Display device, server, and method

Abstract

To make a user recognize easily information about the power rate required to charge a power storage device using a power facility in advance.SOLUTION: A mobile terminal 60 includes a display unit 624 and a control unit 630. The display unit 624 is configured to display a map image. The control unit 630 controls the display unit. In a case where the map image includes the installation position of at least one power facility, the control unit controls the display unit so as to display, on the map image, the rate-related information and the installation position of the at least one power facility. The at least one power facility is configured to charge a power storage device by supplying power to a target having the power storage device mounted thereon. The rate-related information is the information about the unit cost of the power for the charging.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a display device, a server, and a method.

Background Art

[0002] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-104680 (Patent Document 1) discloses a charging stand display system. This system includes an electric vehicle, a plurality of charging stands, and a display terminal. Each charging stand is installed outside the electric vehicle and is used to charge the battery of the electric vehicle. The display terminal displays the positions of the charging stands accessible to the electric vehicle overlaid on a map image around the electric vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Power facilities that can charge a power storage device by supplying power to an object equipped with the power storage device, such as an electric vehicle, have become widespread. Charging the power storage device using the power facility incurs an electricity charge. How much the electricity charge required for charging the power storage device is important for the user of the power facility. It is not preferable that the user cannot recognize information related to the electricity charge in advance or that it is difficult to recognize such information.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a display device, a server, and a method that can easily make a user recognize in advance information related to the electricity charge required for charging a power storage device using a power facility.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The display device of this disclosure comprises a display unit and a control unit. The display unit is configured to display a map image. The control unit controls the display unit. If the map image includes the location of at least one power facility, the control unit controls the display unit to display the charge-related information and location of at least one power facility on the map image. The at least one power facility is configured to charge a battery storage device by supplying power to an object on which the battery storage device is installed. The charge-related information is information related to the electricity charge rate for charging.

[0007] With the above configuration, each power facility's pricing information, along with its installation location, is displayed on the map image. This allows users to easily recognize the pricing information and installation location for each power facility in advance.

[0008] The server of this disclosure is configured to communicate with a display device configured to display the location of at least one power facility when the installation location of the power facility is included in a map image. The at least one power facility is configured to charge a battery by supplying power to an object that houses a battery. The server comprises a communication device and a processing device. The communication device acquires information indicating the electricity rate per unit for at least one power facility and information indicating the installation location of at least one power facility. The processing device sets the rate-related information for at least one power facility according to the electricity rate per unit. The rate-related information is information related to the electricity rate per unit. The communication device transmits the rate-related information to the display device.

[0009] The method of this disclosure is used to control a display device configured to display a map image. The method includes the steps of obtaining information indicating the electricity rate of at least one power facility, and controlling the display device to display rate-related information and installation location of at least one power facility on the map image. The at least one power facility is configured to charge a battery by supplying power to an object on which a battery is installed. The rate-related information is information relating to the electricity rate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to this disclosure, information related to the electricity charges required to charge energy storage devices using power facilities can be easily made known to users in advance. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This diagram schematically shows the configuration of a power processing system according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This diagram shows the server configuration in detail. [Figure 3] This diagram shows the configuration of a mobile device in detail. [Figure 4] This diagram shows the configuration of the vehicle and power equipment in detail. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates the data structure of the equipment database. [Figure 6] This diagram illustrates the data structure of the vehicle database. [Figure 7] This figure illustrates the screen displayed on the display unit in Embodiment 1. [Figure 8] This diagram illustrates a method for predicting the electricity cost required from the start to the completion of external charging. [Figure 9] This figure illustrates another example of the screen displayed on the display unit in Embodiment 1. [Figure 10] This flowchart illustrates the processes performed in relation to information provision processing. [Figure 11]This is a diagram illustrating the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 1. [Figure 12] This is a diagram illustrating another example of the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 1. [Figure 13] This is a diagram illustrating the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 2. [Figure 14] This is a diagram illustrating another example of the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 2. [Figure 15] This is a diagram illustrating the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 3. [Figure 16] This is a diagram illustrating the screen displayed on the display unit in Modified Example 4. [Figure 17] This is a flowchart illustrating the processing executed by the server in Embodiment 2. [Figure 18] This is a flowchart illustrating the processing executed by the server in a modified example of Embodiment 2.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The same or corresponding parts in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals and their description will not be repeated.

[0013] [Embodiment 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a power processing system according to Embodiment 1. Referring to FIG. 1, the power processing system 1 includes a power company server 10, a facility management server 20, a plurality of power facilities 25, an information providing server 30, a vehicle management server 40, a plurality of vehicles 50, and a mobile terminal 60.

[0014] The power company server 10 stores unit price information 15. The unit price information 15 indicates the power rate unit price of the commercial power supply PS. This power rate unit price changes with time. The power company server 10 manages the situation of the power supply-demand balance in the power grid PG. This situation indicates how much more or less the power demand is than the power supply in the power grid PG.

[0015] The facility management server 20 is configured to communicate with the power company server 10 and each power facility 25, and manages each power facility 25. The facility management server 20 obtains balance information BI, which shows the status of the power supply and demand balance, from the power company server 10. The facility management server 20 stores a facility database (DB) 200 that shows various information about each power facility 25. The facility DB 200 will be explained in detail later.

[0016] Each power equipment 25 is configured to charge an object on which an energy storage device is mounted by supplying power to that object. The object may be a stationary object, but in Embodiment 1, it is a mobile object that moves by consuming the power of the energy storage device, for example, a vehicle 50. The plurality of power equipment 25 includes power equipment 25A to 25E. Each of the power equipment 25A to 25E is located in the area surrounding the current location of user U (neighborhood area). The neighborhood area is defined as an area within a predetermined distance (for example, 1 km) from the current location of user U.

[0017] The electricity rate for power equipment 25 is the rate for electricity supplied from power equipment 25 to the target object, and corresponds to the electricity rate for external charging (described later). The electricity rate for power equipment 25A is unrelated to the electricity rate of commercial power supply PS and is constant over time. Power equipment 25 such as power equipment 25A, where the electricity rate is constant over time, is also referred to as "normal equipment" for convenience. On the other hand, the electricity rates for each of power equipment 25B to 25E depend on the electricity rates of commercial power supply PS and change over time. Power equipment 25 such as each of power equipment 25B to 25E, where the electricity rate changes over time, is also referred to as "DP (Dynamic Pricing) equipment" for convenience. Dynamic pricing for electricity rates is a method of changing the electricity rate according to the supply and demand balance in the power grid PG. The electricity rate for DP equipment may change in real time. DP equipment corresponds to "First Equipment" in this disclosure. The standard equipment corresponds to "Second Equipment" in this disclosure.

[0018] The information provision server 30 communicates with the equipment management server 20, the vehicle management server 40, the vehicle 50, and the mobile terminal 60. The information provision server 30 performs the process of providing various information regarding the power equipment 25 (for example, information indicating the installation location of the power equipment 25) to the user U on the mobile terminal 60 via screen display. This process is also referred to as the "information provision process." Hereinafter, the information provision server 30 will also be simply referred to as "server 30."

