Charging control device and charging control method

Abstract

The present invention prevents a situation in which charging is not completed by the next travel time while suppressing degradation of a secondary battery. A charging control device according to the present invention controls charging of a vehicle-mounted battery by an external power source, wherein a control unit sets a charging mode from a first mode in which a charging rate exceeding a recommended charging threshold of the vehicle-mounted battery is set as a target charging rate, and a second mode in which a charging rate lower than the recommended charging threshold is set as the target charging rate, and the control unit, if the charging mode is the first mode, sets a charging completion timing according to the next scheduled travel time, and, if the charging mode is the second mode, causes charging to be completed at a timing earlier than the charging completion timing of the first mode.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a charge control device and a charge control method. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there are charge control devices that control the charging of secondary batteries such as lithium batteries. In such charge control devices, there is a technique for delaying the start of charging so that the secondary battery does not remain in a nearly fully charged state for a long period of time in order to avoid deterioration of the secondary battery (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-078303 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, with the conventional technology, the charging end time is delayed by the same amount as the charging start time is delayed, so it is possible that charging may not be completed by the time the vehicle is next driven.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above, and aims to provide a charging control device and a charging control method that can suppress deterioration of the secondary battery while avoiding a situation where charging is not completed by the time of the next driving. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the present invention provides a charging control device that includes a control unit that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, wherein the control unit is capable of setting a charging mode for the battery from a first mode in which a first charging rate, which is a charging rate close to full charge, is set as a target charging rate, and a second mode in which a second charging rate lower than the first charging rate is set as a target charging rate, and when the charging mode is the first mode, the control unit controls charging so that charging is completed at a charging completion timing based on the next scheduled driving time, and when the charging mode is the second mode, the control unit controls charging so that charging is completed at a timing earlier than the charging completion timing of the first mode. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress deterioration of the secondary battery and avoid a situation in which charging is not completed before the next driving. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of installation of a charge control device. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an outline of the charge control method. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the charge control device. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the environmental temperature and the standby time. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the notification screen. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure executed by the charge control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of a charge control device and a charge control method disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0010] First, an outline of a charge control device and a charge control method according to an embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of installation of a charge control device. Figure 2 is a diagram showing an outline of a charge control method.

[0011] As shown in Fig. 1, a charge control device 10 according to the embodiment is mounted on a vehicle C. The vehicle C has an on-board battery 40 (see Fig. 3), which is a secondary battery such as a lithium battery, and the charge control device 10 controls charging of the on-board battery 40 by an external power supply 100. Note that, although the example in Fig. 1 shows a case where the external power supply 100 is a contact-type charging device that supplies power via a cable, the external power supply 100 may also be a non-contact-type charging device.

[0012] Generally, deterioration of a secondary battery, such as a lithium-ion battery, can be suppressed by using it with a charge rate between 30 and 80%. In other words, if the charge rate of the secondary battery exceeds 80% after charging, for example, the driving distance of vehicle C will increase, but this will cause deterioration of the secondary battery.

[0013] Therefore, the charging control device 10 of the embodiment has two charging modes for the vehicle battery 40: a first mode in which the target charging rate is a charging rate that exceeds the recommended charging threshold th of the vehicle battery 40, and a second mode in which the target charging rate is a charging rate that is lower than the recommended charging threshold th.

[0014] For example, the recommended charging threshold th is a threshold relating to the charging rate recommended from the viewpoint of deterioration of the secondary battery, for example, a charging rate of 80%. The first mode is a full charge mode aimed at fully charging the in-vehicle battery 40, and the second mode is a degradation suppression mode aimed at suppressing deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40.

[0015] That is, in the first mode, the battery is less likely to run out of power, and in the second mode, it is possible to suppress deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40. In this embodiment, the first mode is defined as a case in which the target charging rate exceeds the recommended charging threshold th, and the second mode is defined as a case in which the target charging rate is equal to or less than the recommended charging threshold th.

[0016] Furthermore, for each charging mode, the first mode may be a mode in which the target charging rate is close to full charge, the second mode in which the target charging rate is lower than that of the first mode, or the second mode may be a mode in which the target charging rate is a charging rate that is less likely to cause deterioration, and the first mode may be a mode in which the target charging rate is higher than that of the second charging mode.

[0017] As described above, the longer the time that the charging rate exceeds the recommended charging threshold th, the more likely it is that the deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40 will progress. Therefore, when the charging mode of the in-vehicle battery 40 is the first mode, the progression of deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40 can be suppressed by shortening the time that the charging rate exceeds the recommended charging threshold th.

