Battery exchange system, battery exchange method, and management device

Abstract

Provided is a battery change system comprising a station device and a management device, wherein the station device changes a battery used by a user by authenticating the user, and the management device comprises a management unit that manages user information including the usage tendency of the battery by the user, the usage tendency relating to the deterioration of the battery, and a notification control unit that controls an output device to cause the output device to notify the user of the use tendency of the battery by the user.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a battery exchange system, a battery exchange method, and a management device. This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-003726, filed on January 13, 2022, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] It has been disclosed in the past that when a removable battery for use in an electric vehicle or the like is replaced at a station, the battery to be lent out is determined according to the user's attributes (Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 describes that the user's attributes are set based on the degree of battery degradation according to past battery usage, and that based on the degradation state of batteries on the market and future battery production plans, it is determined whether the battery to be lent out is a battery that is highly degraded or a battery that is not highly degraded according to the user's attributes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2021-079982 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the tendency for the same user to use a battery is not necessarily the same, and if the user uses the battery in a way that differs from the expected attributes, it may not be possible to properly control the battery's deterioration state.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of these circumstances, and one of its objectives is to provide a battery replacement system, a battery replacement method, and a management device that can more appropriately control the deterioration state of batteries circulating on the market. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The battery exchange system, the battery exchange method, and the management device according to the present invention employ the following configuration. (1): A battery exchange system according to one embodiment of the present invention is a battery exchange system including a station device and a management device, wherein the station device exchanges a battery used by a user by authenticating the user, a management unit that manages user information including the user's usage trends of the battery, which usage trends relate to deterioration of the battery, and the management device that includes a notification control unit that controls an output device to notify the user of the user's usage trends of the battery.

[0007] (2): In the above aspect (1), a user terminal device used by the user is further provided, and the user terminal device is provided with a notification receiving unit that receives notification of the usage trends of the battery by the user, and a display control unit that, when displaying the location of the station device on a display unit, displays the usage trends that have been notified in advance about the user along with the location of the station device on the display unit.

[0008] (3): In the above aspect (2), the user terminal device further includes a request unit that requests the management device to correct the usage trends of the user notified by the management device, and the management unit corrects the usage trends of the user in response to receiving the request for correction.

[0009] (4): In any of the above aspects (1) to (3), the station device further includes a station display unit that displays specified information, and the station display unit displays the usage trend of the battery by the user notified by the notification control unit from the time the user is authenticated to the time the battery is loaned to the user.

[0010] (5): In any of the above aspects (1) to (4), the management device further includes an incentive granting unit that compares a first usage trend, which is the most recent one of the usage trends that the notification control unit has notified the user, with a second usage trend, which was notified before the first usage trend, and grants an incentive to the user if the degree of deviation between the first usage trend and the second usage trend is equal to or less than a predetermined value.

[0011] (6): In any of the above aspects (1) to (5), the management device further includes a usage restriction unit that compares a first usage trend, which is the most recent one of the usage trends that the notification control unit has notified the user, with a second usage trend, which was notified before the first usage trend, and, if the first usage trend and the second usage trend differ, instructs the station device to record output restriction information for limiting the output of the battery or charge restriction information for limiting the amount of charge to the battery in the battery's memory unit when lending the battery to the user.

[0012] (7): A battery replacement method according to one embodiment of the present invention is a battery replacement system including a station device and a management device, in which the station device replaces a battery used by a user by authenticating the user, the management device manages user information including the user's usage trends of the battery, which usage trends relate to deterioration of the battery, and the management device controls an output device to notify the user of the user's usage trends of the battery.

[0013] (8): A management device according to one embodiment of the present invention is a management device in a battery exchange system that includes a station device that replaces a battery used by a user by authenticating the user, and includes a management unit that manages user information including the user's usage trends of the battery, which usage trends relate to the deterioration of the battery, and a notification control unit that controls an output device to notify the user of the user's usage trends of the battery. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to aspects (1) to (8), in a battery exchange system having a station device that exchanges batteries used by a user by authenticating the user, a management device manages user information including the user's usage trends of the battery, which usage trends relate to the deterioration of the battery, and the management device controls an output device to notify the user of the user's usage trends of the battery, thereby making it possible to more appropriately control the deterioration state of batteries circulating in the market. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a battery exchange system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a life cycle of a removable battery. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a detachable battery. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an electric motorcycle. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a battery station device. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the configuration of a lending management unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a system configuration of a management device. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the configuration of a user terminal device. [Figure 9]FIG. 10 is a first diagram showing an example of a display mode of user attributes. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a second diagram showing an example of a display mode of user attributes. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a first diagram showing an example of a notification mode of a user attribute. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a second diagram showing an example of a notification mode of a user attribute. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] Hereinafter, embodiments of a battery exchange system, a battery exchange method, and a management device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0017] [1. Overview of the battery swap system] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a battery exchange system 1 according to this embodiment. The battery exchange system 1 includes a detachable battery 100 (hereinafter referred to as the "battery 100"), an electric motorcycle 200, a battery station device 300, a management device 400, and a user terminal device 500. The battery 100 is rented to a user U and used as a power source for the electric motorcycle 200. The electric motorcycle 200 is an example of an application in which the user U uses the battery 100, and is driven using the battery 100 as a power source. The battery station device 300 holds one or more (sometimes referred to as "one or more") batteries 100. The battery station device 300 is a device that collects or rents out the batteries 100 in response to a request from the user U. The battery station device 300 charges the collected battery 100 and rents out the charged battery 100. The management device 400 is a server in the battery exchange system 1 that manages various information related to the rental of the battery 100. The user terminal device 500 is an information communication terminal that the user U uses when using the battery station device 300. The battery exchange system 1 may include one or more battery station devices 300. The management device 400 is capable of communicating with the battery station device 300 and the user terminal device 500 of the user U via the communication network NW. The user terminal device 500 is capable of communicating with the battery station device 300 and the management device 400 via the communication network NW.

[0018] In this embodiment, a case will be described in which the battery exchange system 1 provides one or more batteries 100 to a user U. The battery exchange system 1 may provide one or more batteries 100 to each of one or more users U. For example, the user U uses a user terminal device 500 to request the management device 400 to lend the battery 100 held in a specific battery station device 300. In response to the lending request, the battery station device 300 and the management device 400 execute processing to lend the battery 100 to the user U.

[0019] However, the battery 100 deteriorates as it is used repeatedly. Therefore, a manager (not shown) of the battery 100 collects the battery 100 that has deteriorated below a predetermined management standard from the battery station device 300 and installs a new battery 100 into the battery station device 300. In this way, the distribution of the battery 100 can be managed so that batteries 100 with appropriate charge / discharge performance are distributed. Note that the form of provision of the battery 100 is not limited to rental.

[0020] [2. Overview of each part of the battery swap system] The communication network NW 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 NW may include 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, a road-to-vehicle communication line, etc. The communication network NW may include (i) a mobile communication network such as a mobile phone network, or (ii) a wireless communication network such as a wireless MAN (e.g., WiMAX (registered trademark)), a wireless LAN (e.g., Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), Bluetooth (registered trademark), Zigbee (registered trademark), or NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0021] The battery 100 is a battery device that is detachably mounted on the electric motorcycle 200. The battery 100 supplies power to the mounted electric motorcycle 200. The battery 100 is charged by a battery station device 300. For example, when the remaining capacity of the battery 100 mounted on the electric motorcycle 200 becomes low, a user U requests the management device 400 to lend out the battery 100 stored in a specific battery station device 300. When the user U arrives at the battery station device 300, the user U removes the battery 100 from the electric motorcycle 200 and returns it to a return space provided in the battery station device 300. The battery station device 300 charges the returned battery 100 at an appropriate time, preparing the battery 100 for its next use.

[0022] The electric motorcycle 200 consumes power supplied by the battery 100. More specifically, the electric motorcycle 200 moves using the power supplied by the battery 100. If the battery 100 has a storage device, the electric motorcycle 200 may store at least one of the traveling history and operation history of the electric motorcycle 200 in the storage device.

[0023] The battery station device 300 holds one or more batteries 100. The battery station device 300 charges each of the one or more batteries 100. For example, the battery station device 300 acquires information about a policy from the management device 400. The policy is a criterion used by the battery station device 300 when providing a battery 100 to a user U to determine which battery 100 to provide preferentially to the user U from among the multiple batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300. In response to a request from the user U, the battery station device 300 executes a process for lending the battery 100. For example, the battery station device 300 executes a process for authenticating the user U and a process for issuing the battery 100. In the lending process, the battery station device 300 determines, in accordance with the policy, from among the multiple batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300, the number of batteries 100 to be lent that matches the number requested by the user U.

