Electric vehicle supply equipment lighting

Abstract

Aspects of the present invention relate to a control system (100) for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment (200), the control system comprising one or more processors collectively configured to: receive (302), over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal (310) indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle (10) in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment (200); determine (304), in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal (310), that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and output (306) a light control signal (320) to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

Description

[0001] ELECTRIC VEHICLE SUPPLY EQUIPMENT LIGHTING

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present disclosure relates to electric vehicle lighting and lighting for an electric vehicle supply equipment. Aspects of the invention relate to a control system for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, to an electric vehicle supply equipment, to an computer-implemented method for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment and to computer readable instructions.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] It is known to provide an electric vehicle supply equipment at a home address which can be used to supply charge to an energy store of an electric vehicle to recharge the energy store. It would help the user if they could readily understand if charging may take place or not by the electric vehicle supply equipment. Providing such information at the electric vehicle supply equipment (i.e. providing an “intelligent” home charger), away from the vehicle itself, is a challenge but may be advantageous, for example to provide a prompt to a driver that the vehicle may be connected to the electric vehicle supply equipment for charging, or to indicate the location of the electric vehicle supply equipment if it is dark.

[0006] It is an aim of the present invention to address one or more of the disadvantages associated with the prior art.

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Aspects and embodiments of the invention provide a control system for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, to an electric vehicle supply equipment, to an computer-implemented method for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment and to computer readable instructions, as claimed in the appended claims.

[0009] According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a control system comprising one or more processors collectively configured to: receive, over a wireless connection, a vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of a vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, to illuminate a light, and output a light control signal to cause the light to be illuminated. The light may be a light at the electric vehicle supply equipment. The vehicle identification signal may indicate the vehicle is an authorised vehicle and the control system may determine to illuminate the light dependent on the vehicle being an authorised vehicle.

[0010] Advantageously, on approach of the vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment, through wireless detection, a light can be illuminated automatically. The light may, for example, indicate the location of the supply equipment, indicate the location of a charging gun of the supply equipment, or simply act as a welcome home signal to indicate to the driver of the vehicle that the vehicle is in proximity to the supply equipment so it can be connected for charging.

[0011] According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a control system for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, the control system comprising one or more processors collectively configured to: receive, over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determine , in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and output a light control signal to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

[0012] Advantageously, on approach of the vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment, through wireless detection, a light of the electric vehicle supply equipment can be illuminated automatically without any conscious input from the driver. For example, a light may be illuminated on the supply equipment itself to indicate that the vehicle is located close enough to be charged by the supply equipment, a light may be illuminated on the ground to indicate the location of the supply equipment in a dark environment, or a light may be illuminated on a charging gun of the supply equipment to allow the driver or the user to readily locate the gun and connect it to the vehicle so charging can take place.

[0013] The control system may comprise one or more controllers collectively comprising at least one electronic processor having an electrical input for receiving an input signal; and at least one memory device electrically coupled to the at least one electronic processor and having instructions stored therein; and wherein the at least one electronic processor is configured to access the at least one memory device and execute the instructions thereon so as to: receive, over the wireless connection, the authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and output the light control signal to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

[0014] The light control signal may be configured to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated in a first illumination mode indicative of the authorised vehicle being in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment; wherein the first illumination mode is one of a plurality of available lighting modes of the electric vehicle supply equipment.

[0015] Advantageously, a first illumination mode may relate to the detection of the vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment and may cause a light on the supply equipment to illuminate to indicate, for example, that the vehicle is close enough to be charged. A further illumination mode may include, for example, on unlocking or opening a hatch on the supply equipment to access a charging gun for connection to the vehicle, a light on the charging gun being illuminated.

[0016] The lighting may thus be associated with a visual prompt indicator to charge the electric vehicle. Other possible lighting modes may include a low ambient lighting illumination mode; a charging error illumination mode; a charging complete illumination mode, and a scheduled charging illumination mode.

[0017] The control system may be configured to: determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, an identity of the authorised vehicle, retrieve a pre-stored lighting programme in dependence on the determined identity of the authorised vehicle; and output the light control signal to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to provide lighting according to the retrieved lighting programme.