[0018] Therefore, the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment performs immediate charging in the second mode, and sets the time at which the recommended charge threshold th is exceeded in the first mode in accordance with the next operation start time.

[0019] Specifically, in the first mode, after the battery is ready for charging, the standby time Ts is set to match the operation start time, as shown in Fig. 2. In Fig. 2, the vertical axis represents the charging rate, and the horizontal axis represents the elapsed time.

[0020] A chargeable state refers to a state in which charging can begin or charging preparations are complete. Examples of a chargeable state include, in the case of wired charging, a state in which the charging plug on the cable of the external charger is attached to the vehicle, and in the case of wireless charging, a state in which the vehicle is parked in a parking position where a wireless charger is installed (condition A).

[0021] The chargeable state may also be determined when the vehicle power switch is turned off (IG-OFF) and the door is closed, thereby detecting that an occupant has exited the vehicle, or when a start operation is performed, such as when the user operates the charging start switch (condition B). For example, when determining whether the vehicle is chargeable, the determination may be made based on condition A alone, or on a combination of conditions A and B.

[0022] 2, for example, time t0 is the time when the vehicle battery 40 becomes capable of being charged from the external power supply 100, and time t3 is the time when driving starts. In this case, when the charging mode is the second mode, charging starts at time t0 and completes at the recommended charging threshold value th.

[0023] On the other hand, when the charging mode is the first mode, the standby time Ts is set so that charging ends at time t2, which is the driving start time (the time when driving is scheduled or predicted) minus a margin Tm, at time t3. The margin Tm corresponds to an example of the first time. That is, in the example shown in the figure, charging of the in-vehicle battery 40 from the external power source 100 is not performed during the period from time t0 to time t1, and charging starts at time t1.

[0024] After that, the charging rate C1 in the first mode gradually increases from time t1 and reaches 100% at time t2. In other words, in this case, the time during which the charging rate exceeds the recommended charging threshold th can be shortened by the amount of the waiting time Ts, thereby suppressing deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40.

[0025] In this way, the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment starts charging after the standby time Ts has elapsed in the first mode, while it starts charging immediately in the second mode.

[0026] Therefore, according to the charge control device 10 of the embodiment, it is possible to prevent the secondary battery from being degraded and avoid a situation where charging is not completed before the next driving. In addition, in the second mode, the charging can be completed to the target charging rate at an earlier timing than in the first mode, so it is possible to cope with a situation where the user suddenly wants to use the vehicle earlier than the scheduled start time of the planned driving.

[0027] Next, a configuration example of the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a block diagram of the charge control device 10. Note that Fig. 3 also shows an in-vehicle battery 40, a display device 50, and a user terminal 60.

[0028] The vehicle battery 40 is, for example, a lithium ion secondary battery, and supplies power to a motor and various auxiliary machines (loads) (not shown). The vehicle battery 40 is charged by an external power source 100 or by regenerative power generated when the vehicle C decelerates.

[0029] The display device 50 is, for example, a display device installed on the dashboard of the vehicle C. For example, the display device 50 is configured with a touch panel display and includes an operation unit. The display device 50 may also include the functions of a navigation device.

[0030] The user terminal 60 is, for example, a user's smartphone or tablet terminal. For example, the user terminal 60 communicates with the charging control device 10 via wired or wireless communication. The user terminal 60 may also communicate with the charging control device 10 via the display device 50.

[0031] 3, the charge control device 10 includes a control unit 20 and a storage unit 30. The storage unit 30 is realized by a semiconductor memory element such as a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a flash memory, and in the example of FIG. 3, the storage unit 30 includes a charge mode storage unit 31, an operation start time storage unit 32, and an ambient temperature storage unit 33.

[0032] The charge mode storage unit 31 is a storage unit that stores the currently set charge mode. The operation start time storage unit 32 is a storage unit that stores the operation start time. Note that the charge control device 10 may set the time input by the user when preparing for charging as the operation start time, or may determine the next operation start time based on schedule information input by the user to the display device 50 or schedule information input to the user terminal 60, or may estimate the next operation start time based on the trend of past operation start times.

[0033] The environmental temperature storage unit 33 stores the environmental temperature at the parking point until the next scheduled driving time. For example, the environmental temperature storage unit 33 stores information about the air temperature at the charging point of the vehicle C until the next scheduled driving time as the environmental temperature. For example, the charging control device 10 requests the user terminal 60 to acquire the environmental temperature, and stores the environmental temperature acquired by the user terminal 60 from the Internet in the environmental temperature storage unit 33.

