EV Cluster Charge Prioritization via Dynamic Power Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing infrastructure for electric vehicle charging is cost-prohibitive and poses safety risks when multiple chargers are clustered, as it exceeds electrical supply line limits, potentially leading to injuries or fires, and requires additional infrastructure, hindering the adoption of electric vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising distributed processing units and a power distribution manager that prioritizes charging based on user information and power usage, managing power distribution to avoid exceeding electrical supply line limits, using electrical contactors and EVSE units to control charging, and implementing a prioritization algorithm to optimize charger usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple chargers are clustered in a single location to meet increasing EV charging needs, then the charging capacity and service coverage are improved, but the electrical infrastructure cost and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the power distribution to each charger based on real-time conditions. The controller monitors the total power draw and individually controls each charger's power output, allowing the cluster to serve more EVs than the static infrastructure would normally support. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by enabling high charging capacity without requiring proportionally high-capacity infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operating parameters of each charger in real-time, adjusting power delivery based on battery state of charge, charger efficiency curves, and overall cluster power constraints. By continuously optimizing these parameters, the system maximizes the number of chargers that can be supported by the existing infrastructure, thereby increasing charging capacity without proportional infrastructure expansion.
2Reliability
If all chargers in a cluster are designed to draw maximum power simultaneously to ensure safety compliance, then safety standards are satisfied, but the infrastructure must be oversized and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of statically sizing infrastructure for maximum simultaneous power draw, the system dynamically manages power distribution to maintain safety compliance. The controller continuously monitors total power consumption and adjusts individual charger outputs to ensure the aggregate demand never exceeds infrastructure limits, thereby maintaining safety without requiring oversized infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback monitoring of total cluster power draw and individual charger status. This feedback loop enables real-time adjustments to power distribution, ensuring safety compliance while optimizing infrastructure utilization. The controller uses this information to prevent overload conditions without requiring the infrastructure to be designed for worst-case simultaneous maximum draw.
3Speed
If chargers are optimized to draw maximum power when EVs are connected to reduce charging time, then charging speed is improved, but power consumption peaks that may exceed infrastructure limits
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts power delivery to each charger based on real-time conditions. When EVs are connected, the system optimizes charging speed by increasing power delivery, but simultaneously monitors total cluster demand and throttles individual chargers as needed to prevent exceeding infrastructure limits. This dynamic balancing resolves the contradiction between achieving high charging speeds and managing peak power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs periodic monitoring and adjustment of power distribution, checking charger status and total power draw at regular intervals. This periodic control enables the system to maintain high charging speeds during available capacity while preventing sustained peak power consumption that would exceed infrastructure limits, effectively managing the trade-off between speed and power consumption.
4Productivity
If additional electrical infrastructure is installed to support more chargers beyond current capacity, then the number of deployable chargers increases, but the cost and installation time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables deployment of additional chargers by dynamically managing power distribution across the cluster. Rather than requiring infrastructure upgrades proportional to charger数量, the system uses intelligent power allocation to support more chargers on existing infrastructure, thereby increasing the number of deployable chargers without proportional increases in installation cost and time.
Solution Approach 2:
The system allows replication of charger units without proportional replication of infrastructure capacity. By implementing centralized dynamic power management, the system enables multiple charger copies to share the infrastructure pool intelligently, thereby increasing charger deployment density without requiring equivalent increases in infrastructure investment.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method, system, and apparatus include a clustered charge distribution and prioritized charge distribution system for electric vehicles (EVs). Distributed processing units (DPUs) receive member information about an EV or EV user. A power distribution manager (PDM) is coupled to each of the DPUs. The PDM includes a prioritizer. The prioritizer determines a prioritization for charging the EVs based on the member information received by each of the DPUs. Also disclosed is a method for providing clustered charge distribution and charge prioritization for electric vehicles. The method includes sensing whether power is requested by any one of a plurality of EVs within a cluster, generating individual EV-specific information for the EVs using the DPUs, transmitting the EV-specific information to the PDM, and selecting and applying a prioritization algorithm based at least in part on the transmitted information.