[0018] Advantageously, a specific lighting programme can be retrieved and activated automatically in determination of the specific authorised vehicle, allowing for customisation of lighting according to the vehicle. For example if one vehicle of a multi-vehicle household is the most commonly used, then the lighting programme may provide a first set of lighting on the supply equipment and charging gun to assist with often-performed operations of the supply charge for this vehicle, whereas if another vehicle of the household is rarely used, a different lighting programme may simply indicate, for a short time, the vehicle is in proximity to be charged, but that is all, if the vehicle is rarely connected for charging until just before a planned outing.

[0019] The pre-stored lighting programme may comprise illuminating at least one light for a predetermined period of time before the light is not illuminated. Advantageously, the light automatically turns off after a predetermined period of time to save energy.

[0020] The control system may be configured to: receive an ambient light level signal indicative of a light level of the environment of the electric vehicle supply equipment and the authorised vehicle; and output the light control signal to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to provide lighting further according to the indicated light level of the environment. Advantageously the light provided is appropriate to the current lighting conditions. For example at night a brighter light, and / or a longer period of illumination, may be used.

[0021] The at least one light may comprise a puddle light configured to illuminate a portion of ground proximal to the electric vehicle supply equipment. Advantageously, the puddle light allows the driver or a user to readily locate the electric vehicle supply equipment and be provided with enough light to see features that the user may want to use, such as the charging gun, control panel, door hatch, or other feature of the supply equipment.

[0022] The at least one light may comprise a branding pattern which, when the light is illuminated, causes the branding pattern to be displayed in the region illuminated by the light. Advantageously, the light provided can be customised, for example with a custom shape, to the particular vehicle which has been detected in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment.

[0023] The control system may be configured to transmit a vehicle light control signal to the authorised vehicle, the vehicle light control signal configured to cause a light of the electric vehicle to be illuminated according to the retrieved lighting programme. Advantageously, the control system can provide a control signal to the vehicle to cause the light on the vehicle, such as a puddle light at a wing mirror or a light proximal to a charging port of the vehicle, to be illuminated.

[0024] The electric vehicle supply equipment may comprise a Wi-Fi sniffing module configured to receive the authorised vehicle identification signal over the wireless connection and transmit the authorised vehicle identification signal to the control system. Advantageously, the vehicle can be automatically detected through WI-FI sniffing, and information about the vehicle, such as a vehicle identifier, can automatically be provided to the control system without requiring any explicit input from the driver of the user. In other examples, the proximity of the vehicle to the supply equipment may be detected by geofencing, or by detecting that the vehicle is in Bluetooth range of the supply equipment, for example.

[0025] The control system may be configured to authorise an electric vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment by: receiving, over the wireless connection, a vehicle identifier of an electric vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment; comparing the received vehicle identifier to a stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers; and if the received vehicle identifier matches one of the stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers, determining the electric vehicle is an authorised vehicle. Advantageously, only authorised vehicles can have the state of charge indicated for them, which is beneficial from a security perspective to ensure only authorised vehicles are able to use the state of charge indication functionality.

[0026] The operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may be one or more of, at most: a Wi-Fi transmission range proximity within which Wi-Fi signalling can be transmitted from the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment; and an electric vehicle supply equipment charging cable length proximity within which the charging cable can be connected to a charging port of the authorised vehicle. Advantageously, the vehicle can automatically be detected to be within appropriate range for functionality of the supply equipment to be activated because the vehicle is in meaningful range of the supply equipment, that is it is close enough to be communicate for authorisation and charged by the supply equipment.

[0027] In an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric vehicle supply equipment comprising any control system as described herein.

[0028] In an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system comprising any electric vehicle supply equipment disclosed herein and an authorised vehicle configured to transmit, to the electric vehicle supply equipment, the authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of the authorised vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment.

