Battery energy station and charging management method thereof

Abstract

To provide a battery energy station and a charging management method thereof.SOLUTION: Battery energy stations and charging management methods thereof are provided, which are applied to electronic equipment used for storing and charging a plurality of batteries. First, electricity of each battery is obtained. Then, energy distribution operation is performed for the batteries according to the electricity of each battery, the energy distribution operation sequentially allocating a charging current for each battery from the battery with the highest electricity to the battery with the lowest electricity, until a total current is allocated. Then, the respective batteries are charged according to the corresponding charging current allocated to each battery, so as to satisfy a charging demand required by at least a part of the batteries.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to battery energy stations and charging management methods therefor, and in particular to a battery energy station and charging management method therefor capable of managing a battery charging schedule under the premise of a specific charging current. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, with the increasing awareness of environmental protection and the development of electric vehicle technology, the development of electric vehicles powered by electric energy to replace traditional vehicles powered by fossil fuels has gradually become an important goal in the automotive field, and thus electric vehicles are becoming more and more popular. In order to increase the driving range and willingness to use electric vehicles, many countries and cities have already begun to set up charging stations and battery energy stations in public places, providing charging and battery exchange for electric motorcycles and / or electric vehicles, making the use of electric vehicles more convenient.

[0003] With the widespread use of electric vehicles, the demand for electricity is increasing accordingly. Upgrading the existing power plants and grids requires huge costs and time, and the existing grids are heavily strained when the power demands of various sectors, such as industry, households, and public sectors, need to be met at the same time, resulting in an increase in the crises of power outages and blackouts. In response to the grid crises, power plants and electricity consumers, e.g., manufacturers of charging stations / battery energy stations, can cooperate in energy regulation agreements to manage the power consumption in the grid, e.g., by demand response. For example, during peak power consumption, power plants can notify related suppliers to reduce the demand for electricity and reward them with specific feedback.

[0004] Generally, when the power grid is in off-peak time, the power user, for example, a charging station / battery energy station, can perform charging operations according to a pre-set charging rule. For example, during off-peak time, the battery energy station can charge its stored battery with the highest efficiency. However, when the power grid is in peak time and must cooperate with the power plant, the power user needs to implement a specific charging rule to meet the power demand under the energy rule. How to maintain the normal operation of the power grid and meet the power demand of users at the same time is an urgent problem that the industry needs to solve. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention aims to provide a battery energy station and a charging management method thereof. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An embodiment of the battery energy station includes an energy module having a total current, a battery storage system having a plurality of batteries, and a processing unit. The processing unit is coupled to the battery storage system to obtain power corresponding to each battery and perform an energy distribution operation on the batteries according to the power of each battery. The energy distribution operation distributes a charging current sequentially from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power until the total current is distributed. The processing unit performs charging on the individual batteries according to the charging current distributed to each battery to satisfy at least one charging requirement required by at least a portion of the batteries.

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a charging management method is applied to an electronic device that is used to store and charge multiple batteries. First, obtain the power corresponding to each battery. Then, perform an energy distribution operation for the batteries according to the power of each battery, which distributes charging current sequentially from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power until a total current is distributed. Then, charge the individual batteries according to the corresponding charging current distributed to each battery to satisfy the charging requirements required by at least some of the batteries.

[0008] In some embodiments, an identification signal of a first battery in the batteries is received, and in response to the identification signal, power of each battery other than the first battery is newly obtained, and the energy distribution operation is re-performed according to the power of each battery.

[0009] In some embodiments, a specific signal is used to indicate when the first battery is fully charged or a change in the charging requirements of the first battery.

[0010] In some embodiments, determining whether the power of each battery is greater than a first predetermined power level If the power of the second battery is greater than the first predetermined power level, then removing the second battery from the energy distribution operation.

[0011] In some embodiments, a battery request is received, and in response to the battery request, at least one candidate battery is selected from the plurality of batteries having a power greater than a second predetermined power level, and the candidate battery is removed from the battery energy station.

