Battery capacity detection system

Abstract

To provide a battery capacity detection system that can detect the capacity of a secondary battery for an electric vehicle without supplying power from a power source.SOLUTION: A battery capacity detection system 1 according to the present disclosure executes: a charging step of supplying a current from an external secondary battery to a secondary battery for an electric vehicle to charge the battery to a fully-charged state; a discharging step of discharging electricity to the external secondary battery from the secondary battery for an electric vehicle in the fully-charged state to an out-of-electricity state; and a calculation step of calculating the capacity of the secondary battery for an electric vehicle from the capacity of electricity discharged from the fully-charged state to the out-of-electricity state in the discharging step. The battery capacity detection system 1 can charge the secondary battery for an electric vehicle to the fully-charged state, and notifies a user of position information of the external secondary battery satisfying a condition that it can store electricity when the secondary battery for an electric vehicle in the fully-charged state is discharged to be in the out-of-electricity state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a battery capacity detection system. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a known technology that predicts the lifespan of secondary batteries installed in electric vehicles and estimates and displays the capacity of the secondary batteries based on the prediction results. Because the lifespan prediction is based on battery performance and driving patterns, the accuracy of the prediction tends to decrease as the vehicle is used for a long time and the battery deteriorates.

[0003] As a related technique, Patent Document 1 discloses a battery capacity detection device that detects the actual charge capacity (real capacity) of a battery installed in an electric vehicle. The device calculates the actual charge capacity from the amount of current flowing into the battery when charging the electric vehicle battery from 0% to 100%. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2008-278624 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 requires a current supply from a power source to fully charge the battery. The present disclosure provides a battery capacity detection system that can detect the capacity of a secondary battery for an electric vehicle without requiring a current supply from a power source. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The battery capacity detection system according to the present disclosure is a battery capacity detection system that executes a charging step of supplying current from an external secondary battery to an electric vehicle secondary battery and charging it to a fully charged state, a discharging step of discharging the fully charged electric vehicle secondary battery to the external secondary battery until it is depleted, and a calculation step of calculating the capacity of the electric vehicle secondary battery from the discharge capacity discharged from the fully charged state to the depleted state in the discharging step, and notifies the user of location information of an external secondary battery that satisfies the conditions that it is capable of charging the electric vehicle secondary battery to a fully charged state and that it is capable of storing electricity when the fully charged electric vehicle secondary battery is discharged to a depleted state. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The battery capacity detection system according to the present disclosure can detect the capacity of a secondary battery for an electric vehicle without supplying current from a power source. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a battery capacity detection system. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of the degradation diagnosis request acquisition process. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of the degradation diagnosis process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding elements are designated by the same reference numerals. For clarity of explanation, duplicated explanations will be omitted as necessary.

[0010] A battery capacity detection system 1 according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the battery capacity detection system 1. The battery capacity detection system 1 is a system capable of detecting the capacity of a secondary battery for an electric vehicle without supplying current from a power source.

[0011] (Configuration of battery capacity detection system 1) The battery capacity detection system 1 includes a charger 10, a power source 20, a power source 21, a vehicle battery 30, and a server 50. The charger 10 and the server 50 are connected via a network (not shown). The charger 10 is also connected to the power source 20, the power source 21, and the vehicle battery 30 via a charging cable or the like. Although one charger 10 is connected to the server 50 in FIG. 1, the server 50 may be connected to multiple chargers 10. The server 50 may also be connected to a communication device (not shown) provided in the vehicle.

[0012] The power supplies 20 and 21 supply current to the charger 10. The power supplies 20 and 21 are, for example, 100V or 200V power supplies for home use.

[0013] The charger 10 is a charging device capable of charging a vehicle battery 30 using current supplied from a power source 20 or 21. The vehicle battery 30 is an example of a secondary battery for an electric vehicle mounted on a vehicle. Vehicles on which the vehicle battery 30 is mounted include, for example, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and an electric vehicle (BEV: Battery Electric Vehicle). However, the vehicle battery 30 is not limited to these, and may also be mounted on other electric vehicles.

[0014] For example, the charger 10 executes a charging step in which the current of the charger battery 13 is supplied to the vehicle battery 30 to charge it until it is fully charged, a discharging step in which the fully charged vehicle battery 30 is discharged to the charger battery 13 until it is in an exhausted state, and a calculation step in which the capacity of the vehicle battery 30 is calculated from the discharge capacity discharged from the fully charged state to the exhausted state in the discharging step.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, the charger 10 includes an AC / DC converter (Alternate Current / Direct Current Converter) 11, a heater, etc. 12, a charger battery 13, a DC / DC converter (Direct Current / Direct Current Converter) 14, a switch 15, a switch 16, a controller 17, a communication device 18, and a capacity meter 19.

