Vehicle management system
The vehicle management device optimizes power supply to external sources by setting allowable limits based on solar cell predictions and VPP participation, maintaining battery charge and enabling efficient power distribution.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- TOYOTA JIDOSHA KK
- Filing Date
- 2023-02-22
- Publication Date
- 2026-05-26
AI Technical Summary
Existing vehicle management systems struggle to balance the power supply to external sources while parked, which affects the charge ratio of the driving battery and reduces the available power for the next drive.
A vehicle management device that sets the allowable power supply to external sources within the predicted power generation range of solar cells until the next scheduled start time, with adjustments based on participation in a virtual power plant (VPP) to optimize power distribution.
This approach maintains the charge level of the energy storage device, ensuring sufficient power for the next drive and allows for the supply of renewable energy to the grid when participating in a VPP, or increased power supply when not participating.
Smart Images
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Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vehicle management device.
Background Art
[0002] Conventionally, as a vehicle management device used in a vehicle in which a driving battery is charged by electric power generated by a solar power generation device (solar panel), the available amount of a device outside the vehicle is calculated based on the amount of power generated by the solar power generation device mounted on the vehicle and displayed on a display unit (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0003]
Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0004] In such vehicles, there is a problem of how to set the allowable power supply amount to the outside of the vehicle while parked. This is because the larger the power supply amount to the outside of the vehicle while parked, the lower the charge ratio of the driving battery, and the smaller the amount of electric power for the next driving.
[0005] The main object of the vehicle management device of the present disclosure is to more appropriately set the allowable power supply amount to the outside of the vehicle while parked.
Means for Solving the Problems
[0006] The vehicle management device of the present disclosure has taken the following means to achieve the above main object.
[0007] [1] The vehicle management device of the present disclosure A vehicle management device used in a vehicle that includes a drive unit for driving, a power storage device capable of supplying power to the drive unit, a solar cell system capable of generating electricity using solar cells and supplying it to the power storage device, and capable of supplying power to the outside of the vehicle, While the vehicle is parked, the permissible amount of power supplied to the outside of the vehicle is set within the range of the predicted power generation amount of the solar cells until the next scheduled start time of driving. This is the gist of it.
[0008] The vehicle management device of this disclosure sets the allowable amount of power supplied to the outside of the vehicle while the vehicle is parked, within the range of the predicted power generation amount of the solar cells until the next scheduled start time of driving. This suppresses a decrease in the charge level of the energy storage device while the vehicle is parked, and prevents a decrease in the amount of power available for the next drive. In other words, it is possible to set the allowable amount of power supplied to the outside of the vehicle while it is parked more appropriately.
[0009] [2] In the vehicle management device of this disclosure (the vehicle management device described in [1] above), when the vehicle is participating in a virtual power plant (VPP) (the vehicle is permitted to be used as a virtual power plant), the allowable power supply amount may be set within the range of the predicted power generation amount, and when the vehicle is not participating in the virtual power plant (the vehicle is not permitted to be used as a virtual power plant), the allowable power supply amount may be set within an expanded range greater than the predicted power generation amount. In this way, when the vehicle is participating in a virtual power plant, power can be supplied to the outside of the vehicle (power grid) within the range of the amount of power generated using natural energy. On the other hand, when the vehicle is not participating in a virtual power plant, the amount of power supplied to the outside of the vehicle can be increased in response to requests from outside the vehicle.
[0010] [3] The vehicle management device of this disclosure (the vehicle management device described in [1] above) may also be configured to notify the user that the permissible power supply amount can be changed. In this way, the user can change the permissible power supply amount.
[0011] [4] In this case (vehicle management device as described in [3] above), the user may also be notified of whether or not the vehicle is participating in the virtual power plant. This allows the user to change the allowable power supply amount taking into account whether or not the vehicle is participating in the virtual power plant. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0012] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of a power system 10 comprising a vehicle 20 equipped with the vehicle management device of this embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a flowchart showing an example of a routine for setting the allowable power supply amount. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart showing an example of a routine for setting the allowable power supply amount. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0013] Embodiments of this disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a power system 10 comprising a vehicle 20 equipped with the vehicle management device of this embodiment. As shown in the figure, the power system 10 comprises a vehicle 20, a house 70, and a power grid 80. The vehicle 20 is configured as a hybrid vehicle and comprises a drive unit 22, a battery 26 as an energy storage device, a solar cell system 30, a connector 34, a bidirectional charging device 36, a navigation device 38, and an electronic control unit 40. The electronic control unit 40 corresponds to the vehicle management device in this embodiment.