[0012] In some embodiments, the network is connected to a cloud server, and receives information of the total current and the specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation from the cloud server, and performs the energy distribution operation according to the total current at the specific time point.

[0013] The charging management method of the present invention exists in the form of a program code, which, when loaded and executed in an equipment, turns the equipment into an equipment implementing the apparatus of the present invention. Effect of the Invention

[0014] The present invention can maintain the normal operation of the power grid and simultaneously meet the power demands of users. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 shows a battery energy station of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 illustrates a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 2 is a flowchart of a charging management method of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart of a charging management method for a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 4 is a flowchart of a charging management method for a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart of a charging management method for a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart of a charging management method for a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] The present invention may be more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description and examples taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0017] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention. The battery energy station 100 of the present invention can be applied to electronic devices. As shown in FIG. 1, the battery energy station 100 at least includes a battery storage system 110, an energy module 120, a network connection unit 130, and a processing unit 140. The battery storage system 110 stores a plurality of batteries 112 and has a special mechanism (not shown) that can selectively lock or release the batteries. The battery energy station 100 provides the batteries for use in at least one electric device, such as an electric motorcycle or an electric car. The energy module 120 is electrically coupled to a power grid (not shown) to obtain a total current, supply power to the battery energy station, and charge the batteries 112 according to a signal from the processing unit 140. It is noted that the battery storage system 110 has a charging module corresponding to each battery, and the charging module has an upper current limit and / or a lower current limit to charge the corresponding battery. It is noted that in some embodiments, the energy module 120 can automatically detect the total current supplied from the power grid to the battery energy station 100, and notify the processing unit 140 of the total current information. The network connection unit 130 is connected to a network, so that the battery energy station 100 has a network connection capability. In some embodiments, the network 300 is a wired network, a telecommunication network, and a wireless network, such as a Wi-Fi network. The processing unit 140 can control the operation of all the hardware and software in the battery energy station 100 and execute the charging management method of the battery energy station of the present invention, which will be described in detail below.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. Similarly, the battery energy station 100 of the present invention is applied to an electronic device, which has a plurality of batteries and can be provided to at least one electric device, for example, an electric motorcycle or an electric car. The battery energy station 100 has the same components as those in FIG. 1, and the description thereof is omitted here. The battery energy station 100 is connected to the remote server 200 by a network 300, for example, a wired network, a telecommunication network, and a wireless network, for example, a Wi-Fi network, using a network connection unit 130. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the remote server 200 can simultaneously manage other battery energy stations located at the same location or different locations. As described above, the energy module 120 of the battery energy station 100 can automatically detect the total current supplied to the battery energy station 100 from the power grid, and notify the processing unit 140 of the information of the total current. In some embodiments, the remote server 200 can inform the battery energy station 100 of the total current information through the network 300. The battery energy station 100 can perform charging management operations according to the received information.

[0019] 3 is a flow chart of a method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention. The method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention is applicable to an electronic device that stores and charges a plurality of batteries, such as the battery energy station of FIG.

[0020] First, in step S310, obtain the power corresponding to each battery. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the charging module of the battery energy station can send a signal to the battery electrically connected thereto to detect the power level and obtain the power of the battery. Then, in step S320, perform an energy distribution operation for the battery according to the power of each battery. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the energy distribution operation is performed at the peak of power consumption. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation aims at the fastest output of a fully charged battery, for example, the power of the battery to reach a predetermined power level. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation distributes the charging current from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power sequentially until the total current is distributed. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the energy module of the battery energy station can automatically detect the total current supplied to the battery energy station from the power grid. In some embodiments, the battery energy station can receive information of the total current from a remote server through a network. In addition, in some embodiments, the cloud server further transmits a specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation, and when the time point arrives, the battery energy station performs the energy distribution operation. It should be noted that the charging current distributed sequentially is the highest current required or allowed by the battery / charging module. When the remaining current is less than the highest current required or allowed by the subsequent battery / charging module, the remaining current is distributed to the subsequent battery to charge. For example, when the total current is 40A and the highest current required or allowed by each battery / charging module is 17A, distribute the charging current 17A to the battery A with the highest power; distribute the charging current 17A to the battery B with the next highest power; and distribute the remaining charging current 6A to the battery C with the third highest power.If there is still a fourth highest power battery D in the battery energy station, the energy distribution operation does not distribute charging current to battery D. Then, in step 330, charge the individual batteries according to the charging current distributed to the individual batteries to satisfy the charging requirements required by at least some of the batteries. As in the above example, when battery A, battery B, battery C, and battery D in the battery energy station need to be charged at the same time, the energy distribution operation can satisfy the charging requirements of battery A, battery B, and battery C.