[0029] In an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer-implemented method for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, the method comprising: receiving, over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determining, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and outputting a light control signal to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

[0030] In an aspect of the present invention, there are provided computer readable instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform any method disclosed herein. Within the scope of this application it is expressly intended that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and / or in the following description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. That is, all embodiments and / or features of any embodiment can be combined in any way and / or combination, unless such features are incompatible. The applicant reserves the right to change any originally filed claim or file any new claim accordingly, including the right to amend any originally filed claim to depend from and / or incorporate any feature of any other claim although not originally claimed in that manner.

[0031] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] One or more embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0033] Figure 1 shows electric vehicle supply equipment according to embodiments of the invention;

[0034] Figure 2 shows a control system according to embodiments of the invention;

[0035] Figure 3 shows a flow chart showing a method which control systems disclosed herein are configured to perform for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment according to embodiments of the invention;

[0036] Figure 4 shows a flow chart showing a method which control systems disclosed herein are configured to perform for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment according to embodiments of the invention; and

[0037] Figure 5 illustrates a system of a supply equipment and a vehicle according to embodiments of the invention.

[0038] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] It is known to provide a home charger which can be used to supply charge to an energy store of an electric vehicle to recharge the energy store. Discussion here in supply of electrical charge to the vehicle should be understood as a supply of electrical charge of an energy storage means of the vehicle e.g. a rechargeable battery. An electric vehicle supply equipment (or simply supply equipment) may be understood to be a “charger” or “home charger”, i.e. an apparatus which can be connected to a vehicle (and the electrical energy storage of that vehicle) for the provision of charge from the supply equipment to the vehicle, to recharge the electrical energy storage. The vehicle may be a battery electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, for example. It would help the user understand if charging may take place by the electric vehicle supply equipment. Providing such information at the electric vehicle supply equipment away from the vehicle itself is a challenge.

[0040] In particular, it may be advantageous for some lighting to be activated, for example at the electric vehicle supply equipment, when a vehicle approaches the electric vehicle supply equipment. This lighting may serve as a visual indicator to the user that the vehicle is in proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment and may therefore be connected to it to receive charge. This lighting may serve as a visual prompt to the driver to remind them to connect their vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment to recharge the battery. This lighting may also be advantageous in dark environmental conditions such as night, so that the user is easily able to locate the electric vehicle supply equipment, for example to use it to connect to the vehicle and charge the vehicle. This is a technical challenge as there needs to be some information communicated to the electric vehicle supply equipment to indicate that the vehicle is present. For example, a user may need to use an app on a personal electronic device to communicate with the electric vehicle supply equipment to indicate that they are home and that their vehicle is parked close to the electric vehicle supply equipment so that it can be connected to the vehicle. This process relies on user actions to cause a light to illuminate and thus cannot provide any prompting for the user to connect the vehicle to the supply equipment for charging, nor can any lighting be automatically activated to help the user see in dark conditions.

[0041] Examples disclosed herein provide means for the electric vehicle supply equipment and the vehicle to communicate automatically without requiring any manual action, and appropriately i.e. when the vehicle is proximal to the electric vehicle supply equipment and can be connected thereto to receive charge. Certain examples disclosed herein Wi-Fi sniffing so that the electric vehicle supply equipment is able to detect the presence of a vehicle which is transmitting a Wi-Fi signature within range of the electric vehicle supply equipment, which may be used to confirm vehicle location and therefore determine that it is located suitably to be connected to the electric vehicle supply equipment, thereby triggering the illumination of the light at the electric vehicle supply equipment. Other possible solutions for detecting the presence and location of the vehicle include GPS Geofencing and Bluetooth connection between the vehicle and the electric vehicle supply equipment (here a Bluetooth connection may also be used to communicate information between the vehicle and electric vehicle supply equipment).

[0042] Figure 1 shows electric vehicle supply equipment 200 according to embodiments of the invention. The electric vehicle supply equipment 200 comprises a control system 100 as discussed in relation to Figure 2. The electric vehicle supply equipment 200 comprises a light 204 which may be illuminated. The light 204 may be a puddle light as illustrated, but may be a different type of light in other examples, such as a light on the front casing the supply equipment, a light on a charging gun of the supply equipment, or other light. The light 204 may comprise more than one lighting element in some examples. In some examples the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 may comprise an output device 204 such as a display screen or visual indicator to indicate information to a user.