[0014] The drive unit 22 includes a motor 23, an inverter 24, and an engine 25. The motor 23 is configured as a synchronous generator-motor and is capable of generating electricity using power from the engine 25 and outputting power for driving. The inverter 24 is used to drive the motor 23 and is connected to the battery 26 via a power line. Alternatively, instead of the motor 23 and inverter 24, the system may include a generator capable of generating electricity using power from the engine 25, a motor capable of outputting power for driving, and two inverters to drive the generator and motor, respectively. The battery 26 has multiple secondary battery cells configured as lithium-ion secondary batteries or nickel-metal hydride secondary batteries.
[0015] The solar cell system 30 includes a solar cell 31 and a converter 32. The solar cell 31 has multiple solar cells and is fixed to the upper surface of the roof or hood of the vehicle body. The converter 32 supplies the power generated by the solar cell 31 to the battery 26 after voltage conversion.
[0016] The connector 34 can be connected to the house 70 via the relay cable 72. Here, the house 70 is connected to the power grid 80 and can receive power from the power grid 80 or supply power to the power grid 80.
[0017] The bidirectional charging device 36 is capable of supplying power from the house 70 to the battery 26, or supplying power from the battery 26 to the house 70 or the power grid 80 via the house 70, when the connector 34 and the house 70 are connected via the relay cable 72.
[0018] When a destination is set, the navigation device 38 provides route guidance by setting a driving route from the current location to the destination based on map information and the current location of the vehicle 20 detected by GPS, and displaying it on the display. The navigation device 38 communicates with the electronic control unit 40. The navigation device 38 also communicates with an external information center 60 of the vehicle 20, transmitting the current location of the vehicle 20 to the information center 60 and receiving sunlight information (weather, sunrise and sunset times, etc.) for the current location of the vehicle 20 from the information center 60.
[0019] The electronic control unit 40 has a microcomputer, which includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, flash memory, input / output ports, and communication ports. The electronic control unit 40 receives signals from various sensors via its input ports. Examples of signals received by the electronic control unit 40 include the voltage Vb and current Ib of the battery 26, the voltage Vs1 and current Is1 of the converter 32 on the solar cell 31 side, and the voltage Vs2 and current Is2 of the converter 32 on the battery 26 side. The electronic control unit 40 outputs various control signals via its output ports. Examples of signals output by the electronic control unit 40 include control signals to the drive unit 22, control signals to the converter 32, and control signals to the warning light 42. The electronic control unit 40 calculates the charge level (SOC) of the battery 26 based on the integrated value of the current Ib of the battery 26, and calculates the power generated by the solar cell 31 based on the voltage Vs1 and current Is1 of the converter 32 on the solar cell 31 side. As described above, the electronic control unit 40 communicates with the navigation device 38.
[0020] Next, the operation of the power system 10 of this embodiment will be described, particularly the operation when the vehicle 20 and the house 70 are connected via the relay cable 72 and external power supply from the vehicle 20 to the outside of the vehicle (the house 70 or the power system 80) is permitted. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of an allowable power supply amount setting routine executed by the electronic control unit 40 of the vehicle 20. This routine is executed when the vehicle 20 and the house 70 are connected via the relay cable 72 and external power supply is permitted.
[0021] When the allowable power supply amount setting routine in FIG. 2 is executed, the electronic control unit 40 estimates the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cell 31 until the scheduled start time of the next driving (step S100). Here, the scheduled start time of driving is set by the user, for example. When the parking location is the user's home or the like, the scheduled start time of driving may be set based on the history of the driving start time. The process of step S100 can be performed by estimating the predicted sunshine amount Qss for a predetermined period from the current time at the current location of the vehicle 20 to the scheduled start time of the next driving based on the sunshine information (weather, sunrise and sunset times, etc.) from the information center 60, and estimating the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cell 31 for the predetermined period at the current location of the vehicle 20 based on the estimated predicted sunshine amount Qss.
[0022] After estimating the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cell 31 in this way, it is determined whether the vehicle 20 participates in a virtual power plant (hereinafter referred to as "VPP (Virtual Power Plant)") (step S110). Here, whether the vehicle 20 participates in the VPP means whether the use of the vehicle 20 as a VPP is permitted. Whether the vehicle 20 participates in the VPP is set in advance by the user.
