Information acquisition device, information processing system, estimation device, information acquisition method, estimation method, control method, program, and computer-readable recording medium

Abstract

This information acquisition device comprises an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit which acquires the number of attachments / detachments between a first terminal and a second terminal, the first terminal being provided to a power storage device and the second terminal being provided to a power device and configured to be attachable to / detachable from the first terminal. The estimation device comprises an estimation unit which estimates the degree of degradation of a first terminal and / or a second terminal, the first terminal being provided to a power storage device and the second terminal being provided to a power device and configured to be attachable to / detachable from the first terminal. A storage device, which is configured so as to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices, comprises: a plurality of second terminals which respectively correspond to a plurality of first terminals respectively provided to the plurality of power storage devices, and which are configured to be attachable to / detachable from the corresponding first terminals; a degradation information acquisition unit which acquires degradation information indicating degrees of degradation of each of the second terminals; and a selection unit which selects a power storage device to be provided to a user from among the plurality of power storage devices on the basis of the degradation information acquired by the degradation information acquisition unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an information acquisition device, an information processing system, an estimation device, an information acquisition method, an estimation method, a control method, a program, and a computer-readable recording medium.

Background Art

[0002] There is known a charging device that charges a portable battery and discharges the charged battery in response to a user's request. Patent Document 1 discloses adjusting the operating rate of the charging device when an abnormality of the charging device is detected. Patent Document 2 first discloses lending out fully charged batteries in order from the one that is fully charged and was fully charged earliest, and when there are no fully charged batteries, lending out the batteries in order from the one that is closest to being fully charged among the remaining batteries. [Prior Art Documents] [Patent Documents] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2018-160073 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-259709 General Disclosure

[0003] In a first aspect of the present invention, an information acquisition device is provided. The information acquisition device described above includes, for example, an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal.

[0004] In the information acquisition device described above, the power device may have a second terminal and include a housing unit that houses the power storage device. The power device may include a counting unit that counts the number of times the power storage device is housed in the housing unit. In the information acquisition device described above, the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit may acquire the attachment / detachment times based on the number of housing times counted by the counting unit. In the information acquisition device described above, the housing unit may be configured to be able to insert and remove the power storage device. In the information acquisition device described above, the counting unit may have an insertion detection unit that detects that the power storage device has been inserted into the housing unit.

[0005] In the above information acquisition device, the power device or the remote device configured to be communicable with the power device may include a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. In the above information acquisition device, the power device or the remote device may include a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction timing that is the timing when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit.

[0006] In the above information acquisition device, the power device or the remote device may include a first output unit that outputs information used for the manufacturing plan or distribution plan of the second terminal based on at least one of (i) the fact that the arrival of the maintenance timing is indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit and (ii) the maintenance prediction timing indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit. In the above information acquisition device, the power device or the remote device may include a second output unit that outputs information used for the maintenance plan or servicing plan of the second terminal based on at least one of (i) the fact that the arrival of the maintenance timing is indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit and (ii) the maintenance prediction timing indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit.

[0007] In the above information acquisition device, the power device may be a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices. The power device may include a selection unit that selects a power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit. In the above information acquisition device, the power device may have a plurality of second terminals corresponding to each of the plurality of power storage devices. The deterioration information acquisition unit of the power device may acquire deterioration information regarding each of the plurality of second terminals. In the above information acquisition device, the selection unit may select a power storage device to be provided to the user such that a power storage device corresponding to a second terminal with a smaller degree of deterioration is provided to the user preferentially over a power storage device corresponding to a second terminal with a larger degree of deterioration.

[0008] In the above information acquisition device, the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit may be arranged in another power device different from the power device, and may acquire the number of other attachment / detachments, which is the number of times of attachment / detachment between the first terminal and the third terminal that is detachably configured with the first terminal. In the above information acquisition device, the power device, another power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device or another power device may include a degradation information acquisition unit that acquires degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of the first terminal based on the number of attachment / detachments and the number of other attachment / detachments acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit.

[0009] In the above information acquisition device, the power storage device may be alternately attached to and detached from another power device different from the power device and the power device. In the above information acquisition device, the power device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device may include a degradation information acquisition unit that acquires degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of the first terminal based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachments acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit.

[0010] In a second aspect of the present invention, an information processing system is provided. The above information processing system includes, for example, the information acquisition device according to the above first aspect. The above information processing system includes, for example, a power device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device. The above information processing system includes, for example, an estimation unit that estimates the degree of degradation of the second terminal.

[0011] In a third aspect of the present invention, an estimation device is provided. The above estimation device includes, for example, an estimation unit that estimates the degree of degradation of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal, where the first terminal is arranged in a power storage device and the second terminal is arranged in a power device and is configured to be detachably attached to the first terminal.

[0012] In the above-described estimation device, the power device may include a detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between the first terminal and the second terminal. In the above-described estimation device, the estimation unit may estimate the degree of deterioration based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit. In the above-described estimation device, the power device may have a second terminal and include a housing unit that houses the power storage device. The power device may include a counting unit that counts the number of times the power storage device is housed in the housing unit. In the above-described estimation device, the detachment information acquisition unit may acquire the number of detachments based on the number of housing times counted by the counting unit. In the above-described estimation device, the housing unit may be configured to be able to insert and remove the power storage device. In the above-described estimation device, the counting unit may include an insertion detection unit that detects that the power storage device has been inserted into the housing unit.

[0013] In a fourth aspect of the present invention, a storage device is provided. The above-described storage device is configured to be able to store, for example, a plurality of power storage devices. The above-described storage device includes, for example, a plurality of second terminals that correspond to and are detachably configured with respect to each of a plurality of first terminals arranged for each of the plurality of power storage devices. The above-described storage device includes, for example, a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals. The above-described storage device includes, for example, a selection unit that selects a power storage device to be provided to a user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit.

[0014] In the above-described storage device, the selection unit may select a power storage device to be provided to the user such that a power storage device corresponding to a second terminal with a smaller degree of deterioration is provided to the user preferentially over a power storage device corresponding to a second terminal with a larger degree of deterioration. The above-described storage device may include a detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal. In the above-described storage device, the deterioration information acquisition unit may determine or estimate the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit.

[0015] In a fifth aspect of the present invention, an information acquisition method is provided. The information acquisition method described above has, for example, a detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of detachments between a first terminal disposed on a power storage device and a second terminal disposed on a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal.

[0016] In a sixth aspect of the present invention, an estimation method is provided. The estimation method described above has, for example, an estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal between a first terminal disposed on a power storage device and a second terminal disposed on a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal.

[0017] In a seventh aspect of the present invention, a control method for a storage device is provided. In the control method described above, the storage device includes, for example, a plurality of second terminals corresponding to and configured to be detachable from each of a plurality of first terminals disposed on each of a plurality of power storage devices. The control method described above has, for example, a deterioration information acquisition step of acquiring deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals. The control method described above has, for example, a selection step of selecting, from among the plurality of power storage devices, a power storage device to be provided to a user based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step.

[0018] In an eighth aspect of the present invention, a program is provided. A computer-readable medium storing the program described above may be provided. The computer-readable medium may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a computer-readable recording medium. The program described above may be a program for causing a computer to function as the information acquisition device according to the first aspect, the estimation device according to the third aspect, or the storage device according to the fourth aspect described above. The program described above may be a program for causing a computer to execute the information acquisition method according to the fifth aspect, the estimation method according to the sixth aspect, or the control method for the storage device according to the seventh aspect described above.

[0019] Note that the above summary of the invention does not list all the necessary features of the present invention. Also, sub - combinations of these feature groups can also be inventions.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0020]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention. However, the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. Also, not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential for the solution means of the invention. In the drawings, the same or similar parts may be given the same reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions may be omitted.

[0022] [Overview of Battery Management System 100] FIG. 1 schematically shows an example of the system configuration of the battery management system 100. In the present embodiment, the case where the battery management system 100 manages one or more (which may be referred to as one or more) batteries 20 will be taken as an example to describe the details of the battery management system 100. More specifically, the case where the battery management system 100 provides one or more batteries 20 to each of one or more users 30 will be taken as an example to describe the details of the battery management system 100.

[0023] In the present embodiment, the battery management system 100 includes, for example, a battery station 110 and a management server 120. In the present embodiment, the battery station 110 has one or more slots 112 for storing the battery 20. In the present embodiment, the battery 20 has a power connector 22 and a communication connector 24.

[0024] In the present embodiment, an example of the battery management system 100 will be described by taking the case where the battery 20 is used as the power source of the electric bike 34 as an example. In the present embodiment, the electric bike 34 includes a slot 40 and a bike control unit 50. The slot 40 has a power connector 42 and a communication connector 44.

[0025] In the present embodiment, the battery station 110 and the management server 120 can transmit and receive information to and from each other via, for example, the communication network 10. In the present embodiment, the battery station 110 and the management server 120 can transmit and receive information to and from each other via, for example, the communication network 10 between the communication terminals 32 of the user 30.

[0026] According to this embodiment, for example, the user 30 uses the communication terminal 32 to request the battery management system 100 to lend out the battery 20 stored in a specific battery station 110. More specifically, for example, the above request (which may be referred to as a reservation request, a lending request, etc.) is transmitted from the communication terminal 32 to the management server 120. Thereby, the user 30 can reserve the use of the battery 20.

[0027] In response to the above reservation request, the management server 120 executes a process for lending out the above battery 20 to the user 30. For example, the management server 120 transmits an instruction for causing the specific battery station 110 designated by the reservation request to execute the payout process of the specified number of batteries 20. Thereby, the user 30 can take out the battery 20 stored in the battery station 110. The user 30 uses the battery 20 lent out from the battery management system 100 as the power source of, for example, the electric bike 34.

[0028] When the charge rate or SOC of the battery 20 mounted on the electric bike 34 becomes low, the user 30 returns the above battery 20 to any battery station 110. More specifically, the user 30 removes the battery 20 from the electric bike 34 and inserts the removed battery 20 into the slot 112 of the battery station 110. If the user 30 has reserved the use of other batteries 20 stored in the above battery station 110, the user 30 takes out the battery 20 from the above battery station 110 and mounts it on the electric bike 34. Thereby, according to this embodiment, the lending and returning of the battery 20 are repeated.

[0029] By the way, when the lending and returning of the battery 20 are repeated, not only the battery 20 but also various components constituting the battery station 110 deteriorate. As the deterioration of the components progresses, the probability of abnormal occurrence in the battery station 110 increases.

[0030] Therefore, according to the battery management system 100 according to the present embodiment, the deterioration of the components constituting the battery station 110 is managed. For example, the battery management system 100 manages the deterioration of at least a part of one or more components constituting the battery station 110. Further, the battery management system 100 can output information (i) for use in the manufacturing plan or distribution plan of the component and (ii) for use in the maintenance plan of the battery station 110 by managing the deterioration of the above components.

[0031] [Overview of Each Part of Battery Management System 100] In the present embodiment, the communication network 10 transmits information between the battery station 110 and the management server 120. Further, the communication network 10 transmits information between the communication terminal 32 and the battery station 110 or the management server 120.

[0032] The communication network 10 may be a wired communication transmission path, a wireless communication transmission path, or a combination of a wireless communication transmission path and a wired communication transmission path. The communication network 10 includes, for example, at least one of a wireless packet communication network, the Internet, a P2P network, a dedicated line, a VPN, a power line communication line, a vehicle-to-vehicle communication line, and a road-to-vehicle communication line. The communication network 10 may (i) include a mobile communication network such as a mobile phone line network, and may (ii) include a wireless communication network such as a wireless MAN (for example, WiMAX (registered trademark)), a wireless LAN (for example, WiFi (registered trademark)), Bluetooth (registered trademark), Zigbee (registered trademark), NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0033] In the present embodiment, the battery 20 stores electrical energy. Further, the battery 20 provides the electrical energy stored in the battery 20 to an external electrical device. The battery 20 is, for example, a replaceable or portable power storage device and is detachably mounted on the electric bicycle 34. The battery 20 mounted on the electric bicycle 34 supplies power to the electric bicycle 34.

[0034] Further, the battery 20 removed from the electric motorcycle 34 is housed in the slot 112 of the battery station 110. While being housed in the slot 112, the battery 20 is charged by the battery station 110.

[0035] More specifically, when the battery 20 is housed in the slot 112, the power connector 22 of the battery 20 and a connector (not shown) disposed inside the slot 112 are electrically connected. Thereby, the battery 20 and the battery station 110 are electrically connected. When the battery 20 and the battery station 110 are electrically connected, the battery station 110 charges the battery 20 at an appropriate time in preparation for the next use of the battery 20.

[0036] In the present embodiment, the power connector 22 is formed as a female connector. The connector disposed inside the slot 112 (for example, the power connector 352 described in FIG. 3) is formed as a male connector. Thereby, damage to the power connector 22 can be suppressed.

[0037] Male connectors are often arranged on the device so as to protrude from the surface of the device. Therefore, generally, male connectors are more vulnerable to impact than female connectors. For example, when the battery 20 is a replaceable or portable power storage device, an external force may be applied to the battery 20 when the battery 20 is removed from the battery station 110 or the electric motorcycle 34. Specifically, there is a possibility that the user accidentally drops the battery 20 during transportation of the battery 20, or the user places the battery 20 on the ground with the surface on which the power connector 22 of the battery 20 is disposed facing down.

[0038] At this time, if the power connector 22 is arranged as a male connector so as to protrude from the housing of the battery 20, the power connector 22 may be damaged. On the other hand, since the power connector 352 in the slot 112 is protected by the slot 112, it is less likely to be subjected to an unexpected external force compared to the power connector 22. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a female connector is arranged on the side of the battery 20, and a male connector is arranged on the side of the slot 112.

[0039] Note that the power connector 22 is not limited to a female connector. In other embodiments, the power connector 22 is formed as a male connector, and the power connector 352 in the slot 112 is formed as a female connector. Even in this case, for example, the battery 20 is provided with a protective member that protects the power connector 22, or the power connector 22 is arranged in a recess of the battery 20, thereby suppressing damage to the power connector 22.

[0040] Note that "electrically connected" is not limited to the case where a specific element is directly connected to another element. A third element having conductivity may be interposed between the specific element and the other element. Also, "electrically connected" is not limited to the case where a specific element and another element are physically connected. For example, the input winding and the output winding of a transformer are not physically connected, but are electrically connected.

[0041] Further, according to the present embodiment, the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 and the communication connector 354 of the slot 112 are communicably connected. Thereby, information can be transmitted and received between the battery 20 and the battery station 110. For example, when the battery 20 has a storage device such as a memory, the battery station 110 can acquire the information stored in the memory. The storage device of the battery 20 stores, for example, the charging rate or the change history of the state of charge (SOC) of the battery 20, the change history of the temperature of the battery 20, and the like. The history information regarding various matters may be information in which information indicating time and information indicating the state of the matter at that time are associated with each other.

[0042] In the present embodiment, the communication connector 24 is formed as a female connector. The connector disposed inside the slot 112 (for example, the communication connector 354 described in FIG. 3) is formed as a male connector. Thereby, damage to the communication connector 24 is suppressed. Note that the communication connector 24 is not limited to a female connector. In other embodiments, the communication connector 24 may be formed as a male connector, and the communication connector 354 in the slot 112 may be formed as a female connector.

[0043] In the present embodiment, the communication terminal 32 is used by the user 30. The communication terminal 32 functions as an interface, for example, between the battery management system 100 and the user 30. The communication terminal 32 may function as an interface between the battery station 110 and the user 30, or may function as an interface between the management server 120 and the user 30.