[0024] The management device 400 manages the use of each of the one or more batteries 100. For example, the battery exchange system 1 manages the rental status (e.g., available for rental, unavailable for rental, currently being rented, etc.), operation status (e.g., charging, discharging, standby, etc.), charge status (e.g., current SOC), storage status (e.g., temperature, humidity, etc.), degradation status, etc. of each of the one or more batteries 100. The management device 400 also determines a policy for when the battery station device 300 provides the battery 100 to the user U.

[0025] The user terminal device 500 functions as an interface between the battery exchange system 1 and the user U. The user terminal device 500 transmits various requests to the management device 400 based on input from the user U. Examples of such requests include a search request for searching for a battery station device 300 that meets specific conditions, and a reservation request for reserving any or a specific battery 100 stored in a specific battery station device 300. The user terminal device 500 also outputs information received from the management device 400. The manner of information output is not limited to a specific manner. The user terminal device 500 may output an image or sound.

[0026] The details of the user terminal device 500 are not particularly limited as long as it is an information processing terminal that can communicate with the battery station device 300 and the management device 400 via the communication network NW. The user terminal device 500 may be a personal computer, or a portable terminal such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PDA, a tablet, a notebook computer or laptop computer, or a wearable computer.

[0027] [3. Battery lending according to user attributes] The battery station device 300 determines the battery 100 to be provided to the user U according to the attributes of the user U (hereinafter referred to as "user attributes"). The user attributes of the user U may be attributes related to the usage manner of the battery 100. The user attributes related to the usage manner of the battery 100 may be the usage tendency of the battery 100 by the user U. The usage tendency of the battery 100 by the user U may be the progression of deterioration of the battery 100 due to past use by the user U. Examples of the progression of deterioration include (i) the amount of deterioration in a period of a predetermined length, and (ii) the rate of progression of deterioration. Examples of the amount of deterioration include the amount of decrease in full charge capacity and the amount of increase in internal resistance. Examples of the progression rate of deterioration include the rate of decrease in full charge capacity and the rate of increase in internal resistance.

[0028] The battery station device 300 determines the battery 100 to be provided to the user U from among the plurality of batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300 based on the user attributes of the user U. For example, the battery station device 300 determines the battery 100 to be provided to the user U based on the user attributes of the user U and the deterioration state of the battery 100.

[0029] For example, the battery station device 300 may determine to provide a battery 100 that is relatively more deteriorated to a user U whose battery 100 is deteriorating at a relatively high rate. The battery station device 300 may also determine to provide a battery 100 that is relatively less deteriorated to a user U whose battery 100 is deteriorating at a relatively low rate. This increases the number of collected batteries 100 in a specific period. The battery station device 300 may also determine to provide a battery 100 that is relatively less deteriorated to a user U whose battery 100 is deteriorating at a relatively high rate. The battery station device 300 may also determine to provide a battery 100 that is relatively more deteriorated to a user U whose battery 100 is deteriorating at a relatively low rate. This decreases the number of collected batteries 100 in a specific period.

[0030] [4. Lending in accordance with lending policy] The battery station device 300 determines the battery 100 to be preferentially provided to the user U based on the policy determined by the management device 400. Examples of the policy include a policy for increasing the number of collected batteries 100, a policy for decreasing the number of collected batteries 100, and a policy for prioritizing charging efficiency of the battery 100 over adjusting deterioration of the battery 100.

[0031] For example, when the inventory quantity of the batteries 100 is expected to exceed the upper limit of a predetermined numerical range (sometimes referred to as an inventory standard), or when the inventory quantity of the batteries 100 exceeds the upper limit of the inventory standard, the management device 400 transmits to the battery station device 300 a policy indicating an increase in the number of collected batteries 100. In this case, the battery station device 300 may determine to preferentially lend out batteries 100 that are relatively deteriorated. Furthermore, the battery station device 300 may determine to preferentially lend out batteries 100 that are relatively deteriorated to users U who use the batteries in a manner that accelerates the deterioration of the batteries 100. This can hasten the time when the deterioration state of the batteries 100 that are relatively deteriorated reaches a predetermined threshold (sometimes referred to as a collection standard). As a result, the number of collected batteries 100 in a specific period increases.

[0032] Furthermore, for example, when the inventory quantity of the batteries 100 is expected to fall below the lower limit of the inventory standard, or when the inventory quantity of the batteries 100 falls below the lower limit of the inventory standard, the management device 400 transmits to the battery station device 300 a policy indicating a reduction in the number of collected batteries 100. In this case, the battery station device 300 determines to preferentially lend out batteries 100 other than the batteries 100 in which degradation is relatively advanced. This reduces the lending of the batteries 100 in which degradation is relatively advanced. The battery station device 300 may also determine to preferentially lend out the batteries 100 in which degradation is relatively advanced to users U who use the batteries in a manner that reduces the degradation of the batteries 100. This can delay the time when the degradation state of the batteries 100 in which degradation is relatively advanced reaches the collection standard. As a result, the number of collected batteries 100 in a specific period is reduced.

[0033] According to the battery exchange system 1 of the embodiment configured as described above, the collection quantity of the batteries 100 can be adjusted depending on the production quantity or inventory quantity of the batteries 100. Because it is technically or economically difficult to rapidly increase or decrease the production quantity of the batteries 100, it is generally considered to respond to increases or decreases in the collection quantity of the batteries 100 by maintaining a relatively large inventory of the batteries 100. In contrast, according to the present embodiment, when the production quantity or inventory quantity of the batteries 100 decreases, the lending of the batteries 100 is adjusted so as to suppress the progression of deterioration of the batteries 100 that are relatively more deteriorated. On the other hand, when the production quantity or inventory quantity of the batteries 100 increases, the lending of the batteries 100 is adjusted so as to accelerate the progression of deterioration of the batteries 100 that are relatively more deteriorated. As a result, the inventory quantity of the batteries 100 can be maintained at a relatively low level.

[0034] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the life cycle of a battery 100. A plurality of batteries 100 are distributed in the market. The batteries 100 distributed in the market gradually deteriorate while being charged in a battery station device 300 or used in an electric motorcycle 200. A battery 100A whose deterioration state has reached a collection standard is collected from the market and then reused or recycled. When a battery 100A whose deterioration state has reached the collection standard is collected from the market and the number of batteries 100 distributed in the market decreases, the battery 100B produced during a predetermined period or an inventory 100C of batteries 100 are replenished.

[0035] As described above, the battery exchange system 1 of this embodiment can determine the batteries 100 to be lent to the user U based on the user U's user attributes related to the usage of the batteries 100, and therefore the number of batteries 100 to be collected can be adjusted according to the production or inventory quantity of the batteries 100. This can, for example, prevent significant inventory shortages and prevent increases in storage costs associated with an increase in surplus inventory. It can also reduce the amount of calculations performed by a computer used for production management or inventory management. Furthermore, it can prevent deterioration of the batteries 100 associated with an extended inventory period.

[0036] However, the tendency of the same user U to use the battery 100 is not always the same. Therefore, in order to control the degree of deterioration of batteries 100 distributed in the market, it is important to have the user U use the battery 100 in a manner that conforms to a pre-expected usage tendency, and to be able to control the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 even when the battery 100 is used contrary to the pre-expected usage tendency. Therefore, the battery exchange system 1 of this embodiment is configured to determine the battery 100 to be lent to the user U based on the user attributes of the user U, to alert the user U regarding the use of the battery 100, and to restrict the use of the battery 100 by the user U as necessary to control the degree of deterioration of the battery 100. The configuration of the battery exchange system 1 that realizes these functions will be described in more detail below.

[0037] [5. Removable Battery Configuration] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the battery 100. The battery 100 includes, for example, a power storage unit 120, a BMU 130, and a connection unit 140. The BMU 130 includes, for example, a measurement sensor 131 and a memory unit 132. The power storage unit 120 is, for example, a battery pack formed by connecting a plurality of unit cells in series. The unit cells constituting the power storage unit 120 are, for example, secondary batteries that can be repeatedly charged and discharged, such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), nickel-metal hydride batteries, and all-solid-state batteries. The secondary batteries constituting the power storage unit 120 may include, for example, lead-acid batteries, sodium-ion batteries, capacitors such as electric double-layer capacitors, or combined batteries that combine secondary batteries and capacitors. The configuration of the secondary batteries constituting the power storage unit 120 is not particularly limited.