[0034] The control unit 20 is a controller, and is realized, for example, by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or an MPU (Micro Processing Unit) executing various programs (not shown) stored in the storage unit 30 using RAM as a work area. The control unit 20 can also be realized, for example, by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

[0035] As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 20 includes a SOC (State of Charge) calculation unit 21, a mode setting unit 22, an acquisition unit 23, a calculation unit 24, a notification unit 25, and a charge control unit .

[0036] The SOC calculation unit 21 calculates the SOC (charging rate) of the in-vehicle battery 40. The SOC calculation unit 21 calculates the charging rate by any method, such as a current integration method, an open circuit voltage (OCV) estimation method, or an extended Kalman filter method.

[0037] The mode setting unit 22 sets the charging mode of the in-vehicle battery 40 based on a user operation. For example, the mode setting unit 22 sets the charging mode based on operation information input from the display device 50 or operation information input from the user terminal 60. Furthermore, the mode setting unit 22 writes the charging mode to the charging mode storage unit 31 every time a charging mode is set.

[0038] The acquisition unit 23 acquires information related to the operation start time and information related to the environmental temperature. For example, when the charging mode is the first mode, the acquisition unit 23 causes the display device 50 or the user terminal 60 to display an input screen for inputting the next operation start time at the timing when IG-OFF is turned on.

[0039] The acquisition unit 23 acquires information about the next operation start time by acquiring input information on the input screen from the display device 50 or the user terminal 60 , and writes the information in the operation start time storage unit 32 .

[0040] Furthermore, when the charging mode is the first mode, the acquisition unit 23 requests the display device 50 or the user terminal 60 to acquire the environmental temperature, and acquires the environmental temperature acquired from the Internet by the display device 50 or the user terminal 60. For example, in this case, the acquisition unit 23 acquires forecast information regarding the temperature at the next driving start time at the current location of the vehicle C.

[0041] The calculation unit 24 calculates the charging start timing in the first mode. For example, the calculation unit 24 calculates the charging start timing so that the timing obtained by subtracting a margin Tm (see FIG. 2) from the next operation start time becomes the charging completion timing.

[0042] In this case, the calculation unit 24 may calculate the charging start timing after adjusting the margin Tm based on the ambient temperature. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the relationship between the ambient temperature and the margin. In Fig. 4, the vertical axis represents the charging rate and the horizontal axis represents time.

[0043] Degradation of the in-vehicle battery 40 depends on the charging rate as well as the ambient temperature. More specifically, the higher the ambient temperature, the more likely the in-vehicle battery 40 is to deteriorate. Therefore, if the charging rate of the in-vehicle battery 40 exceeds the recommended charging threshold th and the ambient temperature is high, the degradation of the in-vehicle battery 40 will be accelerated.

[0044] Therefore, for example, when the environmental temperature is high, the calculation unit 24 sets the margin Tm to a short value and calculates the timing to start charging. In the example shown in the figure, the charging rate C1-1, which does not take the environmental temperature into consideration, is used as a reference, and the charging rate C1-2 is used when the environmental temperature is high.

[0045] That is, the margin Tm1 for the charging rate C1-1 is "t30-t21," while the margin Tm1 for the charging rate C1-2 is "t30-t22," effectively making the margin Tm2 shorter than the margin Tm1 by "t22-t21." Accordingly, the charging start timing, which was time t11, is calculated as time t12.

[0046] In this way, by taking the environmental temperature into consideration, it is possible to further suppress deterioration of the in-vehicle battery 40. Note that, for example, an appropriate value for the relationship between the margin Tm and the environmental temperature may be determined in advance by simulation or the like, and the calculation unit 24 may set the margin Tm using this value. Furthermore, in addition to setting the margin Tm based on the temperature, the calculation unit 24 may also set the margin Tm by estimating whether the temperature is likely to be high based on the time of day (morning, noon, night, etc.) when driving starts or seasonal information based on the day.

[0047] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 3, the notification unit 25 will be described. The notification unit 25 notifies information about the current charging mode, for example, when the IG-OFF state is reached. For example, the notification unit 25 notifies the user of information about the current charging mode by displaying the current charging mode on the display device 50 or the user terminal 60.

[0048] This allows the user to refer to the current charging mode and then change the charging mode to suit his or her own plans after charging is completed, thereby providing appropriate support for the user's setting of the charging mode.