[0044] In one embodiment, the communication terminal 32 receives an input from the user 30. Based on the input from the user 30, the communication terminal 32 transmits various requests to the management server 120. Examples of the above requests include a search request for searching for a battery station 110 that meets specific conditions, a reservation request for reserving an arbitrary or specific battery 20 stored in a specific battery station 110, and the like.

[0045] In other embodiments, the communication terminal 32 presents information to the user 30. For example, the communication terminal 32 outputs the information received from the management server 120 to the user 30. The output mode of the information is not particularly limited. The communication terminal 32 may output an image or may output audio.

[0046] The communication terminal 32 may be any device capable of transmitting and receiving information with each part of the battery management system 100 via the communication network 10, and its details are not particularly limited. Examples of the communication terminal 32 include a personal computer, a mobile terminal, etc. Examples of the mobile terminal include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PDA, a tablet, a notebook computer or a laptop computer, a wearable computer, etc.

[0047] In this embodiment, the electric bike 34 operates by consuming the electric power supplied from the battery 20. More specifically, the electric bike 34 moves using the electric power supplied from the battery 20. When the battery 20 has a storage device, for example, the electric bike 34 stores at least one of the movement history and the operation history of the electric bike 34 in the above storage device.

[0048] The electric bike 34 is configured such that the battery 20 is detachable. The electric bike 34 may be configured such that a single battery 20 is mounted, or may be configured such that a plurality of batteries 20 are mounted.

[0049] In this embodiment, the slot 40 houses the battery 20. Within a range where there is no technical contradiction, the slot 40 may have the same configuration as the slot 112 whose details are described in relation to FIG. 3. The slot 40 may have a function different from that of the slot 112, or may not have a part of the function of the slot 112.

[0050] In this embodiment, the power connector 42 is electrically connected to the power connector 22 of the battery 20. In this embodiment, the connection between the power connector 42 and the power connector 22 is a wired connection. In this embodiment, the power connector 42 is formed as a male connector. Thereby, damage to the power connector 22 can be suppressed.

[0051] Note that the power connector 42 is not limited to a male connector. In other embodiments, when the power connector 22 of the battery 20 is formed as a male connector, the power connector 42 may be formed as a female connector.

[0052] In the present embodiment, the communication connector 44 is communicably connected to the communication connector 24 of the battery 20. In the present embodiment, the connection between the communication connector 44 and the power connector 22 is a wired connection. In the present embodiment, the communication connector 44 is formed as a male connector. Thereby, damage to the communication connector 24 can be suppressed.

[0053] Note that the communication connector 44 is not limited to a male connector. In other embodiments, when the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 is formed as a male connector, the communication connector 44 may be formed as a female connector.

[0054] In the present embodiment, the bike control unit 50 controls various operations of the electric bike 34. The bike control unit 50 may control a drive unit (not shown) of the electric bike 34 to control the movement of the electric bike 34. The bike control unit 50 may control the supply of power from the battery 20 to the electric bike 34. The bike control unit 50 may control the insertion, removal, or attachment / detachment of the battery 20.

[0055] For example, the bike control unit 50 determines or estimates the number of times the battery 20 is housed in the slot 40. Based on the above-mentioned number of housing times, the bike control unit 50 determines or estimates the number of attachment / detachment times of the power connector 22 and the power connector 42, or the number of attachment / detachment times of the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 44. Within a technically non-contradictory range, the bike control unit 50 may have the same configuration as the slot control unit 370 whose details are described in relation to FIG. 3. The bike control unit 50 may have functions different from those of the slot control unit 370, or may not have some of the functions of the slot control unit 370.

[0056] In this embodiment, the battery station 110 is configured to be able to store one or more batteries 20. More specifically, the battery station 110 has one or more slots 112 for accommodating each of the one or more batteries 20. Also, the battery station 110 charges each of the one or more batteries 20 stored in the battery station 110.

[0057] In this embodiment, the battery station 110 controls the lending of the battery 20. For example, the battery station 110 selects the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 from among the one or more batteries 20 stored in the battery station 110. More specifically, the battery station 110 selects the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 based on the degree of deterioration of the slot 112.

[0058] For example, the battery station 110 obtains information indicating the priority order of the one or more slots 112 allocated to the battery station 110 from the management server 120. The battery station 110 selects the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 such that the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a higher priority order is provided to the user 30 more preferentially.

[0059] The priority order of each slot is determined based on, for example, the degree of deterioration of each slot. Examples of the information indicating the priority order of each slot include (i) information indicating continuous numerical values or stepwise classifications indicating the priority order of each slot, (ii) information in which the identification information of each slot is associated with information indicating continuous numerical values or stepwise classifications indicating the priority order of each slot, (iii) the identification information of each of the one or more slots 112 that should preferentially lend out the battery 20, (iv) the identification information of each of the one or more slots 112 for which the lending of the battery 20 should be suppressed, and the like.

[0060] In one embodiment, for example, the priority of each slot is determined such that the priority of a slot with more advanced deterioration is lower. In this case, by lending out the battery 20, the battery 20 provided to the user 30 is selected so that the imbalance in the degree of deterioration between the slots is eliminated as compared to before the lending is carried out. Also, since the deterioration rates of one or more slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 are about the same, the administrator of the battery station 110 can perform maintenance on most of the slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 at once, or replace the entire battery station 110. As a result, the maintenance cost of the battery station 110 is reduced.

[0061] In another embodiment, for example, the priority of each slot is determined such that the priority of a slot with more advanced deterioration is higher. In this case, the deterioration rate of some of the slots 112 becomes higher than the deterioration rate of the other slots. Thereby, the administrator of the battery station 110 can suppress the number of slots 112 to be maintained at once, or prevent most of the slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 from becoming unusable at once.

[0062] In the present embodiment, the management server 120 manages one or more batteries 20. For example, the management server 120 manages the state of each of the one or more batteries 20. Examples of the state of the battery 20 include a lending state (for example, lendable, non - lendable, in - lending, etc.), an operation state (for example, charging, discharging, standby, etc.), a charging state (for example, the current SOC), a storage state (for example, temperature, humidity, etc.), a deterioration state, and the like.

[0063] In the present embodiment, the management server 120 manages the reservation of each of the one or more batteries 20. Thereby, the management server 120 can manage the lending of the battery 20 by the battery station 110.

[0064] For example, the management server 120 receives a reservation request for the battery 20 from the communication terminal 32 of the user 30. The management server 120 determines whether the battery 20 can be lent out as indicated by the reservation request, and decides whether to accept the reservation. When the reservation of the user 30 is accepted, the management server 120 transmits various information regarding the reservation of the battery 20 to the battery station 110 that stores the battery 20 described above.

[0065] In one embodiment, when the battery station 110 provides the user 30 with the number of batteries 20 reserved by the user 30, the management server 120 transmits information indicating a criterion (which may be referred to as a policy) for determining the battery 20 to be preferentially provided among the plurality of batteries 20 stored in the battery station 110. The above policy is determined based on, for example, the degree of deterioration of each slot arranged in the battery station 110. Information indicating the priority order of each slot arranged in the battery station 110 described above may be an example of a policy.

[0066] In another embodiment, the management server 120 transmits the identification information of the slot 112 in which the battery 20 to be lent is housed. The slot 112 in which the battery 20 to be lent is housed is determined based on, for example, the degree of deterioration of each slot arranged in the battery station 110.

[0067] In this embodiment, the management server 120 manages the maintenance of the battery station 110. In one embodiment, for example, the management server 120 generates a maintenance plan for the battery station 110. Also, the management server 120 manages, for example, the progress of the maintenance plan for the battery station 110.

[0068] In other embodiments, the management server 120 manages the manufacture or distribution of maintenance supplies for the battery station 110. For example, the management server 120 generates a manufacturing plan or a distribution plan for the maintenance supplies. Also, the management server 120 manages, for example, the progress of the manufacturing plan or the distribution plan for the maintenance supplies. Examples of the maintenance supplies include the battery station 110, the slots 112, the components of the slots 112, and maintenance jigs.

[0069] [Specific configurations of each part of the battery management system 100] Each part of the battery management system 100 may be implemented by hardware, may be implemented by software, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software. When at least a part of the components of the battery management system 100 is implemented by software, the components implemented by the software may be realized by starting a program that defines the operations related to the components in a general-configured information processing apparatus.

[0070] The program may be stored in a computer-readable medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, a memory, or a hard disk, or may be stored in a storage device connected to a network. The program may be installed from the computer-readable medium or the storage device connected to the network into a computer that constitutes at least a part of the battery management system 100. When the program is executed, the computer may function as at least a part of each part of the battery management system 100.

[0071] A program that causes a computer to function as at least part of each component of the battery management system 100 may include modules that define the operations of each component of the battery management system 100. These programs or modules act on a data processing device, an input device, an output device, a storage device, etc., to cause the computer to function as each component of the battery management system 100, or to cause the computer to execute an information processing method for each component of the battery management system 100.

[0072] The information processing described in the program functions as a specific means in which software related to the program and various hardware resources of the battery management system 100 cooperate when the program is read into a computer. And by the above specific means realizing the calculation or processing of information according to the purpose of use of the computer in the present embodiment, the battery management system 100 corresponding to the purpose of use is constructed.

[0073] In one embodiment, the information processing method for each component of the battery management system 100 may be an information acquisition method. The above information acquisition method has, for example, a detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of detachments between a first terminal arranged in the power storage device and a second terminal arranged in the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal. The above information acquisition method has a detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of detachments between (i) a first terminal arranged in the power storage device and (ii) a second terminal arranged in the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal.

[0074] In another embodiment, the information processing method for each component of the battery management system 100 may be an estimation method. The above estimation method has, for example, an estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal between a first terminal arranged in the power storage device and a second terminal arranged in the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal. The above estimation method has, for example, an estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of (i) a first terminal arranged in the power storage device and (ii) a second terminal arranged in the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal.

[0075] In other embodiments, the information processing method in each part of the battery management system 100 may be a control method of a storage device. The above storage device corresponds to each of a plurality of first terminals arranged in each of a plurality of power storage devices, and includes a plurality of second terminals configured to be detachable from the corresponding first terminal. The above control method has, for example, a deterioration information acquisition step of acquiring deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals. The above control method has, for example, a selection step of selecting a power storage device to be provided to a user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step. The selection step includes, for example, a step of selecting a power storage device to be provided to a user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the degree of deterioration indicated by the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step.

[0076] The battery 20 may be an example of a power storage device. The power connector 22 may be an example of a first terminal. The communication connector 24 may be an example of a first terminal. The electric bike 34 may be an example of a power device. The connector of the electric bike 34 may be an example of a second terminal.

[0077] The battery management system 100 may be an example of an information acquisition device, an estimation device, or a storage device. The battery station 110 may be an example of an information acquisition device, an estimation device, or a storage device. The battery station 110 may be an example of a power device. The battery station 110 may be an example of a detachment information acquisition unit or a deterioration information acquisition unit. The slot 112 may be an example of an information acquisition device, an estimation device, or a storage device. The slot 112 may be an example of a power device. The slot 112 may be an example of a housing unit, a detachment information acquisition unit, or a deterioration information acquisition unit. The connector of the slot 112 may be an example of a second terminal. The management server 120 may be an example of an information acquisition device or an estimation device. The management server 120 may be an example of a remote device. The management server 120 may be an example of a detachment information acquisition unit or a deterioration information acquisition unit.

[0078] The maintenance plan for the battery station 110 may be an example of the maintenance plan or servicing plan for the second terminal. The information indicating the policy may be an example of the degradation information. The information indicating the priority of each slot may be an example of the degradation information.

[0079] The electric motorcycle 34 may be an example of other power devices. The power connector 42 may be an example of one of the second terminal or the third terminal. The power connector 352 may be an example of one of the second terminal or the third terminal. The communication connector 44 may be an example of one of the second terminal or the third terminal. The communication connector 354 may be an example of one of the second terminal or the third terminal.

[0080] [Example of Another Embodiment] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking the case where the battery 20 is provided by the battery management system 100 in the form of a lease as an example. However, if the battery 20 is being lent out from the battery station 110 to the user 30, the provision mode of the battery 20 is not limited to leasing. In other embodiments, a third party other than the administrator of the battery management system 100 may be the owner of the battery 20.

[0081] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking the case where the battery 20 is used as the power source of the electric motorcycle 34 as an example. However, the use of the battery 20 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the battery 20 may be used as the power source for various electrical devices. The electrical device is not particularly limited in terms of its type or structure as long as it is a device that consumes the power supplied from the battery 20 and operates.

[0082] Other examples of electrical equipment include mobile bodies powered by electric motors, stationary power storage devices, and the like. Examples of mobile bodies include vehicles, ships, aircraft, and the like. Examples of vehicles include automobiles, motorcycles, bicycles, standing vehicles with power units, and the like. Examples of automobiles include electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, hybrid vehicles, small commuters, electric carts, and the like. Examples of motorcycles include bikes, three-wheeled bikes, and the like. Examples of ships include boats, hovercraft, water bikes, submarines, submersibles, underwater scooters, and the like. Examples of aircraft include airplanes, airships or balloons, balloons, helicopters, drones, and the like.

[0083] In the present embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the management server 120 transmits information indicating the priority order of each slot arranged in the battery station 110 or identification information of the slot 112 in which the battery 20 to be lent is accommodated to the battery station 110, and the battery station 110 selects the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 based on the information received from the management server 120. However, the method for selecting the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, the battery station 110 may determine the priority order of each slot arranged in the battery station 110 and select the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 based on the priority order. In still other embodiments, the battery station 110 may select the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 by determining the slot 112 in which the battery 20 to be lent is accommodated.

[0084] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the management server 120 manages one or more batteries 20 and one or more battery stations 110. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, at least one of the one or more battery stations 110 may have at least a part of the functions of the above-described management server 120. For example, at least one of the one or more battery stations 110 may manage one or more batteries 20 and other battery stations 110. In this case, the battery management system 100 may or may not include the management server 120.

[0085] In this embodiment, an example of the battery 20 has been described by taking as an example the case where the battery 20 includes the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24. However, the battery 20 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 may be integrally formed. For example, inside the integrally formed connector, power pins and communication pins are arranged. The power pins may be another example of the power connector 22. The communication pins may be another example of the communication connector 24.

[0086] In this embodiment, an example of the electric bike 34 has been described by taking as an example the case where the electric bike 34 includes the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44. However, the electric bike 34 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44 may be integrally formed. For example, inside the integrally formed connector, power pins and communication pins are arranged. The power pins may be another example of the power connector 42. The communication pins may be another example of the communication connector 44.

[0087] In this embodiment, an example of the battery station 110 has been described by taking the case where the battery station 110 includes the power connector 352 and the communication connector 354 as an example. However, the electric motorcycle 34 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the power connector 352 and the communication connector 354 may be integrally formed. For example, inside the integrally formed connector, a power pin and a communication pin are arranged. The power pin may be another example of the power connector 352. The communication pin may be another example of the communication connector 354.

[0088] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking the case where the connection between the power connector 42 and the power connector 22 and the connection between the communication connector 44 and the communication connector 24 are wired connections as an example. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, either one of the connection between the power connector 42 and the power connector 22 and the connection between the communication connector 44 and the communication connector 24 may be a wireless connection.

[0089] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking the case where the electric motorcycle 34 uses the power output by the battery 20 as an example. However, the device that uses the power output by the battery 20 is not limited to the electric motorcycle 34. In other embodiments, the device that uses the power output by the battery 20 may be a power storage device that stores power, or may be various load devices that consume power. In still other embodiments, the battery station 110 may use the power output by the battery 20.

