30, a central management system 40, and a parking lot management device 50A. The first electric car C1, the second electric car C2, and the third electric car C3 are electric vehicles using a mechanical parking lot X. The parking lot management device 50A performs management related to the parking lot X.

[0038] The first electric vehicle C1, the second electric vehicle C2, the third electric vehicle C3, the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, the vehicle management system 30, the central management system 40, and the parking lot management device 50A are respectively connected to the wide area communication network 60. In the parking lot management system 1A, the first vehicle control device 10-1, the second vehicle control device 10-2, and the third vehicle control device 10-3 can communicate only with the vehicle management system 30 via the wide area communication network 60, and cannot communicate with the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, the central management system 40, and the parking lot management device 50A.

[0039] The first electric vehicle C1 has a first vehicle control device 10-1 and a battery 11-1. The first vehicle control device 10-1 controls the operation of the equipment in the first electric vehicle C1 and obtains the charge remaining amount information of the battery 11-1. Since the structures of the second electric vehicle C2 and the third electric vehicle C3 are the same as the structure of the first electric vehicle C1, the detailed description is omitted. Hereinafter, when it is uncertain which of the electric vehicles C1 to C3 it is, it is recorded as the electric vehicle C. Similarly, when it is uncertain which of the vehicle control devices 10-1 to 10-3 it is, it is recorded as the vehicle control device 10, and when it is uncertain which of the batteries 11-1 to 11-3 it is, it is recorded as the battery 11.

[0040] The first user terminal 20-1 is a terminal used by the user U1 who uses the first electric car C1. The second user terminal 20-2 is a terminal used by the user U2 who uses the second electric car C2. The third user terminal 20-3 is a terminal used by the user U3 who uses the third electric car C3. Hereinafter, when it is not clear which of the user terminals 20-1 to 20-3 it is, it is recorded as the user terminal 20. In addition, when it is not clear which of the users U1 to U3 it is, it is recorded as the user U.

[0041] The first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, and the third user terminal 20-3 are respectively connected to the wide area communication network 60 for communication, and transmit the corresponding user's operation information to the vehicle management system 30, the central management system 40, or the parking lot management device 50A. The first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, and the third user terminal 20-3 respectively receive the information transmitted from the vehicle management system 30, the central management system 40, or the parking lot management device 50A, and output it to, for example, a display (not shown).

[0042] Figure 2 : is a block diagram showing the structure of the vehicle management system 30. The vehicle management system 30 is a system for managing the first electric vehicle C1, the second electric vehicle C2, and the third electric vehicle C3. In the present embodiment, the vehicle management system 30 describes a case where there are three electric vehicles as management targets, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and four or more electric vehicles may be management targets.

[0043] The vehicle management system 30 includes a first communication unit 31, a first CPU 32, and a first storage unit 33. The first communication unit 31 communicates with the first electric vehicle C1, the second electric vehicle C2, the third electric vehicle C3, the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, and the central management system 40 via the wide area communication network 60.

[0044] The first CPU 32 includes a first registration information processing unit 321 and a first charge amount information processing unit 322. The first registration information processing unit 321 performs processing related to the use registration of the user U of the parking lot X. The first charge amount information processing unit 322 performs processing on information related to the charge amount of each electric vehicle C of the registered user U.

[0045] The first storage unit 33 includes a first registered use information storage unit 331 and a first charge amount information storage unit 332. The first registered use information storage unit 331 stores information on the registered user U. The first charge amount information storage unit 332 stores the remaining charge amount of each electric vehicle C of the registered user U.

[0046] The central management system 40 is a system that manages a plurality of parking lots including the parking lot X. In the present embodiment, the parking lot X is the only parking lot that is managed by the central management system 40 for simplicity of description.

[0047] Figure 34 is a block diagram showing the structure of the central management system 40. The central management system 40 includes a second communication unit 41, a second CPU 42, and a second storage unit 43. The second communication unit 41 communicates with the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, the vehicle management system 30, and the parking lot management device 50A via the wide area communication network 60.

[0048] The second CPU 42 includes a second registration information processing unit 421 and a second charge amount information processing unit 422. The second registration information processing unit 421 performs processing for coordinating the use registration of the user U of the parking lot X to be managed with the vehicle management system 30. The second charge amount information processing unit 422 performs processing of information on the charge remaining amount of each electric vehicle C of the registered user U.

[0049] The second storage unit 43 includes a second registered use information storage unit 431 and a second charge amount information storage unit 432. The second registered use information storage unit 431 stores information on the registered user U. The second charge amount information storage unit 432 stores the remaining charge amount of each electric vehicle C of the registered user U.