[0016] The AC / DC converter 11 converts AC power into DC power. A charger battery 13 is provided on the output side of the AC / DC converter 11.

[0017] The charger battery 13 is an example of an external secondary battery provided outside the vehicle. For example, a battery for a BEV is used as the vehicle battery 30. Because BEV batteries have a large capacity, if a household storage battery is used as the charger battery 13, it will not be able to accommodate the full capacity of the vehicle battery 30. Therefore, a large storage battery that can accommodate the full capacity of the vehicle battery 30 is used as the charger battery 13. The charger battery 13 is charged by receiving a current supply from a power source 20. The charger battery 13 supplies current to the vehicle battery 30 via a DC / DC converter 14 and a switch 15. As shown in FIG. 1, the charger battery 13 may be equipped with a temperature sensor 131, a heater 12, etc., for managing the charging state.

[0018] The DC / DC converter 14 changes the voltage and current levels of the DC power and outputs it. The switch 15 is provided on the output side of the DC / DC converter 14. The switches 15 and 16 switch the current supply path to the vehicle battery 30 between a path from the charger battery 13 and a path from the power source 21.

[0019] The controller 17 is a control device that controls the operation of the charger 10. The controller 17 controls the AC / DC converter 11, the heater etc. 12, the charger battery 13, the DC / DC converter 14, the switch 15, the switch 16, the communicator 18, and the capacity meter 19. The communicator 18 communicates with devices other than the charger 10. The communicator 18 communicates with, for example, a vehicle and a server 50.

[0020] The capacity meter 19 measures the remaining capacity of the vehicle battery 30. The capacity meter 19 may measure the charge capacity of the vehicle battery 30 via a predetermined application 40 stored in a control device (not shown) mounted on the vehicle, for example.

[0021] The server 50 is equipped with a communication device (not shown), communicates with the charger 10 and the vehicle via a network, and performs processing according to the present disclosure using information acquired from the charger 10 and the vehicle. For example, the server 50 acquires the remaining capacity of the charger battery 13 from the charger 10 and determines whether the remaining capacity satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0022] For example, the server 50 identifies a charger battery 13 that satisfies the conditions that it can charge the vehicle battery 30 to a fully charged state and can store electricity when the fully charged vehicle battery 30 is discharged to an empty state. The server 50 may identify a charger 10 from among multiple chargers 10 that has a charger battery 13 that satisfies the conditions. The server 50 also notifies the user of the location information of the identified charger battery 13. The user is, for example, the owner of the vehicle. The server 50 may also notify the user of the location information of the charger 10 as the location information of the charger battery 13.

[0023] The charger 10 and the server 50 each include a processor, memory, and storage device (not shown). The storage device stores a computer program that implements the processes described herein. The processor can load the computer program from the storage device into the memory and execute the computer program. This allows the processor to perform various processes. Each component of the charger 10 and the server 50 may be implemented by dedicated hardware, or by a general-purpose or dedicated circuit, processor, or a combination of these. Some or all of the components may be implemented by a combination of a circuit, etc., and a program.

[0024] (Battery capacity detection system 1 processing) Next, the processing executed by the battery capacity detection system 1 will be described with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figure 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of the deterioration diagnosis request acquisition processing. Figure 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of the deterioration diagnosis processing.

[0025] (Deterioration diagnosis request acquisition process) First, the degradation diagnosis request acquisition process will be described with reference to Fig. 2. When the server 50 performs a degradation diagnosis of the battery capacity, the server 50 starts the degradation diagnosis request acquisition process (S100). The server 50 acquires the SOH (State of Health) of the vehicle battery 30 (S110).

[0026] The server 50 determines whether the following formula (1) is satisfied (S120). SOH≦97% (1) Here, in order to avoid a diagnosis notification immediately after the user starts using the vehicle, the SOH after approximately two years is used to set the formula (1). The formula (1) is not limited to 97% and may be set using any value.

[0027] If the server 50 determines that SOH≦97% (YES in S120), it acquires the deterioration diagnosis timing (S130), and if it determines that SOH>97% (NO in S120), it returns to the processing of step S110.

[0028] The server 50 determines whether the deterioration diagnosis period is two years or more since the start of use of the vehicle (S140). If the server 50 determines that the period is two years or more (YES in S140), it issues a diagnosis guidance notice to the user (S150). If the server 50 determines that the period is less than two years (NO in S140), it returns to the processing of step S110.