[0090] FIG. 2 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the battery station 110. In this embodiment, the battery station 110 includes, for example, a plurality of slots 112, a distribution board 220, and a station control unit 240. In this embodiment, the station control unit 240 has a communication control unit 242, a charge / discharge control unit 244, a state management unit 246, a lending management unit 248, and a data storage unit 250.

[0091] In this embodiment, the slot 112 houses the battery 20. The battery 20 is placed inside the slot 112 by the user 30 and taken out from the slot 112 by the user 30. For example, the slot 112 is configured to be able to insert and remove the battery 20. In this embodiment, the slot 112 counts the number of times the battery 20 is housed in the slot 112 and outputs information indicating the number of housing times to the station control unit 240. More specifically, the slot 112 detects that the battery 20 has been inserted into the slot 112. The slot 112 determines or estimates the number of times the battery 20 is housed based on the detection result of the insertion of the battery 20 described above. Details of the slot 112 will be described later.

[0092] In this embodiment, the distribution board 220 receives power from an external power source, a power generation device, or a power grid, and branches the power to each part of the battery station 110. For example, the distribution board 220 is electrically connected to each of a plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110. The distribution board 220 has one or more power conditioners and supplies power to each of the plurality of slots 112 according to an instruction from the station control unit 240. Examples of the power conditioner include a unidirectional AC / DC circuit, a bidirectional AC / DC circuit, a unidirectional DC / DC circuit, and a bidirectional DC / DC circuit.

[0093] In this embodiment, the station control unit 240 controls the battery station 110. For example, the station control unit 240 controls the operation of the battery station 110. Also, the station control unit 240 acquires the output from various sensors arranged in the battery station 110. Thereby, the station control unit 240 can manage the state of the battery station 110.

[0094] In this embodiment, the station control unit 240 controls the battery station 110 in cooperation with the management server 120. Details of the station control unit 240 will be described later.

[0095] In this embodiment, the communication control unit 242 controls communication between the station control unit 240 and the management server 120 or the communication terminal 32. In one embodiment, the communication control unit 242 controls the transmission and reception of information used in one of the charging process and the lending process of the battery 20 between the station control unit 240 and the management server 120. In another embodiment, the communication control unit 242 controls the transmission and reception of information used in the authentication process of the user 30 who wishes to lend the battery 20 between the station control unit 240 and the communication terminal 32.

[0096] In this embodiment, the charge and discharge control unit 244 controls the charge and discharge of one or more batteries 20 housed in the battery station 110. The charge and discharge control unit 244 controls the charge and discharge of the battery 20, for example, by controlling the operation of the slot 112 that houses the battery 20.

[0097] The charge and discharge control unit 244 generates, for example, a charging plan and controls the charge and discharge of each of the one or more batteries 20 based on the charging plan. More specifically, the charge and discharge control unit 244 acquires information indicating the supply and demand situation of the battery 20 from the management server 120, and determines the number of batteries 20 that can be lent during a specific period based on the information. Examples of the information indicating the supply and demand situation of the battery 20 include information indicating the reservation status of the battery 20 and information indicating the demand prediction of the battery 20. The charge and discharge control unit 244 charges one or more batteries 20 housed in the battery station 110 so that the charge rate or SOC of at least the above-mentioned number of batteries 20 becomes a value that can be lent at the start of the specific period, for example.

[0098] For example, depending on the power supply capacity of the distribution board 220, it is conceivable that the number of batteries 20 that the battery station 110 can charge simultaneously is smaller than the number of batteries 20 that require charging. In this case, the charge and discharge control unit 244 determines the slots 112 for charging the batteries 20 among the slots 112 that accommodate the batteries 20, taking into account the power supply capacity of the distribution board 220. Also, for example, when the electricity rate varies depending on the time zone, the charge and discharge control unit 244 determines the slots 112 for charging the batteries 20 among the slots 112 that accommodate the batteries 20, taking into account the electricity rate for each time zone.

[0099] In such cases, for example, the charge and discharge control unit 244 acquires information indicating the above-described policy or information indicating the priority order of each slot from the management server 120, and determines the slots 112 to be used for charging the batteries 20 based on the information. By determining the slots 112 to be used for charging the batteries 20 based on the above policy or priority order, the lending frequency of the batteries 20 accommodated in a specific slot 112 can be higher than the lending frequency of the batteries 20 accommodated in other slots 112.

[0100] As described above, the above policy or priority order is determined based on the degree of deterioration of the slots 112. Thereby, the charge and discharge control unit 244 can accelerate the deterioration of a specific slot 112 more than the deterioration of other slots 112, or eliminate the imbalance in the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110.

[0101] In the present embodiment, the state management unit 246 manages the states of each part of the battery station 110. For example, the state management unit 246 manages the state of each of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110. Examples of the state of each slot include the usage state or the deterioration state of each slot. Examples of the usage state or the deterioration state of each slot include the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in each slot, the number of times the slot and the battery 20 are attached and detached, and the like. Details of the state management unit 246 will be described later.

[0102] In this embodiment, the lending management unit 248 manages the lending of the battery 20. Further, the lending management unit 248 manages the return of the battery 20.

[0103] In one embodiment, for example, the lending management unit 248 determines the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 from among the batteries 20 housed in the slot 112 of the battery station 110. In this embodiment, the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 is determined based on the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110.

[0104] More specifically, the lending management unit 248 acquires information indicating the above-described policy or information indicating the priority order of each slot from the management server 120, and determines the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 based on the information. For example, when the user 30 drives the electric bike 34 and moves to the location where the battery station 110 is installed, and requests the lending of the battery 20 reserved in advance to the battery station 110, the lending management unit 248 instructs the lending of the battery 20 to the slot 112 with the highest priority among the one or more slots 112 that accommodate the lendable batteries 20.

[0105] As described above, the above policy or priority order is determined based on the degree of deterioration of the slot 112. Examples of the degree of deterioration of the slot 112 include the degree of deterioration of the connector arranged inside the slot 112 and connected to the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20. Thereby, the lending management unit 248 can select the battery 20 to be provided to the user 30 from among one or a plurality of batteries 20 based on the degree of deterioration of the slot 112.

[0106] In one embodiment, for example, when the priority is determined such that the smaller the degree of deterioration of slot 112, the higher the priority, the lending management unit 248 preferentially provides the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration to the user 30 over the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration. In this way, the imbalance in the degree of deterioration among the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 can be eliminated.

[0107] In another embodiment, for example, when the priority is determined such that the smaller the degree of deterioration of slot 112, the lower the priority, the lending management unit 248 preferentially provides the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration to the user 30 over the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration. In this way, the deterioration of a specific slot 112 can be promoted more than the deterioration of other slots 112.

[0108] In another embodiment, for example, the lending management unit 248 determines a slot 112 for receiving the return of the battery 20 from among the slots 112 that do not house the battery 20. In this embodiment, the slot 112 for receiving the return of the battery 20 is determined based on the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110.

[0109] More specifically, the lending management unit 248 acquires information indicating the above-described policy or information indicating the priority order of each slot from the management server 120, and determines a slot 112 for accepting the return of the battery 20 based on the information. For example, when the user 30 drives the electric bike 34 and moves to the installation location of the battery station 110 and requests the lending of the battery 20 reserved in advance to the battery station 110, the lending management unit 248 executes processing for accepting the returned battery 20 for the slot 112 with the highest priority among one or more slots 112 that do not accommodate the battery 20.

[0110] As described above, the above policy or priority order is determined based on the degree of deterioration of the slot 112. Thereby, the lending management unit 248 can select a slot 112 to be used for the return of the battery 20 from among one or a plurality of slots 112 based on the degree of deterioration of the slot 112.

[0111] In one embodiment, for example, when the priority order is determined such that the lower the degree of deterioration of the slot 112, the higher the priority, the lending management unit 248 selects a slot 112 for accepting the return of the battery 20 such that a slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration preferentially accepts the battery 20 over a slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration. Thereby, the imbalance in the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 can be eliminated.

[0112] In another embodiment, for example, when the priority order is determined such that the lower the degree of deterioration of the slot 112, the lower the priority, the lending management unit 248 selects a slot 112 for accepting the return of the battery 20 such that a slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration preferentially accepts the battery 20 over a slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration. Thereby, the deterioration of a specific slot 112 can be promoted more than the deterioration of other slots 112.

[0113] In this embodiment, the data storage unit 250 stores various types of information. In one embodiment, the data storage unit 250 stores information used for information processing in the station control unit 240. For example, the data storage unit 250 stores information (for example, information indicating a policy) acquired by the station control unit 240 from the management server 120. In other embodiments, the data storage unit 250 stores information generated or acquired by information processing in the station control unit 240. For example, the data storage unit 250 stores information (for example, the number of insertions or removals of the battery 20) acquired by the station control unit 240 from the slot 112, and information (for example, the charge rate or SOC of the battery 20) acquired by the station control unit 240 from the battery 20.

[0114] The station control unit 240 may be an example of a counting unit, an estimating unit, a detachment information acquisition unit, or a degradation information acquisition unit. The state management unit 246 may be an example of a counting unit, an estimating unit, a detachment information acquisition unit, or a degradation information acquisition unit. The lending management unit 248 may be an example of a degradation information acquisition unit or a selection unit. The battery 20 lent to the user 30 may be an example of a power storage device provided to the user.

[0115] Note that in this embodiment, the details of the lending management unit 248 have been described by taking as an example the case where the lending management unit 248 acquires information indicating a policy or information indicating the priority order of each slot from the management server 120 and determines the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 based on the information. However, the lending management unit 248 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the lending management unit 248 may determine the priority order of each slot based on the degree of degradation of each slot and determine the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 based on the priority order.

[0116] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 were described by taking as an example the case where when the user 30 arrives at the installation location of the battery station 110 and requests the rental of the battery 20 from the battery station 110, the slot 112 that executes the lending process is selected. However, the timing at which the slot 112 that executes the lending process is selected is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the slot 112 that executes the lending process may be selected when the management server 120 receives a reservation request from the user 30, or while the management server 120 is processing the reservation request. The above selection process may be executed by the management server 120 or may be executed by the station control unit 240.

[0117] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 were described by taking as an example the case where when the user 30 arrives at the installation location of the battery station 110 and requests the return of the battery 20 to the battery station 110, the slot 112 that executes the return process is selected. However, the timing at which the slot 112 that executes the return process is selected is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the slot 112 that executes the return process may be selected when the management server 120 receives a reservation request from the user 30, or while the management server 120 is processing the reservation request. The above selection process may be executed by the management server 120 or may be executed by the station control unit 240.

[0118] FIG. 3 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the slot 112. In this embodiment, the slot 112 includes, for example, a housing 310, an opening / closing cover 320, a locking unit 330, a battery detection unit 340, a connector 350, a power control circuit 360, a slot control unit 370, and a connector 380. The slot 112 may include a plurality of battery detection units 340.

[0119] In this embodiment, a battery accommodation chamber 312 is formed inside the housing 310. In this embodiment, a lock member 322 is arranged on the opening / closing cover 320. In this embodiment, the locking unit 330 includes a locking member 332 and a driving member 334. In this embodiment, the connector 350 includes a power connector 352 and a communication connector 354. In this embodiment, the connector 380 includes a power connector 382 and a communication connector 384.

[0120] In this embodiment, the housing 310 is configured to be detachable from the main body of the battery station 110. Thereby, when a defect occurs in a part of the slot 112, the entire slot 112 can be replaced. By being able to replace the entire slot 112, the degree of freedom in maintenance is improved. For example, the battery management system 100 or the administrator of the battery management system 100 can compare the maintenance costs considering the labor costs and construction costs of maintenance, the lost profits during the maintenance period, etc. when replacing a defective component, when replacing the entire slot 112, and when replacing the entire battery station 110, and determine a maintenance plan.

[0121] In this embodiment, the battery accommodation chamber 312 is arranged inside the housing 310 and accommodates the battery 20. The battery accommodation chamber 312 is configured to be able to insert and remove the battery 20. For example, an opening is formed on one side surface of the battery accommodation chamber 312 so that the battery 20 can move between the inside and the outside of the battery accommodation chamber 312.

[0122] In this embodiment, the opening / closing cover 320 is arranged to cover the opening of the battery accommodation chamber 312. The opening / closing cover 320 is configured to be able to open and close the above-mentioned opening. Thereby, a state in which the user 30 is permitted to insert and remove the battery 20 and a state in which the user 30 is prohibited from inserting and removing the battery 20 can be switched. In this embodiment, a lock member 322 used for locking the opening / closing cover 320 is arranged on the opening / closing cover 320.

[0123] In this embodiment, the locking unit 330 locks and unlocks the opening / closing cover 320. Thereby, a state in which the user 30 is permitted to open and close the opening / closing cover 320 and a state in which the user 30 is prohibited from opening and closing the opening / closing cover 320 are switched.

[0124] In this embodiment, the locking member 332 cooperates with the locking member 322 to control the opening and closing of the opening / closing cover 320. For example, when the locking member 332 moves to the locked position with the opening / closing cover 320 closed, the movement of the locking member 322 is restricted and the user 30 cannot open the opening / closing cover 320. On the other hand, when the locking member 332 moves to the unlocked position, the movement of the locking member 322 is not restricted and the user 30 can open the opening / closing cover 320. In this embodiment, the drive member 334 moves the locking member 332 between the locked position and the unlocked position. The drive member 334 moves the locking member 332 in accordance with an instruction from, for example, the slot control unit 370.

[0125] In this embodiment, the battery detection unit 340 counts the number of times the battery 20 is housed in the battery housing chamber 312. More specifically, the battery detection unit 340 detects that the battery 20 has been inserted into the battery housing chamber 312. The battery detection unit 340 outputs information indicating the detection result to the slot control unit 370.

[0126] The detection principle of the battery 20 by the battery detection unit 340 is not particularly limited. The battery detection unit 340 may detect the insertion of the battery 20 by a contact type sensor or may detect the insertion of the battery 20 by a non-contact type sensor.

[0127] In this embodiment, the connector 350 is connected to the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20. The connector 350 is configured to be detachable from the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20.

[0128] In this embodiment, the power connector 352 is electrically connected to the power connector 22 of the battery 20. In this embodiment, the connection between the power connector 352 and the power connector 22 is a wired connection. The power connector 352 is electrically connected to the power control circuit 360. When the power connector 352 and the power connector 22 are electrically connected, the power control circuit 360 and the battery 20 are electrically connected. Thereby, charging and discharging of the battery 20 become possible.

[0129] In this embodiment, the communication connector 354 is communicably connected to the communication connector 24 of the battery 20. In this embodiment, the connection between the communication connector 354 and the communication connector 24 is a wired connection. The communication connector 354 is communicably connected to the slot control unit 370. When the communication connector 354 and the communication connector 24 are communicably connected, the slot control unit 370 and the battery 20 are communicably connected. Thereby, transmission and reception of information between the slot control unit 370 and the battery 20 become possible.

[0130] In this embodiment, the power control circuit 360 receives the power supplied from the distribution board 220 of the battery station 110. Further, the power control circuit 360 supplies power to each part of the slot 112. The power control circuit 360 supplies power to each part of the slot 112, for example, according to an instruction from the slot control unit 370.

[0131] In this embodiment, the slot control unit 370 controls the operations of each part of the slot 112. For example, the slot control unit 370 controls the operation of the power control circuit 360 and adjusts the power supplied from the power control circuit 360 to each part of the slot 112, thereby controlling the operations of each part of the slot 112.