[0038] The BMU 130 controls charging and discharging of the power storage unit 120, performs cell balancing, detects abnormalities in the power storage unit 120, derives the cell temperature of the power storage unit 120, derives the charge / discharge current of the power storage unit 120, and estimates the SOC of the power storage unit 120. The BMU 130 stores the measurement results of the measurement sensor 131 and abnormalities or failures of the power storage unit 120 detected based on the measurement results in the memory unit 132 as battery state information. The measurement sensor 131 is a voltage sensor, a current sensor, a temperature sensor, etc. for measuring the state of charge of the power storage unit 120. The measurement sensor 131 outputs the measured voltage, current, temperature, etc. to the BMU 130. Note that a battery 100 that is not electrically operating may be defined as a battery 100 for which a predetermined time or more has elapsed since the end of its previous operation. Any battery 100 other than those defined as such may be defined as an electrically operating battery 100. The electrically operating state may be defined as, for example, a state in which the battery 100 is being charged or a state in which the battery 100 is being discharged. The BUM 130 may record, as the measurement result of the measurement sensor 131, information associating the measurement value with the measurement time in the memory unit 132, or may record, in the memory unit 132, information associating the measurement value with the measurement frequency (a so-called histogram).

[0039] The storage unit 132 includes a non-volatile storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or a flash memory. The storage unit 132 stores the battery status information described above. The storage unit 132 may also store identification information (battery ID) assigned to the battery 100. When the battery 100 is attached to the electric motorcycle 200, the connection unit 140 is electrically connected to the battery connection unit 210 of the electric motorcycle 200. In this state, the battery 100 supplies the power stored in the power storage unit 120 to the electric motor provided in the electric motorcycle 200.

[0040] [6. Electric bike configuration] 4 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an electric motorcycle 200. The electric motorcycle 200 runs on the driving force of an electric motor driven by power supplied from a battery 100. However, the electric motorcycle 200 may also be a hybrid electric vehicle that runs on the driving force of a combination of the battery 100 and an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine or a gasoline engine. The electric motorcycle 200 includes, for example, a battery connection unit 210, a vehicle control unit 220, a traveling driving force output device 230, vehicle sensors 18, an HMI (Human Machine Interface) 20, and a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) receiver 22.

[0041] The battery connection unit 210 is electrically connected to the battery 100 when the battery 100 is attached to the electric motorcycle 200. The battery connection unit 210 includes a connection terminal for a power line that receives power from the battery 100, a connection terminal for a communication line that performs data communication between the battery 100 and the vehicle control unit 220, and the like.

[0042] The vehicle control unit 220 acquires measurement results from the vehicle sensors 18, acquires various information (such as SOC and DOD) related to the power storage unit 120 from a BMU (Battery Management Unit) 110 included in the battery 100, and acquires the position of the electric motorcycle 200 from the GNSS receiver 22. The vehicle control unit 220 controls the traveling driving force output device 230 based on the acquired data. The vehicle control unit 220 may transmit the position information of the electric motorcycle 200 acquired from the GNSS receiver 22 to the battery 100 via the battery connection unit 210.

[0043] The vehicle control unit 220 also has a function of acquiring information (hereinafter referred to as "restriction information") relating to usage restrictions on the battery 100 mounted on the electric motorcycle 200 from the battery 100, and restricting the use of the battery 100 based on the restriction information. The usage restrictions on the battery 100 will be described later.

[0044] The traveling driving force output device 230 includes, for example, an electric motor, an inverter, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that controls the inverter. The ECU controls the power supplied from the battery 100 to the electric motor, for example, by controlling the inverter. The vehicle sensors 18 include various sensors mounted on the electric motorcycle 200, such as a speed sensor, an acceleration sensor, a rotational speed sensor, an odometer, and others. The vehicle sensors 18 output the measurement results to the vehicle control unit 220.

[0045] The HMI 20 outputs various information to the user of the electric motorcycle 200 and accepts input operations by the user. The HMI 20 includes, for example, various display devices (which may be touch panels) such as a HUD (Head Up Display) and a meter display unit, a speaker, etc. The GNSS receiver 22 determines the position of the electric motorcycle 200 based on radio waves received from GNSS satellites (such as GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites), for example.

[0046] 7. Configuration of Battery Station Device 300 5 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the battery station apparatus 300. The battery station apparatus 300 includes an operation unit 301, one or more charging units 320, and a control unit 340. Each of the one or more charging units 320 includes a battery storage compartment 322, a measuring instrument 324, and a charging circuit 326. The operation unit 301 is an input interface for operations to the battery station apparatus 300. The operation unit 301 includes, for example, a display device such as a touch panel or a liquid crystal display, and an input device such as a trackball, a switch, or a button. The operation unit 301 outputs information about the input operation to the control unit 340 and displays information output by the control unit 340.

[0047] The charging unit 320 charges the battery 100. A single charging unit 320 may charge a single battery 100, or a single charging unit 320 may charge multiple batteries 100. The battery storage compartment 322 stores the battery 100. The measuring device 324 measures various physical quantities related to the battery 100 stored in the battery storage compartment 322. For example, the measuring device 324 measures the voltage of the battery 100. The measuring device 324 may measure at least one of the charging current and discharging current of the battery 100. The charging circuit 326 supplies power to the battery 100 to charge the battery 100.

[0048] The control unit 340 controls the operation of the battery station device 300. For example, the control unit 340 may control the operation of the battery station device 300 using information acquired from the management device 400, or may control the operation of the battery station device 300 based on instructions from the management device 400. The control unit 340 includes, for example, a communication control unit 342, a charge / discharge control unit 344, a lending management unit 346, and a storage unit 348.

[0049] The communication control unit 342 controls communication between the battery station device 300 and external devices. Examples of the external devices include at least one of the battery 100, the management device 400, and the user terminal device 500. The communication control unit 342 may be a communication interface. The communication control unit 342 may be compatible with one or more types of communication methods.

[0050] The charge / discharge control unit 344 controls the charging / discharging of the battery 100 by each of the one or more charging units 320. For example, the charge / discharge control unit 344 controls the charging of the battery 100 by controlling the charging circuit 326. The charge / discharge control unit 344 may also control the discharging of the battery 100 by controlling a discharging circuit (not shown). The charge / discharge control unit 344 controls, for example, the timing to start charging or discharging each of the one or more batteries 100, the timing to end the charging or discharging, the charging rate or discharging rate, etc. The charge / discharge control unit 344 may control the charging operation of at least some of the one or more charging units 320 in accordance with instructions from the lending management unit 346.

[0051] The lending management unit 346 manages lending of batteries 100 in the battery station device 300. For example, the lending management unit 346 may manage the charging of the batteries 100 so that the batteries 100 are lent out in accordance with information (sometimes referred to as reservation information) relating to the reservation of one or more batteries 100 stored in the battery station device 300. The reservation information is managed by the management device 400, for example, as information in which the identification information of the user U who reserved the battery 100, the time at which the user U wishes to lend the battery 100, the number of batteries 100 that the user U wishes to lend, and the conditions desired by the user U regarding the charge state of the batteries 100 are associated with each other.

[0052] The lending management unit 346 may manage the status of one or more batteries 100 stored in the battery station device 300. For example, the lending management unit 346 manages at least one of the operating status, charging status, storage status, and degradation status of the above-mentioned battery 100. The lending management unit 346 may manage the status of one or more batteries 100 based on the measurement results of the measuring device 324. The lending management unit 346 may detect abnormalities or defects in the battery 100.

[0053] The storage unit 348 includes, for example, a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD, an SSD, or a flash memory. The storage unit 348 is used as a storage area for various information related to the operation of the battery station device 300. For example, the storage unit 348 stores information that associates a time with the measurement result of the measuring device 324 at that time.

[0054] 6 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the lending management unit 346. The lending management unit 346 includes a status monitoring unit 352, a priority determination unit 354, and a lending target determination unit 358. At least some of the functional units included in the lending management unit 346 may be arranged in the management device 400. For example, at least one of the priority determination unit 354 and the lending target determination unit 358 may be arranged in the management device 400.

[0055] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a lending management unit 346. The status monitoring unit 352 monitors the status of each of the one or more batteries 100 held in the battery station device 300. For example, the status monitoring unit 352 acquires various types of information related to each of the one or more batteries 100. The status monitoring unit 352 may acquire information related to at least one of the operating status, charging status, storage status, and degradation status of each of the one or more batteries 100. The status monitoring unit 352 may transmit this information to the management device 400.