[0021] 4 is a flowchart of a method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. The method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an electronic device that stores and charges a plurality of batteries, such as the battery energy station of FIG.

[0022] First, in step S410, obtain the power corresponding to each battery. Similarly, in some embodiments, the charging module of the battery energy station sends a signal to the battery electrically connected thereto to detect the power level and obtain the power of the battery. Then, in step S420, perform an energy distribution operation for the battery according to the power of each battery. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy distribution operation is performed at the peak of power consumption. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation aims at the fastest output of a fully charged battery, for example, the power of the battery to reach a predetermined power level. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation distributes the charging current from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power sequentially until the total current is distributed. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy module of the battery energy station can automatically detect the total current supplied to the battery energy station from the power grid. In some embodiments, the battery energy station can receive information of the total current from a remote server through a network. In addition, in some embodiments, the cloud server further transmits a specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation, and when the time point arrives, the battery energy station performs the energy distribution operation. It should be noted that the charging current distributed sequentially is the maximum current required or allowable by the battery / charging module. When the remaining current is less than the maximum current required or allowable by the subsequent battery / charging module, the remaining current is distributed to the subsequent battery to charge it. Then, in step S430, charge the individual battery according to the charging current distributed to the individual battery to meet the charging requirement required by at least some of the batteries. In step S440, it is determined whether a specific signal of a specific battery in the plurality of batteries is received. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the specific signal is used to notify that the specific battery is fully charged.In some embodiments, the identification signal can be used to notify a change in charging requirements corresponding to a specific battery. When the identification signal is not received (step S440, no), proceed to the next step S430. When the identification signal corresponding to a specific battery is received (step S440, yes), in step S450, in response to the identification signal, exclude the specific battery, and in step S410, reacquire the power of each battery other than the specific battery, and in step S420, re-execute the energy distribution operation according to the power of each battery. The charging operation process continues until all batteries in the battery energy station complete the charging operation.

[0023] 5 is a flowchart of a method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. The method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an electronic device that stores and charges a plurality of batteries, such as the battery energy station of FIG.

[0024] First, in step S510, obtain the power corresponding to each battery. Similarly, in some embodiments, the charging module of the battery energy station sends a signal to the battery electrically coupled thereto to detect the power level and obtain the power of the battery. Then, in step S520, determine whether the power of each battery is greater than a first predetermined power level. It should be noted that the first predetermined power level can be set according to different applications and requirements. In some embodiments, the first predetermined power level is set to 90% or 95%. It should be noted that the above power levels are merely examples of this case, and the present invention is not limited thereto. When the power of a second battery in the plurality of batteries is greater than the first predetermined power level (step S520: Yes), the second battery is excluded from the energy sharing operation in step S530. When the power of the battery is not greater than the first predetermined power level (step S520: No), perform the energy sharing operation for the battery according to the power of each battery in step S540. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy distribution operation is performed during peak power consumption. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation aims at the fastest output of a fully charged battery, for example, to make the power of the battery reach a predetermined power level. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation distributes the charging current from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power sequentially until the total current is distributed. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy module of the battery energy station can automatically detect the total current supplied to the battery energy station from the power grid. In some embodiments, the battery energy station can receive information of the total current from a remote server through a network. Besides, in some embodiments, the cloud server further sends a specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation, and when the time point arrives, the battery energy station performs the energy distribution operation.It should be appreciated that, in sequence, the distributed charging current is the highest current required or allowable by the battery / charging module. When the remaining current is less than the highest current required or allowable by the subsequent battery / charging module, the remaining current is distributed to the subsequent battery to charge it. Thereafter, in step S550, the individual batteries are charged according to the charging current distributed to the individual batteries to satisfy at least one charging requirement required by at least some of the batteries.