[0132] More specifically, the slot control unit 370 controls the power control circuit 360 based on an instruction from the charge / discharge control unit 244 to control the charging and discharging of the battery 20. Further, the slot control unit 370 controls the power control circuit 360 based on an instruction from the lending management unit 248 to control the locking or unlocking of the locking unit 330.

[0133] In the present embodiment, the slot control unit 370 manages the states of the respective parts of the slot 112. For example, the slot control unit 370 acquires information indicating the states of the respective parts of the slot 112. Further, the slot control unit 370 transmits the information indicating the states of the respective parts of the slot 112 to the state management unit 246.

[0134] In one embodiment, the slot control unit 370 acquires information indicating the detection result of the battery 20 from the battery detection unit 340. The slot control unit 370 counts the number of times of detection of the insertion of the battery 20. The slot control unit 370 determines or estimates the number of times of accommodation of the battery 20 in the battery accommodation chamber 312 based on the number of times of detection of the insertion of the battery 20. Specifically, the slot control unit 370 determines or estimates the number of times of accommodation by regarding the number of times of detection of the insertion of the battery 20 as the number of times of accommodation of the battery 20 in the battery accommodation chamber 312.

[0135] Further, the slot control unit 370 determines or estimates the number of times of attachment / detachment of the power connector 22 and the power connector 352, or the number of times of attachment / detachment of the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354 based on the above-described number of times of accommodation. Thereby, the slot control unit 370 can acquire information indicating the number of times of attachment / detachment between the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112.

[0136] In one embodiment, the slot control unit 370 acquires the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352. The number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352 may simply be referred to as the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352. It may also be referred to as the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352 in the power connector 22, the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352 in the power connector 352, the number of times of attachment and detachment in the power connector 22, the number of times of attachment and detachment in the power connector 352, etc.

[0137] In another embodiment, the slot control unit 370 acquires the number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354. The number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354 may simply be referred to as the number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354, the number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354 in the communication connector 24, the number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354 in the communication connector 354, the number of times of attachment and detachment in the communication connector 24, the number of times of attachment and detachment in the communication connector 354, etc.

[0138] In another embodiment, the slot control unit 370 acquires information indicating the open / closed state of the opening / closing cover 320. The slot control unit 370 also acquires information indicating the locked state of the opening / closing cover 320 by the locking unit 330. In yet another embodiment, the slot control unit 370 acquires information indicating the charge rate or SOC of the battery 20. When the battery 20 includes a storage device, the slot control unit 370 may read out various information stored in the storage device of the battery 20.

[0139] In this embodiment, the connector 380 connects the main body of the battery station 110 and the slot 112. The connector 380 is detachably configured with a connector (not shown) arranged on the main body of the battery station 110. In this embodiment, the power connector 382 is electrically connected to the distribution board 220. Also, the communication connector 384 is communicably connected to the station control unit 240.

[0140] The battery storage chamber 312 may be an example of the storage unit. The battery detection unit 340 may be an example of the counting unit or the insertion detection unit. The connector 350 may be an example of the second terminal. The power connector 352 may be an example of the second terminal. The communication connector 354 may be an example of the second terminal. The slot control unit 370 may be an example of the counting unit, the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit, the degradation information acquisition unit, or the information acquisition device. The power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 inserted or stored in the battery storage chamber 312 may be an example of the corresponding first terminal. The information indicating the detection result of the battery 20 may be an example of the attachment / detachment information. The process of acquiring the information indicating the number of attachment / detachment times may be an example of the process of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times.

[0141] Note that in this embodiment, the details of the slot control unit 370 have been described by taking as an example the case where the slot control unit 370 determines or estimates the attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 based on the number of insertion times or storage times of the battery 20. However, the slot control unit 370 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the slot control unit 370 may determine the attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 based on the output from an appropriate sensor that actually detects the insertion and removal of the connector of the battery 20 and the connector 350 of the slot 112.

[0142] [An example of another embodiment] In this embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the connections of the power connector 352 and the power connector 22, and the connections of the communication connector 354 and the communication connector 24 are wired connections. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, either one of the connections of the power connector 352 and the power connector 22, and the connections of the communication connector 354 and the communication connector 24 may be a wireless connection.

[0143] FIG. 4 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the state management unit 246. In this embodiment, the state management unit 246 includes, for example, an abnormality detection unit 410 and a degradation management unit 420. In this embodiment, the degradation management unit 420 has a storage cycle management unit 422 and an attachment / detachment cycle management unit 424.

[0144] In this embodiment, the abnormality detection unit 410 detects abnormalities occurring in each part of the battery station 110. The abnormality detection unit 410 transmits information indicating the content of the above abnormalities to the management server 120.

[0145] In this embodiment, the degradation management unit 420 manages the degradation states of each part of the battery station 110. The degradation management unit 420 transmits information indicating the degradation states of each part of the battery station 110 to the management server 120. For example, the degradation management unit 420 acquires information indicating the degree of degradation of the connector 350 or a part thereof for each of a plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110. Further, the degradation management unit 420 associates the identification information of each of the plurality of slots 112 with the information indicating the degree of degradation related to the slot, and transmits the associated information to the management server 120.

[0146] In this embodiment, the accommodation frequency management unit 422 acquires, from each slot control unit 370 of a plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110, information indicating the number of times the battery 20 has been accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 of each slot. In this embodiment, the attachment / detachment frequency management unit 424 acquires, from each slot control unit 370 of a plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110, information indicating the number of times of attachment / detachment between the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112 in each slot.

[0147] In one embodiment, the attachment / detachment frequency management unit 424 acquires the number of times of attachment / detachment between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352. In another embodiment, the attachment / detachment frequency management unit 424 acquires the number of times of attachment / detachment between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354.

[0148] The deterioration management unit 420 may be an example of a deterioration information acquisition unit. The accommodation frequency management unit 422 may be an example of a counting unit or a deterioration information acquisition unit. The attachment / detachment frequency management unit 424 may be an example of a counting unit or an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. Information indicating the deterioration state of each part of the battery station 110 may be an example of deterioration information. Information indicating the number of times the battery 20 has been accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 may be an example of deterioration information. Information indicating the number of times of attachment / detachment between the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112 may be an example of deterioration information.

[0149] In the present embodiment, the accommodation number management unit 422 has been described in detail by taking as an example the case where the accommodation number management unit 422 acquires information indicating the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 of each slot from the slot control unit 370 of each slot. However, the accommodation number management unit 422 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, the accommodation number management unit 422 acquires information indicating the detection result of the battery 20 by the battery detection unit 340 arranged in each slot from the slot control unit 370 of each of the plurality of slots 112. The accommodation number management unit 422 may determine or estimate the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 based on the number of times the insertion of the battery 20 is detected by the same procedure as the slot control unit 370. Thereby, the accommodation number management unit 422 can acquire information indicating the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 of each slot.

[0150] In the present embodiment, the attachment / detachment number management unit 424 has been described in detail by taking as an example the case where the attachment / detachment number management unit 424 acquires information indicating the number of times of attachment / detachment of the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112 in each slot from the slot control unit 370 of each slot. However, the attachment / detachment number management unit 424 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, the attachment / detachment number management unit 424 acquires information indicating the detection result of the battery 20 by the battery detection unit 340 arranged in each slot, or information indicating the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in the battery accommodation chamber 312 of each slot, from the slot control unit 370 of each of the plurality of slots 112. The attachment / detachment number management unit 424 may determine or estimate the number of times of attachment / detachment of the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112 in each slot by the same procedure as the slot control unit 370. Thereby, the attachment / detachment number management unit 424 can acquire information indicating the number of times of attachment / detachment of the connector of the battery 20 and the connector of the slot 112 in each slot.

[0151] [Example of Another Embodiment] In this embodiment, an example of the battery management system 100 or the battery station 110 has been described by taking the case where the deterioration management unit 420 manages the deterioration state of each part of the battery station 110 as an example. However, the battery management system 100 and the battery station 110 are not limited to this embodiment.

[0152] In other embodiments, the deterioration management unit 420 manages the deterioration state of at least one of the power connectors 22 and the communication connectors 24 provided for each of the one or more batteries 20. For example, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 of the deterioration management unit 420 manages the total number of attachment / detachments of the power connector 22 of each of the one or more batteries 20 in a specific period as twice the number of attachment / detachments between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352 in the above-mentioned specific period. Similarly, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 manages the total number of attachment / detachments of the communication connector 24 of each of the one or more batteries 20 in a specific period as twice the number of attachment / detachments between the communication connector 24 and the communication connector 354 in the specific period.

[0153] The above-mentioned specific period may be a period from when the battery 20 is discharged until it is returned (which may be referred to as one lending period), or may be a period starting from a specific point in time. Examples of the specific point in time include the start time of use of each connector, the time when the battery 20 was last discharged, and the time when the battery 20 was attached to the electric power consuming device. The attachment / detachment count management unit 424 may transmit information indicating the attachment / detachment count of each connector at the time when the battery 20 is attached to the battery station 110, in association with the identification information of each battery or the identification information of each connector, to the management server 120.

[0154] As described above, each of the one or more batteries 20 is alternately attached to and detached from the battery station 110 and the electric motorcycle 34. Specifically, the battery 20 discharged from the battery station 110 is attached to the electric motorcycle 34. Also, the battery 20 taken out from the electric motorcycle 34 is returned to the battery station 110.

[0155] In this case, if there are no special circumstances, during one lending period of a specific battery 20, for example, the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 experiences attachment and detachment with the power connector 352 of a specific battery station 110 and attachment and detachment with the power connector of a specific electric motorcycle 34. Therefore, by the degradation management unit 420 managing the total number of attachment and detachment times of each power connector 22 of one or more batteries 20 as twice the number of attachment and detachment times between the power connector 22 and the power connector 352 described above, the degradation management unit 420 can manage the approximate degradation state of one or more power connectors 22. The same applies to the degradation state of the communication connector 24.

[0156] Note that the method by which the degradation management unit 420 manages the total number of attachment and detachment times of each connector of one or more batteries 20 is not limited to the method described above. The degradation management unit 420 may manage the total number of attachment and detachment times by deriving the total number of attachment and detachment times of each connector of one or more batteries 20 by other procedures.

[0157] For example, first, when the battery 20 is electrically connected to the electric motorcycle 34, a computer arranged in the battery 20 stores information indicating the number of attachment and detachment times of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 in a storage device arranged in the battery 20. Note that when the insertion and removal of the battery 20 are detected on the side of the electric motorcycle 34, a computer (for example, the motorcycle control unit 50) arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 may write information indicating the number of attachment and detachment times of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 in the storage device arranged in the battery 20.

[0158] Examples of the information indicating the number of attachment and detachment times of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 include information indicating the cumulative value of the number of attachment and detachment times during a period starting from a specific point in time. Examples of the specific point in time include the start time of use of each connector, the time when the battery 20 was last dispensed, the time when the battery 20 was mounted on the electric motorcycle 34, and the like.

[0159] The computer disposed in the battery 20 may detect the electrical connection between the battery 20 and the electric motorcycle 34 based on the outputs of the plug / sensor, current sensor, voltage sensor, and / or power sensor disposed in the battery 20. The plug / sensor may be a contact physical sensor or a non-contact optical sensor. For example, the battery 20 may have an optical sensor that emits a light beam outside the battery 20. For example, the battery 20 may have a physical sensor near the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24. The battery 20 may be provided with a physical sensor similar to the battery detection unit 340.

[0160] The computer disposed in the battery 20 may detect the electrical connection between the battery 20 and the electric motorcycle 34 based on the outputs of the plug / sensor, current sensor, voltage sensor, and / or power sensor disposed in the electric motorcycle 34. The plug / sensor may be a contact physical sensor or a non-contact optical sensor. The electric motorcycle 34 may be provided with a physical sensor similar to the battery detection unit 340.

[0161] For example, the motorcycle control unit 50 makes an electrical connection between the battery 20 and the electric motorcycle 34 based on the outputs of the plug / sensor, current sensor, voltage sensor, and / or power sensor disposed in the electric motorcycle 34. The computer disposed in the battery 20 receives information indicating that the battery 20 and the electric motorcycle 34 are electrically connected from the motorcycle control unit 50. Thereby, the computer disposed in the battery 20 can detect the electrical connection between the battery 20 and the electric motorcycle 34.

[0162] Next, the battery 20 is removed from the electric motorcycle 34 and returned to an arbitrary battery station 110. When the battery 20 is returned to the battery station 110, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 of the battery station 110 accesses the storage device disposed in the battery 20 and acquires information indicating the attachment / detachment count of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 during a specific period.

[0163] In this case, the history of attachment / detachment between at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 of a specific battery 20 (at least one of the power connector and the communication connector may be referred to as each connector) and each connector of a specific electric bike 34 to which the specific battery 20 is attached is recorded in the storage device of the specific battery 20. Therefore, the process of estimating the total number of attachment / detachment times during one lending period of the specific battery 20 described above does not have to be executed.

[0164] The attachment / detachment count management unit 424 derives the attachment / detachment count of each connector at the time when the battery 20 is attached to the battery station 110 by adding 1 to the attachment / detachment count of each connector indicated by the information acquired from the storage device of the battery 20. The attachment / detachment count management unit 424 may transmit information indicating the attachment / detachment count of each connector at the time when the battery 20 is attached to the battery station 110 in association with the identification information of each battery or the identification information of each connector to the management server 120.

[0165] Note that the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 may transfer the information acquired from the storage device arranged in the battery 20 to the management server 120. In this case, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 does not have to execute the process for deriving the attachment / detachment count of each connector of the battery 20.

[0166] In yet another embodiment, the degradation management unit 420 manages the degradation state of at least one of the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44 arranged in each of one or more electric bikes 34. For example, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 of the degradation management unit 420 manages the attachment / detachment count of each connector of the electric bike 34 identified by the acquired identification information by acquiring the identification information of the electric bike 34 to which each battery is attached during the period from when each battery is dispensed from any of one or more battery stations 110 until it is returned to any of one or more battery stations 110 for each of one or more batteries 20.

[0167] For example, first, when the battery 20 is attached to the electric bike 34, the computer arranged in the battery 20 stores the identification information of the electric bike 34 to which the battery 20 is attached in the storage device arranged in the battery 20. In the storage device of the battery 20, for example, the identification information of the electric bike 34 attached during the period from when the battery 20 was last dispensed from the battery station 110 until it is next returned to the battery station 110 is stored.

[0168] Note that the computer arranged in the battery 20 may associate the identification information of the electric bike 34 to which the battery 20 is attached with the information indicating the time when the battery 20 is attached to the electric bike 34 and store it in the storage device arranged in the battery 20. Thereby, for example, in the management server 120, a process for checking the presence or absence of data duplication can be executed.

[0169] Next, when the battery 20 is attached to the battery station 110, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 accesses the storage device arranged in the battery 20 and acquires the identification information of the electric bike 34 to which the battery 20 is attached and / or the information indicating the time when the battery 20 is attached to the electric bike 34. After acquiring the above information, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 may erase the information regarding the electric bike 34 to which the battery 20 is attached from the storage device arranged in the battery 20.

[0170] Next, the attachment / detachment count management unit 424 derives the attachment / detachment count of each connector of the electric bike 34 during one lending period based on the information acquired from the storage device arranged in the battery 20. The attachment / detachment count management unit 424 may associate the identification information of the electric bike 34 acquired from the storage device arranged in the battery 20 with the information indicating the above attachment / detachment count and transmit it to the management server 120.

[0171] For example, the attachment / detachment times management unit 424 regards the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34 during one lending period as one time. The attachment / detachment times management unit 424 increases by one time the cumulative value of the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34 identified by the identification information included in the information acquired from the storage device provided in the battery 20.

