Battery Swap Station Control Handover for Automated Vehicle Guidance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current battery swap stations face challenges in maximizing throughput, reducing user waiting time, and accommodating diverse user habits and requirements, especially in urban public transportation, where existing automation and intelligence are insufficient.

Innovation Solution

A method and system for controlling vehicle battery swapping that involves sending indication information to vehicles to hand over control permissions, enabling auxiliary operations like automatic parking and guiding vehicles to swap platforms, using sensing devices and authentication signals to manage interactions between vehicles and swap stations, and implementing cloud-verified applications to optimize battery swapping processes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If battery swap station implements full automation with control permission management, then service capability and swapping efficiency are improved, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveswapping efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The vehicle end is equipped with an automatic control permission handover function that enables the vehicle to automatically complete control permission handover to the battery swap station and receive it back after battery swapping, without requiring manual intervention from users or operators. This self-service mechanism improves swapping efficiency while managing system complexity through automated protocols.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements a feedback mechanism where the battery swap station sends indication information to the vehicle end to trigger control permission handover, and the vehicle end responds by sending back confirmation and status information. This structured feedback loop enables automated control management, improving service capability while maintaining controllable system complexity through defined interaction protocols.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Extent of automation

If battery swap station manages control permission automatically, then labor cost is reduced, but interaction complexity between vehicle and station increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveautomation levelVSAvoidinteraction complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Extent of automationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The vehicle end is pre-configured with the automatic control permission handover function before arriving at the battery swap station. When the vehicle enters the service area, the pre-programmed function automatically activates upon receiving indication information from the station, eliminating the need for manual setup or complex real-time negotiations, thus reducing interaction complexity while maintaining high automation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The control permission handover mechanism is designed as a universal function that can be applied to all battery swapping operations at the station. The same indication information exchange and permission transfer protocol is used regardless of the specific vehicle or battery type, simplifying the interaction framework while achieving high automation across diverse scenarios.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Measurement precision

If indication information is sent to request control permission handover, then service precision is improved, but communication overhead increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveservice precisionVSAvoidcommunication overhead
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The control permission handover process is extracted as a distinct, standardized function with dedicated indication information messages. Rather than embedding control permission requests within general communication traffic, the system uses specific extracted signals for handover requests and responses, improving service precision by clearly delineating the handover protocol while managing communication overhead through focused, purpose-specific messages.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentEP4289658A1Method and computer system for controlling vehicle battery swapping, medium, and battery swap station
Publication Date: 2023.12.13 NIO TECH ANHUI CO LTD
  • EP4289658A1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4289658A1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4289658A1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The disclosure relates to a method for controlling vehicle battery swapping, a computer system for implementing the method, a computer storage medium, and a battery swap station. According to an aspect of the disclosure, the method for controlling vehicle battery swapping includes the following steps performed by the battery swap station: sending first indication information to a vehicle in response to determining that the vehicle is a target service vehicle, where the first indication information is used to request the vehicle to hand over a control permission to the battery swap station; enabling an auxiliary battery swapping operation in response to receiving second indication information from the vehicle, to guide the vehicle to a battery swap platform, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the control permission of the vehicle is handed over to the battery swap station; and handing over the control permission of the vehicle to the vehicle in response to the vehicle leaving the battery swap platform.