[0049] In addition, when the charging mode is the first mode, the notification unit 25 may notify the user of information regarding the waiting time Ts at the time when charging becomes possible, such as when the charging plug of the external power source 100 is connected to the in-vehicle battery 40 (the time when charging would start if the second mode was set), or may notify the user that charging will not start immediately in the first mode.

[0050] As described above, when the charging mode is the first mode, charging starts after the waiting time Ts (see FIG. 2) has elapsed. Therefore, for example, if the user forgets to change the operation start time, charging may not be completed at the original operation start time, resulting in an insufficient charging rate.

[0051] In response to this, for example, the notification unit 25 can provide the user with an opportunity to reconsider changing the operation start time by notifying the user that charging will begin after the waiting time Ts, thereby avoiding insufficient charging due to an oversight in setting the operation start time. Furthermore, by providing the notification as described above, it is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable (perceiving a malfunction) when charging does not start immediately when the first mode is set.

[0052] Further, for example, the notification unit 25 may notify a charging schedule including the timing to start charging in addition to the current charging mode. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a notification screen.

[0053] For example, the notification unit 25 displays a notification screen when the IG-OFF state is reached or when the external power supply 100 is connected to the in-vehicle battery 40. In the example of Fig. 5, the notification screen displays information about the current charging mode as well as a charging schedule indicating the charging start timing and charging completion timing as a graph.

[0054] In the example shown in the figure, the next operation start time is 13:30, the charging start timing is 12:00, and the charging completion timing is 13:00. For example, by notifying the user of such a notification screen, the user can easily understand the charging schedule, and the user can easily review the charging schedule.

[0055] Although the charging schedule when the charging mode is the first mode has been exemplified here, it goes without saying that the charging schedule when the charging mode is the second mode may also be notified.

[0056] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 3, the charging control unit 26 will be described. The charging control unit 26 controls the charging of the in-vehicle battery 40 by the external power supply 100 (see Fig. 1). For example, the charging control unit 26 starts charging at a timing corresponding to the current charging mode, and completes charging when the set target charging rate is reached.

[0057] Specifically, when the charging mode is the first mode, the charging control unit 26 starts charging after waiting until the charging start timing calculated by the calculation unit 24. When the charging mode is the second mode, the charging control unit 26 starts charging when the charging plug of the external power supply 100 is connected to the in-vehicle battery 40.

[0058] Next, a processing procedure executed by the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure executed by the charge control device 10.

[0059] 6, first, the charge control device 10 determines whether or not the vehicle C has finished driving in a chargeable environment (step S101). If the charge control device 10 determines that the vehicle C has finished driving in a chargeable environment (step S101; Yes), the charge control device 10 proceeds to the process of step S102, and if the charge control device 10 determines that the vehicle C has not finished driving in a chargeable environment (step S101; No), the charge control device 10 ends the process.

[0060] Next, the charge control device 10 determines whether the current charging mode is the first mode (step S102), and if the charging mode is the first mode (step S102; Yes), sets the operation start time based on, for example, a user operation or the like (step S103).

[0061] Next, the charge control device 10 sets the charging start time based on the operation start time (step S104), and notifies the user of the set charging start time (step S105). After that, the charge control device 10 determines whether the charging start time has arrived (step S106).

[0062] If the charge control device 10 determines that the charging start time has arrived (step S106; Yes), it starts charging (step S107) and ends the process. If the charge control device 10 determines that the charging start time has not arrived (step S106; No), it continues the process of step S106.

[0063] Furthermore, when the charge control device 10 determines in step S102 that the charging mode is the second mode (step S102; No), the process proceeds to step S107.

[0064] As described above, the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment is a charge control device that includes a control unit 20 that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source 100. The control unit 20 can set the charge mode of the vehicle battery 40 (an example of a battery) from a first mode in which the target charge rate is a first charge rate that is a charge rate close to full charge, and a second mode in which the target charge rate is a second charge rate that is lower than the first charge rate. When the charge mode is the first mode, the control unit 20 controls charging so that charging is completed at a charge completion timing based on the next scheduled driving time, and when the charge mode is the second mode, the control unit 20 controls charging so that charging is completed at a timing earlier than the charge completion timing of the first mode.

[0065] Therefore, the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment can suppress deterioration of the secondary battery while avoiding a situation in which charging is not completed before the next driving.