[0172] For example, when the attachment / detachment times management unit 424 manages the total attachment / detachment times of each connector of the battery 20 during one lending period, the attachment / detachment times management unit 424 regards (i) the total attachment / detachment times of each connector of the battery 20 during the lending period, and (ii) the difference in the attachment / detachment times between each connector of the battery 20 during the lending period and each connector of the battery station 110 to which the battery 20 is returned, as the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34. The attachment / detachment times management unit 424 increases by the above difference the cumulative value of the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34 identified by the identification information included in the information acquired from the storage device provided in the battery 20. When the information acquired from the storage device provided in the battery 20 includes the identification information of a plurality of electric bikes 34, the cumulative value of the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34 is increased by the above difference divided by the number of pieces of identification information for each piece of identification information.

[0173] If there are no special circumstances, during one lending period, the battery 20 taken out from the battery station 110 is mounted on a single electric bike 34. Also, usually, the total attachment / detachment times of each connector of the battery 20 during one lending period is one time. Similarly, during one lending period, the attachment / detachment times between each connector of the battery 20 and each connector of the battery station 110 to which the battery 20 is returned is one time. Therefore, as described above, even when the attachment / detachment times of each connector of the electric bike 34 during one lending period is regarded as one time, the approximate deterioration state of each connector of one or more electric bikes 34 can be managed.

[0174] Note that the degradation management unit 420 may transfer the information acquired from the storage device provided in the battery 20 to the management server 120. In this case, the degradation management unit 420 may not execute the process for deriving the number of attachment / detachment times of each connector of the battery 20.

[0175] In the present embodiment, an example of the battery management system 100 has been described by taking the case where the degradation management unit 420 is provided in the battery station 110 as an example. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, part or all of the degradation management unit 420 may be provided in the electric bike 34. For example, part or all of the functions of the degradation management unit 420 are realized by the cooperation of a program operating on the computer of the electric bike 34 and the hardware of the electric bike 34.

[0176] In this case, the degradation management unit 420 provided in the electric bike 34 manages the number of times the battery 20 is housed in the slot provided in the electric bike 34. The slot provided in the electric bike 34 may have the same configuration as the slot 112. Further, the degradation management unit 420 provided in the electric bike 34 manages the number of attachment / detachment times of each connector provided in the slot of the electric bike 34.

[0177] The degradation management unit 420 provided in the electric bike 34 may acquire the number of attachment / detachment times of the power connector 42 of the specific electric bike 34 and the power connector 22 of the battery 20 housed in the slot of the specific electric bike 34 at the power connector 42 of the electric bike 34 and the power connector 22 of the battery 20 by the same procedure as the above-described procedure. Similarly, the degradation management unit 420 provided in the electric bike 34 may acquire the number of attachment / detachment times of the communication connector 44 of the specific electric bike 34 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 housed in the slot of the specific electric bike 34 at the communication connector 44 of the electric bike 34 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 by the same procedure as the above-described procedure.

[0178] For example, each time the battery 20 is housed in the slot of the electric motorcycle 34, the deterioration management unit 420 arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 increases the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the battery 20 by one. Also, each time the battery 20 is housed in the slot of the electric motorcycle 34, the deterioration management unit 420 increases the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 by one.

[0179] Thereby, the deterioration management unit 420 can manage the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the battery 20 during a specific period and / or the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 during a specific period. The above-mentioned specific period may be a single rental period or a period starting from a specific point in time. Examples of the specific point in time include the start time of use of each connector, the time when the battery 20 was last rented out, and the time when the battery 20 was attached to the power-using device.

[0180] The deterioration management unit 420 arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 may associate the identification information of the battery 20 with the information indicating the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the battery 20 during the above-mentioned specific period and store it in the storage device arranged in the battery 20. The deterioration management unit 420 may associate the identification information of the electric motorcycle 34 with the information indicating the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 during the above-mentioned specific period and store it in the storage device arranged in the battery 20.

[0181] As described above, the information stored in the storage device arranged in the battery 20 is read out by, for example, the battery station 110 and transmitted to the management server 120. When the electric motorcycle 34 is equipped with a communication device, the deterioration management unit 420 may associate the identification information of the battery 20 with the information indicating the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the battery 20 during the above-mentioned specific period and transmit it to the management server 120. Also, the deterioration management unit 420 may associate the identification information of the electric motorcycle 34 with the information indicating the cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment of each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 during the above-mentioned specific period and transmit it to the management server 120.

[0182] The number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 42 of the electric bike 34 and the power connector 22 of the battery 20 may be an example of other numbers of times of attachment and detachment. The number of times of attachment and detachment between the communication connector 44 of the electric bike 34 and the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 may be an example of other numbers of times of attachment and detachment.

[0183] FIG. 5 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the management server 120. In the present embodiment, the management server 120 includes, for example, a station management unit 510, a battery management unit 520, a reservation management unit 530, and a data storage unit 540. In the present embodiment, the data storage unit 540 has a station information storage unit 542, a battery information storage unit 544, and a reservation information storage unit 546.

[0184] In the present embodiment, the station management unit 510 manages one or more battery stations 110 that constitute the battery management system 100. The station management unit 510 stores various types of information related to each of the one or more battery stations 110 in the station information storage unit 542 of the data storage unit 540.

[0185] In the present embodiment, the station management unit 510 acquires various types of information related to each battery station from each of the one or more battery stations 110. The station management unit 510 generates information indicating the above-described policy or priority for each of the one or more battery stations 110. The station management unit 510 transmits information indicating the policy or priority related to each battery station to each of the one or more battery stations 110. Details of the station management unit 510 will be described later.

[0186] In the present embodiment, the battery management unit 520 manages one or more batteries 20. The battery management unit 520 manages, for example, at least one of the operation state, charge state, storage state, and deterioration state of each of the one or more batteries 20 to be managed. The battery management unit 520 stores various types of information related to the one or more batteries 20 in the battery information storage unit 544 of the data storage unit 540.

[0187] In this embodiment, the battery management unit 520 manages, for example, the charging plan of one or more batteries 20. The battery management unit 520 manages the charging plan of the batteries 20 stored in each of the one or more battery stations 110.

[0188] In one embodiment, the battery management unit 520 creates a charging plan for the battery 20 based on, for example, at least one of a reservation request from the communication terminal 32 and a demand prediction of the battery 20. In other embodiments, the battery management unit 520 acquires information indicating the content of the charging plan generated by the charge / discharge control unit 244 of each battery station from each of the one or more battery stations 110. Examples of the charging plan include (i) information in which information indicating a time is associated with information indicating the number of batteries 20 that can be lent out after charging is completed by the time, and (ii) information in which information indicating a time is associated with identification information of the slot 112 for completing the charging of the battery 20 by the time.

[0189] In this embodiment, the battery management unit 520 manages the progress of the charging plan of each of the one or more battery stations 110. For example, the battery management unit 520 acquires information indicating the charging rate or SOC of the batteries 20 stored in each battery station from each of the one or more battery stations 110.

[0190] In this embodiment, the reservation management unit 530 manages the reservation status of the battery 20 to be managed. For example, the reservation management unit 530 receives a reservation request from the communication terminal 32 and executes a reservation process. The reservation management unit 530 stores information indicating the execution result of the reservation process (which may be referred to as reservation information) in the reservation information storage unit 546 of the data storage unit 540. The reservation information includes, for example, information regarding the user ID, desired rental date, desired rental time, station ID, battery ID, desired charge state, usage fee, payment method, and the like. The reservation information may include information indicating the time when the reservation request was received (which may be referred to as the reservation time) and information indicating the user's position at the reservation time.

[0191] In this embodiment, the data storage unit 540 stores various types of information. In one embodiment, the data storage unit 540 stores information used for information processing in the management server 120. In other embodiments, the data storage unit 540 stores information generated or acquired by information processing in the management server 120.

[0192] The station management unit 510 may be an example of an information acquisition device or an estimation device. The station management unit 510 may be an example of a detachment information acquisition unit or a degradation information acquisition unit.

[0193] Note that in this embodiment, as an example, the details of the battery management system 100 are described in the case where (i) the management server 120 generates information indicating the policy or priority for each of the one or more battery stations 110, and (ii) the lending management unit 248 of each battery station selects the battery 20 to be lent to the user 30 or selects the slot 112 to be used for the return of the battery 20 based on the policy or priority. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, at least one of the above-described selection process for the battery 20 and the selection process for the slot 112 may be executed in the management server 120 instead of being executed in the lending management unit 248. In this case, the management server 120 or each part thereof may be an example of a selection unit.

[0194] FIG. 6 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the station management unit 510. In the present embodiment, the station management unit 510 includes, for example, a station information collection unit 610, a maintenance management unit 620, and an insertion / removal control unit 630. In the present embodiment, the maintenance management unit 620 includes a degradation estimation unit 622, a maintenance timing estimation unit 624, and a procurement plan unit 626.

[0195] In the present embodiment, the station information collection unit 610 collects various types of information regarding each of one or more battery stations 110. For example, the station information collection unit 610 collects various types of information regarding the state of each battery station from the state management unit 246 of each battery station. More specifically, the station information collection unit 610 acquires information indicating the state of each of a plurality of slots 112 provided in each battery station.

[0196] As described above, examples of the state of each slot include the usage state or the degradation state of each slot. Examples of the usage state or the degradation state of each slot include the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated in each slot, and the number of times of attachment / detachment of each slot and the battery 20. The above-mentioned number of times of attachment / detachment may be a number determined or estimated based on the above-mentioned number of times of accommodation. Further, the above-mentioned number of times of accommodation and the number of times of attachment / detachment can be used as an example of an index indicating the degree of degradation of the connector 350 of the slot 112.

[0197] In the present embodiment, the maintenance management unit 620 manages the maintenance or servicing of the battery station 110. For example, the maintenance management unit 620 manages a maintenance plan or a servicing plan for the battery station 110 or its components. Further, the maintenance management unit 620 manages a procurement plan for parts, equipment, jigs, etc. used for the maintenance or servicing of the battery station 110.

[0198] In the present embodiment, the degradation estimation unit 622 estimates the degree of degradation of the battery station 110 or its components. For example, the degradation estimation unit 622 estimates the degree of degradation of the power connector 352 or the communication connector 354 of the slot 112.

[0199] More specifically, the degradation estimation unit 622 acquires information indicating the number of attachment / detachment times of each slot and the battery 20 for each of one or more battery stations 110 from the station information collection unit 610 or the station information storage unit 542. Next, the degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of the power connector 352 or the communication connector 354 of each slot based on the number of attachment / detachment times of each slot and the battery 20.

[0200] In one embodiment, the degradation estimation unit 622 estimates the degree of degradation of at least one of the power connectors 22 and 352 in the power connectors 22 and 352. The degree of degradation of at least one of the power connectors 22 and 352 in the power connectors 22 and 352 may simply be referred to as the degree of degradation of at least one of the power connectors 22 and 352, the degree of degradation in at least one of the power connectors 22 and 352, and the like.

[0201] In other embodiments, the degradation estimation unit 622 estimates the degree of degradation of at least one of the communication connectors 24 and 354 in the communication connectors 24 and 354. The degree of degradation of at least one of the communication connectors 24 and 354 in the communication connectors 24 and 354 may simply be referred to as the degree of degradation of at least one of the communication connectors 24 and 354, the degree of degradation in at least one of the communication connectors 24 and 354, and the like.

[0202] The degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of each connector based on, for example, the cumulative value of the above-mentioned number of attachment / detachment times during the period from the start time of use of each connector to the time of execution of the estimation process. More specifically, the degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of each connector based on the cumulative value of the above-mentioned number of attachment / detachment times and the number of attachment / detachment times guaranteed by the manufacturer or seller of each connector (which may be referred to as the guaranteed number of times).

[0203] For example, the degradation estimation unit 622 determines the remaining period until the cumulative value of the number of attachment / detachment times in each connector reaches the guaranteed number of times as the degree of degradation of each connector. More specifically, first, the degradation estimation unit 622 calculates the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 per unit period for each slot 112 for each of the one or more battery stations 110 based on the cumulative value of the above-mentioned number of attachment / detachment times during the period from the start time of use of each connector to the time of execution of the estimation process. Examples of the unit period include one day, one week, two weeks, four weeks, one month, etc. As described above, the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 indicates the number of accommodation times, return times, lending times, or replacement times of the battery 20.

[0204] For example, when the variation in the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 per unit period is relatively small and the cumulative value of the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 shows linearity with respect to the elapsed time from the start time of use of the slot 112 or the connector 350, when the guaranteed number of times for a specific connector is A [times], the cumulative value of the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 during the period from the start time of use of the connector to the time of execution of the estimation process is B [times], the length of the above period is Y [months], and the length of the above remaining period is X [months], the degradation estimation unit 622 calculates the above remaining period based on the following formula 1. X = (A / B - 1) × Y (Formula 1)

[0205] Note that the method by which the deterioration estimation unit 622 calculates the remaining period described above is not limited to the above-described embodiment. In other embodiments, the deterioration estimation unit 622 sets the cumulative value of the above-described number of attachment / detachment times as an objective function based on data of the cumulative value of the above-described number of attachment / detachment times in the period from the start time of use of each connector to the time of execution of the estimation process, and derives an approximation function using the elapsed time from the start time of use of the slot 112 or the connector 350 as an explanatory variable. The deterioration estimation unit 622 calculates the remaining period until the cumulative value of the number of attachment / detachment times in each connector reaches the guaranteed number of times based on the above-described approximation function. In still other embodiments, the deterioration estimation unit 622 estimates X from the above B and Y using an estimation model generated by machine learning for estimating the above remaining period from the length of the period from the start time of use of each connector and the cumulative value of the number of attachment / detachment times in that period.

[0206] In the present embodiment, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each of one or more battery stations 110 or its components. For example, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each battery station or its components based on the degree of deterioration of each battery station or its components estimated by the deterioration estimation unit 622. In the present embodiment, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the above-described maintenance timing based on the above-described degree of deterioration and a criterion predetermined in consideration of the durability of the battery station 110 or its components. Information indicating the above-described predetermined criterion is stored, for example, in the station information storage unit 542.

[0207] More specifically, in one embodiment, when the number of attachments and detachments between the connector 350 of the slot 112 and the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20 is greater than a predetermined value (which may be referred to as the durable insertion / removal times), the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 determines that the replacement time of the slot 112 or the connector 350 has arrived. In another embodiment, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the time when the above-mentioned number of attachments and detachments exceeds the predetermined durable insertion / removal times based on the past history of the number of attachments and detachments between the connector 350 of the slot 112 and the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24 of the battery 20. The number of attachments and detachments guaranteed by the manufacturer or seller of each connector may be an example of the durable insertion / removal times.

[0208] In one embodiment, for each of the one or more battery stations 110, when the maintenance time of the battery station or its components has arrived, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 outputs information indicating the arrival of the above-mentioned maintenance time to, for example, the procurement planning unit 626. In another embodiment, for each of the one or more battery stations 110, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 outputs information indicating the time when the maintenance of the battery station or its components is predicted (which may be referred to as the maintenance prediction time) to, for example, the procurement planning unit 626.

[0209] In the present embodiment, the procurement planning unit 626 generates at least a part of the manufacturing plan or the distribution plan of the replacement equipment, replacement parts, maintenance supplies, or maintenance equipment (which may be referred to as products) used for the maintenance or repair of at least one battery station 110. The manufacturing plan may be information in which (i) information indicating the delivery date, (ii) information indicating the type and specifications of the product, and (iii) information indicating the number of products are associated. The manufacturing plan may include information indicating the price of the product. The distribution plan may be information in which (i) information indicating the delivery time of the product and (ii) information indicating the delivery destination of the product are associated. The distribution plan may include information indicating the delivery cost of the product.

