DE102023004988A1 - Method for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, computer program product and charging management instance - Google Patents

Abstract

A method is described for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, the group of motor vehicles being connected to a power grid of at least one power grid operator for charging, the motor vehicles connected to the power grid drawing electrical energy from the power grid and using it to charge the motor vehicles' electrical energy storage devices, a charging management instance querying the active charging processes and the charging energy requirements of the motor vehicles as well as their current locations, the charging management instance further querying a load specification from the power grid operator, the charging management instance querying a maximum charging time and a minimum charging time for each motor vehicle connected to the power grid, the charging management instance determining a flexibility factor for each motor vehicle by comparing the maximum charging time available with the minimum charging time, the charging management instance sorting the motor vehicles in the group according to descending flexibility factor and adjusting the charging power of the motor vehicles starting with the highest flexibility factor until the load specification of the power grid operator is met.

Description

A method for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, a computer program product and a charging management instance are described.

Methods for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, computer program products and charging management instances of the type mentioned above are known in the prior art.

The increasing electrification of mobility poses major challenges for energy supply. Controlling the charging capacity of electric vehicles is therefore becoming increasingly important for stable energy provision and supply. In order to avoid grid outages and power shortages, charging capacities in certain network areas may have to be throttled in the future according to the requirements of the network operators and can be increased at other times. In order to remain logistically manageable, individual electric vehicles must be aggregated into groups so that the network operators do not have to address millions of vehicles, but can make specifications to so-called aggregators who bundle these into large virtual loads.

It is therefore known to control the charging of the energy storage devices of a group or a pool of electrically powered vehicles via a control system in such a way that the requirements of a network operator of the power grid used for charging with regard to a reduction in power are also taken into account. In other words, if the power grid operator requests it, the charging of certain vehicles in the vehicle pool can be interrupted or delayed in order to reduce the power consumption in the power grid. Charging should only be suspended for vehicles for which the interruption of the charging process has no influence on a departure time specified by the user of the vehicle, i.e. even if the charging process is resumed later, there should still be enough time available to charge the vehicle completely or to a specified charge level.

From the EN 10 2016 202 808 A1 A method is known for controlling the electrical charging of a group of vehicles which are electrically connected to a power grid of a power grid operator, wherein the respective vehicles draw power from the power grid to charge a vehicle-side energy storage device. A central control system can communicate with the respective vehicles as well as with a server of the power grid operator and a number of electrical units via communication signals, wherein the number of electrical units each have a higher reaction time for an electrical power adjustment in response to communication signals from the central control system and/or a higher time synchronization with respect to a clock of the central control system compared to the vehicles. In response to a received reduction command from the server, the control system sends one or more first commands to vehicles in the group which cause the charging of vehicle-side energy storage devices to be suspended, wherein the reduction command specifies a power amount by which the power consumption of the group of vehicles on the power grid is to be reduced. Furthermore, the control system determines a power value at predetermined time intervals, which is made up of the reduction in the total power consumption of the vehicle-side energy storage devices and the number of electrical units plus the increase in the total power output of the vehicle-side energy storage devices and the number of electrical units. The control system regulates the power value to the power amount according to the reduction command via one or more second commands that it sends to electrical units and which cause a change in the power consumption and/or power output of electrical units.

A disadvantage of the known solutions is that the known methods completely stop charging some motor vehicles, which may make these motor vehicles unusable, at least temporarily.

The task therefore arises of further developing methods for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, computer program products and charging management instances of the type mentioned above in such a way that greater flexibility is enabled when charging a group of motor vehicles while at the same time complying with load specifications of electricity grid operators.

The object is achieved by a method for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles according to claim 1, a computer program product according to the independent claim 8 and a charging management instance according to the independent claim 9. Further embodiments and developments are the subject of the dependent claims.

A method is described for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles, wherein the group of motor vehicles for charging are connected to a power grid of at least one power grid operator, wherein the motor vehicles connected to the power grid draw electrical energy from the power grid and use it to charge electrical energy storage devices of the motor vehicles, wherein a charging management instance queries the active charging processes and the charging energy requirements of the motor vehicles as well as their current locations, wherein the charging management instance further queries a load specification from the power grid operator, wherein the charging management instance queries a maximum charging time and a minimum charging time from each motor vehicle connected to the power grid, wherein the charging management instance determines a flexibility factor for each motor vehicle by comparing the available maximum charging time with the minimum charging time, wherein the charging management instance sorts the motor vehicles in the group according to descending flexibility factor and adjusts the charging power of the motor vehicles starting with the highest flexibility factor until the load specification of the power grid operator is met.