[0019] The vehicle management server 40 communicates with each vehicle 50 and manages each vehicle 50. The vehicle management server 40 stores a vehicle database (DB) 400 that contains various information about each vehicle 50. The vehicle DB 400 will be explained in detail later.

[0020] Each vehicle 50 is equipped with a power storage device 500 and is configured to perform external charging, which involves charging the power storage device 500 using the power equipment 25. Vehicle 50 is an example of a mobile body that can be externally charged.

[0021] The mobile terminal 60 is used to search for power equipment 25 within an area of ​​interest to user U of vehicle 50, from among multiple power equipment 25. The area of ​​interest to user U is determined by user operation on the mobile terminal 60, and in this example, it is the aforementioned nearby area. In response to user operation instructing a search for power equipment 25 in the nearby area, the mobile terminal 60 sends a search request SR to the server 30. The search request SR includes user U's user ID and user U's location information. The user ID is pre-associated with the ID information (described later) of vehicle 50 owned by user U. In response to receiving the search request SR, the server 30 performs information provision processing regarding power equipment 25 in the nearby area. The mobile terminal 60 corresponds to an example of a “display device” in this disclosure.

[0022] Figure 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of server 30 in detail. Referring to Figure 2, server 30 includes a storage device 305, a communication device 310, and a processing unit 315.

[0023] The storage device 305 stores various data used by the processing device 315 (for example, map DB 317). The communication device 310 communicates with external devices of the server 30, such as the equipment management server 20, the vehicle management server 40, or the vehicle 50. The communication device 310 is configured to be able to obtain various information from the equipment DB 200 and various information from the vehicle DB 400 via communication from the equipment management server 20 and the vehicle management server 40, respectively.

[0024] The processing unit 315 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 316 and a memory 318. The CPU 316 performs various arithmetic operations. The memory 318 includes ROM (Read Only Memory) and RAM (Random Access Memory) (neither of which are shown). The processing unit 315 performs information provision processing regarding the power equipment 25 according to the data stored in the storage device 305 and the information acquired by the communication device 310.

[0025] Figure 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the mobile terminal 60 in detail. Referring to Figure 3, the mobile terminal 60 includes a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver 605, a communication device 610, and an HMI (Human Machine Interface) device 620.

[0026] The GPS receiver 605 acquires location information of the mobile terminal 60 based on radio waves from satellites. The communication device 610 communicates with external devices of the mobile terminal 60, such as the server 30. The communication device 610 transmits, for example, the location information of the mobile terminal 60 to the server 30. The communication device 610 is also configured to perform proximity communication. The HMI device 620 includes a touchscreen 621 and a control unit 630.

[0027] The touchscreen 621 includes an input unit 622 and a display unit 624. The input unit 622 receives input from user U (user operation). The display unit 624 displays various screens, such as a screen containing a map image, and displays the location information of the mobile terminal 60 on the map image. The display unit 624 is also configured to display the installation location of at least one power equipment 25 on the map image. The control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 according to user operations to the input unit 622.

[0028] Figure 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vehicle 50 and the power equipment 25 in detail. In this example, user U is inside the vehicle 50, and the mobile terminal 60 is being carried by user U.

[0029] Referring to Figure 4, the vehicle 50 includes a power storage device 500, a sensor unit 512, an SMR (System Main Relay) 515, a PCU (Power Control Unit) 520, an MG (Motor Generator) 530, drive wheels 540, a vehicle speed sensor 542, and an acceleration sensor 543. The vehicle 50 further includes an inlet 550, a charging relay 551, a communication device 570, a GPS receiver 571, an HMI device 545, a power converter 552, an auxiliary battery 553, auxiliary components 555, a DLC connector 585, and an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 580.

[0030] The energy storage device 500 is a secondary battery such as a lithium-ion battery. The amount of energy stored in the energy storage device 500 is expressed by the State of Charge (SOC). The sensor unit 512 includes a voltage sensor, a current sensor, and a temperature sensor (none of which are shown) that detect the voltage, current, and temperature of the energy storage device 500, respectively. The SMR 515 is installed between the energy storage device 500 and the PCU 520. The SMR 515 is turned on while the vehicle 50 is running.

[0031] The PCU520 includes a converter and an inverter (neither of which are shown). The PCU520 converts the DC power received from the energy storage device 500 into AC power. The MG530 receives the AC power converted by the PCU520 and generates rotational driving force. The driving force generated by the MG530 is transmitted to the drive wheels 540. This causes the vehicle 50 to move. The vehicle speed sensor 542 and the acceleration sensor 543 detect the vehicle speed and acceleration of the vehicle 50, respectively.

[0032] The inlet 550 receives power supplied from the commercial power supply PS through the power equipment 25. The inlet 550 is used for external charging. A charging relay 551 is installed between the energy storage device 500 and the inlet 550. The charging relay 551 is turned on during external charging.

[0033] The communication device 570 communicates wirelessly with both the server 30 and the vehicle management server 40. The communication device 570 is configured to receive the command value CCV and the upper limit value ULV from the server 30. The command value CCV is the command value for the power consumption of the electrical equipment of the auxiliary equipment 555. The upper limit value ULV is an upper limit related to the driving state of the vehicle 50, specifically the speed limit or acceleration limit of the vehicle 50. The command value CCV and the upper limit value ULV will be explained in detail later. The communication device 570 is also configured to communicate with the power equipment 25 via CAN (Controller Area Network). The data exchanged between the vehicle 50 and the power equipment 25 via CAN communication is also referred to as "CAN data". The CAN data includes information indicating the amount of power supplied from the power equipment 25 to the vehicle 50 from the start to the completion of external charging, information indicating the unit price of electricity for the power equipment 25, and information indicating the completion of external charging.

[0034] The GPS receiver 571 acquires location information indicating the current position of the vehicle 50 based on radio waves from artificial satellites. This location information is transmitted to the vehicle management server 40 by the communication device 570.

[0035] The HMI device 545 includes a touchscreen 546 and a control unit 547. The touchscreen 546 includes an input unit 548 and a display unit 549. The input unit 548 receives user input. The display unit 549 displays various screens, such as a screen containing a map image, and displays the location information of the vehicle 50 on the map image. Information indicating the map image is stored, for example, in the memory (not shown) of the HMI device 545. The display unit 549 is also configured to display the installation location of at least one power equipment 25 on the map image. The control unit 547 controls the display unit 549 according to user input to the input unit 548.

[0036] The power converter 552 converts (steps down) the voltage of the power from the energy storage device 500 and supplies power with the converted voltage to the auxiliary battery 553. This charges the auxiliary battery 553 using the power from the energy storage device 500 (pump charging). Pump charging is performed when the State of Charge (SOC) of the auxiliary battery 553 is low.