[0050] Figure 4 5 is a block diagram showing the structure of the parking lot management device 50A and the parking lot X. The parking lot management device 50A has a third communication unit 51, a third CPU 52A, and a third storage unit 53A. The third communication unit 51 communicates with the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, the vehicle management system 30, and the central management system 40 via the wide area communication network 60. That is, the third communication unit 51 is connected to the first user terminal 20-1, the second user terminal 20-2, the third user terminal 20-3, the vehicle management system 30, and the central management system 40 in a manner that can communicate. The third communication unit 51 is not connected to the first vehicle control device 10-1, the second vehicle control device 10-2, and the third vehicle control device 10-3 in a communication manner. In addition, the third communication unit 51 is connected to the charging equipment PA1~PAn in a communication manner via the charging equipment control device 73 described later. Moreover, the third communication unit 51 is connected to the parking lot control device 72 described later in a communication manner. In addition, the third communication unit 51 is also referred to as a communication unit.

[0051] The third CPU 52A includes a third registration information processing unit 521, a parking management information processing unit 522, and a third charging management information processing unit 523A. The third registration information processing unit 521 performs a process of obtaining information related to the use registration of the user U of the parking lot X from the central management system 40 and registering it. The parking management information processing unit 522 processes information related to the parking use status of the parking lot X. The third charging management information processing unit 523A processes information related to the use status of the charging equipment of the parking lot X, and appropriately instructs the start and end of the charging process based on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle that is the charging object. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523A is also called a charging management information processing unit.

[0052] The third storage unit 53A includes a third registered use information storage unit 531, a parking management information storage unit 532, and a charging management information storage unit 533A. The third registered use information storage unit 531 stores information related to the user U registered with respect to the parking lot X. The parking management information storage unit 532 stores information acquired by the parking management information processing unit 522. The charging management information storage unit 533A stores information acquired by the third charging management information processing unit 523A.

[0053] The parking lot X has a plurality of pallets P1, P2...Pn for loading vehicles, a pallet actuation mechanism 71 for appropriately moving the pallets P1, P2...Pn in the parking lot X, and a parking lot control device 72 for controlling the pallet actuation mechanism 71. The pallets P1, P2...Pn have charging equipment PA1, PA2...PAn, respectively. Hereinafter, when it is uncertain which of the pallets P1~Pn it is, it is recorded as the pallet P. Similarly, when it is uncertain which of the charging equipment PA1~PAn it is, it is recorded as the charging equipment PA. In addition, the parking lot X has a plurality of shelves (not shown) for storing the pallets P1, P2...Pn. In addition, the parking lot X has a charging equipment control device 73 for controlling the power on / off of the charging equipment PA1~PAn using wireless communication. In the present embodiment, only one electric vehicle can be charged at the same time in the parking lot X.

[0054] (Parking lot management system operation)

[0055] Next, the operation of the parking lot management system 1A is described. In the present embodiment, the first utilization registration information stored in advance in the first utilization registration information storage unit 331 of the vehicle management system 30 includes a user ID, a vehicle ID, and vehicle information related to the electric vehicle held by the user. The user ID is identification information of the user who uses the vehicle management system 30, and the vehicle ID is identification information of the electric vehicle held by the user. In the present embodiment, the vehicle information includes the battery capacity of the battery. In addition, in the present embodiment, in the first utilization registration information storage unit 331 of the vehicle management system 30, the identification information of the user who uses the vehicle management system 30, i.e., the user ID, which is pre-registered, is stored in association with the address of the user terminal used by the user.

[0056] Figure 5 FIG. 4 shows an example of the first usage registration information stored in the first usage registration information storage unit 331. Figure 5 In the illustrated example, in the first utilization registration information, each user ID is associated with a vehicle ID and information on the battery capacity of the battery of the electric vehicle to which the vehicle ID is assigned.

[0057] In addition, the first charge amount information processing unit 322 of the vehicle management system 30 obtains the battery charge remaining amount information from the vehicle control device 10 of each electric vehicle C corresponding to the vehicle ID registered in the first utilization registration information at a predetermined time interval (for example, 5-minute intervals). The first charge amount information processing unit 322 stores the acquired charge remaining amount information in the first charge amount information storage unit 332 in association with the vehicle ID.

[0058] Figure 6 1 is a sequence diagram showing the operation when the user U registers the use of the parking lot X to the central management system 40. As an example, the operation when the user U1 registers the use of the parking lot X will be described.

[0059] The user U1 inputs the information of the parking lot X to be used, the user ID "U1" and the vehicle ID "C1" of the first electric car C1 to be used into the first user terminal 20-1 to request the use registration. The first user terminal 20-1 generates the use registration request information including the input information and transmits it to the central management system 40 (S1).

[0060] In the central management system 40, the second registration information processing unit 421 receives the utilization registration request information sent from the first user terminal 20-1 (S2). The second registration information processing unit 421 obtains the vehicle ID "C1" from the received utilization registration request information. The second registration information processing unit 421 generates the cooperation request information including the obtained vehicle ID "C1" and sends it to the vehicle management system 30 (S3).

[0061] In the vehicle management system 30, the first registration information processing unit 321 receives the cooperation request information sent from the central management system 40. The first registration information processing unit 321 obtains the user ID "U1" associated with the vehicle ID "C1" included in the cooperation request information based on the first utilization registration information stored in the first utilization registration information storage unit 331. The first registration information processing unit 321 uses the address of the first user terminal 20-1 associated with the obtained user ID "U1" to send information to the first user terminal 20-1 asking whether cooperation is allowed (S4).