[0056] The state monitoring unit 352 acquires information indicating the amount of power stored in each of one or more batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300. For example, the state monitoring unit 352 acquires information indicating the state of charge of the battery 100 to be measured from each of the measuring devices 324 arranged in one or more charging units 320. The information indicating the state of charge may be information indicating the SOC or information for calculating the SOC. Examples of information for calculating the SOC include information indicating the voltage and information indicating the cumulative value of the charging current.

[0057] The priority determination unit 354 determines, for each of the multiple batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300, a priority order in which the battery is to be loaned or charged. The priority order in which the battery 100 is to be loaned may be whether the battery 100 is available for loan or may be a priority level for loaning the battery 100. The priority order in which the battery 100 is to be charged may be whether the battery 100 is available for charging or may be a priority level for charging the battery 100. The above priority levels may be indicated by continuous numerical values ​​or by graded divisions. The priority order in which the battery 100 is to be loaned may be the same as the priority order in which the battery 100 is to be charged.

[0058] Furthermore, the priority order determination unit 354 acquires information indicating the policy determined by the policy determination unit 436 from the management device 400. The priority order determination unit 354 may determine the priority order of each of the multiple batteries 100 based on the policy determined by the policy determination unit 436. When the policy determination unit 436 determines to increase the number of collected batteries 100, the priority order determination unit 354 determines, for example, to prioritize lending out batteries 100 that are relatively more deteriorated. In this case, the priorities of the multiple batteries 100 are determined so that the more deteriorated the battery 100, the higher the priority order.

[0059] The priority order determination unit 354 may determine to preferentially lend a battery 100 that is relatively deteriorated to a user U who uses the battery 100 in a manner that accelerates the deterioration of the battery 100. In this case, the priority order determination unit 354 determines the priority order of the multiple batteries 100 based on the user attributes of the user U requesting the lending of the battery 100. When the user attributes of the user U indicate that the battery 100 will accelerate the deterioration, the priority order determination unit 354 determines the priority order of the multiple batteries 100 such that the more deteriorated the battery 100 is, the higher the priority order. On the other hand, when the user attributes of the user U indicate that the deterioration of the battery 100 is suppressed, the priority order determination unit 354 determines the priority order of the multiple batteries 100 such that the more deteriorated the battery 100 is, the lower the priority order.

[0060] On the other hand, when the policy determination unit 436 determines to reduce the number of collected batteries 100, the priority determination unit 354 determines, for example, to preferentially lend out batteries 100 other than batteries 100 that are relatively deteriorated. In this case, the priorities of the multiple batteries 100 are determined such that the more deteriorated the battery 100, the lower the priority. The priority determination unit 354 may also determine to preferentially lend out the more deteriorated battery 100 to a user U who uses the battery 100 in a manner that suppresses deterioration. In this case, the priority determination unit 354 determines the priority of the multiple batteries 100 based on the user attributes of the user U requesting the lending of the battery 100. When the user attributes of the user U indicate that deterioration of the battery 100 is accelerated, the priority determination unit 354 determines the priority of the multiple batteries 100 such that the more deteriorated the battery 100, the lower the priority. On the other hand, if the user attributes of user U indicate that deterioration of battery 100 is to be suppressed, priority determination unit 354 determines the priority of multiple batteries 100 so that the more deteriorated the battery 100 is, the higher the priority is.

[0061] Furthermore, when the policy determination unit 436 determines to prioritize charging efficiency of the battery 100 over adjusting deterioration of the battery 100, or when the battery station device 300 does not receive information indicating the policy for the period from the management device 400, the priority determination unit 354 may determine the priority of the battery 100 so that the charging efficiency is greater than a predetermined value. The priority determination unit 354 may determine the priority of the battery 100 so that the total charging time or charging cost is less than a predetermined value.

[0062] The lending object determination unit 358 determines a battery 100 to be provided to a specific user U in response to a request from the user U, from among one or more batteries 100 stored in the battery storage chambers 322 of one or more charging units 320. The lending object determination unit 358 may determine a battery 100 to be lent from among the multiple batteries 100 held in the battery station device 300.

[0063] For example, the lending object determination unit 358 accesses the user information 416 to obtain information indicating the user attributes of the user U. The lending object determination unit 358 extracts a battery 100 to be provided to the user U from among the plurality of batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300, based on the user attributes of the user U. This allows the lending object determination unit 358 to determine a battery 100 to be provided to the user U from among the plurality of batteries 100, in response to a request from the user U.

[0064] If the user attributes of user U indicate that the rate at which the battery 100 is deteriorating due to use by user U exceeds a predetermined first threshold, the lending target determination unit 358 extracts the most deteriorating battery 100 from the plurality of batteries 100 as the battery 100 to be provided to user U. If the user attributes of user U indicate that the rate at which the battery 100 is deteriorating due to use by user U is below a predetermined second threshold, the lending target determination unit 358 extracts the most deteriorating battery 100 from the plurality of batteries 100 as the battery 100 to be provided to user U.

[0065] The lending target determination unit 358 may extract a battery 100 to be provided to the user U from among the batteries 100 whose degradation state does not satisfy the collection standard. For example, the lending target determination unit 358 may access the battery information 412 to acquire information indicating the degradation state of each of the plurality of batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300. The lending target determination unit 358 extracts a battery 100 to be provided to the user U from among the plurality of batteries 100 whose degradation state is within a range that can be provided to the user U. This prevents a battery 100 whose degradation state exceeds the collection standard from being extracted. At this time, the lending target determination unit 358 may determine the battery 100 to be provided to the user U, taking into consideration the priority determined by the priority determination unit 354. The lending target determination unit 358 may preferentially select a battery 100 with a higher priority as a battery to be provided to the user U.

[0066] If the user attributes of the user U requesting the loan of the battery 100 indicate that the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to use by the user U exceeds a predetermined first standard, the priority order determination unit 354 determines the priority order of the multiple batteries 100 so that the more deteriorated the battery 100 is, the higher the priority order is. In this case, when the loan target determination unit 358 extracts the battery 100 to be provided to the user U according to the priority order determined by the priority order determination unit 354, the battery 100 whose deterioration state is more deteriorated than a predetermined second standard is more likely to be extracted as the battery 100 to be provided to the user U.

[0067] If the user attributes of the user U requesting the loan of the battery 100 indicate that the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to use by the user U exceeds the above-mentioned first criterion, the priority order determination unit 354 determines the priorities of the multiple batteries 100 so that the more deteriorated the battery 100 is, the lower the priority order is. In this case, when the loan target determination unit 358 extracts the battery 100 to be provided to the user U according to the priorities determined by the priority order determination unit 354, the battery 100 whose deterioration state is more deteriorated than the predetermined second criterion is less likely to be extracted as the battery 100 to be provided to the user U.

[0068] In this embodiment, the lending target determination unit 358, for example, accesses the production management unit 434 of the management device 400 to acquire information indicating at least one of the production plan, current inventory quantity, and predicted inventory quantity of the battery 100. When at least one of the production plan, current inventory quantity, and predicted inventory quantity of the battery 100 satisfies a predetermined condition, the lending target determination unit 358 may determine the battery 100 to be lent out while taking into consideration the priority determined by the priority determination unit 354. When at least one of the production plan, current inventory quantity, and predicted inventory quantity of the battery 100 does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the lending target determination unit 358 may determine the battery 100 to be lent out without taking into consideration the priority determined by the priority determination unit 354.

[0069] Examples of the predetermined condition include a condition that the value is within a predetermined numerical range or a condition that the value is outside the predetermined numerical range. The above-mentioned numerical range may have only an upper limit, only a lower limit, or both an upper limit and a lower limit. According to this embodiment, for example, when (i) at least one of the production plan, current inventory quantity, and predicted inventory quantity of the battery 100 satisfies the predetermined condition, and (ii) the user attribute of the user U requesting the loan of the battery 100 indicates that the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to the user U's use exceeds the first criterion, the loan target determination unit 358 determines, as the loan target, the battery 100 whose degradation state is worse than the predetermined second criterion. This realizes a loan process according to the policy.