The aggregation by location carried out by the charging management instance makes it easy to operate charging load management for large groups of motor vehicles, in which a load specification can be exploited to the maximum and at the same time the needs of the individual motor vehicles or their drivers can be taken into account.

Through the sorting process and the use of a flexibility factor, the load adjustment can be designed to meet requirements in such a way that the vehicle users are negatively affected as little as possible by the load adjustment, since the charging processes can always be deprioritized in which the adjustment has no or the least impact on the benefit for the vehicles or their drivers.

The flexibility factor can be calculated in a number of different ways in various embodiments. The flexibility factor expresses the extent to which a reduction in the charging power is possible and a specified usage is still possible. A simple example can provide how high the charging power must be in order to find a sufficiently fully charged battery in the vehicle from now until a planned departure time by dividing the charging energy still required by a time difference between the query time and the planned start time. The flexibility factor then reflects the minimum charging power required to achieve the required charge level at the start time and has the unit of charging power, i.e. kW. This calculation can be carried out for all vehicles within the group.

If the current sum of the charging powers exceeds the power specification, the charging power can be reduced to the required minimum, starting with the vehicle with the highest flexibility factor, then with the vehicle with the second highest flexibility factor and so on, until the power specification is met, i.e. the sum of all charging powers is less than or equal to the power specification.

If this measure is not sufficient, the charging capacity of all vehicles in the group can be reduced. If this measure is also not sufficient, the vehicles can be prioritized so that, for example, vehicles whose function is more critical than that of other vehicles are given priority for charging.

In a first further development, it is planned that the charging management instance forms the group of motor vehicles by bundling the motor vehicles located in a common region.

Using the method described, several charging management instances can be provided over a larger area, each of which controls and regulates different areas. The number of queries from the electricity network operator is significantly reduced and the needs of individual vehicles and their drivers can be addressed more specifically.

In a further refinement, it is planned that the common region is a postcode region.

In this way, it is possible to replicate the usual infrastructural framework of the power grids and the usual divisions of the power grid operators in power grid management.

In a further refinement, the charging management instance queries a minimum charging power and a maximum charging power for each motor vehicle and uses them to calculate the flexibility factor.

Most electric vehicles have a certain maximum charging power, but also a minimum charging power that cannot be undercut technically. By taking these aspects into account, the flexibility factor of each individual vehicle can be calculated more realistically.

If the available charging power is not sufficient for a motor vehicle, i.e. if it falls below the minimum charging power, charging can be suspended for a while and the charging power can be allocated to another motor vehicle. Charging of the other motor vehicle can then be interrupted and the previously mentioned motor vehicle can be charged with sufficient charging power equal to or above the minimum charging power.

In a further refinement, it is provided that the minimum charging powers per motor vehicle are summed up in order to determine a minimum total charging power for the group of motor vehicles.

This makes it easy to check whether the sum of the minimum charging power is below the load specification or not.

In a further refinement, the maximum charging power per motor vehicle is added up to determine a maximum total charging power for the group of motor vehicles. If the load specification is above the maximum total charging power, a reduction in charging power for individual or all motor vehicles in the group is not necessary.

In a further refinement, it is intended that the charging management instance repeats the queries at specified time intervals.

Through planned, for example regular, execution, control is achieved to the required target load and changes in the load specifications or requirements, for example the connection of additional motor vehicles to the power grid or the removal of other motor vehicles from the power grid, can be taken into account.

A first independent subject matter relates to a computer program product having a computer-readable storage medium on which instructions are embedded which, when executed by at least one computing unit, cause the at least one computing unit to be configured to carry out the method of the aforementioned type.

The method can be carried out in a distributed manner on one or more computing units, so that certain method steps are carried out on one computing unit and other method steps are carried out on at least one further computing unit, whereby calculated data can be transmitted between the computing units if necessary.

A further independent subject matter relates to a charging management instance with at least one computing unit and at least one computer-readable storage medium, wherein a computer program product of the type described above is stored on the storage medium.

Further advantages, features and details emerge from the following description, in which - if necessary with reference to the drawing - at least one embodiment is described in detail. Identical, similar and/or functionally identical parts are provided with the same reference numerals.

• 1 eine Ansicht auf ein Gebiet mit einer Reihe von Kraftfahrzeugen, die geladen werden sollen, sowie
• 2 ein Ablaufdiagramm des Verfahrens.

They show schematically:

• 1 a view of an area with a number of motor vehicles to be loaded, as well as
• 2 a flow chart of the procedure.

1 shows a view of an area 2 with a number of motor vehicles to be loaded.