[0062] The first user terminal 20-1 receives information sent from the vehicle management system 30 asking whether cooperation is permitted and outputs the information to a display, etc. When the user U1 recognizes the output information and performs an operation to permit cooperation, the first user terminal 20-1 generates a cooperation permission notification and transmits it to the vehicle management system 30 (S5).

[0063] In the vehicle management system 30 , the first registration information processing unit 321 receives the cooperation permission notification transmitted from the first user terminal 20 - 1 , and transmits the received cooperation permission notification to the central management system 40 ( S6 ).

[0064] In the central management system 40, upon receiving the cooperation permission notification transmitted from the vehicle management system 30, the second registration information processing unit 421 associates the received user ID "U1" and vehicle ID "C1" acquired in step S2 and stores them in the second use registration information storage unit 431 (S7).

[0065] Next, the second registration information processing unit 421 requests the vehicle management system 30 for vehicle information related to the electric vehicle assigned the vehicle ID "C1" (S8). In the vehicle management system 30, when the first registration information processing unit 321 receives the request from the central management system 40 (S9), it obtains the battery capacity "40kWh" associated with the vehicle ID "C1" from the information stored in the first registration information storage unit 331 (refer to Figure 5 ), and sends the obtained battery capacity "40kWh" as the vehicle information of the electric car C1 to the central management system 40 (S10).

[0066] In the central management system 40, when the second registration information processing unit 421 receives the vehicle information transmitted from the vehicle management system 30, it associates the received vehicle information (battery capacity "40 kWh") with the user ID "U1" and the vehicle ID "C1" and stores them in the second use registration information storage unit 431. In addition, the second registration information processing unit 421 transmits the user ID "U1" and the vehicle information (battery capacity "40 kWh") as registration information related to the parking lot X to the parking lot management device 50A (S11).

[0067] In the parking lot management device 50A, the third registration information processing unit 521 receives the registration information sent from the central management system 40, and stores the received registration information in the third utilization registration information storage unit 531 (S12). In addition, when the central management system 40 sends the registration information to the parking lot management device 50A, it sends a utilization registration completion notification indicating that the utilization registration process of the user ID "U1" and the vehicle ID "C1" related to the utilization of the parking lot X has been completed to the first user terminal 20-1 (S13).

[0068] Upon receiving the use registration completion notification transmitted from the central management system 40, the first user terminal 20-1 outputs the notification to a display or the like (S14). The user U1 can recognize that the use registration process has been completed by visually recognizing the information output to the display or the like.

[0069] Similarly, users U2 and U3 use the second user terminal 20-2 and the third user terminal 20-3 to request the central management system 40 to register the use of the parking lot X, thereby executing the use registration process. Thus, information corresponding to the central management system 40 and the parking lot management device 50A is registered.

[0070] Figure 7 1 is a sequence diagram showing an operation when charging setting is performed by the user U registered in the central management system 40 and the parking lot management device 50A. As an example, the operation when the user U1 performs charging setting will be described.

[0071] The user U1 inputs the user ID "U1" and the expected value of the charging rate relative to the charging capacity of the battery (hereinafter referred to as "expected charging rate") "80%" as charging setting information to the first user terminal 20-1, and performs an operation to request settings related to charging (hereinafter referred to as "charging settings"). The first user terminal 20-1 generates charging setting request information including the input information and sends it to the central management system 40 (S21).

[0072] In the central management system 40, the second registration information processing unit 421 receives the charging setting request information sent from the first user terminal 20-1 (S22). The second registration information processing unit 421 adds the information of the desired charging rate "80%" contained in the received charging setting request information to the registration information of the user ID "U1" in the second utilization registration information storage unit 431 for updating. Specifically, the second registration information processing unit 421 stores the information of the desired charging rate "80%" in the second utilization registration information storage unit 431 in association with the user ID "U1", the vehicle ID "C1" and the vehicle information (battery capacity "40kWh"). In addition, the second registration information processing unit 421 sends the information of the user ID "U1" and the desired charging rate "80%" as charging setting information to the parking lot management device 50A (S23).

[0073] In the parking lot management device 50A, when the third registration information processing unit 521 receives the charging setting information sent from the central management system 40, it adds the registration information of the user ID "U1" in the third use registration information storage unit 531 and updates it. Specifically, the third registration information processing unit 521 associates the information of the desired charging rate "80%" with the user ID "U1" and the vehicle information (battery capacity "40kWh") and stores it in the third use registration information storage unit 531. As a result, the third registration information processing unit 521 sets the information related to charging (S24).

[0074] Furthermore, when the central management system 40 transmits the charging setting information to the parking lot management device 50A, it transmits a charging setting completion notification indicating that the setting process related to charging of the user ID "U1" has been completed to the first user terminal 20-1 (S25).

[0075] Upon receiving the charge setting completion notification transmitted from the central management system 40, the first user terminal 20-1 outputs the notification to a display or the like (S26). The user U1 can recognize that the charge setting process is completed by visually checking the information output to the display or the like.