[0043] Figure 2 shows a control system 100 according to embodiments of the invention. The control system 100 comprises one or more processors 120 collectively configured to: receive, over a wireless connection, a vehicle identification signal 165 indicative of the presence of a vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment such as that shown in Figures 1. The control system 100 is configured to determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, to illuminate a light, and to output a light control signal 155 to cause the light to be illuminated.

[0044] The control system 100 as illustrated in Figure 2 comprises one controller 110, although it will be appreciated that this is merely illustrative. The controller 1 10 comprises processing means 120 and memory means 1 130. The processing means 120 may be one or more electronic processing device 120 which operably executes computer-readable instructions. The memory means 130 may be one or more memory device 130. The memory means 130 is electrically coupled to the processing means 120. The memory means 130 is configured to store instructions, and the processing means 120 is configured to access the memory means 130 and execute the instructions stored thereon.

[0045] The controller 110 comprises an input means 140 and an output means 150. The input means 140 may comprise an electrical input 140 of the controller 110. The output means 150 may comprise an electrical output 150 of the controller 110. The input 140 is arranged to wirelessly receive a an authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment from a proximal authorised vehicle 160. The controller 100 is configured to determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated. The output 150 is arranged to output a light control signal 155 to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

[0046] Advantageously, on approach of the vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment, through wireless detection, a light can be illuminated automatically without the driver needing to provide any conscious input to specially cause the light to illuminate. The light may, for example, indicate the location of the supply equipment, indicate the location of a charging gun of the supply equipment, or simply act as a welcome home signal to indicate to the driver of the vehicle that the vehicle is in proximity to the supply equipment so it can be connected for charging.

[0047] This process will be discussed in more detail with reference to Figures 3 to 5. Figure 3 shows a flow chart showing a method which control systems disclosed herein are configured to perform for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment according to embodiments of the invention. The method 300 is for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment 200, and the method 300 comprises receiving 302, over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal 310 indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment. This wireless detection process is discussed in relation to Figure 4.

[0048] The method 300 comprises determining 304, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal 310, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated. The method 300 comprises outputting 306 a light control signal 320 to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

[0049] Operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may be understood to be a Wi-Fi transmission range proximity within which Wi-Fi signalling can be transmitted from the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment. This may be considered an operational proximity because WiFi communications can take place between the electric vehicle supply equipment and a Wi-Fi communication module of the vehicle, for example to communicate a vehicle identifier from the vehicle to the supply equipment. Operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may be understood to be an electric vehicle supply equipment charging cable length proximity within which the charging cable can be connected to a charging port of the authorised vehicle. This may be considered an operational proximity because within this distance, the vehicle by operationally connected to the supply equipment via the charging cable of the supply equipment so the vehicle can receive charge from the supply equipment. The operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may be understood to be the lesser of these two factors. The operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may in other examples be determined using geofencing, such that when the vehicle is detected to be located within a predetermined geofence perimeter, it is deemed to be within operational proximity (e.g. within a 10 m radius of the supply equipment 200). The operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment may in other examples be determined using Bluetooth, such that when the vehicle is detected to be located within Bluetooth communication range of the supply equipment (or other Bluetooth communication device located with the supply equipment, or for example in the house where the supply equipment is located), the vehicle is deemed to be within operational proximity (e.g. within a 10 m radius of the supply equipment 200). Advantageously, the approach of a vehicle within meaningful operational distance from the supply equipment (e.g. communication range and / or charging cable connection distance) triggers the provision of functionality for the authorised vehicle.

[0050] In some examples, the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 may be configured to provide different lighting according to different lighting modes. For example, in a night-time mode, a puddle light may illuminate the ground underneath the supply equipment 200, a display screen of the supply equipment 200, and a light of the charging gun of the supply equipment may be illuminated, to assist the user in locating and using the supply equipment at night. Thus, the at least one light of the supply equipment may comprise a puddle light 204 configured to illuminate a portion of ground proximal to the electric vehicle supply equipment 200. Advantageously, the puddle light 204 allows the driver or a user to readily locate the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 and be provided with enough light to see features that the user may want to use, such as the charging gun, control panel, door hatch, or other feature of the supply equipment 200. In a prompt lighting mode, a light on the front of the supply equipment 200 may flash, or display different colours, to attract the attention of the driver and prompt them to connect the charging gun to recharge the vehicle energy store. Other modes may be envisaged.

