Charging Station Control for Scooter Battery Aging and Return Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing number of electric scooters left on the street causes inconvenience to pedestrians and incurs high collection costs for business operators, necessitating a charging station for micro mobility vehicles that allows safe and efficient rental and return.
Innovation Solution
A charging station system that manages battery charging and discharging by identifying state information, estimating battery aging, setting charging and discharging limits, and controlling vehicle rental through user authentication and impact sensing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If electric scooters are deployed for last mile services, then mobility service coverage is improved, but pedestrian safety deteriorates due to scooters left on the street
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts scooters from general street areas by implementing designated charging stations where scooters must be returned. The system separates scooter circulation from pedestrian spaces through controlled access points, removing the harmful presence of scooters from streets while maintaining service coverage through the rental-return mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The charging station acts as an intermediary between scooter deployment and pedestrian areas. Scooters are deployed to serve customers but must return to the charging station for recharging, creating a buffer zone that prevents scooters from lingering on streets and ensures pedestrian safety while maintaining service availability.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If scooters are collected for charging from various locations, then battery charging is ensured, but operational costs increase due to collection expenses
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service by requiring scooters to automatically return to charging stations after being used. The locking mechanism and automated charging process eliminate the need for manual collection by operators. Scooters are locked at the charging station after use and automatically recharged, reducing operational costs while ensuring continuous battery availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The charging station performs preliminary charging actions before scooters are needed again. By continuously charging scooters at the station and maintaining a fleet ready for rental, the system ensures battery availability is restored in advance, eliminating the need for costly post-usage collection and ad-hoc charging operations.
3Ease of operation
If scooters are allowed to be returned anywhere, then user convenience is improved, but management complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The charging station serves multiple functions: it is both a charging facility and a designated return point. By combining these functions in a single location, the system simplifies management while maintaining user convenience. Users can return scooters to any charging station in the network, and the system automatically handles charging and locking, reducing management complexity through standardized multi-functional nodes.
4Reliability
If battery aging is monitored through charging cycles, then battery reliability is improved, but system complexity increases due to monitoring requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback by continuously monitoring charging and discharging cycles of each battery. The control device tracks the number of charge-discharge cycles and uses this data to estimate battery aging degree. This feedback mechanism enables reliable battery management by automatically adjusting charging parameters and predicting replacement needs based on accumulated cycle data, maintaining reliability through systematic monitoring.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a method of controlling charging and discharging vehicle through a charging station executed by a control device. The method includes: when a first vehicle placed in a first charging station is released, identifying the time the first vehicle is released and a residual quantity of the battery and renewing state information of the first vehicle; when the first vehicle is returned to the first charging station, identifying the time the first vehicle is returned and a residual quantity of the battery and renewing state information of the first vehicle; comparing the residual quantity of the battery identified when the first vehicle is released to the residual quantity of the battery identified when the first vehicle is returned based on the state information of the first vehicle and calculating the amount of the battery used in the first vehicle; estimating and calculating an aging degree of the battery of the first vehicle based on the number of times the battery of the first vehicle is charged and discharged and the amount of the battery of the first vehicle used, after charging and discharging detail is identified through the state information of the first vehicle; setting a charging upper limit and a discharging lower limit for the battery of the first vehicle based on the battery aging degree of the first vehicle; and determining whether the battery of the first vehicle needs to be replaced based on the charging upper limit and the discharging lower limit.