[0023] When it is determined in step S110 that the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP, the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cell 31 is set to the allowable power supply amount Qal from the vehicle 20 to the outside (house 70 and power grid 80) (step S120), and this routine ends. Once the allowable power supply amount Qal is set in this way, power is supplied from the vehicle 20 to the outside (house 70 and power grid 80) within the range of the allowable power supply amount Qal until the next scheduled start time of driving. Power supply from the vehicle 20 to house 70 is performed, for example, in response to a request from the management unit of house 70, and power supply from the vehicle 20 to the power grid 80 via house 70 is performed, for example, in response to a request from the aggregator that manages the power grid 80.
[0024] This allows the vehicle 20 to supply power to external sources (houses 70 and power grids 80) within the range of power generation by the solar cells 31. As a result, it is possible to suppress the decrease in the battery 26's State of Charge (SOC) during parking, which would reduce the amount of power available for the next drive. Furthermore, when the vehicle 20 is participating in a Virtual Power Plant (VPP), it may receive an incentive to supply renewable energy power, which is power generated using natural energy such as sunlight, to the power grid 80, compared to supplying other types of power (for example, power generated by the motor 23 using power from the engine 25) to the power grid 80. When the vehicle 20 is participating in a VPP, this incentive can be obtained by setting the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31 to the allowable power supply amount Qal.
[0025] If it is determined in step S110 that the vehicle 20 is not participating in the VPP, the allowable power supply amount Qal is set to the value obtained by adding a correction value α to the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cell 31 (step S130), and this routine is terminated. This allows the vehicle 20 to supply power to the outside of the vehicle (house 70) beyond the range of the power generation amount of the solar cell 31. As a result, the amount of power supplied to the outside of the vehicle can be increased in response to requests from outside the vehicle. Here, the correction value α can be, for example, the amount of power that can be discharged from the battery 26 based on the storage ratio SOC of the battery 26, or a value that is somewhat less than that.
[0026] In either case, external charging may be performed to charge the vehicle's battery 26 using electricity supplied from the power grid 80 via the house 70 and relay cable 72 before the next scheduled start time.
[0027] In the electronic control unit 40, which serves as a vehicle management device in this embodiment as described above, when the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP, the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31 until the next scheduled start time is set to the allowable power supply amount Qal. When the vehicle 20 is not participating in the VPP, the allowable power supply amount Qal is set to the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31 plus a correction value α. As a result, when the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP, power can be supplied from the vehicle 20 to the outside (house 70 or power grid 80) within the range of the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31. This prevents the battery 26's State of Charge (SOC) from decreasing while parked, which can reduce the amount of power available for the next trip. In addition, there may be an incentive to supply renewable energy to the power grid 80. On the other hand, when the vehicle 20 is not participating in the VPP, power can be supplied from the vehicle 20 to the outside (house 70) within an expanded range greater than the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31. As a result, the amount of power supplied to the outside (house 70) can be increased in response to requests from the outside (house 70).
[0028] In the embodiment described above, the electronic control unit 40 sets the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31 until the next scheduled start time to the allowable power supply amount Qal when the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP. However, it is not limited to this, and it is sufficient to set the allowable power supply amount Qal within the range of the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31.
[0029] In the embodiment described above, when the vehicle 20 is not participating in the VPP, the electronic control unit 40 sets the allowable power supply amount Qal to a value obtained by adding a correction value α to the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31 until the next scheduled start time of driving. However, it is not limited to this, and it is acceptable to set the allowable power supply amount Qal within an expanded range that is greater than the predicted power generation amount Qses of the solar cells 31.
[0030] In the embodiment described above, the electronic control unit 40 sets the predicted power generation Qses of the solar cells 31 until the next scheduled start time to the allowable power supply Qal when the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP, and sets the allowable power supply Qal to the predicted power generation Qses of the solar cells 31 plus a correction value α when the vehicle 20 is not participating in the VPP. However, the allowable power supply Qal may be set within the range of the predicted power generation Qses of the solar cells 31, regardless of whether the vehicle 20 is participating in the VPP or not.
[0031] In the embodiment described above, the electronic control unit 40 executes the allowable power supply setting routine shown in Figure 2. However, instead, the electronic control unit 40 may execute the allowable power supply setting routine shown in Figure 3.