[0210] For example, in the maintenance or repair of a specific battery station 110, if the entire specific battery station 110 is replaced, the procurement planning department 626 generates at least a part of the manufacturing plan and delivery plan for the new battery station 110. Also, in the maintenance or repair of a specific battery station 110, if a specific slot 112 is replaced, the procurement planning department 626 generates at least a part of the manufacturing plan and delivery plan for the new slot 112. Similarly, in the maintenance or repair of a specific battery station 110, if a part of the components of a specific slot 112 is replaced or repaired, the procurement planning department 626 generates at least a part of the manufacturing plan and delivery plan for the replacement parts or repair supplies of the components.

[0211] Also, the procurement planning department 626 outputs information used for the above manufacturing plan or distribution plan. For example, the procurement planning department 626 outputs, as a response to a request from a terminal (not shown) used by the administrator or maintenance personnel of the battery station 110, the information used for the above manufacturing plan or distribution plan in response to the request. Examples of the information used for the manufacturing plan or distribution plan include at least one of information indicating the completion time of the product, information indicating the type and specifications of the product, information indicating the number of products, information indicating the price of the product, information indicating the delivery time of the product, information indicating the delivery destination of the product, and information indicating the delivery cost of the product.

[0212] According to this embodiment, the station management unit 510 manages the number of times the battery 20 is accommodated and the number of times the battery 20 is attached and detached in each of the one or more slots 112. Thereby, the station management unit 510 can relatively accurately estimate the replacement time of the slot 112 by predicting the progress of deterioration of the slot 112. As a result, the inventory of replacement parts and the like can be maintained at an appropriate level, and the inventory management cost of replacement parts and the like can be suppressed.

[0213] In this embodiment, the insertion / removal control unit 630 controls the lending and return of the batteries 20 in each of the one or more battery stations 110. For example, the insertion / removal control unit 630 generates a control signal for controlling the insertion and removal of the batteries 20 in each of the one or more battery stations 110, and transmits the control signal to each battery station. Thereby, the lending and return of the batteries 20 in each battery station can be controlled.

[0214] In one embodiment, the insertion / removal control unit 630 generates a control signal including information indicating the above-described policy or priority. For example, the insertion / removal control unit 630 generates information indicating a policy or priority regarding the battery station 110 to be controlled based on the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 to be controlled.

[0215] More specifically, the insertion / removal control unit 630 acquires from the station information collection unit 610 information indicating the number of detection times of the battery 20, information indicating the number of accommodation times of the battery 20, or information indicating the number of attachment / detachment times of each slot and the battery 20 in each slot of the battery station 110 to be controlled. The greater the number of detection times of the battery 20, the number of accommodation times of the battery 20, or the number of attachment / detachment times of each slot and the battery 20 in the slot 112, the greater the degree of deterioration of the slot 112.

[0216] For example, the insertion / removal control unit 630 determines the priority of each slot such that the lower the degree of deterioration of the slot 112, the higher the priority. In this case, as the lending and return of the battery 20 are repeated based on the control signal including the information indicating the above-described priority, the imbalance in the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 can be eliminated.

[0217] For example, the insertion and extraction control unit 630 determines the priority of each slot such that the higher the degree of deterioration of the slot 112, the higher the priority. In this case, as the lending and returning of the battery 20 are repeated based on the control signal including the information indicating the above priority, the deterioration of a specific slot 112 can be promoted more than the deterioration of other slots 112.

[0218] In other embodiments, the insertion and extraction control unit 630 generates a control signal including identification information of the slot 112 that houses the battery 20 lent to a specific user 30 or the battery 20 to be lent next. The insertion and extraction control unit 630 generates a control signal including identification information of the slot 112 that receives the battery 20 returned from a specific user 30 or the battery 20 to be returned next. The insertion and extraction control unit 630 generates the above control signal based on the degree of deterioration of a plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 to be controlled.

[0219] More specifically, in one embodiment, the insertion and extraction control unit 630 selects the slot 112 to be controlled in the lending process such that the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration is provided to the user 30 more preferentially than the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration. Similarly, the insertion and extraction control unit 630 selects the slot 112 to be controlled in the return process such that the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration receives the battery 20 more preferentially than the slot 112 with a larger degree of deterioration. In this case, as the lending and returning of the battery 20 are repeated based on the control signal including the identification information of the above slot 112, the imbalance in the degree of deterioration of the plurality of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 can be eliminated.

[0220] In other embodiments, the insertion / removal control unit 630 selects the slot 112 to be controlled for lending so that the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a greater degree of deterioration is provided to the user 30 preferentially over the battery 20 housed in the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration. Similarly, the insertion / removal control unit 630 selects the slot 112 to be controlled for return so that the slot 112 with a greater degree of deterioration accepts the battery 20 preferentially over the slot 112 with a smaller degree of deterioration. In this case, as the lending and return of the battery 20 are repeated based on the control signal including the identification information of the slot 112 described above, the deterioration of a specific slot 112 may be promoted more than the deterioration of other slots 112.

[0221] The station information collection unit 610 may be an example of an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit, a deterioration information acquisition unit, or an information acquisition device. The maintenance management unit 620 may be an example of an estimation unit, a maintenance information acquisition unit, a first output unit, or a second output unit. The deterioration estimation unit 622 may be an example of an estimation unit. The procurement planning unit 626 may be an example of a maintenance information acquisition unit or a first output unit. The insertion / removal control unit 630 may be an example of an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit, a deterioration information acquisition unit, or an information acquisition device. The insertion / removal control unit 630 may be an example of a selection unit. The information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the battery station 110 may be an example of maintenance information. The information indicating the time when the maintenance of the battery station 110 or its components is predicted may be an example of maintenance information.

[0222] [Example of Another Embodiment] Note that, in the present embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the maintenance management unit 620 is arranged in the management server 120. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, all or part of the maintenance management unit 620 may be arranged in the battery station 110.

[0223] Also, in the present embodiment, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of the power connectors 352 or communication connectors 354 of each slot arranged in each of the one or more battery stations 110 as an example, and the details of the battery management system 100 are described. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to the present embodiment.

[0224] In other embodiments, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 arranged for each of the one or more batteries 20. The deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 based on the number of times of attachment and detachment between at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 arranged for each of the one or more batteries 20 and the corresponding connector arranged in any battery station 110. The deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 based on the number of times of attachment and detachment between at least one of the power connector 22 and the communication connector 24 arranged for each of the one or more batteries 20 and the corresponding connector arranged in any electric motorcycle 34.

[0225] As described above, each of the one or more battery stations 110 accesses the storage device of the battery 20 housed in each slot to obtain various information. Also, each of the one or more battery stations 110 transmits the information obtained from the storage device of the battery 20 to the management server 120. Thereby, the deterioration estimation unit 622 can obtain various information stored in the storage device of the battery 20, for example, via the station information collection unit 610.

[0226] For example, first, the deterioration estimation unit 622 derives the number of attachment / detachment times of each of the power connectors 22 and / or communication connectors 24 of one or more batteries 20 based on various information stored in the storage device of each of the one or more batteries 20 by the same procedure as the procedure described in connection with another embodiment of the deterioration management unit 420. Next, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of each of the power connectors 22 of the one or more batteries 20 based on the number of attachment / detachment times of each of the power connectors 22 of the one or more batteries 20. Similarly, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of each of the communication connectors 24 of the one or more batteries 20 based on the number of attachment / detachment times of each of the communication connectors 24 of the one or more batteries 20.

[0227] As described above, the number of attachment / detachment times of each connector of a specific battery 20 is derived based on the number of attachment / detachment times between the connectors in the specific battery 20 and the specific battery station 110 in which the specific battery 20 is housed. Also, as described above, the number of attachment / detachment times of each connector of a specific battery 20 is derived based on the number of attachment / detachment times between the connectors in the specific battery 20 and the specific electric motorcycle 34 in which the specific battery 20 is housed. Thereby, the deterioration estimation unit 622 can determine or estimate the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 and / or communication connector 24 of the specific battery 20 based on the number of attachment / detachment times between each connector of the specific battery 20 and each connector of the specific battery station 110 and / or the number of attachment / detachment times between each connector of the specific battery 20 and each connector of the specific electric motorcycle.

[0228] For example, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 of a specific battery 20 based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times between the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 and the power connector 352 of the specific battery station 110. Thereby, the deterioration estimation unit 622 acquires information indicating the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20. The deterioration estimation unit 622 may store the information indicating the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 in the data storage unit 540.

[0229] For example, the degradation estimation unit 622 acquires information indicating the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 of a specific battery 20 and the power connector 352 of a specific battery station 110. Further, the degradation estimation unit 622 acquires information indicating the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 of a specific battery 20 and the power connector 42 of a specific electric motorcycle 34. The degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 based on (i) the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 and the power connector 352 of the specific battery station 110, and (ii) the number of times of attachment and detachment between the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 and the power connector 42 of the specific electric motorcycle 34. Thereby, the degradation estimation unit 622 acquires information indicating the degree of degradation of the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20. The degradation estimation unit 622 may store the information indicating the degree of degradation of the power connector 22 of the specific battery 20 in the data storage unit 540.

[0230] As described above, each of the one or more battery stations 110 can also transmit information indicating the number of times of attachment and detachment of various connectors derived based on the information acquired from the storage device of the battery 20 to the management server 120. In this case, the degradation estimation unit 622 may omit the process of deriving the number of times of attachment and detachment of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of each of the one or more batteries 20 based on various information stored in the storage device of each of the one or more batteries 20.

[0231] In yet another embodiment, the degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of at least one of the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44 arranged in each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34. The degradation estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of at least one of the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44 based on the number of times of attachment and detachment between at least one of the power connector 42 and the communication connector 44 arranged in each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34 and an arbitrary battery 20.

[0232] As described above, the deterioration estimation unit 622 can acquire various types of information stored in the storage device of the battery 20, for example, via the station information collection unit 610. As described in connection with another embodiment of the deterioration management unit 420, in the storage device of each of the one or more batteries 20, after each battery is dispensed from any one of the one or more battery stations 110 and before it is returned to any one of the one or more battery stations 110, the identification information of the electric motorcycle 34 to which each battery is attached can be stored.

[0233] For example, first, the deterioration estimation unit 622 derives the number of times of attachment and detachment of the power connector and / or communication connector of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34 based on various types of information stored in the storage device of each of the one or more batteries 20 by the same procedure as the procedure described in connection with another embodiment of the deterioration management unit 420. Next, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of the power connector 42 of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34 based on the number of times of attachment and detachment of the power connector 42 of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34. Similarly, the deterioration estimation unit 622 determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of the communication connector 44 of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34 based on the number of times of attachment and detachment of the communication connector 44 of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34.

[0234] Thereby, the deterioration estimation unit 622 can acquire information indicating the degree of deterioration of the power connector 42 and / or communication connector 44 for each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34. The deterioration estimation unit 622 may store information indicating the degree of deterioration of the power connector 42 and / or communication connector 44 of each of the one or more electric motorcycles 34 in the data storage unit 540.

[0235] In addition, in this embodiment, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of the battery station 110 or the components of the battery station 110, and the details of the battery management system 100 are described by taking this case as an example. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment. In other embodiments, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing or recovery timing of each of the one or more batteries 20 for each battery or its components. For example, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing or recovery timing of each of the one or more batteries 20 based on the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of each battery.

[0236] For example, when it is determined that the maintenance timing or recovery timing of the battery 20 has arrived, maintenance such as replacing the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24 is performed on the battery 20. In this case, the maintained battery 20 is used again for lending purposes. For example, when it is determined that the maintenance timing or recovery timing of the battery 20 has arrived, the battery 20 is recovered from the market. In this case, the recovered battery 20 is diverted to other uses, decomposed and reused or recycled.

[0237] For example, when the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24 reaches a predetermined degree, the deterioration of the battery performance of the battery 20 also often progresses relatively. Therefore, for example, when the progress rate of the deterioration of the battery performance of the battery 20 is greater than the progress rate of the deterioration of the power connector 22 or the communication connector 24, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the recovery timing of each of the one or more batteries 20 based on the degree of deterioration of the power connector 22 and / or the communication connector 24 of each battery.

[0238] In still other embodiments, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each of one or more electric bicycles 34. For example, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each of one or more electric bicycles 34 based on the degree of deterioration of the power connector 42 and / or the communication connector 44 of each electric bicycle 34.

[0239] Also, in the present embodiment, the details of the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the station management unit 510 is arranged in the management server 120. However, the battery management system 100 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, all or part of the station management unit 510 may be arranged in the electric bicycle 34. For example, some or all of the functions of the station management unit 510 are realized by the cooperation of a program operating on the computer of the electric bicycle 34 and the hardware of the electric bicycle 34.

[0240] Some or all of the station management unit 510 arranged in the electric bicycle 34 obtains information indicating the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 and / or each connector of the electric bicycle 34 from, for example, the deterioration management unit 420 arranged in the electric bicycle 34, by the same procedure as the above-described procedure. Also, some or all of the station management unit 510 arranged in the electric bicycle 34 obtains information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery 20 and / or each connector of the electric bicycle 34 based on the number of attachment / detachment times of the above-described battery 20 and each connector of the electric bicycle 34.

[0241] For example, a degradation estimation unit 622 arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of each connector of the battery 20. The degradation estimation unit 622 arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of each connector of the battery 20 based on the number of times each connector of the battery 20 and each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 are detached, according to a procedure similar to the above-described procedure. Further, the degradation estimation unit 622 arranged in the electric motorcycle 34 determines or estimates the degree of degradation of each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 based on the number of times each connector of the battery 20 and each connector of the electric motorcycle 34 are detached, according to a procedure similar to the above-described procedure.

[0242] FIG. 7 schematically shows an example of the internal configuration of the station management unit 710. The station management unit 710 may be an example of another embodiment of the station management unit 510. In the present embodiment, the station management unit 710 is different from the station management unit 510 in that the maintenance management unit 620 includes a maintenance planning unit 728 instead of the procurement planning unit 626. The station management unit 710 is different from the station management unit 510 in that the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 outputs information indicating the arrival of the above-described maintenance timing or information indicating the above-described predicted maintenance timing to the maintenance planning unit 728. Regarding the configuration other than the above differences, the station management unit 710 may have the same features as the station management unit 510.

[0243] In the present embodiment, the maintenance planning unit 728 generates at least a part of a maintenance plan or a servicing plan for at least one battery station 110, for the battery station or its components. Examples of the components of the battery station 110 include the slot 112, the connector 350, the power connector 352, the communication connector 354, and the like. Examples of the maintenance or servicing of the battery station 110 or its components include replacement of the battery station 110, repair or replacement of the components of the battery station 110. Examples of the replacement of the components of the battery station 110 include replacement of the slot 112, replacement of the connector 350, replacement of the power connector 352 or the communication connector 354.

[0244] For example, the maintenance planning unit 728 obtains from the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing of at least one battery station 110, and (i) information indicating the predicted maintenance timing of at least one battery station 110 or its components. The maintenance planning unit 728 generates at least a part of the maintenance plan or the servicing plan for the battery station or its components based on at least one of the above information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing and the information indicating the predicted maintenance timing.