[0025] 6 is a flowchart of a method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. The method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an electronic device that stores and charges a plurality of batteries, such as the battery energy station of FIG.

[0026] First, in step S610, obtain the power corresponding to each battery. Similarly, in some embodiments, the charging module of the battery energy station sends a signal to the battery electrically coupled thereto to detect the power level and obtain the power of the battery. Then, in step S620, determine whether the power of each battery is greater than a first predetermined power level. Similarly, the first predetermined power level is set according to different applications and requirements. When the power of a second battery in the plurality of batteries is greater than the first predetermined power level (step S620, yes), in step S630, the second battery is excluded from the energy sharing operation. When the power of the battery is not greater than the first predetermined power level (step S620, no), in step S640, perform the energy sharing operation on the battery according to the power of each battery. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy sharing operation is performed during the peak of power consumption. In some embodiments, the energy sharing operation is aimed at the fastest output of a fully charged battery, for example, to make the power of the battery reach a predetermined power level. In some embodiments, the energy distribution operation distributes the charging current from the highest power battery to the lowest power battery in sequence until the total current is distributed. Similarly, in some embodiments, the energy module of the battery energy station can automatically detect the total current supplied to the battery energy station from the power grid. In some embodiments, the battery energy station can receive the information of the total current from a remote server through the network. In addition, in some embodiments, the cloud server further transmits a specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation, and when the time point arrives, the battery energy station performs the energy distribution operation. It should be recognized that the charging current distributed in sequence is the highest current required or allowable by the battery / charging module.When the remaining current is less than the maximum current required or allowable by the subsequent battery / charging module, the remaining current is distributed to the subsequent battery for charging. Then, as in step S650, charge the individual battery according to the charging current distributed to the individual battery to satisfy at least one charging requirement required by at least some of the batteries. Then, in step S660, it is determined whether an identification signal for a particular battery in the plurality of batteries is received. Similarly, in some embodiments, the identification signal is used to indicate that a particular battery is fully charged. In some embodiments, the identification signal is used to indicate that the charging requirement of a particular battery has changed. When the identification signal is not received (step S660, No), the operation of step 650 continues. When a specific signal corresponding to a specific battery is received (Yes in step S660), in step S670, in response to the specific signal, the specific battery is excluded, and in step S610, power is reacquired from each battery other than the specific battery, and the energy distribution and charging operations are repeated until all batteries in the battery energy station have completed the charging operations.

[0027] 7 is a flow chart of a method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to another embodiment of the present invention. The method for managing charging of a battery energy station according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an electronic device that stores and charges multiple batteries, such as the battery energy station of FIG. 1. In this embodiment, the battery energy station can provide a battery removal service according to a user's request.

[0028] First, in step S710, a battery request is received. It is to be noted that in some embodiments, a user can trigger the battery request by putting at least one old battery into the battery energy station. In some embodiments, a user can generate the battery request through an interface of the battery energy station. Then, in step S720, in response to the battery request, at least one candidate battery is selected from batteries with corresponding powers greater than a second predetermined power level. It is to be noted that the second predetermined power level can be set according to different applications and requirements. In some embodiments, the second predetermined power level is set to 20% or 25%. It is to be noted that the above power levels are merely examples of this case, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Then, in step S730, the candidate battery is removed from the battery energy station.

[0029] Therefore, the battery energy station and its charging management method of the present invention can manage a battery charging schedule under the premise of a certain charging current, avoiding further increasing the load on the power grid under peak power consumption, and at the same time meeting the battery charging of the battery energy station and the battery requirements of the user.