[0051] Thus, the light control signal 320 may be configured to cause at least one light 204 of the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 to be illuminated in a first illumination mode indicative of the authorised vehicle being in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment; wherein the first illumination mode is one of a plurality of available lighting modes of the electric vehicle supply equipment 200. In some examples, a first lighting mode may initially be activated on approach and detection of the authorised vehicle, and a further lighting mode may later be activated in response to a further trigger such as an unlock command being transmitted to the supply equipment. Advantageously, a first illumination mode may relate to the detection of the vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment and may cause a light on the supply equipment to illuminate to indicate, for example, that the vehicle is close enough to be charged. A further illumination mode may include, for example, on unlocking or opening a hatch on the supply equipment to access a charging gun for connection to the vehicle, a light on the charging gun being illuminated. The different available lighting modes may be activated in different scenarios For example, a lighting mode causing a light of the supply equipment 200 to illuminate due to a proximal authorised vehicle may be associated with a visual prompt to a driver to connect a charging cable 202 and charge the electric vehicle. Another available lighting mode may be a low ambient lighting illumination mode, for example which illuminates lighting to assist a driver locate the supply equipment 200 and the charging port of the vehicle to facilitate connecting the charging cable 202 in low light conditions. This lighting mode may activate dependent on ambient light level detected by a light sensor e.g. of the supply equipment. Another available lighting mode may a charging error illumination mode, for example a red and / or flashing light illuminated in response to an error is the supply of charge to the vehicle being detected. Another available lighting mode may a charging complete illumination mode, for example a green and / or constant light illuminated in response to determination that the vehicle has completed receiving charge. Another available lighting mode may a scheduled charging illumination mode, for example a blue (or other colour) light, and / or a varying intensity light, indicative of a charging schedule being active so the vehicle connected to the supply equipment is not currently being charged but will be charged according to the charging schedule. Other modes may be envisaged.

[0052] The lighting mode may be determined in dependence on the particular vehicle. That is, the control system 100 may be configured to determine an identity of the authorised vehicle, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal 310. The authorised vehicle identification signal 310 transmitted by the authorised vehicle 50 may comprise a portion of a Vehicle Identification Number, VIN, of the authorised vehicle. Thus, the vehicle can be automatically detected and identified via the provision of a unique immutable identifier, the VIN code portion. The control system 100 may then retrieve a pre-stored lighting programme in dependence on the determined identity of the authorised vehicle, and output the light control signal 320 to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 to provide lighting according to the retrieved lighting programme. Thus, a specific lighting programme can be retrieved and activated automatically in determination of the specific authorised vehicle, allowing for customisation of lighting according to the vehicle.

[0053] The pre-stored lighting programme (and / or other lighting activation) may comprise illuminating at least one light for a predetermined period of time before the light is not illuminated. Advantageously, the light automatically turns off after a predetermined period of time to save energy.

[0054] In some examples, the light provided may be dependent on the ambient light levels. For example, the light provided at the supply equipment 200 during the day may be brighterthan at nighttime, so the light is noticeable under different ambient lighting conditions. As another example, at night a wider area on the ground may be illuminated by a puddle light than in the daytime to aid the user locating the supply equipment in the dark. As another example, a longer period of illumination may be used in the night than in the daytime. Another example is that in the daytime, a light on the front of the supply equipment may illuminate to indicate that the vehicle should be connected to the charging cable of the supply equipment, whereas at nighttime the same light may illuminate as well as a puddle light to aid user navigation around the supply equipment. Other examples may be envisaged. Thus the control system 100 may be configured to receive an ambient light level signal indicative of a light level of the environment of the electric vehicle supply equipment and the authorised vehicle, and output the light control signal 320 to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 to provide lighting further according to the indicated light level of the environment. Advantageously the light provided is appropriate to the current lighting conditions.