[0037] The auxiliary equipment 555 includes a heater 557 and an air conditioning unit 558. The heater 557 is an electrical device (auxiliary equipment) configured to heat the energy storage unit 500. The air conditioning unit 558 is an electrical device (auxiliary equipment) configured to regulate the temperature inside the vehicle 50. Each of the heater 557 and the air conditioning unit 558 operates by consuming power from the auxiliary battery 553. When the power from the auxiliary battery 553 is consumed, a pump-charge is performed to consume power from the energy storage unit 500. Therefore, it can also be considered that each of the heater 557 and the air conditioning unit 558 operates by consuming power from the energy storage unit 500.

[0038] The DLC (Data Link Connector) connector 585 is configured to connect to a proximity communication device 590. The proximity communication device 590 is an external device configured to transmit CAN data to the mobile terminal 60 via proximity communication such as Bluetooth®.

[0039] The ECU 580 includes a CPU and memory (neither of which are shown). The memory includes ROM and RAM. The ROM stores programs executed by the CPU. The ECU 580 receives detection values ​​from the sensor unit 512, the vehicle speed sensor 542, and the acceleration sensor 543. For example, the ECU 580 calculates the State of Charge (SOC) of the energy storage device 500 according to the detection value of the sensor unit 512 and transmits the calculation result to the vehicle management server 40.

[0040] The ECU 580 controls various components of the vehicle 50, including the SMR 515, PCU 520, MG 530, charging relay 551, communication device 570, HMI device 545, power converter 552, and auxiliary equipment 555. The ECU 580 is configured to control the power consumption of electrical equipment, such as the heater 557 or air conditioning unit 558 of the auxiliary equipment 555. For example, the ECU 580 can reduce the power consumption of electrical equipment by setting it to eco mode.

[0041] When the communication device 570 receives a command value CCV, the ECU 580 controls the power consumption of the electrical equipment according to the command value CCV. When the communication device 570 receives an upper limit value ULV, the ECU 580 controls the movement of the vehicle 50 according to the upper limit value ULV. Specifically, the ECU 580 controls the MG 530 through the PCU 520 so that the vehicle speed detected by the vehicle speed sensor 542 does not exceed the speed limit, or the acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor 543 does not exceed the acceleration limit.

[0042] The power equipment 25 includes an HMI device 250, a power converter 251, a communication device 252, a storage device 254, and a control device 256.

[0043] The HMI device 250 receives a user input to initiate external charging when the power equipment 25 is connected to the vehicle 50 via the charging cable 258. The HMI device 250 may also be configured to receive a user input to indicate the completion time of the external charging.

[0044] The power converter 251 converts AC power from the commercial power supply PS to DC power during external charging. The converted power is supplied to the inlet 550 through the charging cable 258 and connector 259.

[0045] The communication device 252 exchanges CAN data with the communication device 570 and communicates wirelessly with the equipment management server 20. For example, when the power equipment 25 is connected to the vehicle 50, the communication device 252 sends signal SG1 to the equipment management server 20. Signal SG1 indicates that the power equipment 25 is in use and the completion time of external charging.

[0046] The storage device 254 stores various information, including information indicating the electricity rate per unit for the power equipment 25. If the power equipment 25 is the aforementioned DP equipment, this rate may be set (changed) according to instructions from the equipment management server 20.

[0047] The control device 256 controls the HMI device 250, the power converter 251, and the communication device 252. The control device 256 starts or stops the power supply from the power converter 251 to the inlet 550 according to user operation using the HMI device 250. The control device 256 calculates the usage frequency of the power equipment 25 and stores the calculation result in the storage device 254. The usage frequency is, for example, the number of times or duration that the power equipment 25 supplied power to the vehicle 50 during a predetermined period (1 day, 1 week, 1 month). Information indicating the usage frequency may be transmitted from the power equipment 25 to the equipment management server 20.

[0048] Figure 5 illustrates the data structure of the equipment DB200 (Figure 1). Referring to Figure 5, the equipment DB200 includes ID data 205, pricing system data 210, pricing unit price data 215, and installation location data 220.

[0049] ID data 205 indicates the identification information of each power equipment 25 and includes ID information 206A to 206E. ID information 206A to 206E each indicates the identification information of power equipment 25A to 25E, respectively. Each of ID information 206A to 206E is also referred to as ID information 206.

[0050] The tariff system data 210 indicates the tariff system for each power facility 25 and includes tariff system information 211A to 211E. The tariff system information 211A to 211E indicates the tariff system for power facilities 25A to 25E, respectively. Each of the tariff system information 211A to 211E is also referred to as tariff system information 211. If the tariff system is standard, the corresponding power facility 25 is the standard facility described above. On the other hand, if the tariff system is dynamic pricing, the corresponding power facility 25 is the dynamic pricing facility described above.

[0051] The unit price data 215 shows the unit price of electricity for each power facility 25 and includes unit price information 216A to 216E. Unit price information 216A to 216E shows the unit price of electricity for power facilities 25A to 25E, respectively. Each of unit price information 216A to 216E is also referred to as unit price information 216. Unit price information 216A is normally constant over time for facilities. Each of unit price information 216B to 216E is set by the facility management server 20 according to the balance information BI (Figure 1) for DP facilities. For example, when the electricity demand in the power grid PG is greater than the electricity supply, the unit price of electricity is set higher as the difference between electricity demand and electricity supply increases. On the other hand, when the electricity demand in the power grid PG is less than the electricity supply, the unit price of electricity is set lower as the difference between electricity demand and electricity supply increases. Each of the rate information items 216B to 216E may be set to change in real time. Alternatively, each of the rate information items 216B to 216E may be set depending on which of a predetermined number of time periods the current time falls into (for example, the electricity rate during nighttime hours may be set lower than the rate during daytime hours).

[0052] The installation location data 220 indicates the installation location of each power equipment 25 and includes installation location information 221A to 221E. The installation location information 221A to 221E indicates the installation location of power equipment 25A to 25E, respectively. Each of the installation location information 221A to 221E is also referred to as installation location information 221. In this example, each installation location is represented by a combination of longitude (X), latitude (Y), and elevation (Z).

[0053] Figure 6 illustrates the data structure of the vehicle DB400 (Figure 1). Referring to Figure 6, the vehicle DB400 includes ID data 405, energy consumption data 410, SOC data 415, and vehicle position data 420.

[0054] ID data 405 indicates the identification information of each vehicle 50 and includes multiple ID information 406. ID information 406 indicates the identification information of the corresponding vehicle 50. Fuel efficiency data 410 indicates the fuel efficiency (km / kWh) of each vehicle 50 and includes multiple fuel efficiency information 411. Fuel efficiency information 411 indicates the fuel efficiency of the corresponding vehicle 50. Fuel efficiency is a standard for the driving distance of the vehicle 50 per unit power consumption in the energy storage device 500, and is predetermined as appropriate according to the type (model) of the vehicle 50.

[0055] The SOC data 415 indicates the SOC of each vehicle 50 and includes multiple SOC information 416. The SOC information 416 indicates the SOC of the corresponding vehicle 50. The vehicle position data 420 indicates the position information of each vehicle 50 and includes multiple vehicle position information 421. The vehicle position information 421 indicates the position information of the corresponding vehicle 50. The vehicle position information 421 is acquired by the GPS receiver 571 of the vehicle 50 and is represented by a combination of longitude (x), latitude (y), and altitude (z). Below, one of the multiple vehicles 50 will be described representatively.