[0070] The details of the battery exchange system 1 have been described using as an example a case where the lending target determination unit 358 determines the battery 100 to be lent out in consideration of the priority determined by the priority determination unit 354 when at least one of the production plan for the battery 100, the current inventory quantity, and the predicted inventory quantity satisfies a predetermined condition. However, the battery exchange system 1 is not limited to this embodiment. The battery exchange system 1 may determine the battery 100 to be provided to the user U based on at least one of the production plan for the battery 100, the current inventory quantity, and the predicted inventory quantity.

[0071] For example, the lending target determination unit 358 determines the battery 100 to be provided to the user U based on at least one of a production plan for the battery 100, a current value of the inventory quantity, and a predicted value of the inventory quantity. The priority determination unit 354 may determine the priority of the battery 100 to be provided to the user U based on at least one of a production plan for the battery 100, a current value of the inventory quantity, and a predicted value of the inventory quantity.

[0072] 8. Configuration of Management Device 400 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the system configuration of the management device 400. The management device 400 includes, for example, a storage unit 410, a status monitoring unit 420, a distribution management unit 430, a battery management unit 440, a request processing unit 450, a user attribute notification unit 460, an incentive granting unit 470, and a usage restriction unit 480. These components are implemented by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be implemented by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI (Large Scale Integration), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or may be implemented by a combination of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device such as an HDD, SSD, or flash memory (a storage device with a non-transitory storage medium), or may be stored in a removable storage medium (a non-transitory storage medium) such as a DVD or CD-ROM, and installed by inserting the storage medium into a drive device.

[0073] The storage unit 410 includes, for example, a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD, an SSD, or a flash memory. The storage unit 410 is used as a storage area for various information related to the operation of the management device 400. The storage unit 410 stores, for example, battery information 412, station information 414, and user information 416. The battery information 412 includes various information related to each battery 100 to be managed. For example, the battery information 412 includes, for each battery, information indicating the amount of power stored in that battery. The information indicating the amount of power stored in the battery may be the SOC value of the battery. The battery information 412 also includes, for each battery, information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery. The information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery may be the value of any index indicating the deterioration state of the battery.

[0074] The station information 414 includes various information related to each battery station device 300 to be managed. For example, the station information 414 includes, for each battery station, identification information for one or more batteries 100 held by the battery station. The user information 416 includes various information related to the user U. For example, the user information 416 includes, for each user, information indicating the user attributes of the user. More specifically, the user information 416 may include, for each user, information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to the user's past use. The information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to each user's past use is not particularly limited as long as it indicates the degree of deterioration that occurred during the period when each user used any battery 100. The information indicating the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to each user's past use may be information indicating the difference in an index related to the deterioration of the battery 100 before and after the user used the battery 100.

[0075] The status monitoring unit 420 monitors each of the battery station devices 300 that are the management targets. The status monitoring unit 420 acquires information about the status of the battery station device 300 from each of the battery station devices 300 that are the management targets, and manages the acquired information as station information 414. The status monitoring unit 420 monitors each of the batteries 100 that are the management targets. For example, the status monitoring unit 420 acquires information about the status of the battery 100 stored in the battery station device 300 from each of the battery station devices 300 that are the management targets, and manages the acquired information as battery information 412. The status monitoring unit 420 monitors the status of a user. For example, the status monitoring unit 420 acquires information about the user from the user terminal device 500, and manages the acquired information as user information 416.

[0076] The distribution management unit 430 manages the distribution of the battery 100. For example, the distribution management unit 430 manages the number of batteries 100 distributed in the market. The distribution management unit 430 may also manage the production of the battery 100. The distribution management unit 430 includes, for example, a user attribute determination unit 432, a production management unit 434, and a policy determination unit 436. The user attribute determination unit 432 determines the user attributes of one or more users U. For example, the user attribute determination unit 432 determines the user attributes related to the usage manner of the battery 100 for each user based on the past usage history of each user. The user attribute determination unit 432 may also determine the user attributes of the user U based on the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 due to use by the user U. Examples of the degree of deterioration include (i) the amount of deterioration over a period of a predetermined length and (ii) the rate of deterioration. Examples of the deterioration amount include the amount of decrease in full charge capacity and the amount of increase in internal resistance. The rate at which the deterioration progresses is exemplified by the rate at which the full charge capacity decreases and the rate at which the internal resistance increases.

[0077] For example, every time the user U uses the battery 100, the user attribute determination unit 432 determines the degradation state of the battery 100 before the user U uses the battery 100 and the degradation state of the battery 100 after the user U uses the battery 100. The user attribute determination unit 432 determines the amount of change in the degradation state of the battery 100 based on the degradation state before the user U uses the battery 100 and the degradation state after the user U uses the battery 100. The user attribute determination unit 432 classifies each user into a plurality of categories based on the amount of change in the degradation state of the battery 100. In this way, a user attribute related to the usage mode of the battery 100 of each user is determined.

[0078] Furthermore, for example, the user attribute determination unit 432 acquires, for each user U, information regarding the state of the battery 100 during the rental period of the battery 100. Examples of the state of the battery 100 include the output of the battery 100, the SOC of the battery 100, the DOD of the battery 100, and the temperature of the battery 100. The user attribute determination unit 432 may estimate the degradation state of the battery 100 based on the state of the battery 100. For example, when at least one of the SOC and the temperature of the battery 100 is within a predetermined numerical range, the user attribute determination unit 432 calculates the length of a period or the frequency of occurrence in which the output of the battery 100 exceeds a predetermined threshold. The user attribute determination unit 432 estimates the degradation state of the battery 100 based on the length of the period or the frequency of occurrence. The user attribute determination unit 432 classifies each user into multiple categories based on the estimated value of the degradation state of the battery 100. As a result, a user attribute related to the usage manner of the battery 100 of each user is determined.

[0079] The user attributes determined by the user attribute determination unit 432 may be represented by a predetermined classification of usage trends (for example, see the simplified display described later), or may be the usage trends themselves (for example, see the detailed display described later) grasped for each user U. Furthermore, the user attributes determined by the user attribute determination unit 432 may indicate the usage patterns of each battery 100, or may be statistics of these usage patterns for each battery station device 300.

[0080] The production management unit 434 manages the production of the battery 100. For example, the production management unit 434 creates a production plan for the battery 100. The production plan for the battery 100 is information in which information indicating a period is associated with information indicating the production quantity of the battery 100 during that period. For example, the production management unit 434 can create a production plan for the battery 100 based on statistical information on the degradation state of the batteries 100 circulating in the market. When the battery 100A whose degradation state has reached a collection standard is collected from the market, the distribution of the degradation state of the batteries 100 circulating in the market changes. By the production management unit 434 creating a production plan for the battery 100 based on statistical information on the degradation state of the batteries 100 circulating in the market, the above-mentioned change in the distribution of the degradation state of the batteries 100 can be fed back to the production plan.

[0081] The policy determination unit 436 determines a policy. As described above, examples of the policy include a policy for increasing the number of collected batteries 100, a policy for decreasing the number of collected batteries 100, and a policy for prioritizing charging efficiency of the batteries 100 over adjusting deterioration of the batteries 100. More specifically, the policy determination unit 436 determines a policy based on the production number, inventory number, collected number, etc. of the batteries 100, and transmits the determined policy to each of the one or more battery station devices 300.

[0082] For example, the policy determination unit 436 acquires information indicating a production plan for the batteries 100 from the production management unit 434. This allows the policy determination unit 436 to acquire information indicating the production quantity or inventory quantity of the batteries 100. The policy determination unit 436 also acquires information indicating the degradation state of the batteries 100 circulating in the market from the battery management unit 440. The policy determination unit 436 can estimate the number of batteries 100 to be collected based on the degradation state of the batteries 100 circulating in the market.

[0083] The battery management unit 440 manages one or more batteries 100. The battery management unit 440 manages, for example, at least one of the operating state, charging state, storage state, and degradation state of the battery 100 to be managed. For example, the battery management unit 440 acquires, from each of the battery station devices 300 to be managed, information regarding at least one of the operating state, charging state, storage state, and degradation state of the battery 100 stored in the battery station device 300. The battery management unit 440 acquires, for example, information indicating the amount of power stored in each of one or more batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300. The battery management unit 440 may also acquire information indicating the SOC of each of the one or more batteries 100. The battery management unit 440 stores the various pieces of information regarding the state of the battery 100 acquired in this manner as battery information 412.

[0084] The request processing unit 450 accepts various requests from the user U to the battery exchange system 1 from the user terminal device 500, processes the accepted requests, and supplies the processing results to the requesting user terminal device 500. As described above, examples of the requests include a search request for searching for a battery station device 300 that meets specific conditions, a reservation request for reserving any or a specific battery 100 stored in a specific battery station device 300, and the like.