[0055] In examples where a puddle light 204, other projected light, or shape-configurable light is controlled, the at least one light may comprise a branding pattern which, when the light is illuminated, causes the branding pattern to be displayed in the region illuminated by the light. Advantageously, the light provided can be customised, for example with a custom shape, to the particular vehicle or vehicle type which has been detected in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment.

[0056] Figure 4 shows a flow chart of a process 400 which control systems 100 disclosed herein are configured to perform, for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment 200 according to embodiments of the invention. Figure 4 shows a vehicle 50 which is able to wirelessly communicate with a Wi-Fi module 402 of the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 when in Wi-Fi range of the Wi-Fi module 402. Also shown is an authorisation list storage means 404 which the control system 100 may communicate with and which has stored therein information about one or more authorised vehicles which are authorised to use the functionality of the electrical vehicle supply equipment 200.

[0057] The electric vehicle supply equipment 200 may comprise a Wi-Fi sniffing module 402 which is configured to receive the authorised vehicle identification signal 310 over the wireless connection, and transmit the authorised vehicle identification signal 310 to the control system 100. Advantageously, the vehicle 50 can be automatically detected through Wi-Fi sniffing, and information about the vehicle, such as a vehicle identifier, can automatically be provided to the control system 100 via the Wi-Fi sniffer module 402 without requiring any explicit input from the driver of the vehicle. In other examples, the proximity of the vehicle to the supply equipment may be detected by geofencing, or by detecting that the vehicle is in Bluetooth range of the supply equipment, for example.

[0058] The control system 100 may thus be configured to authorise a vehicle 50 in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment 200 by receiving, over the wireless connection, a vehicle identifier of a vehicle 50 in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment 200; comparing 406 the received vehicle identifier to a stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers (stored in the authorisation list storage means 404). If the received vehicle identifier matches one of the stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers, the control system 100 can determine the vehicle 50 is an authorised vehicle, and then provide the lighting functionality 408 by operating the light 204. In some examples the lighting functionality 408 may be determined for the particular authorised vehicle, by looking up a prestored lighting programme from a lighting programme storage means 510, for example in dependence on the received vehicle identifier. Advantageously, only authorised vehicles automatically be provided with functionality from the supply equipment, automatically through the Wi-Fi recognition procedure, which is beneficial from a security perspective to ensure only authorised vehicles are able to use the supply equipment without undue effort from the vehicle occupant / driver in providing authorisation credentials.

[0059] In some examples, if the received vehicle identifier does not match one of the stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers, the control system 100 can determine the vehicle 50 is an unauthorised vehicle, and then prevent provision 410 of lighting from the light 204 of the supply equipment 200. Advantageously, unauthorised vehicles are automatically prevented from benefitting from the lighting functionality, which is beneficial from a security perspective to ensure only authorised vehicles are able to activate the lighting.

[0060] Figures 3 and 4 illustrate computer-implemented methods 300, 400, according to embodiments of the invention. The methods 300, 400 may be performed by the control system 100 illustrated in Figure 2, and the supply equipment 200 of Figure 1 . In particular, the memory 130 may comprise computer-readable instructions which, when executed by the processor 120, perform the methods 300, 400.

[0061] Figure 5 shows a system 500 of an electric vehicle supply equipment 200 comprising a control system 100 as disclosed herein, connected to a vehicle 50. This system 500 comprises an electric vehicle supply equipment 200 as disclosed herein and an authorised vehicle 50 which is configured to transmit, to the electric vehicle supply equipment 200, the authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of the authorised vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment 200.

[0062] In this example, the vehicle 50 is operationally proximal to the supply equipment 200 and the Wi-Fi sniffer module can detect a Wi-Fi signal 502 from the vehicle 50 which indicates if the vehicle 50 is authorised, as discussed above. In this example, the vehicle 50 is physically connected to the supply equipment 200 by the charging cable 504 of the supply equipment 200. In some examples, the control system 100 may be configured to transmit a vehicle light control signal 506 to the authorised vehicle 50, the vehicle light control signal 506 configured to cause a light of the electric vehicle 50 to be illuminated 508 according to a retrieved lighting programme. The vehicle light control signal 506 may be transmitted over Wi-Fi (or other wireless connection such as Bluetooth), or over a wired connection e.g. via the charging cable 504. Advantageously, the control system 100 can provide a control signal 506 to the vehicle to cause the light on the vehicle, such as a puddle light 508 at a wing mirror or a light proximal to a charging port of the vehicle, to be illuminated.

