Depot EV Charging DC Bus for Aggregating Spare Grid Capacity
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Solution Overview
Problem
The widespread adoption of electric vehicles, particularly in fleet settings, is hindered by the need for costly and uncertain infrastructure upgrades to support high-powered charging, as existing utility grids lack the necessary capacity and reliability to efficiently charge multiple vehicles simultaneously.
Innovation Solution
An electric vehicle charging system that aggregates unused capacity from multiple utility service meters through an electrical bus system, converting AC signals to DC and managing power distribution using a controller to prioritize and combine power sources, including utility grids and energy storage systems, to provide a unified output for high-capacity charging without requiring significant upgrades.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If multiple utility grid connections are used to provide charging power, then the available power capacity increases, but the system complexity increases due to multiple AC signal types and conversion requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple utility grid connections with different AC signal types (single-phase and three-phase) into a unified DC bus system. The electrical bus system aggregates power from multiple sources and converts them to a common DC output, merging heterogeneous power inputs into a single standardized interface for the EV charging device.
Solution Approach 2:
The electrical bus system acts as an intermediary between multiple utility grid connections and the EV charging device. It includes AC-to-DC converters that mediate the conversion from different AC signal types to DC, and a DC-to-AC inverter that converts the aggregated DC power to the appropriate output signal for the charging device, thereby simplifying the interface complexity.
2Power
If utility infrastructure upgrades are implemented to support high-powered charging, then the power capacity and reliability improve, but the cost and project timeline increase due to engineering constraints and safety requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary power aggregation and conversion at the customer site by combining multiple existing utility connections before delivering power to the EV charger. This preliminary action creates a unified high-capacity DC power source without requiring downstream utility infrastructure upgrades, thereby avoiding lengthy utility engineering processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the power conversion and aggregation function from the utility infrastructure and places it at the customer premises. By taking out the AC-to-DC conversion and power management functions from the utility side and implementing them locally, the system eliminates the need for utility infrastructure modifications and their associated timelines.
3Power
If multiple power sources with different characteristics are aggregated, then the available power capacity increases, but the control complexity increases due to different power supply characteristics
Solution Approach 1:
The electrical bus system changes the electrical parameters of multiple power sources by converting different AC signal types (voltage, frequency, phase) into a unified DC parameter set. This parameter transformation allows heterogeneous power sources to be aggregated into a homogeneous DC bus, simplifying control while maintaining access to diverse power capacity.
4Quantity of substance
If existing utility service meters are used without upgrades, then the infrastructure cost decreases, but the power capacity and reliability are insufficient for fleet-scale EV charging
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges the capacity of multiple existing utility service meters by connecting them in parallel through the electrical bus system. By aggregating power from multiple lower-capacity connections, the system achieves the total power capacity needed for fleet-scale charging without requiring individual meter upgrades or new high-capacity utility connections.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables efficient and reliable high-power charging of electric vehicle fleets by monetizing spare utility capacity, improving adoption rates, and minimizing the need for utility service upgrades, while ensuring power consistency and reliability through centralized control and energy storage.
Implementation Method 1
The electrical bus system can be configured to convert the first and second AC signals to a direct current (DC) signal and to convert the DC signal to an output signal for the electric vehicle charging device
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are provided for aggregating and assigning power capacity for charging electric vehicles and providing power to other loads. The systems include a DC bus system used to harmonize and combine power drawn from grid connections having different electrical characteristics such as different voltages or phase levels and from other devices such as energy storage systems and generators at the site. Using the systems and methods can help enable utility customer sites to providing electric vehicle charging, especially for multiple electric vehicles, where the sites would otherwise not have sufficient power to do so without significant and expensive service upgrades and modifications.