[0245] The maintenance plan or the servicing plan may be information in which (a) information indicating a time or a period is associated with (b) at least one of (i) the content of the work to be performed at the time or period, (ii) the number of hours or man-hours of the above work, (iii) the replacement equipment, replacement parts, maintenance supplies or maintenance equipment used in the above work, (iv) the cost of the above work (for example, the accumulated cost or the budget), and (v) information indicating conditions regarding the maintenance and servicing personnel who will perform the work at the time or period. Examples of the above work include inspections, repairs, replacements, etc. Examples of the conditions regarding the maintenance and servicing personnel include conditions regarding the number of the maintenance and servicing personnel, the identification information of the maintenance and servicing personnel, the skills required for the maintenance and servicing personnel, and the labor costs of the maintenance and servicing personnel.

[0246] In addition, the maintenance planning unit 728 outputs the information used for the above maintenance plan or servicing plan. For example, the maintenance planning unit 728 outputs, in response to a request from a terminal (not shown) used by the administrator or the maintenance and servicing personnel of the battery station 110, the information used for the above maintenance plan or servicing plan as a response to the request. Examples of the information used for the maintenance plan or the servicing plan include at least one of the information indicating the time or period of the work, the information indicating the content of the work, the information indicating the number of hours or man-hours of the work, the information indicating the replacement equipment, replacement parts, maintenance supplies or maintenance equipment used in the work, the information indicating the cost of the work, and the information indicating the conditions regarding the maintenance and servicing personnel who will perform the work.

[0247] Thus, for example, when the number of slots 112 that require maintenance or repair is greater than a predetermined value, or when the ratio of the number of slots 112 that require maintenance or repair to the number of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 is greater than a predetermined value, etc., the administrator or maintenance personnel of the battery station 110 can decide to replace the entire battery station 110 in consideration of construction costs and labor costs. On the other hand, for example, when the number of slots 112 that require maintenance or repair is smaller than a predetermined value, or when the ratio of the number of slots 112 that require maintenance or repair to the number of slots 112 arranged in the battery station 110 is smaller than a predetermined value, etc., the administrator or maintenance personnel of the battery station 110 can decide to replace the slot 112 in consideration of construction costs and labor costs.

[0248] According to this embodiment, for example, the administrator or maintenance personnel of the battery station 110 can perform the component replacement work according to a pre-established plan. Thereby, the waste of the man-hours of the maintenance workers can be suppressed. As a result, the reduction of maintenance man-hours and the reduction of maintenance costs can be realized.

[0249] The maintenance planning unit 728 may be an example of the maintenance information acquisition unit or the second output unit.

[0250] In this embodiment, the detailed description of the station management unit 710, which is another embodiment of the station management unit 510, is given by taking the case where the maintenance management unit 620 includes the maintenance planning unit 728 instead of the procurement planning unit 626 as an example. However, the other embodiments of the station management unit 510 are not limited to this embodiment. In still other embodiments of the station management unit 510, the maintenance management unit 620 may include the procurement planning unit 626 and the maintenance planning unit 728.

[0251] FIG. 8 schematically shows an example of information processing in the battery management system 100. According to the present embodiment, first, in step 822 (the step may be abbreviated as S), the slot control unit 370 of the slot 112 arranged in each of the one or more battery stations 110 counts the number of times the battery 20 is inserted into each slot.

[0252] Next, in S824, the slot control unit 370 of each battery station estimates the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 in each slot based on the number of insertion times of the battery 20 in each slot. The slot control unit 370 generates attachment / detachment information indicating the above attachment / detachment times. The slot control unit 370 may determine the value of an arbitrary index indicating the degree of deterioration of each slot based on the number of insertion times of the battery 20 in each slot. Further, the slot control unit 370 may generate deterioration information indicating the above degree of deterioration. Then, in S826, the slot control unit 370 of each battery station transmits the above attachment / detachment information or deterioration information to the management server 120.

[0253] Next, if necessary, in S832, the deterioration estimation unit 622 of the management server 120 estimates the degree of deterioration of each slot based on the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 in each slot. Next, in S834, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each slot. For example, the maintenance timing estimation unit 624 estimates the maintenance timing of each slot based on whether the number of attachment / detachment times of the battery 20 in each slot is greater than the durable insertion / removal times of each slot.

[0254] Next, for example, in S836, the procurement planning unit 626 of the station management unit 510 generates at least a part of the manufacturing plan or distribution plan of the replacement equipment, replacement parts, maintenance supplies, or maintenance equipment used for the maintenance or repair of the battery station 110. Further, the procurement planning unit 626 outputs information used for the manufacturing plan or distribution plan of the above products.

[0255] Also, for example, in S838, the maintenance planning section 728 of the station management section 710 generates at least a part of a maintenance plan or a servicing plan for the battery station 110 or its components. Further, the maintenance planning section 728 outputs information to be used for the above-described maintenance plan or servicing plan. Thereby, the process ends.

[0256] According to the present embodiment, for each of one or more battery stations 110, the number of attach / detach operations between the connector 350 of the battery station and the connector of the battery 20 housed in the battery station is managed. Also, based on the above-described number of attach / detach operations, the degree of deterioration of each connector 350 of one or more battery stations 110 is managed. As a result, the maintenance efficiency of one or more battery stations 110 is improved. Also, the manufacturing efficiency or the distribution efficiency of the components of one or more battery stations 110 is improved.

[0257] In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 8, the details of the information processing in the battery management system 100 have been described by taking as an example the case where the slot control section 370, the attach / detach number management section 424, and the station management section 510 acquire the number of insertions or the number of housing times of the battery 20 as information indicating the number of attach / detach operations. However, the information processing in the battery management system 100 is not limited to the present embodiment. In other embodiments, for example, the slot control section 370, the attach / detach number management section 424, or the station management section 510 may acquire, as information indicating the number of attach / detach operations, (i) the identification information of each of a plurality of batteries 20 inserted into the slot 112, (ii) information indicating a time or a period, and a set of information in which the identification information of the battery 20 inserted into the slot 112 at the time or the period is associated. In this case, the slot control section 370, the attach / detach number management section 424, or the station management section 510 may regard the number of the above-described identification information of the battery 20 as the number of insertions or the number of housing times of the battery 20.

[0258] In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 to 8, the battery management system 100 manages the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the battery station 110 or its components (for example, the slot 112, the connector 350, the power connector 352, or the communication connector 354). Taking this case as an example, the details of the information processing in the battery management system 100 were described. However, the information processing in the battery management system 100 is not limited to this embodiment.

[0259] In other embodiments, the battery management system 100 manages the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the battery 20 or its components (for example, the communication connector 24 or the power connector 22). For example, the battery management system 100 manages the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the communication connector 24 or the power connector 22 of the battery 20 by managing the number of attachment / detachment times between the battery station 110 and the battery 20. The degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the communication connector 24 or the power connector 22 of the battery 20 may be managed by the same procedure as the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the connector 350 of the battery station 110.

[0260] In one example, each of the one or more battery stations 110 stores the number of attachment / detachment times with each of the one or more batteries 20. Each of the one or more battery stations 110 transmits information indicating the number of attachment / detachment times with each of the one or more batteries 20 to the management server 120 at any timing.

[0261] In other embodiments, each of the one or more batteries 20 stores the number of times of attachment and detachment to one or more battery stations 110. The number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and the one or more battery stations 110 may be (i) the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and each of the one or more battery stations 110, or (ii) the total value or cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and the one or more battery stations 110 starting from a specific point in time. For example, in the lending process or return process of the battery 20 at the battery station 110, the battery station 110 or the slot control unit 370 writes the information indicating the above-mentioned number of times of attachment and detachment into the storage device arranged in the battery 20. Thereafter, for example, when the battery 20 is returned to a specific battery station 110, or when the battery 20 is housed in an arbitrary battery station 110 at a specific timing, the battery station 110 reads the information indicating the above-mentioned number of times of attachment and detachment stored in the storage device of the battery 20. Further, the battery station 110 transmits the information indicating the above-mentioned number of times of attachment and detachment to the management server 120.

[0262] In these embodiments, the management server 120 may manage the number of times of attachment and detachment to one or more battery stations 110 for each battery 20. As described above, the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and the one or more battery stations 110 may be (i) the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and each of the one or more battery stations 110, or (ii) the total value or cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and the one or more battery stations 110 starting from a specific point in time.

[0263] In still other embodiments, the battery management system 100 manages the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the electric bike 34 or its components (for example, a connector that connects the battery 20 and the electric bike 34). For example, the battery management system 100 manages the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the connector of the electric bike 34 by managing the number of times of attachment and detachment between the electric bike 34 and the battery 20. The degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the connector of the electric bike 34 may be managed by the same procedure as the degree of deterioration, maintenance plan, or servicing plan of the connector 350 of the battery station 110.

[0264] For example, each of the one or more batteries 20 stores the number of times of attachment and detachment with one or more electric bikes 34. The number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and one or more electric bikes 34 may be (i) the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and each of the one or more electric bikes 34, or (ii) the total value or cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and one or more electric bikes 34 starting from a specific point in time. For example, when the battery 20 is returned to a specific battery station 110, or when the battery 20 is housed in any battery station 110 at a specific timing, the battery station 110 reads the information indicating the above-mentioned number of times of attachment and detachment stored in the storage device of the battery 20. Further, the battery station 110 transmits the information indicating the above-mentioned number of times of attachment and detachment to the management server 120.

[0265] The management server 120 manages, for example, the number of times of attachment and detachment between one or more batteries 20 for each electric bike 34. As described above, the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and one or more electric bikes 34 may be (i) the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and each of the one or more electric bikes 34, or (ii) the total value or cumulative value of the number of times of attachment and detachment between each battery and one or more electric bikes 34 starting from a specific point in time.

[0266] In addition, each of the one or more batteries 20 may store the number of times of attachment / detachment to one or more battery stations 110 in addition to the number of times of attachment / detachment to one or more electric bikes 34. As described above, the number of times of attachment / detachment between each battery and one or more battery stations 110 may be (i) the number of times of attachment / detachment between each battery and each of the one or more battery stations 110, or (ii) the total value or cumulative value of the number of times of attachment / detachment between each battery and one or more battery stations 110 starting from a specific point in time.

[0267] FIG. 9 shows an example of a computer 3000 in which multiple aspects of the present invention may be embodied in whole or in part. A part of the battery management system 100 may be implemented by the computer 3000.

[0268] According to one embodiment, for example, at least a part of the battery station 110 is implemented by the computer 3000. At least a part of the station control unit 240 may be implemented by the computer 3000, at least a part of the state management unit 246 may be implemented by the computer 3000, and at least a part of the slot control unit 370 may be implemented by the computer 3000. According to another embodiment, for example, at least a part of the management server 120 is implemented by the computer 3000. At least a part of the station management unit 510 may be implemented by the computer 3000, and at least a part of the station management unit 710 may be implemented by the computer 3000.

[0269] The programs installed on computer 3000 can cause computer 3000 to function as an operation associated with the apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention or as one or more "parts" of the apparatus, or cause the operation or the one or more "parts" to be executed, and / or can cause computer 3000 to execute a process according to an embodiment of the present invention or a stage of the process. Such a program may be executed by CPU 3012 to cause computer 3000 to execute certain operations associated with some or all of the blocks of the flowcharts and block diagrams described herein.

[0270] Computer 3000 according to the present embodiment includes CPU 3012, RAM 3014, GPU 3016, and display device 3018, which are interconnected by host controller 3010. Computer 3000 also includes input / output units such as communication interface 3022, hard disk drive 3024, DVD-ROM drive 3026, and IC card drive, which are connected to host controller 3010 via input / output controller 3020. The computer also includes legacy input / output units such as ROM 3030 and keyboard 3042, which are connected to input / output controller 3020 via input / output chip 3040.

[0271] CPU 3012 operates according to programs stored in ROM 3030 and RAM 3014, thereby controlling each unit. GPU 3016 acquires image data generated by CPU 3012 in a frame buffer or the like provided in RAM 3014 or within itself, and causes the image data to be displayed on display device 3018.

[0272] The communication interface 3022 communicates with other electronic devices via a network. The hard disk drive 3024 stores programs and data used by the CPU 3012 in the computer 3000. The DVD-ROM drive 3026 reads a program or data from the DVD-ROM 3001 and provides the program or data to the hard disk drive 3024 via the RAM 3014. The IC card drive reads programs and data from an IC card and / or writes programs and data to an IC card.

[0273] The ROM 3030 stores therein a boot program and the like executed by the computer 3000 at activation, and / or a program dependent on the hardware of the computer 3000. The input / output chip 3040 may also connect various input / output units to the input / output controller 3020 via a parallel port, a serial port, a keyboard port, a mouse port, and the like.

[0274] The program is provided by a computer-readable storage medium such as the DVD-ROM 3001 or an IC card. The program is read from the computer-readable storage medium, installed in the hard disk drive 3024, the RAM 3014, or the ROM 3030, which is also an example of a computer-readable storage medium, and executed by the CPU 3012. The information processing described in these programs is read by the computer 3000, resulting in cooperation between the programs and the various types of hardware resources described above. The device or method may be configured by realizing the operation or processing of information according to the use of the computer 3000.

[0275] For example, when communication is executed between the computer 3000 and an external device, the CPU 3012 may execute a communication program loaded in the RAM 3014 and instruct the communication interface 3022 to perform communication processing based on the processing described in the communication program. Under the control of the CPU 3012, the communication interface 3022 reads transmission data stored in a transmission buffer area provided in a recording medium such as the RAM 3014, the hard disk drive 3024, the DVD-ROM 3001, or the IC card, transmits the read transmission data to the network, or writes the received data received from the network to a reception buffer area or the like provided on the recording medium.

[0276] Also, the CPU 3012 may cause all or a necessary part of a file or database stored in an external recording medium such as the hard disk drive 3024, the DVD-ROM drive 3026 (DVD-ROM 3001), the IC card, etc. to be read into the RAM 3014 and perform various types of processing on the data on the RAM 3014. The CPU 3012 may then write back the processed data to the external recording medium.

[0277] Various types of information such as various types of programs, data, tables, and databases may be stored in a recording medium and may undergo information processing. The CPU 3012 may perform various types of processing on the data read from the RAM 3014, including various types of operations, information processing, conditional judgment, conditional branching, unconditional branching, information search / replacement, etc. described throughout this disclosure and specified by the instruction sequence of the program, and write back the results to the RAM 3014. Also, the CPU 3012 may search for information in files, databases, etc. within the recording medium. For example, when a plurality of entries each having an attribute value of a first attribute associated with an attribute value of a second attribute are stored in the recording medium, the CPU 3012 searches for an entry among the plurality of entries that matches the condition where the attribute value of the first attribute is specified, reads the attribute value of the second attribute stored in the entry, and thereby may obtain the attribute value of the second attribute associated with the first attribute that satisfies a predetermined condition.

[0278] The program or software module described above may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium on or near the computer 3000. Also, a recording medium such as a hard disk or RAM provided within a server system connected to a dedicated communication network or the Internet can be used as a computer-readable storage medium, thereby providing the above program to the computer 3000 via the network.

[0279] The blocks in the flowcharts and block diagrams in the above embodiments may represent stages of a process in which an operation is performed or "parts" of a device having a role of performing an operation. A specific stage and "part" may be implemented by a dedicated circuit, a programmable circuit supplied with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium, and / or a processor supplied with computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium. The dedicated circuit may include digital and / or analog hardware circuits, and may include an integrated circuit (IC) and / or discrete circuits. The programmable circuit may include, for example, a reconfigurable hardware circuit including a logical product, a logical sum, an exclusive logical sum, a negative logical product, a negative logical sum, and other logical operations, flip-flops, registers, and memory elements, such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA) and a programmable logic array (PLA).