[0056] When external charging is performed using the power equipment 25, electricity charges are incurred. The amount of electricity charges required for external charging is important to user U. It is undesirable for user U to be unable to recognize information related to electricity charges in advance, or to have difficulty recognizing such information.

[0057] The control unit 630 of the mobile terminal 60 according to Embodiment 1 controls the display unit 624 to display the price-related information and the location of at least one power equipment 25 on the map image if the location of at least one power equipment 25 is included in the map image. The price-related information is information related to the unit price of electricity for external charging (specifically, the unit price of electricity supplied from the power equipment 25 to the vehicle 50). The price-related information is set for each power equipment 25 by the server 30 (processing device 315) according to the unit price of electricity for each power equipment 25.

[0058] In Embodiment 1, the charge-related information is information indicating the electricity charges required to charge the energy storage device 500 to a predetermined charge level. The predetermined charge level is the amount of electricity required to be supplied from the power equipment 25 to the energy storage device 500 in order to raise the State of Charge (SOC) of the energy storage device 500 to a fully charged SOC (e.g., 80% or 100%). The fully charged SOC may be stored in the memory of the ECU 580 or set by the user U using the HMI device 250. The charge-related information is set as information indicating the predicted electricity charges required from the start to the completion of external charging. How these electricity charges are predicted will be explained in detail later.

[0059] As described above, when the fee-related information and installation location are displayed on the map image, the fee-related information is displayed on the map image for each power equipment 25 along with its installation location. This allows user U to easily recognize the fee-related information and installation location for each power equipment 25 in advance.

[0060] Figure 7 is an example of the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in Embodiment 1. This screen is displayed as a result of the information provision processing performed by the server 30.

[0061] Referring to FIG. 7, the screen 700 shows the position P0, the installation positions PA to PE, and the charge-related information 704-A to 704-E on the map image 708. The map image 708 is transmitted from the server 30 to the mobile terminal 60 according to the map DB 317 as an image showing the map of the aforementioned vicinity area.

[0062] The position P0 indicates the current position of the vehicle 50 at the time when the screen 700 is displayed. The installation positions PA to PE respectively correspond to the installation positions of the power facilities 25A to 25E. Each of the installation positions PA to PE is also represented as the installation position P.

[0063] The icons 702-A to 702-E respectively indicate the installation positions PA to PE. Each of the icons 702-A to 705-E is also represented as the icon 702. The icons 702-A to 702-E also indicate whether the power facilities 25A to 25E are normal facilities or DP facilities. Specifically, the non-hatched icon 702 (702-A) indicates the installation position P of the normal facility, and the hatched icons 702 (702-B to 702-E) indicate the installation position P of the DP facility.

[0064] The charge-related information 704-A to 704-E respectively indicate the power charges required from the start to the completion of external charging using the power facilities 25A to 25E. In Embodiment 1, this power charge is expressed in Japanese yen, but it may be expressed in other currencies (for example, dollars, euros, or renminbi) instead of Japanese yen. In this example, it is assumed that the charge-related information 704-C, 704-B, 704-A, 704-D, 704-E are shown in ascending order of the power charge (PR-C < PR-B < PR-A < PR-D < PR-E). Each of the charge-related information 704-A to 704-E is also represented as the charge-related information 704. The charge-related information 704 is shown adjacent to the corresponding installation position P, but it may be shown away from the installation position P as long as these corresponding relationships are clearly shown on the screen 700.

[0065] In this manner, the control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to display the charge-related information 704 and installation location P of each power facility 25 in the nearby area on the map image 708.

[0066] The control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display mode of the installation location P and charge-related information 704 for normal equipment and the display mode of the installation location P and charge-related information 704 for DP equipment, by hatching the icon 702 of the DP equipment among icons 702-A to 702-E, and displaying them on the map image 708. This makes it easy for the user U to recognize the installation location P and charge-related information 704 of the DP power equipment.

[0067] The control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display modes of at least one of the installation location P of normal equipment and the fee-related information 704, and the display modes of at least one of the installation location P of DP equipment and the fee-related information 704, and display them on the map image 708. For example, the control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display mode of the installation location P of normal equipment and the display mode of the installation location P of DP equipment, and display them on the map image 708. Alternatively, the control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display mode of the fee-related information 704 of normal equipment and the display mode of the fee-related information 704 of DP equipment, and display them on the map image 708.

[0068] Tag 706 is included in the rate-related information 704-C. Tag 706 indicates that power equipment 25 is the lowest-priced equipment. The lowest-priced equipment is the power equipment 25 with the lowest electricity rate among the multiple power equipment 25 displayed on screen 700 (in this example, power equipment 25C). Power equipment other than the lowest-priced equipment (power equipment 25A, 25B, 25D, and 25E, respectively) is also referred to as "non-lowest-priced equipment".

[0069] In this way, the control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to display the tag 706 on the display unit 624, thereby distinguishing between the display modes of the installation location P and fee-related information 704 for non-minimum-priced equipment and the display modes of the installation location P and fee-related information 704 for minimum-priced equipment, and displaying them on the map image 708. This makes it easy for the user U to recognize the installation location P (PC) of the minimum-priced equipment.

[0070] The control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display modes of at least one of the installation locations P of non-minimum-priced equipment and the fee-related information 704, and the display modes of at least one of the installation locations P of minimum-priced equipment and the fee-related information 704, and display them on the map image 708. For example, the control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display mode of the installation locations P of non-minimum-priced equipment and the display mode of the installation locations P of minimum-priced equipment, and display them on the map image 708. Alternatively, the control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to distinguish between the display mode of the fee-related information 704 of non-minimum-priced equipment and the display mode of the fee-related information 704 of minimum-priced equipment, and display them on the map image 708.

[0071] User U can select a planned power supply from among power supplies 25A to 25E by touching one of icons 702-A to 702-E. This touch operation is also referred to as the planned power supply selection operation. The planned power supply is the power supply that is scheduled to be used for external charging. Once a planned power supply is selected, the control unit 630 may control the communication device 610 to send a signal (planned power supply selection signal) to the server 30 indicating that a planned power supply has been selected and the ID of the planned power supply.

[0072] Figure 8 illustrates a method for predicting the electricity cost required from the start to the completion of external charging. This electricity cost is predicted by the server 30 for each power supply 25.

[0073] Referring to Figure 8, Graph 800 shows the State of Charge (SOC0) when the vehicle 50 is at position P0 and the State of Charge (SOC2) when external charging using the power equipment 25 is complete. When the SOC is SOC0, the vehicle 50 has not yet reached the power equipment 25. SOC2 is stored in the memory of the ECU 580 and is, for example, 80%. SOC2 may be set by the user using the HMI device 250. The difference between SOC0 and SOC2 is represented by ΔSOC1.