[0076] Similarly, users U2 and U3 use the second user terminal 20-2 and the third user terminal 20-3 to request charging setting from the central management system 40, thereby executing the charging setting process. Thus, information corresponding to the central management system 40 and the parking lot management device 50A is registered.

[0077] Figure 8 FIG. 5 shows an example of registration information stored in the third use registration information storage unit 531 of the parking lot management device 50A. Figure 8In the example shown, each user ID is associated with the battery capacity information and the expected charging rate information in the registration information. Specifically, based on the operation of user U1, the expected charging rate "80%" information of vehicle ID "C1" is registered, based on the operation of user U2, the expected charging rate "70%" information of vehicle ID "C2" is registered, and based on the operation of user U3, the expected charging rate "80%" information of vehicle ID "C3" is registered.

[0078] Next, the operation when the user U who has registered for use uses the parking lot X will be described. First, the user U1 drives the electric car C1 to the parking lot X, and when the user U1 performs the entry operation of the vehicle ID "C1" through the operation panel (not shown) provided in the parking lot X, the parking lot management device 50A obtains the operation information. The parking lot management device 50A instructs the parking lot control device 72 to perform the entry process of the vehicle ID "C1". The parking lot control device 72 operates the pallet operation mechanism 71 to move the predetermined pallet P to the entrance and exit port in the parking lot X, and opens the entrance and exit door (not shown).

[0079] If the access door is open, the user U1 moves the electric vehicle C1 to the pallet P at the access port, connects the plug of the electric vehicle C1 to the charging device PA on the pallet P, and then closes the door. If the door is closed, the parking lot control device 72 closes the access door and stores the pallet P on a predetermined rack in the parking lot X (for example, a rack assigned with rack number "6").

[0080] The parking lot control device 72 transmits the user ID "U1" input by the user U and the rack number "6" which is the identification information of the rack storing the pallet P to the parking lot management device 50A. In the parking lot management device 50A, the parking management information processing unit 522 associates the rack number "6" with the received user ID "U1" and stores it in the parking management information storage unit 532 as the parking lot management information of the user U1.

[0081] When the electric vehicle C1 is put into storage, the third charging management information processing unit 523A obtains the remaining charge information of the electric vehicle C1. Fig. 9 The following describes a timing chart of the process of acquiring the remaining charge amount information of the electric vehicle C1 executed by the third charging management information processing unit 523A.

[0082] First, in the parking lot management device 50A, the third charge management information processing unit 523A requests the central management system 40 for the charge remaining amount information of the electric vehicle C1 assigned with the vehicle ID "C1" (S31). In the central management system 40, upon receiving the request from the parking lot management device 50A, the second charge amount information processing unit 422 requests the vehicle management system 30 for the charge remaining amount information of the electric vehicle C1 assigned with the vehicle ID "C1" (S32).

[0083] In the vehicle management system 30, when receiving a request from the central management system 40 (S33), the first charge amount information processing unit 322 obtains the latest charge remaining amount information of the electric vehicle C1 associated with the vehicle ID "C1" from the information stored in the first charge amount information storage unit 332, and sends it to the central management system 40 as the charge remaining amount information of the electric vehicle C1 (S34). In the central management system 40, the second charge amount information processing unit 422 sends the received charge remaining amount information of the electric vehicle C1 to the parking lot management device 50A (S35).

[0084] In the parking lot management device 50A, when the third charging management information processing unit 523A receives the remaining charge information of the electric vehicle C1 transmitted from the central management system 40 (S36), it stores the received remaining charge information in the corresponding charging management information of the user U1 in the charging management information storage unit 533A (S37). The above process of acquiring the remaining charge information of the electric vehicle C1 is completed.

[0085] Next, the third charging management information processing unit 523A determines whether the electric vehicle C1 needs to be charged based on the received remaining charge information of the electric vehicle C1. In the present embodiment, the third charging management information processing unit 523A determines that the electric vehicle needs to be charged if the latest remaining charge of the electric vehicle C1 does not reach the value obtained by multiplying the corresponding battery capacity by the ratio of the expected charge amount based on the information stored in the third utilization registration information storage unit 531 and the information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A. On the other hand, the third charging management information processing unit 523A determines that the electric vehicle C1 is in a fully charged state and does not need to be charged if the latest remaining charge of the electric vehicle C1 reaches the value obtained by multiplying the corresponding battery capacity by the ratio of the expected charge amount based on the information stored in the third utilization registration information storage unit 531 and the information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A.

[0086] In this embodiment, when the third charging management information processing unit 523A determines that the electric car C1 with user ID "U1" needs charging processing, it sets the charging status information to "waiting for charging", determines the charging processing order to "1", and stores this information as the charging management information of the corresponding user U1 in the charging management information storage unit 533A.

[0087] Afterwards, when the electric car C2 of user U2 and the electric car C3 of user U3 are also parked in parking lot X in turn, parking lot management information and charging management information of users U2 and U3 are similarly generated and stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A as charging management information of users U2 and U3.