[0063] In some examples, following connection of the vehicle 50 to the charging cable 502, the control system may perform an authorisation check 506. For example, this authorisation check 506 may relate to the provision of electrical power to the vehicle, since it takes place after connecting the vehicle 50 to the charging cable 502. For example, the authorisation check 506 may determine if the service set identifier (SSID) (a wireless network identification) of the vehicle is detected, and whether the SSID is in a local authorisation list. If the SSID is in the local authorisation list, the control system 100 may retrieve a charging schedule 508 for the identified vehicle. It may retrieve the charging schedule 508 by transmitting the vehicle SSID to a schedule storage means 510 which returns the charging schedule for the identified vehicle. It will be appreciated that various changes and modifications can be made to the present invention without departing from the scope of the present application.

Claims

CLAIMS1 . A control system for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, the control system comprising one or more processors collectively configured to: receive, over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and output a light control signal to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

2. The control system of claim 1 , wherein the light control signal is configured to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated in a first illumination mode indicative of the authorised vehicle being in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment; wherein the first illumination mode is one of a plurality of available lighting modes of the electric vehicle supply equipment.

3. The control system of claim 1 , wherein the control system is configured to determine, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, an identity of the authorised vehicle, retrieve a pre-stored lighting programme in dependence on the determined identity of the authorised vehicle; and output the light control signal to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to provide lighting according to the retrieved lighting programme.

4. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the pre-stored lighting programme comprises illuminating at least one light for a predetermined period of time before the light is not illuminated.

5. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the control system is configured to: receive an ambient light level signal indicative of a light level of the environment of the electric vehicle supply equipment and the authorised vehicle; and output the light control signal to cause the at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to provide lighting further according to the indicated light level of the environment.

6. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the at least one light comprises a puddle light configured to illuminate a portion of ground proximal to the electric vehicle supply equipment.

7. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the at least one light comprises a branding pattern which, when the light is illuminated, causes the branding pattern to be displayed in the region illuminated by the light.

8. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the control system is configured to:transmit a vehicle light control signal to the authorised vehicle, the vehicle light control signal configured to cause a light of the electric vehicle to be illuminated according to the retrieved lighting programme.

9. The control system of claim 1 , wherein the electric vehicle supply equipment comprises a Wi-Fi sniffing module configured to receive the authorised vehicle identification signal over the wireless connection and transmit the authorised vehicle identification signal to the control system.

10. The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the control system is configured to authorise an electric vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment by: receiving, over the wireless connection, a vehicle identifier of an electric vehicle in operational proximity to the electric vehicle supply equipment; comparing the received vehicle identifier to a stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers; and if the received vehicle identifier matches one of the stored list of authorised vehicle identifiers, determining the electric vehicle is an authorised vehicle.11 . The control system of any preceding claim, wherein the operational proximity of the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment is one or more of, at most: a Wi-Fi transmission range proximity within which Wi-Fi signalling can be transmitted from the authorised vehicle to the electric vehicle supply equipment; and an electric vehicle supply equipment charging cable length proximity within which the charging cable can be connected to a charging port of the authorised vehicle.

12. An electric vehicle supply equipment comprising the control system of any preceding claim.

13. A computer-implemented method for controlling an electric vehicle supply equipment, the method comprising: receiving, over a wireless connection, an authorised vehicle identification signal indicative of the presence of an authorised vehicle in operational proximity to an electric vehicle supply equipment; determining, in dependence on the received authorised vehicle identification signal, that at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment is to be illuminated; and outputting a light control signal to cause at least one light of the electric vehicle supply equipment to be illuminated.

14. Computer readable instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method according to claim 13.

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