[0074] Graph 805 shows the predicted state of charge (SOC1) upon arrival at the power facility 25 when the vehicle 50 reaches it, and the state of charge (SOC2) upon completion of external charging. SOC1 is estimated as the state of charge at the start of external charging (start of charging SOC) and is ΔSOC2 lower than SOC0. In this example, SOC1 is estimated when the vehicle 50 is located at position P0.

[0075] Server 30 estimates SOC1 as follows: First, Server 30 calculates the distance from the vehicle's position P0 to the installation position P of the power equipment 25 to be processed. Server 30 predicts the power consumption of the energy storage device 500, assuming that the vehicle 50 travels to the power equipment 25, based on the above distance and the vehicle's energy consumption. Server 30 converts this power consumption into a decrease in SOC (ΔSOC2).

[0076] Server 30 estimates the State of Charge (SOC1) when the vehicle 50 reaches the power equipment 25 to be processed by subtracting ΔSOC2 from the current State of Charge (SOC0). Server 30 calculates ΔSOC3 as the difference between the charging completion SOC (SOC2), which is the State of Charge when external charging is complete, and the charging start SOC (SOC1), and converts ΔSOC3 into a power supply amount. ΔSOC3 is the sum of ΔSOC1 and ΔSOC2 and corresponds to the increase in SOC due to external charging. Server 30 predicts the power cost required from the start to the completion of external charging by multiplying the converted power supply amount by the power rate unit price of the power equipment 25 to be processed.

[0077] Thus, electricity charges are predicted for each power facility 25 according to the State of Charge (SOC) upon completion of charging, the State of Charge (SOC) upon start of charging which is estimated to be the SOC when the vehicle 50 reaches the corresponding power facility 25 (i.e., the power facility 25 to be processed), and the electricity rate per unit of the corresponding power facility 25.

[0078] The State of Charge (SOC) at the start of charging (SOC upon arrival) may vary depending on the amount of electricity consumed in the energy storage device 500 by the time the vehicle 50 reaches the power equipment 25 (distance between the vehicle 50 and the power equipment 25). As electricity charges are predicted as described above, the above electricity consumption is reflected in the electricity charges. This makes it possible to accurately calculate the electricity charges required from the start to the completion of external charging.

[0079] Figure 9 illustrates another example of the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in Embodiment 1. Referring to Figure 9, screen 710 shows location P0, installation locations PB and PC, and charge-related information 704-B and 704-C on the map image 708. Screen 710 differs from screen 700 (Figure 7) in that it does not show installation locations PA, PD and PE, and charge-related information 704-A, 704-D, and 704-E on the map image 708.

[0080] The control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to display the installation location P and price-related information 704 of the DP equipment on the map image 708 without displaying the installation location P and price-related information 704 of the normal equipment on the map image 708, when the electricity rate per unit of power equipment in the vicinity of the multiple power equipment 25 is lower than the electricity rate per unit of power equipment. On the other hand, the control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to omit the installation location P and price-related information 704 of the normal equipment and the installation location P and price-related information 704 of the DP equipment whose electricity rate per unit is higher than that of the normal equipment on the screen 710. In this example, the installation location P and price-related information 704 of power equipment 25B and 25C, which have lower electricity rates per unit than the normal equipment, are displayed, while the installation location P and price-related information 704 of power equipment 25A, 25D, and 25E are omitted.

[0081] Thus, according to screen 710, only the installation location P and rate-related information 704 of DP equipment with lower electricity rates than normal equipment are displayed. As a result, the user U can easily recognize the installation location P and rate-related information 704 of such DP equipment.

[0082] Information indicating the actual amount of power supplied from the power equipment 25 to the vehicle 50 from the start to the completion of external charging is included in the CAN data and is transmitted from the proximity communication device 590 to the mobile terminal 60 after the completion of external charging. After external charging, the control unit 630 calculates the actual amount of power supplied from the start to the completion of external charging according to the actual amount of power supplied and the electricity rate of the power equipment 25, and controls the display unit 624 to display the actual value. The actual value may be calculated by the power equipment 25 and transmitted to the mobile terminal 60 via the proximity communication device 590 as part of the CAN data.

[0083] When the actual electricity bill is displayed on the display unit 624, the user can be made aware of the degree of difference between the actual electricity bill and the predicted value.

[0084] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating the processes performed in relation to the information provision process described above. This flowchart is initiated by the mobile terminal 60 in response to a user operation instructing the search for power facilities 25 in the nearby area. Hereafter, each step will be abbreviated as "S".

[0085] Referring to Figure 10, the mobile terminal 60 sends a search request SR (Figure 1) to the server 30 (S201). The search request SR includes the user ID and the location information of user U.

[0086] When server 30 receives a search request SR (Figure 1), it accesses the equipment DB 200 and determines the power equipment 25 (more specifically, its ID information 206) in the nearby area according to the user U's location information and installation location data 220 (S104). In this example, the power equipment 25 in the nearby area are power equipment 25A to 25E. Next, server 30 obtains the installation location information 221 of each power equipment 25 in the nearby area from the equipment DB 200 (S105), and obtains the unit price information 216 of each power equipment 25 in the nearby area from the equipment DB 200 (S110).

[0087] Server 30 accesses the vehicle database 400 and determines the ID information 406 of the vehicle 50 that is pre-associated with the user ID included in the search request SR. Server 30 obtains the SOC information 416 and vehicle location information 421 of the determined vehicle 50 from the vehicle database 400 (S115). The vehicle location information 421 of vehicle 50 may be replaced with the location information of the mobile terminal 60, which is the location information of user U.

[0088] The server 30 calculates the distance from the vehicle 50 to each power equipment 25 in the vicinity area according to the installation location data 220 and the vehicle location data 420 (S120), and predicts the State of Charge (SOC) when the vehicle 50 arrives for each power equipment 25 (S125).

[0089] The server 30 predicts the electricity charges required for each power equipment 25 from the start to the completion of external charging, based on the charging start SOC as the arrival SOC for the corresponding power equipment 25, the charging completion SOC, and the electricity rate per unit for the power equipment 25 (S130).

[0090] The server 30 (communication device 310) transmits predicted charge information, which shows the predicted electricity charges for each power facility 25, to the mobile terminal 60 as charge-related information (S135). Furthermore, the server 30 transmits information indicating the installation location P around the user U's current location to the mobile terminal 60 along with the charge-related information.

[0091] When the mobile terminal 60 receives charge-related information (S240), it controls the display unit 624 to display the charge-related information 704 and the installation location P around the user U's current location on the map image 708 for each power equipment 25 (S245). Then, the aforementioned scheduled equipment determination operation is performed, and after the scheduled equipment determination signal is transmitted from the mobile terminal 60 to the server 30, the vehicle 50 reaches the scheduled equipment and external charging begins.

[0092] The mobile terminal 60 determines the completion of external charging according to the CAN data transmitted by the proximity communication device 590 (S250). The mobile terminal 60 calculates the actual value of the electricity charge (S255) and displays the actual value on the display unit 624 (S260). After that, the process shown in Figure 10 is completed.

[0093] As described above, according to Embodiment 1, the charge-related information 704 is displayed on the map image 708 for each power equipment 25 along with the installation location P. This allows the user U to easily recognize the charge-related information 704 and the installation location P for each power equipment 25 in advance.

