Demand Response Power Control for Unreliable Vehicle Communication

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Solution Overview

Problem

Power management systems face challenges in accurately adjusting supply and demand of electric power due to poor communication reliability with vehicles participating in demand response (DR) programs, leading to potential penalties for customers.

Innovation Solution

A power management apparatus and method that includes a communication apparatus and an acquisition unit to obtain history information and battery state of charge from vehicles, determining priorities to reduce the likelihood of vehicle selection for DR requests when communication reliability is degraded, thereby preventing inappropriate power adjustments.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the power management apparatus actively uses vehicles with batteries as power adjustment resources for demand response, then the ability to adjust supply and demand of electric power is improved, but the reliability of power adjustment is degraded when communication conditions are poor

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveability to adjust supply and demand of electric powerVSAvoidreliability of power adjustment
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system continuously monitors communication reliability between the power management apparatus and vehicles. When communication reliability falls below a threshold, the apparatus provides feedback by excluding these vehicles from demand response selections, thereby maintaining overall system reliability while preserving adaptability when communication is reliable

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The selection status of vehicles for demand response is made dynamic rather than static. Vehicles can be included or excluded from demand response based on real-time communication conditions, allowing the system to adapt its composition of power adjustment resources according to current reliability requirements

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Productivity

If the power management apparatus selects vehicles for demand response based on state of charge changes, then the productivity of demand response is improved, but the reliability is degraded when history information is not obtained due to poor communication

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveproductivity of demand responseVSAvoidreliability of demand response execution
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system requires vehicles to transmit history information (state of charge data) in advance before being selected for demand response. This preliminary verification ensures that only vehicles with reliable communication and verifiable power adjustment capability are selected, maintaining both productivity and reliability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Measurement precision

If the power management apparatus requests history information from vehicles, then the measurement precision of vehicle performance is improved, but the loss of information increases when communication is unreliable

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemeasurement precision of vehicle power adjustment capabilityVSAvoidloss of history information
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system takes preliminary anti-action by excluding vehicles that fail to provide required history information from demand response selections. This prevents the loss of critical operational information and ensures that only vehicles with complete and verified performance data are considered, maintaining measurement precision without suffering information loss

Inventive Principle:
Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Data Source

PatentEP4037128B1Power management apparatus and power management method
Publication Date: 2024.10.16 TOYOTA JIDOSHA KK
  • EP4037128B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4037128B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4037128B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

In a server (30), an acquisition unit (32) obtains, from a vehicle (50) through a communication apparatus (31), history information indicating that demand and supply of electric power has been performed for a power grid (PG), and information on the state of charge of a battery (130). A control unit (33) determines priorities of a plurality of distributed energy resources for a demand response request. The control unit (33) determines a priority of the vehicle (50) so that the vehicle (50) is less likely to be selected for the DR request, when the state of charge obtained by the acquisition unit (32) has changed although the acquisition unit (32) has not received the history information.