[0085] The user attribute notification unit 460 notifies the user terminal device 500 of the user attributes of the user U. Notification of the user attributes to the user terminal device 500 may be performed at any timing. For example, the user attribute notification unit 460 may notify the user attributes at the timing when the user attribute determination unit 432 determines the user attributes of the user U, or may be configured to notify the user attributes that have not been notified at a predetermined date and time.

[0086] Furthermore, the user attribute notification unit 460 controls notification of the user attributes to the user U. Specifically, the user attribute notification unit 460 controls notification of the user attributes to the user U by controlling the user terminal device 500. For example, the user attribute notification unit 460 may specify a condition for the user terminal device 500 to notify the user U of the user attributes. By such control, the user attribute notification unit 460 can differentiate the timing of notifying the user terminal device 500 of the user attributes from the timing of notifying the user U of the user attributes. Note that the condition for the user terminal device 500 to notify the user U of the user attributes may be set in the user terminal device 500 in advance. In this case, the user attribute notification unit 460 does not need to have a function of controlling notification of the user attributes to the user U. The user attribute notification unit 460 is an example of a "notification control unit," and the user terminal device 500 is an example of an "output device."

[0087] The incentive granting unit 470 grants an incentive to the user U according to the usage tendency of the battery 100 by the user U. More specifically, the incentive granting unit 470 compares a first user attribute, which is the most recent one of the user attributes (including usage tendency) notified to the user U by the user attribute notifying unit 460, with a second user attribute notified before the first user attribute, and grants a predetermined incentive to the user U if the degree of discrepancy between the usage tendency based on the first user attribute and the usage tendency based on the second user attribute is equal to or less than a predetermined value. The incentive to be granted may be of any kind. For example, the incentive granting unit 470 may grant money or points that can be used to cover part or all of the usage fee of the battery 100 as an incentive. The usage fee of the battery 100 may be charged on a pay-per-use basis or a fixed fee. Furthermore, if the usage fee of the battery 100 is charged on a pay-per-use basis, the incentive granting unit 470 may determine the amount of the incentive to be granted according to the amount of usage by the user U. Here, the usage trend based on the first user attribute is an example of a "first usage trend," and the usage trend based on the second user attribute is an example of a "second usage trend."

[0088] The usage restriction unit 480 restricts the use of the battery 100. More specifically, the usage restriction unit 480 compares a first user attribute, which is the most recent one of the user attributes (including usage trends) notified to the user U by the user attribute notification unit 460, with a second user attribute notified before the first user attribute. If the usage trends based on the first user attribute differ from the usage trends based on the second user attribute, the usage restriction unit 480 instructs the battery station device 300 to record restriction information related to usage restrictions of the battery in the storage unit 110 of the battery 100 to be lent when the battery station device 300 lends the battery 100 to the user U. For example, the restriction information includes output restriction information for restricting the output of the battery and charge restriction information for restricting the amount of charge of the battery. The restriction information recorded in the storage unit 110 of the battery 100 is read by the electric motorcycle 200 to which the battery is attached, and the vehicle control unit 220 restricts the use of the battery 100 based on the read restriction information.

[0089] The usage restriction based on the usage tendency of the user U may be implemented in combination with a usage restriction based on the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 (hereinafter referred to as "normal usage restriction"). For example, the usage restriction unit 480 may implement only the normal usage restriction when the user U uses the battery 100 in the manner recommended by the notification of the user attribute, and may implement the usage restriction based on the usage tendency in addition to the normal usage restriction when the user U does not use the battery 100 in the manner recommended by the notification of the user attribute. Furthermore, the usage restriction unit 480 may be configured not to implement the usage restriction based on the usage tendency for a user U for whom the user attribute notification unit 460 has not notified the user U. Examples of situations in which the user attribute is not notified to the user U include when the user attribute determination unit 432 cannot determine the usage tendency of the target user U (for example, when the user U is using the battery for the first time or when sufficient battery state information has not been accumulated to obtain statistics).

[0090] Furthermore, the usage restriction based on the usage tendency does not necessarily have to be imposed in a direction of tightening the restriction, and may be imposed in a direction of loosening the restriction as necessary. For example, if a policy is decided to accelerate the deterioration of the battery 100 loaned to the user U in order to control the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 distributed in the market, the usage restriction unit 480 may impose a usage restriction based on the usage tendency in a direction of loosening the restriction. For example, if the loan target determination unit 358 selects a user U who is likely to accelerate deterioration in accordance with the policy, the usage restriction unit 480 may impose a usage restriction based on the usage tendency in a direction of loosening the restriction on the user U.

[0091] Conversely, for example, if a policy is determined to suppress the deterioration of the battery 100 loaned to the user U in order to control the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 distributed in the market, the usage restriction unit 480 may impose a usage restriction based on the usage tendency in a direction that makes the restriction stricter. For example, the usage restriction unit 480 may impose a usage restriction based on the usage tendency in a direction that makes the restriction stricter for the user U selected by the loan target determination unit 358 as having a high possibility of suppressing deterioration in accordance with the policy. Not limited to the above example, whether to tighten or relax the usage restriction based on the usage tendency may be arbitrarily adjusted depending on the policy, the deterioration state of the battery 100, and the like, as long as it is in line with the purpose of controlling the degree of deterioration of the battery 100 distributed in the market.

[0092] [9. Configuration of user terminal device] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a user terminal device 500. The user terminal device 500 includes, for example, a storage unit 510, an input unit 520, a display unit 530, and a control unit 540. These components are realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU executing a program (software). Some or all of these components may be realized by hardware (including circuitry) such as an LSI, ASIC, FPGA, or GPU, or may be realized by a combination of software and hardware. The program may be stored in advance in a storage device such as an HDD, SSD, or flash memory (a storage device having a non-transitory storage medium), or may be stored in a removable storage medium (a non-transitory storage medium) such as a DVD or CD-ROM, and installed by inserting the storage medium into a drive device.

[0093] The storage unit 510 includes, for example, a non-volatile storage device such as an HDD, an SSD, or a flash memory. The storage unit 510 is used as a storage area for various information related to the operation of the user terminal device 500. The storage unit 510 stores, for example, an application program (hereinafter referred to as a "request application") AP used by the user U to send various requests related to the lending of the battery 100 to the management device 400.

[0094] The input unit 520 includes input devices such as a mouse, keyboard, and touch panel. The input unit 520 accepts various operations input by the user U, converts the input operations into electrical signals, and outputs the electrical signals to the control unit 540. The input unit 520 may be equipped with an audio input device such as a microphone and configured to accept operation input by audio input. Furthermore, when the input unit 520 includes a touch panel, the input unit 520 may be configured integrally with the display unit 530. Furthermore, the input unit 520 is not limited to being an input device configured as a part of the user terminal device 500. For example, the input unit 520 may be configured as an input interface that inputs electrical signals indicating operations for the user terminal device 500 from an external device configured separately from the user terminal device 500.

[0095] The display unit 530 is configured using a display device such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display, a liquid crystal display, or an organic EL display. Alternatively, the display unit 530 may be configured as an interface that connects these display devices to the display unit 530. For example, the screen of the requested application is displayed on the display unit 530.

[0096] The control unit 540 controls the operation of each unit of the user terminal device 500. The control unit 540 includes, for example, a request unit 541, a notification receiving unit 542, and a display control unit 543. For example, the notification receiving unit 542 and the display control unit 543 are configured by the control unit 540 executing a request application. The request unit 541 makes various requests to the management device 400 in response to operations by the user U. As described above, examples of the various requests include a request to search for battery station devices 300 that meet specific conditions, a request to reserve the rental of an arbitrary or specific battery 100 stored in a specific battery station device 300, and the like. For example, the request unit 541 accepts requests via various interfaces arranged on the screen of the request application, transmits the requests to the management device 400, and receives processing results related to the requests from the management device 400.

[0097] The notification receiving unit 542 receives a notification of user attributes from the management device 400 for a user U who uses the user terminal device 500. The notification receiving unit 542 records the received user notification in the storage unit 510 in association with the identification information of the user U.

[0098] The display control unit 543 executes a display control process for controlling the screen display of the requesting application. The display control process includes a process for performing a screen transition or a screen update in accordance with an operation of the requesting application, a process for recognizing the operation content on the screen and coordinating with the request unit 541, and the like.