[0094] [Modification 1 of Embodiment 1] Figure 11 illustrates the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in this modified example 1. Referring to Figure 11, screen 720 differs from screen 700 in that it further includes a button 725. Button 725 is operated to hide the installation location P and charge-related information 704 of the multiple power equipment 25 installation locations P and charge-related information 704. When the user U operates (presses) button 725, the control unit 630 responds to this user operation by controlling the display unit 624 to display screen 740 (change screen 720 to screen 730). The operation of pressing button 725 corresponds to the "first operation" of this disclosure.

[0095] Screen 730 displays only the installation location P and price-related information 704 of at least one DP (Dispatch Power) facility from among the installation locations P and price-related information 704 of multiple power facilities 25 on the map image 708. This allows user U to easily recognize the installation locations P and price-related information 704 of surrounding DP facilities. When button 735 on screen 730 is pressed, screen 730 returns to screen 720. Screen 730 is effective when there are DP facilities with lower electricity rates than normal facilities.

[0096] Figure 12 illustrates another example of a screen displayed on the display unit 624 in Modification 1. Referring to Figure 12, screen 740 differs from screen 700 in that it further includes a button 745. Button 745 is operated to hide the installation location P and charge-related information 704 of the installation location P and charge-related information 704 of the multiple power equipment 25. When the user U operates (presses) button 745, the control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to display screen 750 (change screen 740 to screen 750) in response to this user operation. The operation of pressing button 745 corresponds to the “second operation” of this disclosure.

[0097] Screen 750 displays only the installation location P and rate-related information 704 of at least one (in this example, one) normal facility from among the installation locations P and rate-related information 704 of multiple power facilities 25 on the map image 708. This allows user U to easily recognize the installation locations P and rate-related information 704 of surrounding normal facilities. When button 755 on screen 750 is pressed, screen 750 returns to screen 740. Screen 750 is effective when there are DP normal facilities with higher electricity rates than normal facilities.

[0098] According to Modification 1, user U can easily search only for surrounding DP facilities or normal facilities. Therefore, the user interface can be improved.

[0099] [Modification 2 of Embodiment 1] Figure 13 illustrates the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in the modified example 2. Referring to Figure 13, screen 760 differs from screen 700 in that it displays charge-related information 704-Aa to 704-Ea, each corresponding to charge-related information 704. Each of the charge-related information 704-Aa to 704-Ea indicates the electricity charge required to perform external charging using the power equipment 25 over a predetermined unit period, and is set by the server 30. In this example, the unit period is 30 minutes.

[0100] Figure 14 illustrates another example of the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in Modification 2. Referring to Figure 14, screen 770 differs from screen 700 in that it displays charge-related information 704-Ab to 704-Eb, each corresponding to charge-related information 704. Each of the charge-related information 704-Ab to 704-Eb is information indicating the electricity rate per unit of electricity supplied from the power equipment 25 to the vehicle 50 (electricity rate per unit of electricity supplied from the power equipment 25 to the vehicle 50), and is set by the server 30.

[0101] Thus, the charge-related information 704 may be information indicating the electricity charges required to perform external charging over a predetermined unit period, or it may be information indicating the unit price of electricity for the power equipment 25. Alternatively, the charge-related information 704 may be information indicating at least one of the electricity charges required from the start to the completion of external charging, the electricity charges required to perform external charging over a predetermined unit period, or the unit price of electricity for the power equipment 25.

[0102] According to this modified version 2, the fee-related information 704 can be displayed in various forms. This improves the user interface.

[0103] [Modification 3 of Embodiment 1] The control unit 630 may control the display unit 624 to further display the waiting time of at least one power equipment 25 on the map image 708. If the power equipment 25 is in use, the waiting time is the time from the current time to the completion time of external charging, as indicated by signal SG1 (Figure 4). If the power equipment 25 is not in use, the waiting time is 0. The control unit 630 receives signal SG1 from each power equipment 25 through the equipment management server 20, server 30 and communication device 610, and determines the waiting time of each power equipment 25 according to the corresponding signal SG1.

[0104] Figure 15 is an example of the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in modified example 3. Referring to Figure 15, screen 780 differs from screen 700 in that it further displays the waiting time information 709a for each power equipment 25 on the map image 708 along with the charge-related information 704 and the installation location P. The waiting time information 709a indicates the waiting time for the corresponding power equipment 25. The waiting time information 709a for power equipment 25A to 25E are also referred to as waiting time information 709a-A to 709a-E, respectively.

[0105] According to screen 780, the waiting time for each power equipment 25 can also be easily recognized by the user U.

[0106] [Modification 4 of Embodiment 1] Power equipment 25 may deteriorate if it is not used very often (low-usage equipment). In this modified example 4, low-usage equipment corresponds to at least one of the power equipment 25 whose usage frequency is lower than a predetermined threshold. The threshold is determined experimentally in advance as a value at which the power equipment 25 may deteriorate if the usage frequency is below that threshold.

[0107] In this modified example 4, an incentive is given to user U when the energy storage device 500 is charged by a low-usage facility. The incentive may be, for example, points that can be used at various stores.

[0108] Figure 16 illustrates the screen displayed on the display unit 624 in the modified example 4. Referring to Figure 16, screen 790 differs from screen 700 in that it further displays incentive information 709b. The incentive information 709b indicates the degree of incentive for low-usage equipment (in this example, power equipment 25E).

[0109] The control unit 630 controls the display unit 624 to display incentive information 709b, along with charge-related information 704 and installation location P for infrequently used equipment, on the map image 708. The incentive is set by the equipment management server 20 based on the usage frequency of the power equipment 25, for example, being set higher for less frequent use. The information indicating the incentive is transmitted from the equipment management server 20 to the mobile terminal 60 via the server 30.

[0110] As described above, displaying the level of incentive can motivate user U to perform external charging using infrequently used equipment. This ensures that such power equipment is used appropriately, preventing deterioration of infrequently used equipment.

[0111] [Embodiment 2] In this second embodiment, the server 30 transmits a command value CCV (Figure 4) to the vehicle 50, and the ECU 580 controls each device of the vehicle 50 according to the command value CCV. The command value CCV is a command value for the power consumption of the electrical equipment of the auxiliary equipment 555.

[0112] The server 30, when at least one of the power equipment 25 is designated to be used for external charging, performs a first setting process to set a command value CCV for the power consumption of the auxiliary electrical equipment 555 before external charging. This electrical equipment is, for example, a heater 557 or an air conditioner 558. The first setting process reduces the power consumption of the electrical equipment when the electricity rate per unit of power for the designated equipment is high compared to when the electricity rate per unit of power for the designated equipment is low.