[0066] Furthermore, as described above, the charge control device 10 according to the embodiment is a charge control device that includes a control unit 20 that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source 100, and the control unit 20 can set the charge mode of the vehicle battery 40 (an example of a battery) from a first mode in which the target charge rate is a first charge rate that is a charge rate close to full charge, and a second mode in which the target charge rate is a second charge rate that is lower than the first charge rate, and when the charge mode is the first mode, charging is started at a timing based on the next scheduled driving time, and when the charge mode is the second mode, charging is started when preparations for starting charging are complete.

[0067] Therefore, according to the charge control device 10 of the embodiment, it is possible to prevent the secondary battery from being completely charged before the next driving, while suppressing deterioration of the secondary battery. It is possible to prevent the secondary battery from being completely charged before the next driving, while suppressing deterioration of the secondary battery.

[0068] In the above-described embodiment, immediate charging is performed in the second mode, but this is not limiting. That is, charging may be performed after a waiting time Ts as appropriate in the second mode. As an example, a waiting time Ts may be set so that charging is performed during a time period when electricity rates are low. That is, in the second mode, charging does not necessarily have to start immediately; it is acceptable to wait a while after the vehicle becomes chargeable, as long as charging starts at a timing sufficiently earlier than the timing of charging in the first mode. Furthermore, when delaying the start of charging in the second mode, it is particularly effective to provide a notification in the same way as in the first mode.

[0069] In addition, since it is possible to set the charging start timing and the charging end timing by adding or subtracting the time required for charging from one timing, one timing may be rephrased as the other timing as the timings described in the specification.

[0070] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the case of controlling charging of the in-vehicle battery 40 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the in-vehicle battery 40 may be replaced with various secondary batteries. That is, the present invention may be applied to the control of secondary batteries of a personal computer, a smartphone, or the like.

[0071] Further advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shown and described above. Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 10. Charging control device 20 Control Unit 21 SOC calculation section 22 Mode setting section 23 Acquisition Department 24 Calculation section 25 Notification Department 26 Charging control unit 31 Charging mode memory section 32 Operation start time memory unit 33 Environmental temperature memory section 40 Car Battery 50 Display device 60 User terminals 100 External power supply C vehicle th Recommended charging threshold Tm margin Ts waiting time

Claims

1. A charge control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; When a user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode and a scheduled start time of traveling, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, a timing to complete charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed so that charging is completed before the timing at which charging is completed in the first charging mode. Charging control device.

2. A charge control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; When a user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode and a scheduled start time of traveling, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, timing to start charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed to start charging when preparations for starting charging are complete. Charging control device.

3. A charging control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; The next scheduled start time of the user's trip is determined by at least one of obtaining the time from schedule information input to the user's terminal or estimating the time from the tendency of the user's past trip start times stored in a storage unit; When the user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, timing to start charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed to start charging when preparations for starting charging are complete. Charging control device.

4. When the charging mode is the first charging mode, control is performed so that charging is completed at a timing that is one hour earlier than the scheduled start time of the driving. The charge control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The first time period is adjusted based on the ambient temperature at the scheduled start time of the driving. The charge control device according to claim 4.

6. When the charging mode is the first charging mode, delaying the charging start time until charging up to the first target charging rate is possible at the scheduled start time of driving. The charge control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. Notifying the user of the charging start time. The charge control device according to claim 6.

8. When the charging mode is the second charging mode, charging starts when preparation for charging is completed. The charge control device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. When the charging mode is the second charging mode, if charging preparation is completed and charging does not start immediately, the user is notified that the start of charging will be delayed. The charge control device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The second target charging rate is 80%. The charge control device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. A charge control method performed by a charge control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, comprising: a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; When a user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode and a scheduled start time of traveling, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, a timing to complete charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed so that charging is completed before the timing at which charging is completed in the first charging mode. Charging control method.

12. A charge control method performed by a charge control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, comprising: a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; When a user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode and a scheduled start time of traveling, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, timing to start charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed to start charging when preparations for starting charging are complete. Charging control method.

13. A charge control method performed by a charge control device that controls charging of a battery mounted on a vehicle using an external power source, comprising: a first charging mode in which charging is completed when a first target charging rate near full charge is reached, and a second charging mode in which charging is completed when a second target charging rate lower than the first target charging rate is reached; The next scheduled start time of the user's trip is determined by at least one of obtaining the time from schedule information input to the user's terminal or estimating the time from the tendency of the user's past trip start times stored in a storage unit; When the user sets either the first charging mode or the second charging mode, When the charging mode is the first charging mode, timing to start charging is controlled based on the scheduled running start time; When the charging mode is the second charging mode, control is performed to start charging when preparations for starting charging are complete. Charging control method.

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