[0088] Fig. 10A An example of the parking lot management information stored in the parking management information storage unit 532 is shown. Fig. 10B FIG. 4 shows an example of the charging management information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A. Fig. 10A In the example shown, as parking lot management information, user ID "U1" is associated with rack number "6", user ID "U2" is associated with rack number "2", and user ID "U3" is associated with rack number "1", and stored in parking management information storage unit 532. Fig. 10B In the example shown, as charging management information, the charging state information "waiting for charging" and the charging process order "1" are associated with the user ID "U1", the charging state information "not required for charging" is associated with the user ID "U2", and the charging state information "waiting for charging" and the charging process order "2" are associated with the user ID "U3", and are stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A. In this embodiment, for users waiting for charging, the charging process order is determined according to the order in which the execution order of the charging process is entered into the warehouse, but it is not limited to this. For example, the charging process order may be determined according to the order from the earliest to the latest of the scheduled time of leaving the warehouse input by the user U when entering the warehouse.

[0089] Thereafter, the parking management information processing unit 522 updates the parking management information in the parking management information storage unit 532 every time the electric vehicle enters or leaves the parking lot X based on the operation of the parking lot control device 72. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523A updates the charging processing sequence and charging status information of the charging management information in the charging management information storage unit 533A based on the operation of the charging equipment control device 73 in the parking lot X. For example, if the charging process of any electric vehicle starts, the charging status information for the corresponding user ID is updated to "charging", and if the charging process is completed, it is updated to "charging completed".

[0090] Reference Fig.11 The flowchart of FIG. 1 illustrates the charging management information checking process performed by the third charging management information processing unit 523A of the parking lot management device 50A at predetermined time intervals (for example, every 1 minute) while the electric vehicles C1 to C3 are parked in the parking lot X.

[0091] When the third charging management information processing unit 523A recognizes that the time for checking the charging management information has arrived (Yes in S41), Fig. 9 In the same manner as the process described in , the remaining charge amount information of the electric vehicles C1 to C3 stored in the garage is acquired and stored in the charge management information storage unit 533A (S42).

[0092] The third charging management information processing unit 523A determines whether there is an electric vehicle C in the process of charging and whose storage battery 11 is fully charged based on the charging management information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A (S43). The third charging management information processing unit 523A determines that the storage battery 11 of the electric vehicle C is fully charged if the latest remaining charge of the electric vehicle C in the process of charging reaches a value obtained by multiplying the corresponding battery capacity by the ratio of the expected charge amount based on the information stored in the third utilization registration information storage unit 531 and the information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533A.

[0093] When the third charging management information processing unit 523A determines that there is an electric vehicle C that is in the charging process and the battery 11 is fully charged, for example, when the electric vehicle C1 meets the requirements ("Yes" in S43), the third charging management information processing unit 523A sends a command to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1 stored in the corresponding rack to the charging equipment control device 73 (S44). When the charging equipment control device 73 receives the command, it sends a stop command to the corresponding charging equipment PA to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1.

[0094] When the third charging management information processing unit 523A sends a command to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1, it updates the charging state information in the corresponding charging management information in the charging management information storage unit 533A to "charging completed" (S45).

[0095] When the third charging management information processing unit 523A updates the charging state information in the corresponding charging management information, it determines that the electric vehicle C3 (refer to Fig. 10B), and sends a command to start the charging process together with the corresponding rack number "1" to the charging equipment control device 73 (S46). The charging equipment control device 73 sends a charging start command to the corresponding charging equipment PA to start the charging process of the electric vehicle C3. By executing the charging process in this way, the charging process is sequentially performed on the electric vehicles C1 and C3 that need to be charged.

[0096] According to this embodiment, in a parking lot equipped with charging equipment, there is no need for a unit to directly obtain information on the remaining charge amount from the electric vehicle that is the charging target. Instead, the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle is determined based on information obtained from an external vehicle management system. This enables charging processing of multiple electric vehicles to be performed sequentially with high precision and efficiency using a simple structure.

[0097] (Second Embodiment)

[0098] (Structure of parking lot management system)

[0099] The configuration of the parking lot management system 1B according to the second embodiment of the present invention is the same as the configuration of the parking lot management system 1A described in the first embodiment, and therefore detailed description of portions having the same functions will be omitted.

[0100] In this embodiment, the third charging management information processing unit 523B of the third CPU 52B of the parking lot management system 1B obtains the information of the remaining charge of the electric vehicle in the parking lot, and calculates the time required for the charging process of the electric vehicle based on the obtained information. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates charging plan information based on the calculated time, and appropriately instructs the start and end of the charging process based on the generated charging plan information. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523B is also called a charging management information processing unit.

[0101] (Parking lot management system operation)

[0102] Next, the operation of the parking lot management system 1B will be described. In this embodiment, the operation when the user U registers the use of the parking lot X to the central management system 40 is the same as the processing described in the first embodiment, and therefore the detailed description is omitted.