[0113] The greater the heating output of the heater 557, or the greater the difference between the set temperature of the air conditioning unit 558 and the current temperature inside the vehicle, the greater the power consumption of the auxiliary battery 553. According to the first setting process, when the electricity rate is high, the power consumption of electrical equipment is reduced by the ECU 580. This makes it less likely for pump charging to be performed before the vehicle 50 reaches the designated facility, and the SOC of the energy storage device 500 does not decrease easily. As a result, the starting SOC for charging, which is the SOC when the vehicle 50 reaches the designated facility, can be increased. Therefore, the difference between the starting SOC for charging and the completed SOC for charging can be reduced. Thus, the electricity cost required from the start to the completion of external charging can be reduced. On the other hand, when the electricity rate is low, even if electrical equipment such as the heater 557 or air conditioning unit 558 performs at full capacity, external charging can be performed cheaply after the vehicle 50 reaches the designated facility. Therefore, it is possible to operate the electrical equipment sufficiently (for example, while improving the temperature comfort inside the vehicle) while avoiding an excessive increase in electricity costs.

[0114] The configuration of the power processing system in Embodiment 2 is basically the same as the configuration of the power processing system 1 in Embodiment 1 (Figures 1 to 6). Therefore, a detailed explanation will not be repeated.

[0115] Figure 17 is a flowchart illustrating the process performed by the server 30 in Embodiment 2. This flowchart is initiated by the mobile terminal 60 after the fee-related information 704 and the installation location P are displayed on the map image 708 in S245 (Figure 7), and before external charging is started, when the planned equipment determination operation is performed.

[0116] Referring to Figure 17, the mobile terminal 60 sends a scheduled equipment determination signal SG2 to the server 30 in response to the scheduled equipment determination operation. Subsequently, the processing of the mobile terminal 60 proceeds to S250.

[0117] In response to receiving the scheduled equipment determination signal SG2, the server 30 acquires information indicating the electricity charge unit price of the scheduled equipment from the equipment DB200 (S405). Specifically, the server 30 acquires the unit price information 216 indicating the electricity charge unit price corresponding to the scheduled equipment ID indicated by the scheduled equipment determination signal from the equipment DB200.

[0118] The server 30 determines whether the electricity charge unit price of the scheduled equipment is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold unit price (S410). The threshold unit price is, for example, the average of the electricity charge unit prices of each power equipment 25 in the neighboring area. If the electricity charge unit price is equal to or higher than the threshold unit price (YES in S410), the server sets the power consumption of the electrical equipment to EC1 (<EC2) (S415). On the other hand, if the electricity charge unit price is less than the threshold unit price (NO in S410), the server sets the power consumption of the electrical equipment to EC2 (S420). EC2 is, for example, the default power consumption. After S415 or S420, the server 30 transmits a command value CCV determined according to which of these steps has been executed to the vehicle 50 (S425). Specifically, when S415 is executed, the command value CCV indicates EC1. On the other hand, when S420 is executed, the command value CCV indicates EC2. After S425, the processing of the server 30 ends.

[0119] The vehicle 50 (ECU580) controls the power consumption of the electrical equipment according to the command value CCV in response to receiving the command value CCV (S520). For example, when the command value CCV indicates EC1, the control by the ECU580 corresponds to setting the electrical equipment to the eco mode. After S520, the processing of FIG. 18 ends.

[0120] [Modification Example of Embodiment 2] In this modification example, the server 30 transmits the upper limit value ULV to the vehicle 50, and the ECU580 controls the running of the vehicle 50 according to the upper limit value ULV. As described above, the upper limit value ULV is the speed upper limit value or the acceleration upper limit value of the vehicle 50.

[0121] Server 30 executes a second setting process to set an upper limit ULV when at least one of the power equipment 25 is designated to be used for external charging. The second setting process sets the upper limit lower than when the power rate of the designated equipment is low, if the power rate of the designated equipment is high. If a speed limit is set by the second setting process, ECU 580 controls PCU 520 so that the rotational speed of MG 530 does not exceed the upper limit rotational speed. Alternatively, if an acceleration limit is set by the second setting process, ECU 580 controls PCU 520 so that the torque of MG 530 does not exceed the upper limit torque.

[0122] The higher the speed of the vehicle 50, the greater the power consumption of the energy storage device 500. Similarly, the greater the acceleration of the vehicle 50, the greater the power consumption of the energy storage device 500. According to the second setting process, when the electricity rate is high, the upper limit is set low. This prevents situations where the speed of the vehicle 50 increases to the point of exceeding the speed limit, or where the acceleration increases to the point of exceeding the acceleration limit. As a result, the power of the energy storage device 500 is less likely to be consumed before the vehicle 50 reaches the planned equipment, thus preventing a decrease in the State of Charge (SOC). Therefore, similar to Embodiment 2, the SOC when the vehicle reaches the planned equipment can be increased, and the electricity cost during external charging using the planned equipment can be reduced. On the other hand, when the electricity rate is low, the vehicle 50 can perform external charging inexpensively after reaching the planned equipment. Therefore, the server 30 does not need to set a low speed limit or acceleration limit to reduce power consumption in the energy storage device 500. As a result, situations in which drivability is impaired can be avoided.

[0123] Figure 18 is a flowchart illustrating the processes performed by the server 30 in this modified example. Referring to Figure 18, this flowchart differs from the flowchart of Embodiment 2 (Figure 17) in that S417, S422, S427, and S522 are performed in place of S415, S420, S425, and S520, respectively. In other respects, the flowchart in Figure 18 is the same as the flowchart of Embodiment 2.

[0124] When the electricity price unit price is greater than or equal to the threshold unit price (YES in S410), the server 30 sets the upper limit value ULV to UL1 (S417). UL1 is lower than UL2, which is the default speed upper limit or acceleration upper limit (UL1 < UL2). On the other hand, when the electricity price unit price is less than the threshold unit price (NO in S410), the server 30 sets the upper limit value ULV to UL2 (S422). After S417 or S422, the server 30 (communication device 310) transmits the upper limit value ULV determined according to which of these steps has been executed to the vehicle 50 (S427). Specifically, when S417 is executed, the upper limit value ULV indicates UL1, while when S422 is executed, the upper limit value ULV indicates UL2. After S427, the processing of the server 30 ends.

[0125]

[0126] [Other Variants] The predetermined charge amount may be the amount of electric power required to be supplied from the power facility 25 to the power storage device 500 to charge (supply) a predetermined amount of electric power (for example, 10 kwh) to the power storage device 500. This amount of electric power is stored, for example, in the memory of the ECU 580.

[0127] ​Each of the screens 710, 720, 730, 740, 750, 760, 770, 780, and 790 (Figures 9, 10 to 16) may be displayed by the display unit 549 of the vehicle 50 instead of the display unit 624 of the mobile terminal 60. In this case, the vehicle 50 corresponds to an example of the “display device” of this disclosure. The control unit 547 of the vehicle 50 controls the display unit 549 according to the control command CMV to display charge-related information 704 and installation location P for each of at least one power equipment 25 on the map image 708.

[0128] In the above description, vehicle 50 was used as an example of a mobile device that can be charged externally, but the mobile device may be other types of electric mobile devices such as electric motorcycles, electric bicycles, or electric kick scooters.