[0099] [10. Display of user attributes] 9 and 10 are diagrams showing examples of user attribute display modes. Regarding the user attribute display mode, FIG. 9 shows an example of a simplified display, and FIG. 10 shows an example of a detailed display. As described above, the user attributes are attributes related to the usage of the battery 100 and include the usage trends of the battery 100 by the user U. The simplified display example of FIG. 9 defines three types of user attributes: HARD, NORMAL, and ECO, and displays the relationship between output and usage for each attribute. In this example, the user attribute determination unit 432 determines the output and usage trends (usage trends) based on the current value, voltage value, DOD (Depth of Discharge) value, and other data recorded in the battery information 412 when the user U uses the battery, and can determine whether the battery falls into HARD, NORMAL, or ECO. The usage trends may be statistically representative values ​​such as the average, median, mode, maximum, and minimum values ​​of the output and DOD. In this case, the display control unit 543 may highlight the relevant attribute, or may superimpose the usage tendency (output and DOD) of the user U on the relevant attribute as shown in FIG.

[0100] The example of the detailed display in Fig. 10 represents the usage tendency of the battery 100 by the user U by the observation frequency (i.e., histograms) of physical quantities measured for the battery. Here, an example is shown in which the usage tendency is represented by a histogram of current values, a histogram of voltage values, a histogram of temperature, or a histogram of SOC (or DOD), but the physical quantities representing the usage tendency are not limited to these types, and histograms of other types of physical quantities may also be displayed. In Fig. 10, each histogram is described as representing a different usage tendency, but any one type of histogram or multiple types of histograms may be displayed for the usage tendency of a certain user U.

[0101] Furthermore, the example of the detailed display in FIG. 10 visualizes the appropriateness of the usage trends of user U by using, in addition to the histogram, a recommended usage range indicating the range of usage trends recommended for the target battery 100 and a limited usage range indicating the range of usage trends in which the output of the battery may be limited. The recommended usage range and the limited usage range are appropriately set by the company that supplies battery 100 to user U (hereinafter referred to as the "battery company") according to the deterioration state of battery 100. Generally, factors that cause battery deterioration include high current or voltage values ​​during use, long usage periods at low or high temperatures, and usage with a large DOD (SOC swing). Usage with a large DOD can be said to mean a small SOC after use. The detailed display in FIG. 10 visualizes the usage trends of user U's battery 100 from the perspective of these factors. This detailed display allows user U to recognize whether his or her usage of battery 100 is in line with the battery company's intentions.

[0102] For example, in a detailed display using current value (horizontal axis I) and temperature (horizontal axis T), the entire histogram is contained within the recommended usage range, allowing the user U to recognize that the way he or she is using the battery 100 is in line with the battery company's intention. On the other hand, in a detailed display using voltage value (horizontal axis V) and SOC (horizontal axis SOC), part of the histogram overlaps with the restricted usage range, allowing the user U to recognize that the way he or she is using the battery 100 may not be in line with the battery company's intention.

[0103] On the other hand, by allowing the user U to recognize his or her own user attributes (usage trends) through such detailed display, the battery manufacturer can increase the likelihood that the battery 100 will be used in the manner intended by the battery manufacturer, thereby making it easier to control the degree of deterioration of the batteries 100 circulating on the market.

[0104] For example, in a detailed display based on the current value (horizontal axis I), a battery company can suppress deterioration of the battery 100 by setting an appropriate usage limit range according to the state of the battery 100. For example, by setting a first usage limit range R11 on the positive side of the current value, deterioration due to discharging can be suppressed, and by setting a second usage limit range R12 on the negative side of the current value, deterioration due to charging (e.g., by regenerative power) can be suppressed. When restricting charging, the electric motorcycle 200 may control the display of the SOC so that the user U is not aware that charging is being restricted. For example, even if the apparent SOC from the user U is 100%, charging may actually be stopped at 80%.

[0105] Furthermore, for example, in a detailed display based on voltage values ​​(horizontal axis V), a battery company can set an appropriate usage limit range according to the state of the battery 100, thereby improving the availability of the battery 100, suppressing deterioration, and motivating the user U to use the battery 100 in the manner intended by the battery company. For example, a first usage limit range R21 can be set on the low-voltage side where output is unstable, thereby stabilizing the power supply from the battery 100. A second usage limit range R22 may also be set on the high-voltage side of the recommended usage range. For example, the second usage limit range R22 can be set as a range that restricts usage when a voltage value within this range is measured and a predetermined condition is met. For example, the predetermined condition may be that a voltage value within the range has been measured a predetermined number of times or more, or that a voltage value within the range has been continuously measured for a predetermined period of time (or a predetermined number of times) or more. By setting such a second usage limit range R22, usage within the range can be restricted while allowing a certain degree of tolerance, thereby suppressing deterioration of the battery 100 and improving availability. Furthermore, the battery manufacturer may set an incentive for the user U to refrain from using the battery 100 within the second usage restriction range R22. By setting such an incentive, it is possible to increase the possibility that the user U will use the battery 100 within the recommended usage range.

[0106] Furthermore, for example, in a detailed display based on temperature (horizontal axis T), a battery manufacturer can improve the availability of battery 100 by setting an appropriate usage limit range according to the state of battery 100. Generally, the internal resistance of a battery increases with deterioration, and the more the battery deteriorates, the more difficult it becomes to obtain a large output. Generally, the internal resistance of a battery tends to increase as the ambient temperature decreases. Therefore, by setting a usage limit range R31 on the low-voltage side that is significantly affected by a voltage drop when the internal resistance increases, it is possible to stabilize the power supply by battery 100.

[0107] Furthermore, for example, in a detailed display based on SOC (SOC on the horizontal axis), a battery manufacturer can suppress deterioration of the battery 100 by setting an appropriate usage limit range according to the state of the battery 100. Generally, a battery tends to deteriorate more rapidly the longer it is used with a low SOC. Therefore, by setting a first usage limit range R41 on the low SOC side, deterioration of the battery 100 can be suppressed. Generally, a battery tends to deteriorate more rapidly the longer it is used with a high SOC. Therefore, by setting a second usage limit range R42 on the high SOC side of the recommended usage range, deterioration of the battery 100 can be suppressed. This allows for limiting use at voltage values ​​within the second usage limit range R42 to a certain extent, thereby suppressing deterioration of the battery 100 and improving availability. Note that, since SOC and DOD are complementary to each other, the usage limit range may be set using DOD values ​​instead of SOC values.

[0108] [11. Notification of user attributes] 11 and 12 are diagrams showing examples of notification modes of user attributes. For example, Fig. 11 shows an example of a notification mode when the user attributes of user U correspond to the ECO type in the simplified display of Fig. 9. In this example, in addition to notification INF10 of the user attributes determined for user U, notification INF20 recommending that user U continue using the ECO type, warning INF30 about usage that deviates from the ECO type, etc. are notified. By notifying user attributes in this manner, user U can recognize his / her own usage tendencies before using battery 100 and can also recognize precautions to take when using the rented battery 100.

[0109] Furthermore, in the example of FIG. 11 , in addition to the information about the user attributes, a user interface INT40 for modifying the notified user attributes is provided together with the notification of the user attributes. By providing such a user interface INT40 together with the notification of the user attributes, if the user U is notified of user attributes that do not match his / her usage habits, he / she can request the battery provider to modify the user attributes. For example, when a user attribute modification is requested via the user interface INT40, the user attribute notification unit 460 may instruct the user attribute determination unit 432 to modify the user attributes. In this case, for example, the user attribute determination unit 432 may modify the user attributes by re-executing the process of determining the user attributes, or may determine as a new user attribute a user attribute that is closest to the user U's usage habits from among all attributes that can be set as user attributes, excluding the current attribute. Alternatively, the user interface INT40 may allow the user U to select the modified user attributes. In this case, the user attribute determination unit 432 may determine as the new user attribute the attribute selected by the user U.

[0110] 12 shows an example of a mode in which user attributes are notified in association with the position of the battery station device 300. In this case, the display control unit 543 displays, for a battery station device 300 selected as a display target from among the battery station devices 300 managed by the battery exchange system 1, the position of the battery station device 300 in association with user attributes (including usage trends) notified in advance about the user U from each battery station device 300. Whether or not to display the corresponding user attributes when displaying the position of the battery station device 300 may be selectively switched depending on settings or an operation by the user U. For example, when the display target battery station devices 300 are displayed on a map as in the example of FIG. 12, the display control unit 543 may display pop-ups P11 to P16 indicating the user attributes at positions on the map corresponding to each battery station device 300.