[0103] In addition, in the present embodiment, the steps of the actions when the user U performs the charging setting are the same as the processing described in the first embodiment, so the detailed description is omitted. Here, as the charging setting information, the user U inputs additional charging information indicating whether additional charging is desired in addition to the desired charging amount. "Desire for additional charging" means that when the charging process is executed according to the charging plan automatically generated as described later, when the charge remaining amount of the electric vehicle C at the end of the charging process does not reach the value obtained by multiplying the corresponding battery capacity by the ratio of the desired charging amount, further additional charging processing is desired. The additional charging information input by the user U is added to the registration information of the corresponding user ID in the third utilization registration information storage unit 531 of the parking lot management device 50B as the charging setting information together with the desired charging amount.

[0104] Fig.12 An example of registration information stored in the third use registration information storage unit 531 of the parking lot management device 50B is shown. Here, "performed" is registered as the additional charging information of the users U1 and U3, and "not performed" is registered as the additional charging information of the user U2.

[0105] Next, the operation when the user U who has registered for use uses the parking lot X is described. As in the case described in the first embodiment, the user U1 drives the electric car C1 to the parking lot X, and stores the electric car C1 in a predetermined rack by performing a storage operation, and the corresponding parking lot management information and charging management information are generated and stored.

[0106] Here, the third charging management information processing unit 523B of the parking lot management device 50B generates charging plan information as a charging process sequence of the charging management information. Specifically, the third charging management information processing unit 523B calculates the time required for the charging process until the battery of the electric vehicle reaches the full charge value based on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle in the parking lot, and generates the charging plan information based on the calculated time. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523B sets the maximum charging time for one vehicle to 2 hours and generates the charging plan information.

[0107] When generating the charging plan information, if the remaining charge information cannot be obtained from the vehicle management system 30 for some reason, the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates the charging plan information for the corresponding electric vehicle based on the initial setting. In the initial setting, for example, it is set to charge for a predetermined time (for example, 2 hours) or a predetermined charge amount (for example, 10 kWh).

[0108] In this embodiment, when the remaining charge of electric vehicle C1 is 20 kWh, the third charging management information processing unit 523B calculates the time required to charge to the full charge value of 32 kWh calculated by the battery capacity of electric vehicle C1 of 40 kWh × the expected charge amount of 80% to be more than 2 hours. In addition, when the remaining charge of electric vehicle C3 is 45 kWh, the third charging management information processing unit 523B calculates the time required to charge to the full charge value of 49.6 kWh calculated by the battery capacity of electric vehicle C3 of 62 kWh × the expected charge amount of 80% to be 1 hour and 27 minutes.

[0109] The time required for these charges is calculated based on the voltage value (charging voltage value) when the charging equipment PA1, PA2, ... PAn in the parking lot X performs the charging process. When the charging voltage value of each charging equipment PA1, PA2, ... PAn in the parking lot X is different, the third charging management information processing unit 523B calculates the time required for charging for each electric vehicle based on the charging voltage value of the corresponding charging equipment.

[0110] Fig.13 An example of charging management information including a charging plan generated based on the calculated charging time is shown. Here, the charging start time of the electric car C1 of the user U1 is set to 18:00 and the end time is set to 20:00, and the charging start time of the electric car C3 of the user U3 is set to 20:00 and the end time is set to 21:27.

[0111] Reference Fig.14 The flowchart of FIG. 1 illustrates the charging management information checking process performed by the third charging management information processing unit 523B of the parking lot management device 50B at predetermined time intervals (for example, every 1 minute) while the electric vehicles C1 to C3 are parked in the parking lot X.

[0112] When the third charging management information processing unit 523B recognizes that the time for checking the charging management information has arrived (Yes in S51), it determines whether there is an electric vehicle that is in the process of charging and has passed the charging end time based on the charging management information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533B (S52). Here, the case where the current time is past 20:00 and the electric vehicle C1 is equivalent to an electric vehicle that is in the process of charging and has passed the charging end time is described.

[0113] The third charging management information processing unit 523B determines that there is an electric vehicle that is in the charging process and has passed the charging end time (S52: "Yes"), and sends a command to the charging equipment control device 73 to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1 stored in the corresponding rack with rack number "6" (S53). The charging equipment control device 73 sends a stop command to the corresponding charging equipment PA1 to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1.

[0114] When the third charging management information processing unit 523B sends a command to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1, Fig. 9 The third charging management information processing unit 523B acquires the remaining charge information of the electric vehicle C1 (S54) and stores it in the charging management information storage unit 533B. In addition, the third charging management information processing unit 523B updates the charging state information of the electric vehicle C1 for which the charging process has been stopped to "charging completed" (S55) with respect to the charging management information in the charging management information storage unit 533B.

[0115] Next, the third charging management information processing unit 523B checks whether the electric car C1 for which the charging process has been stopped is fully charged, that is, whether the remaining charge has reached 32 kWh, based on the remaining charge information stored in the charging management information storage unit 533B ( S56 ).