[0129] Each of the embodiments and its variations may be combined with each other as appropriate. For example, each of Embodiment 2 and its variations may be combined with each of the variations 1 to 4 of Embodiment 1. [Industrial applicability]

[0130] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered in all respects to be illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is indicated by the claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all modifications within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims are intended. [Explanation of symbols]

[0131] 1 Power processing system, 10 Power company servers, 20 Equipment management servers, 25, 25A, 25B, 25C, 25D, 25E ​​Power equipment, 30 Servers, 40 Vehicle management servers, 50 Vehicles, 60 Mobile terminals, 250, 545, 620 HMI devices, 251, 552 Power converters, 252, 310, 570, 610 Communication devices, 254, 305 Storage devices, 315 Processing devices, 500 Energy storage devices, 547, 630 Control units, 548, 622 Input units, 549, 624 Display units.

Claims

1. A display unit configured to display a map image, The system includes a control unit that controls the display unit, The control unit controls the display unit to display the charge-related information and the installation locations of multiple power facilities on the map image if the map image includes the locations of multiple power facilities. The aforementioned multiple power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed. The aforementioned fee-related information is information related to the unit price of electricity charges for charging. The aforementioned plurality of power facilities include a first facility in which the electricity rate per unit changes over time, and a second facility in which the electricity rate per unit remains constant over time. The control unit controls the display unit to display the installation location and charge-related information of the first equipment on the map image without displaying the installation location and charge-related information of the second equipment on the map image when the electricity rate of the first equipment is lower than the electricity rate of the second equipment.

2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the aforementioned charge-related information is information indicating the electricity rate unit price.

3. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the aforementioned charge-related information is information indicating the electricity charges required to charge the energy storage device to a predetermined charge level.

4. The object in question is a mobile body that moves by consuming the power of the energy storage device. The aforementioned charge-related information is information that shows the predicted electricity charges required from the start to the completion of charging the energy storage device. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electricity charges are predicted for each power facility according to the State of Charge (SOC) at the time the energy storage device is fully charged, the State of Charge (SOC) at the start of charging which is estimated to be the SOC when the mobile body reaches the corresponding power facility, and the electricity charge unit price.

5. The display device according to claim 4, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to display the actual value of the electricity charge after the energy storage device has been charged.

6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to further display the waiting times of the plurality of power facilities on the map image.

7. A display unit configured to display a map image, The system includes a control unit that controls the display unit, The control unit controls the display unit to display the charge-related information and the installation locations of multiple power facilities on the map image if the map image includes the locations of multiple power facilities. The aforementioned multiple power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed. The aforementioned fee-related information is information related to the unit price of electricity charges for charging. The aforementioned plurality of power facilities include a first facility in which the electricity rate per unit changes over time, and a second facility in which the electricity rate per unit remains constant over time. The control unit, In response to a first user operation, the display unit is controlled to display a first screen. In response to a second user operation different from the first user operation, the display unit is controlled to display a second screen. The first screen displays only the installation location and charge-related information of at least one of the multiple power facilities on the map image, The second screen is a display device that displays only the installation location and charge-related information of at least one of the multiple power facilities on the map image.

8. A display unit configured to display a map image, The system includes a control unit that controls the display unit, The control unit controls the display unit to display the fee-related information and the installation location of at least one power facility on the map image if the map image includes the location of at least one power facility. The at least one power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed, The aforementioned fee-related information is information related to the unit price of electricity charges for charging. The at least one power facility includes a low-utilization facility, which is a power facility whose utilization frequency is lower than a threshold. When the energy storage device is charged by the low-usage equipment, an incentive is provided to the user of the object. The control unit controls the display unit to display the fee-related information and installation location of the infrequently used equipment, along with the degree of incentive for the infrequently used equipment, on the map image.

9. A server configured to communicate with a display device configured to display the location of at least one power equipment when the location of at least one power equipment is included on a map image, The at least one power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed, A communication device that acquires information indicating the unit price of electricity for at least one power facility, and information indicating the installation location of the at least one power facility, The system includes a processing device that sets charge-related information for at least one power facility in accordance with the electricity rate unit price, The aforementioned charge-related information is information related to the electricity rate unit price, The communication device transmits the fee-related information to the display device, The aforementioned object is a vehicle, The vehicle includes electrical equipment that operates by consuming the power of the energy storage device, The communication device is configured to communicate with the vehicle, When a designated facility is determined from among the at least one power facility to be used for charging the energy storage device, the processing device performs a first setting process to set a command value for the power consumption of the electrical equipment before charging the energy storage device. The first setting process includes reducing the power consumption of the electrical equipment when the electricity rate for the planned equipment is high compared to when the electricity rate for the planned equipment is low, The communication device is a server that transmits the command values ​​to the vehicle.

10. A server configured to communicate with a display device configured to display the location of at least one power equipment when the location of at least one power equipment is included on a map image, The at least one power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed, A communication device that acquires information indicating the unit price of electricity for at least one power facility, and information indicating the installation location of the at least one power facility, The system includes a processing device that sets charge-related information for at least one power facility in accordance with the electricity rate unit price, The aforementioned charge-related information is information related to the electricity rate unit price, The communication device transmits the fee-related information to the display device, The aforementioned object is a vehicle, The communication device is configured to communicate with the vehicle, When a designated power facility is determined from among the at least one power facility to be used for charging the energy storage device, the processing device performs a second setting process to set an upper limit value related to the vehicle's driving state. The second setting process includes setting the upper limit lower than when the electricity rate for the planned equipment is lower, if the electricity rate for the planned equipment is high. The aforementioned upper limit is the upper limit of the vehicle's travel speed or the upper limit of the vehicle's travel acceleration. The communication device is a server that transmits the upper limit value to the vehicle.

11. The server according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the aforementioned charge-related information is information indicating the electricity rate unit price.

12. The server according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the aforementioned charge-related information is information indicating the electricity charges required to charge the energy storage device to a predetermined charge level.

13. The object in question is a mobile body that moves by consuming the power of the energy storage device. The aforementioned charge-related information is information that shows the predicted electricity charges required from the start to the completion of charging the energy storage device. The server according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the electricity charges are predicted for each power facility according to the SOC at the time the energy storage device is fully charged, the SOC at the start of charging which is estimated to be the SOC when the mobile body reaches the corresponding power facility, and the electricity charge unit price.

14. A method for controlling a display device configured to display a map image, The steps include obtaining information showing the unit price of electricity charges for multiple power facilities, If the map image includes the locations of the multiple power facilities, the method includes controlling the display device to display the charge-related information and the locations of the multiple power facilities on the map image. The aforementioned multiple power equipment is configured to charge the energy storage device by supplying power to an object on which the energy storage device is installed. The aforementioned charge-related information is information related to the electricity rate unit price, The aforementioned plurality of power facilities include a first facility in which the electricity rate per unit changes over time, and a second facility in which the electricity rate per unit remains constant over time. The method includes a step of controlling the display device so that, when the electricity rate unit price of the first equipment is lower than the electricity rate unit price of the second equipment, the installation location and rate-related information of the second equipment are not displayed on the map image, but the installation location and rate-related information of the first equipment are displayed on the map image.

Images