[0032] In the allowable power supply setting routine shown in Figure 3, the electronic control unit 40 first estimates the predicted power generation Qses of the solar cells 31 until the next scheduled start time of driving, similar to the process in step S100 of the allowable power supply setting routine shown in Figure 2 (step S200). Next, it sets the estimated predicted power generation Qses of the solar cells 31 as the allowable power supply Qal (step S210), informs the user of the set allowable power supply Qal and whether or not to participate in the VPP (step S220), and waits for a response from the user (step S230). Here, the process in step S220 can be carried out, for example, by displaying the necessary information on the display of the navigation device 38 or on the display of a pre-configured mobile terminal (such as a smartphone or tablet) so that the user can choose whether or not to approve the allowable power supply Qal and set a desired value if the allowable power supply Qal is not approved. The desired value may be freely set by the user, or it may be selected by the user from multiple candidates.
[0033] Then, upon receiving a response from the user, it is determined whether the user has approved the permissible power supply amount Qal (step S240). If it is determined that the user has approved the permissible power supply amount Qal, this routine is terminated.
[0034] If it is determined in step S240 that the user has not approved the allowable power supply amount Qal, the desired value set by the user is reset as the allowable power supply amount Qal (step S250), and this routine terminates. This allows the user to approve or change the allowable power supply amount Qal, taking into account whether or not they are participating in a VPP.
[0035] In the allowable amount setting routine shown in Figure 3, the electronic control unit 40 is configured to inform the user of the allowable power supply amount Qal set in step S210 and whether or not the VPP is participating. However, the electronic control unit 40 may also be configured to inform the user of only the allowable power supply amount Qal.
[0036] In the embodiment described above, a battery 26 is used as the energy storage device, but a capacitor or the like may be used instead.
[0037] In the embodiment described above, the vehicle 20 is configured to include a drive unit 22 having a motor 23 and an engine 25, a battery 26, and a solar cell system 30. However, it is not limited to this configuration, and any vehicle that includes a drive unit 22, a battery 26, and a solar cell system 30 is acceptable. For example, the drive unit 22 may not have an engine 25.
[0038] The correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem will be explained. In the embodiment, the drive unit 22 corresponds to the "drive unit", the battery 26 corresponds to the "energy storage device", the solar cell system 30 corresponds to the "solar cell system", the vehicle 20 corresponds to the "vehicle", and the electronic control unit 40 corresponds to the "vehicle management device".
[0039] Furthermore, the correspondence between the main elements of the embodiment and the main elements of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem is merely an example to specifically explain the form in which the embodiment implements the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem, and does not limit the elements of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem. In other words, the interpretation of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem should be based on the description in that section, and the embodiment is merely one specific example of the invention described in the section on means for solving the problem.
[0040] While embodiments for implementing this disclosure have been described above, this disclosure is not limited in any way to these embodiments, and can of course be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of this disclosure. [Industrial applicability]
[0041] This disclosure can be used in industries such as the manufacturing of vehicle management systems. [Explanation of Symbols]
[0042] 10 Power system, 20 Vehicle, 22 Drive unit, 23 Motor, 24 Inverter, 26 Battery, 30 Solar cell system, 31 Solar cell, 32 Converter, 34 Connector, 36 Bidirectional charging device, 38 Navigation device, 40 Electronic control unit, 42 Warning lights, 60 Information center, 70 House, 72 Relay cable, 80 Power grid.
Claims
1. A vehicle management device used in a vehicle that includes a drive unit for driving, a power storage device capable of supplying power to the drive unit, a solar cell system capable of generating electricity using solar cells and supplying it to the power storage device, and capable of supplying power to the outside of the vehicle, When the vehicle is parked and participating in a virtual power plant, the permissible power supply amount to the outside of the vehicle is set within the range of the predicted power generation amount of the solar cells until the next scheduled start time of driving. When the vehicle is not participating in the virtual power plant, the permissible power supply amount is set within an expanded range that is greater than the predicted power generation amount. Vehicle management system.
2. A vehicle management device according to claim 1, The user is notified that the allowable power supply amount can be changed. Vehicle management system.
3. A vehicle management device according to claim 2, The user will also be notified of whether or not the vehicle is participating in the virtual power plant. Vehicle management system.