[0111] According to the battery exchange system 1 of this embodiment configured as described above, the system includes a battery station device 300 that authenticates a user U and exchanges the battery 100 used by the user U, and a management device 400 that manages user information including the user U's usage trends of the battery 100, which usage trends relate to the deterioration of the battery 100. The management device 400 includes a user attribute notification unit 460 that notifies the user U of the user U's usage trends of the battery 100, thereby making it possible to more appropriately control the deterioration state of batteries circulating in the market.

[0112] In this embodiment, the case where the user attributes are notified to the user terminal device 500 has been described, but the user attributes may be notified to the battery station device 300. In this embodiment, the case where the user attributes are displayed in the user terminal device 500 has been described, but the user attributes may be displayed in the battery station device 300. In this case, the user attribute notifying unit 460 of the management device 400 may be configured to notify the user attributes to the battery station device 300 as well as the user terminal device 500. In this case, the battery station device 300 may be configured to display the user attributes of the target user U on the operation unit 301 by including functional units similar to the notification receiving unit 542 and display control unit 543 of the user terminal device 500. In this way, displaying the user attributes in the battery station device 300 allows, for example, a user U who does not own the user terminal device 500 to recognize the user attributes. In this case, the operation unit 301 may be configured to display the user attributes of the user U notified by the user attribute notification unit 450 during the period from when the user U is authenticated to when the battery 100 is lent to the user U. By displaying the user attributes at such timing, the battery company can make the user U aware of their own user attributes before lending the battery 100 to the user U. Here, the operation unit 301 is an example of a "station display unit," and the battery station device 300 is an example of an "output device."

[0113] In the present embodiment, the case where the management device 400 is configured separately from the battery station device 300 has been described, but some of the functions of the management device 400 may be provided on the battery station device 300 side. For example, the function of the management device 400 to manage the user information 416 may be provided in the battery station device 300. In this case, the management device 400 may be configured to query the battery station device 300 for user information about the user U.

[0114] In this embodiment, the battery 100 is used as a power source for the electric motorcycle 200, but the use of the battery 100 is not limited to this embodiment. The battery 100 may be used as a power source for various electrical devices. The electrical devices may be mobile objects powered by an electric motor or stationary power storage devices. Examples of mobile objects include automobiles, motorcycles, stand-up vehicles with power units, ships, and aircraft. Examples of automobiles include gasoline-powered vehicles, diesel-powered vehicles, electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, hybrid vehicles, small commuter vehicles, and electric carts. Examples of motorcycles include motorcycles, tricycles, and electric bicycles. Examples of ships include ships, hovercrafts, jet skis, submarines, submersible boats, and underwater scooters. Examples of aircraft include airplanes, airships, balloons, helicopters, and drones.

[0115] In this embodiment, the details of the battery exchange system 1 have been described using an example in which the management device 400 manages one or more batteries 100 and one or more battery station devices 300. However, the battery exchange system 1 is not limited to this embodiment. At least one of the one or more battery station devices 300 may have at least some of the functions of the management device 400 described above. For example, at least one of the one or more battery station devices 300 may manage one or more batteries 100. At least one of the one or more battery station devices 300 may manage other battery station devices 300. In this case, the battery exchange system 1 may or may not include the management device 400.

[0116] In this embodiment, the details of the battery exchange system 1 have been described using as an example a case where the battery station device 300 determines a battery 100 to be lent out from among the multiple batteries 100 held by the battery station. However, the battery exchange system 1 is not limited to this embodiment. The management device 400 may determine a battery 100 to be lent out from among the multiple batteries 100 held by the battery station device 300.

[0117] The above-described embodiment can be expressed as follows. one or more storage media storing one or more computer-readable instructions; one or more processors coupled to the one or more storage media; The one or more processors execute the computer-readable instructions to: a station process for authenticating a user and replacing a battery used by the user; a management process for managing user information including a usage trend of the battery by the user, the usage trend being related to deterioration of the battery; a notification process for notifying the user of a usage trend of the battery by the user.

[0118] The above describes the form for carrying out the present invention using an embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0119] 1...battery exchange system, 18...vehicle sensor, 20...HMI, 22...GNSS receiver, 100...detachable battery, 110...memory unit, 120...power storage unit, 130...BMU, 131...measurement sensor, 132...memory unit, 140...connection unit, 200...electric motorcycle, 210...battery connection unit, 220...vehicle control unit, 230...driving force output device, 300...battery station device, 301...operation unit, 320...charging unit, 322...battery storage chamber, 324...measuring instrument, 326...charging circuit, 340...control unit, 342...communication control unit, 344...charge / discharge control unit, 346...rental management unit, 348...memory unit, 352...status Status monitoring unit, 354...priority order determination unit, 358...lending target determination unit, 400...management device, 410...storage unit, 412...battery information, 414...station information, 416...user information, 420...status monitoring unit, 430...distribution management unit, 432...user attribute determination unit, 434...production management unit, 436...policy determination unit, 440...battery management unit, 450...request processing unit, 460...user attribute notification unit, 470...incentive granting unit, 480...usage restriction unit, 500...user terminal device, 510...storage unit, 520...input unit, 530...display unit, 540...control unit, 541...request unit, 542...notification receiving unit, 543...display control unit

Claims

1. A battery exchange system including a station device and a management device, the station device that authenticates a user and replaces a battery used by the user with another battery in storage; a management unit that manages user information including a usage trend related to deterioration of the battery by the user; and a notification control unit that controls an output device to output to the user a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user; The management device includes: A battery exchange system comprising:

2. a user terminal device used by the user; The user terminal device a notification receiving unit that receives a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user output from the notification control unit of the management device; a display control unit that, when displaying the location of the station device on a display unit, displays on the display unit the usage trend of the battery by the user, which is received by the notification receiving unit, together with the location of the station device; Equipped with The battery exchange system of claim 1 .

3. the user terminal device further includes a request unit that transmits to the management device a request for correction of the usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user output from the notification control unit of the management device; the management unit of the management device corrects the usage trend of the user regarding the deterioration of the battery in response to receiving the request for correction from the request unit of the user terminal device. The battery exchange system according to claim 2 .

4. the station device further includes a station display unit that displays a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user output from the notification control unit of the management device; The battery exchange system of claim 1 .

5. The station display unit displays a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user from the time the authentication of the user is performed until the battery is replaced with the other battery. The battery exchange system according to claim 4 .

6. the management device further includes an incentive granting unit that compares a first usage trend, which is the most recent one of usage trends related to the deterioration of the battery by the user that the notification control unit has notified the user, with a second usage trend, which was notified before the first usage trend, and grants an incentive to the user when a degree of deviation between the first usage trend and the second usage trend is equal to or less than a predetermined value; The battery exchange system of claim 1 .

7. The management device further includes a usage limiting unit that compares a first usage trend, which is the most recent one of usage trends regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user that the notification control unit has output to the user, with a second usage trend that was output before the first usage trend, and, if the first usage trend and the second usage trend differ, instructs the station device to record, in a memory unit of the other battery, output limit information for limiting the output power of the other battery or charge limit information for limiting the amount of power charged to the other battery when replacing the battery with the other battery. The battery exchange system of claim 1 .

8. The display control unit displays, on the display unit, physical quantities measured for the battery as usage trends related to the deterioration of the battery by the user. The battery exchange system according to claim 2 .

9. The display control unit displays, in addition to the physical quantity, a recommended usage range indicating a range of usage trends recommended for the battery, and a usage restriction range indicating a range of usage trends in which output of the battery may be restricted. The battery exchange system according to claim 8 .

10. The management device further includes a policy determination unit that determines a policy that is a criterion for determining which battery is to be preferentially provided to the user from among the plurality of other batteries stored in the station device; the station device further includes a priority order determination unit that acquires the policy determined by the policy determination unit of the management device and determines a priority order when providing the plurality of other batteries based on the acquired policy. The battery exchange system of claim 1 .

11. A battery exchange system including a station device and a management device, the station device performs user authentication and replaces the battery used by the user with another battery in storage; the management device manages user information including usage trends related to deterioration of the battery by the user; the management device controls an output device to output to the user a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user; How to replace the battery.

12. 1. A management device in a battery exchange system including a station device that exchanges a battery used by a user with another battery in storage by authenticating the user, a management unit that manages user information including a usage trend related to deterioration of the battery by the user; a notification control unit that controls an output device to output to the user a usage trend regarding the deterioration of the battery by the user; A management device comprising:

Images