[0280] The computer-readable storage medium may include any tangible device capable of storing instructions executable by an appropriate device, and as a result, a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored therein will comprise a product including instructions that can be executed to create means for performing the operations specified in the flowchart or block diagram. Examples of the computer-readable storage medium may include an electronic storage medium, a magnetic storage medium, an optical storage medium, an electromagnetic storage medium, a semiconductor storage medium, and the like. More specific examples of the computer-readable storage medium may include a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), a static random access memory (SRAM), a compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk, a memory stick, an integrated circuit card, and the like.

[0281] Computer-readable instructions may include any combination of one or more programming languages, including assembly instructions, instruction set architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting data, or object-oriented programming languages such as Smalltalk®, JAVA®, C++, and conventional procedural programming languages such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages, either source code or object code described in any such combination.

[0282] The computer-readable instructions may be provided locally or via a wide area network (WAN) such as a local area network (LAN), the Internet, etc., to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing device, or a programmable circuit, for the processor of the general-purpose computer, the special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing device, or the programmable circuit to execute the computer-readable instructions to generate means for performing the operations specified in the flowchart or block diagram. Examples of processors include computer processors, processing units, microprocessors, digital signal processors, controllers, microcontrollers, etc.

[0283] As described above, the present invention has been described using embodiments, but the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope described in the above embodiments. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes or improvements can be made to the above embodiments. Also, within a technically consistent range, matters described for a specific embodiment can be applied to other embodiments. It is clear from the description of the claims that forms with such changes or improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0284] In the claims, the specification, and the drawings, the execution order of each process such as operations, procedures, steps, and stages in the apparatus, system, program, and method shown is not explicitly indicated as "before" or "preceding" etc. in particular, and it should be noted that it can be realized in any order unless the output of the previous process is used in the subsequent process. Regarding the operation flows in the claims, the specification, and the drawings, even if explanations are made using "first," "next," etc. for convenience, it does not mean that it is essential to implement in this order.

Description of Reference Signs

[0285] 10 Communication network, 20 Battery, 22 Power connector, 24 Communication connector, 30 User, 32 Communication terminal, 34 Electric motorcycle, 40 Slot, 42 Power connector, 44 Communication connector, 50 Motorcycle control unit, 100 Battery management system, 110 Battery station, 112 Slot, 120 Management server, 220 Distribution board, 240 Station control unit, 242 Communication control unit, 244 Charge and discharge control unit, 246 Status management unit, 248 Rental management unit, 250 Data storage unit, 310 Housing, 312 Battery storage room, 320 Opening and closing cover, 322 Locking member, 330 Locking unit, 332 Locking member, 334 Driving member, 340 Battery detection unit, 350 Connector, 352 Power connector, 354 Communication connector, 360 Power control circuit, 370 Slot control unit, 380 Connector, 382 Power connector, 384 Communication connector, 410 Abnormality detection unit, 420 Deterioration management unit, 422 Accommodation times management unit, 424 Attachment and detachment times management unit, 510 Station management unit, 520 Battery management unit, 530 Reservation management unit, 540 Data storage unit, 542 Station information storage unit, 544 Battery information storage unit, 546 Reservation information storage unit, 610 Station information collection unit, 620 Maintenance management unit, 622 Deterioration estimation unit, 624 Maintenance timing estimation unit, 626 Procurement planning unit, 630 Insertion and extraction control unit, 710 Station management unit, 728 Maintenance planning unit, 3000 Computer, 3001 DVD-ROM, 3010 Host controller, 3012 CPU, 3014 RAM, 3016 GPU, 3018 Display device, 3020 Input / output controller, 3022 Communication interface, 3024 Hard disk drive, 3026 DVD-ROM drive, 3030 ROM, 3040 Input / output chip, 3042 Keyboard

Claims

1. A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; comprising: The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, has a degradation information acquisition unit that acquires degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of the second terminal based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit; comprising: The power device is a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices, and comprises a selection unit that selects the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the degradation information acquired by the degradation information acquisition unit. An information acquisition device.

2. A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; comprising: The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, has a degradation information acquisition unit that acquires degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of the second terminal based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit; comprising: The power device or the remote device has a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the degradation information acquired by the degradation information acquisition unit; further comprising: An information acquisition device.

3. A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; comprising: The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, has a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit; comprising: An information acquisition device.

4. A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; comprising: The power storage device is alternately attached to and detached from another power device different from the power device and the power device. The power device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device includes a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the first terminal based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. Information acquisition device.

5. The power device has the second terminal, a housing portion that houses the power storage device, and a counting unit that counts the number of times the power storage device is housed in the housing portion. The attachment / detachment information acquisition unit acquires the number of attachment / detachment times based on the number of housing times counted by the counting unit. The information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The housing portion is configured to be able to insert and remove the power storage device, and the counting unit has an insertion detection unit that detects that the power storage device has been inserted into the housing portion. The information acquisition device according to claim 5.

7. The remote device includes a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. The information acquisition device according to claim 4.

8. The power device or the remote device further includes a first output unit that outputs information used for the manufacturing plan or distribution plan of the second terminal based on at least one of (i) the fact that the arrival of the maintenance time is indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit and (ii) the maintenance prediction time indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit. The information acquisition device according to claim 2 or claim 3.

9. The power device or the remote device further includes a second output unit that outputs information used for the maintenance plan or servicing plan of the second terminal based on at least one of (i) the fact that the arrival of the maintenance time is indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit and (ii) the maintenance prediction time indicated by the maintenance information acquired by the maintenance information acquisition unit. The information acquisition device according to any one of claims 2, 3, and 8.

10. The power device is a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices, and includes a selection unit that selects the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ The information acquisition device according to claim 2 or claim 7.

11. The power device has a plurality of the second terminals corresponding to each of the plurality of the power storage devices, The deterioration information acquisition unit acquires the deterioration information regarding each of the plurality of the second terminals, The selection unit selects the power storage device to be provided to the user such that the power storage device corresponding to the second terminal with a smaller degree of deterioration is provided to the user preferentially over the power storage device corresponding to the second terminal with a larger degree of deterioration. The information acquisition device according to claim 10.

12. The attachment / detachment information acquisition unit is arranged in another power device different from the power device, and acquires another attachment / detachment count which is the attachment / detachment count between the first terminal and a third terminal detachably configured with the first terminal. The information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, claim 8, and claim 9.

13. The power device, the other power device, or a remote device communicably configured with the power device or the other power device includes: A deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the first terminal based on the attachment / detachment count and the other attachment / detachment count acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. The information acquisition device according to claim 12.

14. The power storage device is alternately attached to and detached from another power device different from the power device and the power device. The remote device includes: A deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the first terminal based on a value obtained by doubling the attachment / detachment count acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. The information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, claim 8, and claim 9.

15. An information processing system including the information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 14 and the remote device.

16. An information processing system including the information acquisition device according to any one of claim 1, claim 2, claim 7, claim 10, and claim 11 and an estimation unit that estimates the degree of deterioration of the second terminal.

17. An estimation unit that estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and detachably configured with the first terminal. ​ The power device includes a detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between the first terminal and the second terminal. Based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, the estimation unit estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal. The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, includes a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit. It is provided with. The power device is a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices, and includes a selection unit that selects the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit. Estimation device.

18. An estimation unit that estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal in a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and detachably configured with the first terminal. It is provided with. The power device includes a detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between the first terminal and the second terminal. Based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, the estimation unit estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal. The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, includes a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit. It is provided with. The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, includes a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit. It is provided with. Estimation device.

19. An estimation unit that estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal in a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and detachably configured with the first terminal. It is provided with. The power device includes a detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between the first terminal and the second terminal. Based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, the estimation unit estimates the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal. The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction timing which is the timing when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit; comprises: an estimation device.

20. An estimation unit that estimates the degree of deterioration of the first terminal in a first terminal disposed in a power storage device and a second terminal disposed in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; comprises: the power storage device is detachably attached to another power device different from the power device and the power device alternately; the power device includes an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of attachment / detachment times between the first terminal and the second terminal; the estimation unit estimates the degree of deterioration of the first terminal based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. an estimation device.

21. the power device has the second terminal, a housing unit that houses the power storage device, a counting unit that counts the number of times the power storage device is housed in the housing unit, further comprises: the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit acquires the number of attachment / detachment times based on the number of housing times counted by the counting unit. The estimation device according to any one of Claims 17 to 20.

22. the housing unit is configured to be able to insert and remove the power storage device, the counting unit has an insertion detection unit that detects that the power storage device has been inserted into the housing unit. The estimation device according to Claim 21.

23. A storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices, a plurality of second terminals corresponding to each of a plurality of first terminals disposed in each of the plurality of power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the corresponding first terminal, an attachment / detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of attachment / detachment times between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal, a deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit, a selection unit that selects the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit. A storage device comprising:

24. A storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices, A plurality of second terminals respectively corresponding to each of the plurality of first terminals arranged on each of the plurality of power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the corresponding first terminal, A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal, A deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, Comprising, The storage device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device, Based on the deterioration information acquired by the deterioration information acquisition unit, a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the plurality of second terminals and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of the plurality of second terminals is predicted, Further comprising, Storage device.

25. A storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices, A plurality of second terminals respectively corresponding to each of the plurality of first terminals arranged on each of the plurality of power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the corresponding first terminal, A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal, Comprising, The storage device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device, Based on the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, a maintenance information acquisition unit that acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of the plurality of second terminals and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of the plurality of second terminals is predicted, Comprising, Storage device.

26. A storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices, A plurality of second terminals respectively corresponding to each of the plurality of first terminals arranged on each of the plurality of power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the corresponding first terminal, A detachment information acquisition unit that acquires the number of detachments between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal, A deterioration information acquisition unit that acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of first terminals, Comprising, The plurality of power storage devices are alternately detached from and attached to another storage device different from the storage device and the storage device, The deterioration information acquisition unit acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of first terminals based on a value obtained by doubling the number of detachments acquired by the detachment information acquisition unit, Storage device.

27. The selection unit selects the power storage device provided to the user such that the power storage device corresponding to the second terminal with a smaller degree of deterioration is provided to the user preferentially over the power storage device corresponding to the second terminal with a larger degree of deterioration. The storage device according to claim 23.

28. The deterioration information acquisition unit determines or estimates the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired by the attachment / detachment information acquisition unit. The storage device according to any one of claims 23, 24, 26, and 27.

29. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between the first terminal provided on the power storage device and the second terminal provided on the storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; A deterioration information acquisition step in which the storage device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; A selection step in which the storage device selects the power storage device provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step; An information acquisition method having the above steps.

30. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between the first terminal provided on the power storage device and the second terminal provided on the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; A deterioration information acquisition step in which the power device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; A maintenance information acquisition step in which the power device or the remote device acquires maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction timing which is the timing when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step; An information acquisition method having the above steps.

31. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between the first terminal provided on the power storage device and the second terminal provided on the power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; The power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, obtains maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance timing of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction timing which is the timing when the maintenance of the second terminal is predicted, based on the number of attachment / detachment times obtained in the attachment / detachment information acquisition stage. An information acquisition method having the above. **Claim 32**: An information acquisition method, comprising: An attachment / detachment information acquisition stage of obtaining the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a power device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal. having the above, wherein the power storage device is alternately attached to and detached from another power device different from the power device and the power device. The information acquisition method further comprises: A deterioration information acquisition stage in which the power device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the power device, obtains deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the first terminal based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times obtained in the attachment / detachment information acquisition stage. An information acquisition method further having the above. **Claim 33**: An estimation method, comprising: an attachment / detachment information acquisition stage in which a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices obtains the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in the storage device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; An estimation stage of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times obtained in the attachment / detachment information acquisition stage; A deterioration information acquisition stage in which the storage device, or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device, obtains deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times obtained in the attachment / detachment information acquisition stage; A selection stage in which the storage device selects the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information obtained in the deterioration information acquisition stage. An estimation method having the above. **Claim 34**: An attachment / detachment information acquisition stage in which a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of power storage devices obtains the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in the storage device and configured to be detachable from the first terminal. An estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; A deterioration information acquisition step in which the storage device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device acquires deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; An overhaul information acquisition step in which the storage device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device acquires overhaul information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the overhaul time of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the overhaul prediction time which is the time when the overhaul of the second terminal is predicted, based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step; An estimation method having the above.

35. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step in which a storage device acquires the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; An estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of at least one of the first terminal and the second terminal based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; An overhaul information acquisition step in which the storage device or a remote device configured to be communicable with the storage device acquires overhaul information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the overhaul time of the second terminal and (ii) information indicating the overhaul prediction time which is the time when the overhaul of the second terminal is predicted, based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; An estimation method having the above.

36. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step in which a storage device acquires the number of attachment / detachment times between a first terminal arranged in a power storage device and a second terminal arranged in a storage device configured to be able to store a plurality of the power storage devices and configured to be detachable from the first terminal; An estimation step of estimating the degree of deterioration of the first terminal; having the power storage device is alternately attached to and detached from another storage device different from the storage device and the storage device; in the estimation step, the degree of deterioration of the first terminal is estimated based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; An estimation method.

37. A control method for a storage device including a plurality of second terminals configured to be detachable from corresponding first terminals, each of which corresponds to each of the plurality of first terminals provided for each of the plurality of power storage devices. An attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal. A deterioration information acquisition step of acquiring deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step. A selection step of selecting the power storage device to be provided to the user from among the plurality of power storage devices based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step. A control method having the above steps.

38. A storage device including a plurality of second terminals configured to be detachable from corresponding first terminals, each of which corresponds to each of the plurality of first terminals provided for each of the plurality of power storage devices, has an attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal. The storage device has a deterioration information acquisition step of acquiring deterioration information indicating the degree of deterioration of each of the plurality of second terminals based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step. The storage device or a remote device configured to communicate with the storage device has a maintenance information acquisition step of acquiring maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of each of the plurality of second terminals and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of each of the plurality of second terminals is predicted, based on the deterioration information acquired in the deterioration information acquisition step. A control method having the above steps.

39. A storage device including a plurality of second terminals configured to be detachable from corresponding first terminals, each of which corresponds to each of the plurality of first terminals provided for each of the plurality of power storage devices, has an attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminal. The storage device or a remote device configured to communicate with the storage device has a maintenance information acquisition step of acquiring maintenance information including at least one of (i) information indicating the arrival of the maintenance time of each of the plurality of second terminals and (ii) information indicating the maintenance prediction time which is the time when the maintenance of each of the plurality of second terminals is predicted, based on the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step. A control method having the above steps. A control method for a storage device including a plurality of second terminals configured to be detachable from corresponding first terminals, each of the plurality of second terminals corresponding to each of the plurality of first terminals arranged in each of the plurality of power storage devices, comprising: an attachment / detachment information acquisition step of acquiring the number of attachment / detachment times between each of the plurality of second terminals and the corresponding first terminals; a degradation information acquisition step of acquiring degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of each of the plurality of first terminals; and having the plurality of power storage devices are alternately attached to and detached from another storage device different from the storage device and the storage device; the degradation information acquisition step acquires degradation information indicating the degree of degradation of each of the plurality of first terminals based on a value obtained by doubling the number of attachment / detachment times acquired in the attachment / detachment information acquisition step; a control method. Claim 41 A program for causing a computer to function as the information acquisition device according to any one of claims 1 to 14. Claim 42 A program for causing a computer to function as the estimation device according to any one of claims 17 to 22. Claim 43 A program for causing a computer to function as the storage device according to any one of claims 23 to 28. Claim 44 A computer-readable recording medium recording the program according to any one of claims 41 to 43.

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