[0030] The charge management method of the present invention, or a particular aspect or part thereof, exists in the form of program code. The program code may be contained in a tangible medium, such as a floppy disk, a CD-ROM, a hard drive, or any other machine-readable (e.g., computer-readable) storage medium, or may be in an external form, such as a computer program product. When the program code is loaded and executed by an apparatus, such as a computer, the apparatus becomes an apparatus for performing the present invention. The program code may also be transmitted over a transmission medium, such as a wire or cable, optical fiber, or other form of transmission, and when the program code is received and loaded by an apparatus, such as a computer, the apparatus becomes an apparatus for performing the method of the present invention. When implemented on a general-purpose processor, the program code combines with the processor to provide a unique apparatus that operates similarly to an application-specific integrated circuit.

[0031] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed as described above, these are by no means intended to limit the present invention, and anyone familiar with the art may make various modifications thereto without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] 100…Battery Energy Station 110…Battery storage system 112…Battery 120…Energy module 130…Network connection unit 140…Processing unit 200 - Remote server 300…Network S310, S320, S330…Process S410, S420, S430, S440, S450...Process S510, S520, S530, S540, S550...Process S610, S620, S630, S640, S650, S660, S670...Process S710, S720, S730… Engineering

Claims

1. 1. A method for managing charging in a battery energy station for an electronic device used to store and charge a plurality of batteries, the electronic device having a total current: obtaining a corresponding power for each battery; performing an energy distribution operation on the batteries according to the power of each battery, the energy distribution operation distributing a maximum allowable current to each battery in sequence from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power until a total current is distributed, and distributing the remaining current to a subsequent battery; and charging the individual batteries according to the charging current distributed to each battery to satisfy charging demands posed by at least some of the batteries; A charging management method for a battery energy station, comprising:

2. moreover, receiving a signal identifying a first battery in the battery pack; and acquiring the power of each of the batteries other than the first battery in response to the specific signal, and re-executing the energy distribution operation according to the power of each of the batteries; The charging management method for a battery energy station according to claim 1, further comprising:

3. 3. The charging management method for a battery energy station as described in claim 2, characterized in that the specific signal is used to notify that the first battery is fully charged or a change in the charging requirement corresponding to the first battery.

4. moreover, determining whether the power of each of the batteries is greater than a first predetermined power level; and excluding the second battery from the energy distribution operation when the power of the second battery is greater than the first predetermined power level; The charging management method for a battery energy station according to claim 1, further comprising:

5. moreover, receiving a battery request; selecting, in response to the battery request, from the batteries, at least one candidate battery having a power greater than a second predetermined power level; removing the candidate battery from the battery energy station; The charging management method for a battery energy station according to claim 1, further comprising:

6. moreover, connecting to a cloud server via a network; receiving from the cloud server the information of the total current and a specific time point to perform the energy distribution operation; and performing said energy distribution operation according to said total current at said particular time; The charging management method for a battery energy station according to claim 1, further comprising:

7. A battery energy station, an energy module having a total current; A battery storage system having a plurality of batteries; and a processing unit coupled to the battery storage system to obtain a power corresponding to each battery, and to perform an energy distribution operation on the batteries according to the power of each battery; The battery energy station is characterized in that the energy distribution operation distributes the highest allowable current to each battery, starting from the battery with the highest power to the battery with the lowest power, in sequence until the total current is distributed, and distributes the remaining current to subsequent batteries, and charges the individual batteries according to the charging current distributed to each battery to satisfy at least one charging requirement requested by at least some of the batteries.

8. The battery energy station of claim 7, characterized in that the processing unit further comprises a step of receiving an identification signal of a first battery among the batteries, obtaining the power of each battery other than the first battery in response to the identification signal, and performing the energy distribution operation according to the power of each battery.

9. 8. The battery energy station of claim 7, wherein the processing unit further determines whether the power of each battery is greater than a first predetermined power level, and excludes a second battery from the energy distribution operation when the power of the second battery is greater than the first predetermined power level.

10. The battery energy station of claim 7, further comprising a processing unit connected to a cloud server via a network, receiving the information of the total current and a specific time point, and performing the energy distribution operation from the cloud server, and performing the energy distribution operation according to the total current at the specific time point.

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