[0029] The server 50 determines whether or not the user has requested a diagnosis (S160). If the server 50 determines that the user has requested a diagnosis (YES in S160), it ends the degradation diagnosis request acquisition process (S170). If the server 50 determines that the user has not requested a diagnosis (NO in S160), it returns to the process of step S110.

[0030] (Deterioration diagnosis processing) Next, the degradation diagnosis process will be described with reference to Fig. 3. When the server 50 finishes the degradation diagnosis request acquisition process described with reference to Fig. 2, it starts degradation diagnosis (S180). The server 50 acquires degradation diagnosis request information from the user (S190). The server 50 acquires location information of the charger battery 13 (S200). The location information of the charger battery 13 may indicate the installation location of the charger 10. The server 50 also acquires the remaining capacity of the charger battery 13 (S210).

[0031] Here, in preparation for starting the deterioration diagnosis, it is necessary to charge the vehicle battery 30 from the charger battery 13 and bring the SOC (State of Charge) of the vehicle battery 30 to 100%. Therefore, the server 50 identifies the charger battery 13 that satisfies the following formula (2). (Remaining capacity of charger battery 13)+(Remaining capacity of vehicle battery 30)≧(Fully charged capacity of vehicle battery 30) (2)

[0032] The server 50 determines whether or not there is a charger battery 13 that satisfies formula (2) (S220). If the server 50 determines that there is a charger battery 13 that satisfies formula (2) (YES in S220), it notifies the user of the location information of the charger battery 13 (S230), and if it determines that there is not (NO in S220), it returns to the processing of step S190. The server 50 may select the vehicle, the user's smartphone, or the like as the notification destination.

[0033] The user moves the vehicle based on the location information of the charger battery 13, connects it to the charger battery 13, specifies the capacity to charge the vehicle battery 30 after the degradation diagnosis is completed, and inputs that capacity to the charger 10 (S240). The charger 10 supplies the current of the charger battery 13 to the vehicle battery 30, and charges the vehicle battery 30 until the SOC reaches 100% (S250). After charging is complete, the charger 10 discharges from the vehicle battery 30 to the charger battery 13 until the SOC reaches 0% (S260).

[0034] After the battery is discharged until the SOC reaches 0%, the capacity meter 19 of the charger 10 calculates the capacity of the vehicle battery 30 from the discharge capacity discharged from the SOC of 100% to the SOC of 0% (S270). This ends the degradation diagnosis. The calculation of the capacity of the vehicle battery 30 may be performed by the server 50, which acquires data from the charger 10. After the diagnosis is completed, the charger 10 charges the vehicle battery 30 to a capacity specified by the user (S280). This ends the degradation diagnosis process of the battery capacity detection system 1 (S290).

[0035] As described above, the battery capacity detection system 1 according to the present disclosure uses a charger battery 13 capable of charging the vehicle battery 30 to a fully charged state. Therefore, the battery capacity detection system 1 does not require a current supply from the power source 20 or 21, and can detect the battery capacity of the vehicle battery 30 even when the vehicle is not in an environment with a power source, such as a charging station. Furthermore, the battery capacity detection system 1 can appropriately notify the user when a deterioration diagnosis of the vehicle battery 30 is necessary, and can accurately perform the deterioration diagnosis of the vehicle battery 30. Furthermore, the battery capacity detection system 1 notifies the user's vehicle or smartphone of the capacity and charge state of the charger battery 13, allowing the user to select an appropriate large-scale storage battery that can accept the discharge from the vehicle battery 30.

[0036] The above-mentioned program includes a set of instructions (or software code) that causes the computer to perform one or more functions described in the embodiments when loaded into the computer. The program may be stored in various types of non-transitory computer-readable media or tangible storage media. The program may also be transmitted over various types of transitory computer-readable media or communication media.

[0037] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1...Battery capacity detection system, 10...Charger, 11...AC / DC converter, 13...Charger battery, 14...DC / DC converter, 15, 16...Switch, 17...Controller, 18...Communication device, 19...Capacity meter, 20, 21...Power supply, 30...Vehicle battery, 40...Application, 50...Server, 131...Temperature sensor

Claims

[Claim 1] a charging step of supplying a current from an external secondary battery to the electric vehicle secondary battery and charging the battery until it is fully charged; a discharging step of discharging the electric vehicle secondary battery from a fully charged state to the external secondary battery until the battery is depleted; a calculation step of calculating a capacity of the electric vehicle secondary battery from a discharge capacity discharged from a fully charged state to an exhausted state in the discharging step, The user is notified of location information of an external secondary battery that satisfies the conditions that the secondary battery for the electric vehicle can be charged to a fully charged state and can store power when the secondary battery for the electric vehicle in a fully charged state is discharged to an exhausted state. Battery capacity detection system.

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