[0116] Here, the third charging management information processing unit 523B determines that the remaining charge of the electric vehicle C1 is 26.4 kWh and has not yet reached 32 kWh ("No" in S56). In this case, the third charging management information processing unit 523B confirms the additional charging information of the user U1 of the electric vehicle C1 (S57). Here, the additional charging information of the user U1 is registered with "proceeding" ("Yes" in S57), so the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates a plan for additional charging of the user U1 and updates the charging management information (S58). It is also possible to give priority to the utilization plans of other users and generate a plan for the additional charging only when it is possible to add. In addition, adjustments can be made by avoiding time periods in which more charging processes are performed in advance to avoid inconveniences for other users.

[0117] Fig.15 An example of charging management information updated by the third charging management information processing unit 523B is shown. Here, the third charging management information processing unit 523B calculates that the time required to charge the electric vehicle C1 from the remaining charge of 26.4 kWh to 32 kWh is 1 hour and 47 minutes, and sets the charging start time at 21:27 and the charging end time at 23:12 as the additional charging plan for the user U1.

[0118] In step S52, if there is no electric vehicle that is in the charging process and has passed the charging end time ("No" in S52), if the electric vehicle C that stopped the charging process in step S56 becomes fully charged ("Yes" in S56), if the additional charging information of the corresponding user ID in step S57 is "not in progress" ("No" in S57), or if the charging management information is updated in step S58, transfer to step S59.

[0119] In step S59, the third charging management information processing unit 523B determines whether or not there is an electric vehicle that is in charging standby and the charging start time has passed based on the stored charging management information (S59).

[0120] Here, the third charging management information processing unit 523B determines that the electric vehicle C3 is equivalent to an electric vehicle that is in charging standby and has passed the charging start time (S59: "Yes"). The third charging management information processing unit 523B sends a command to the charging equipment control device 73 to start the charging process of the electric vehicle C3 stored in the corresponding rack with rack number "1" (S60). The charging equipment control device 73 sends a start command to the corresponding charging equipment PA3 to start the charging process of the electric vehicle C3.

[0121] When the third charging management information processing unit 523B sends a command to stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C1, the charging management information of the third charging management information storage unit 533B updates the charging state information of the electric vehicle C3 that has started the charging process to "charging" (S61). Then, the process returns to step S51 and repeats the process.

[0122] In the above process, when the electric car C whose charging process was stopped in step S56 becomes fully charged ("Yes" in S56), or when the additional registration information of the corresponding user in step S57 is "not to be performed" ("No" in S57), a plan for additional charging is not generated.

[0123] As described above, according to the second embodiment, in a parking lot equipped with charging equipment, there is no need for a unit to directly obtain information on the remaining charge amount from the electric vehicle that is the charging object. Instead, the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle is determined based on information obtained from an external vehicle management system and a charging plan is generated. This enables charging processing of multiple electric vehicles to be performed sequentially with high precision and efficiency using a simple structure.

[0124] In the second embodiment described above, the user U may be configured to make a reservation for the parking lot X in advance from the user terminal 20. In this case, the user U sends the scheduled start date and time of the parking lot X to the parking lot management device 50B via the central management system 40. In the parking lot management device 50B, the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates charging plan information based on the acquired scheduled start date and time of the parking lot X.

[0125] In this case, the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates charging plan information by setting the charging time of the electric vehicle C to the upper limit of 2 hours. Furthermore, when the electric vehicle C is actually parked in the parking lot X, the third charging management information processing unit 523B updates the charging plan information based on the acquired remaining charge of the electric vehicle C. By performing such processing, even when the use of the parking lot X is reserved in advance, the charging process can be reserved reliably.

[0126] In this way, when the electric vehicle C specifies the scheduled start time of the parking lot X and performs the use reservation process before entering the parking lot X, the third charging management information processing unit 523B generates the charging plan information based on the scheduled start time of the parking lot X. When the electric vehicle C enters the parking lot X, the third charging management information processing unit 523B obtains the information of the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle C from the vehicle management system 30, and updates the charging plan information based on the obtained information.

[0127] In the second embodiment described above, when the user has registered in advance to assist in power balancing, upon receiving a request for power balancing from a power company or the like, the third charging management information processing unit 523B may also update the charging plan information by reducing the full charge value of each electric vehicle to a reference value for power balancing (for example, 60% of the charging capacity) in the corresponding time period. In this case, the third charging management information processing unit 523B applies the lower value of the desired charge amount and the reference value for power balancing. When this update is performed, if there is an electric vehicle C in the charging process, the third charging management information processing unit 523B obtains the charge remaining amount information of the corresponding electric vehicle C, and when the charge remaining amount exceeds the reference value for power balancing, the charging process of the corresponding electric vehicle C is terminated without waiting for the end time.

[0128] In addition, in the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, in the first utilization registration information storage unit 331 of the vehicle management system 30, as vehicle information, in addition to the battery capacity of the battery, the size, weight or driving information of the corresponding electric vehicle C may also be included. The central management system 40 can determine, for example, whether the corresponding electric vehicle C can enter the parking lot requested by the user for registration by using the size and weight of the corresponding electric vehicle C in this information. If the result of the determination is that it cannot enter the parking lot, the central management system 40 sends a response indicating that registration cannot be made in response to the utilization registration request. In addition, the central management system 40 can determine the aspect with a high possibility of driving after leaving the parking lot by using the driving information of the corresponding electric vehicle C, and when a sufficient amount of charging cannot be performed during storage, select a nearby charging place for the corresponding aspect and notify the user.

[0129] In addition, in the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, after a predetermined time, for example, 30 minutes, has passed since the start of the charging process of any electric vehicle C, the third charging management information processing unit 523A, 523B may obtain the remaining charge of the electric vehicle C to confirm whether the charging process is normally performed. Here, when it is determined that the charging process is not normally performed, the third charging management information processing unit 523A, 523B may also confirm in the vehicle management system 30 whether an error has occurred in the electric vehicle C. In addition, when it is determined that the charging process is not normally performed, the third charging management information processing unit 523A, 523B may stop the charging process of the electric vehicle C and update the charging management information, and then start the charging process of the electric vehicle C scheduled to be charged.

[0130] In addition, in the first embodiment and the second embodiment described above, the third charging management information processing unit 523A, 523B may obtain the remaining charge of the electric vehicle C in the parking lot from the vehicle management system 30 at predetermined intervals, for example, once a day, and confirm whether it is less than a predetermined threshold value (for example, 60% of the battery capacity). Moreover, if it is less than the threshold value, the charging plan information may be automatically updated so that the third charging management information processing unit 523A, 523B performs the corresponding charging process of the electric vehicle C. By performing such processing, it is possible to prevent the battery of the electric vehicle C that has been parked in the parking lot for a long time and not used from being exhausted due to the consumption of standby power.

[0131] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the embodiments can be modified or altered based on the above disclosure. All the components of the above embodiments and all the features described in the scope of the claims can be extracted and combined as long as they do not contradict each other.

Claims

1. A parking lot management device, characterized in that: have: a communication unit connected in a communicable manner to a charging device installed in a parking lot, and connected in a communicable manner to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals, rather than being connected in a communicable manner to a vehicle control device that identifies the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle charged by the charging device; and A charging management information processing unit obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system during the execution of the charging process of the electric vehicle by the charging equipment, and stops the charging process in progress when it is detected that the electric vehicle has reached a full charge value based on the obtained information.

2. A parking lot management device, characterized in that: have: a communication unit connected in a communicable manner to a charging device installed in a parking lot, and connected in a communicable manner to a vehicle management system that obtains information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals, rather than being connected in a communicable manner to a vehicle control device that identifies the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle charged by the charging device; and A charging management information processing unit obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system, calculates the time required for charging the electric vehicle until it reaches a full charge value based on the obtained information, generates charging plan information based on the calculated time, and causes the charging device to perform charging processing based on the generated charging plan information.

3. The parking lot management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The charging management information processing unit causes the charging device to perform charging processing based on the charging plan information generated according to the information on the charging remaining amount. When the electric vehicle has not reached the full charge value at the end of the charging processing and is set to perform additional charging processing, the charging management information processing unit generates charging plan information for performing additional charging processing and further causes the charging device to perform charging processing based on the generated charging plan information.

4. The parking lot management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: Regarding the electric vehicle, when the scheduled start time of use of the parking lot is specified before entering the parking lot and a reservation process is performed, the charging management information processing unit generates charging plan information based on the scheduled start time of use of the parking lot. When the electric vehicle enters the parking lot, the charging management information processing unit obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system and updates the charging plan information based on the obtained information.

5. The parking lot management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The charging management information processing unit updates the charging plan information by reducing the full charge value of the electric vehicle in the time period in which the request for power leveling is received.

6. The parking lot management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The charge management information processing unit acquires information on a remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system when a predetermined time has passed since the start of the charging process of the electric vehicle, and determines whether the charging process is normally performed based on the acquired information.

7. The parking lot management device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The charging management information processing unit obtains the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle entering the parking lot from the vehicle management system at every predetermined period, and updates charging plan information for the electric vehicle whose remaining charge amount is less than a predetermined threshold value so as to execute charging processing.

8. A parking lot management method, characterized in that: The parking lot management device is connected to a charging device installed in the parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not connected to a vehicle control device for identifying a remaining charge amount of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is connected to a vehicle management system for obtaining information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals. The parking lot management device obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system while the charging equipment is charging the electric vehicle, and stops the charging process in progress when it is detected that the electric vehicle has reached a full charge value based on the obtained information.

9. A parking lot management method, characterized in that: The parking lot management device is connected to a charging device installed in the parking lot in a communicative manner, and is not connected to a vehicle control device for identifying a remaining charge amount of an electric vehicle charged by the charging device, but is connected to a vehicle management system for obtaining information on the remaining charge amount of the electric vehicle from the vehicle control device at predetermined time intervals. The parking lot management device obtains information on the remaining charge of the electric vehicle from the vehicle management system, calculates the time required for charging the electric vehicle until it reaches a full charge value based on the obtained information, generates charging plan information based on the calculated time, and causes the charging equipment to perform charging processing based on the generated charging plan information.

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