Within the area there is a region 4, which in this case represents a postcode region. Within region 4 there are motor vehicles 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, and outside region 4 there is another motor vehicle 18, all of which are connected to charging stations 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32 for the purpose of charging. The charging stations 20 to 30 within region 4 are supplied via a common power grid 34 by a power grid operator 36, in this case a power station, and the charging station 32 is supplied via a separate power grid 38 by the same power grid operator 36, since the charging station 32 is located outside region 4.

The motor vehicles 6 to 18 are communicatively connected via a network 40 to a charging management instance 42, which in turn is communicatively connected via the network 40 to the power grid operator 36.

Via the respective communication connections between the charging management instance 42 and motor vehicles 6 to 16, the charging management instance 42 can query the data required to calculate the flexibility factor, as described in connection with the flow chart from 2 will be explained. Furthermore, the charging management instance 42 can issue charging parameter instructions to the respective motor vehicles 6 to 16 via the respective communication connections.

2 shows a flow chart of the procedure.

After the start, the charging management instance first queries which vehicles are connected to charging stations and where they are located. This query can include the GPS data of the vehicles. The vehicles are sorted accordingly according to postcode regions.

In a further step, the maximum available charging time, the minimum required charging time and the technically possible maximum and minimum charging power are queried for each vehicle connected to a charging station. From this, the charging management instance calculates a flexibility factor and sorts the vehicles in descending order, starting with the highest flexibility factor to the lowest.

The electricity network operator then requests a load specification for a postcode region. Depending on the current situation, the charging power may be reduced, starting with the motor vehicles, until the load specification is met.

The procedure is repeated cyclically in order to be able to reflect changes in the vehicles to be loaded as well as changes in the load specification.

Although the invention has been illustrated and explained in detail by preferred embodiments, the invention is not limited by the disclosed examples and other variations can be derived therefrom by the person skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. It is therefore clear that a multitude of possible variations exist. It is also clear that embodiments mentioned by way of example really only represent examples that are not to be understood in any way as a limitation of the scope of protection, the possible applications or the configuration of the invention. Rather, the preceding description and the description of the figures enable the person skilled in the art to implement the exemplary embodiments in concrete terms, whereby the person skilled in the art, with knowledge of the disclosed inventive concept, can make a variety of changes, for example with regard to the function or the arrangement of individual elements mentioned in an exemplary embodiment, without departing from the scope of protection defined by the claims and their legal equivalents, such as a further explanation in the description.

List of reference symbols

2

Area

4

region

6 - 18

Motor vehicle

20 - 32

Charging station

34

Power grid

36

Electricity network operator

38

Power grid

40

network

42

Charging management instance

QUOTES INCLUDED IN THE DESCRIPTION

This list of documents listed by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA accepts no liability for any errors or omissions.

Cited patent literature

• DE 102016202808 A1 [0005]

Claims (9)

Method for controlling the electrical charging of a group of motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16), wherein the group of motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) are connected to a power grid (34) of at least one power grid operator (36) for charging, wherein the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) connected to the power grid (34) draw electrical energy from the power grid (34) and thereby charge electrical energy storage devices of the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16), wherein a charging management instance (42) carries out a query of the active charging processes and the charging energy requirements of the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) as well as their current locations, wherein the charging management instance (42) furthermore specifies a load from the power grid operator (36), characterized in that the charging management instance (42) queries a maximum charging time and a minimum charging time for each motor vehicle (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) connected to the power grid (34), wherein the charging management instance (42) determines a flexibility factor for each motor vehicle (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) by comparing the available maximum charging time with the minimum charging time, wherein the charging management instance (42) sorts the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) of the group according to descending flexibility factor and adjusts the charging power of the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) starting with the highest flexibility factor until the load specification of the power grid operator (36) is met. Procedure according to Claim 1 , characterized in that the charging management instance (42) forms the group of motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) by bundling the motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) located in a common region. Procedure according to Claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the common region is a postcode region. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the charging management instance (42) queries a minimum charging power and a maximum charging power for each motor vehicle (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) and uses them to calculate the flexibility factor. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the respective minimum charging powers per motor vehicle (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) are summed up in order to determine a minimum total charging power for the group of motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16). Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the respective maximum charging powers per motor vehicle (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) are summed up in order to determine a maximum total charging power for the group of motor vehicles (6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16). Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the charging management instance (42) repeats the queries at predetermined time intervals. Computer program product, comprising a computer-readable storage medium on which instructions are embedded which, when executed by at least one computing unit, cause the at least one computing unit to be adapted to carry out the method according to one of the preceding claims. Charging management instance (42) with at least one computing unit and at least one computer-readable storage medium, wherein a computer program product according to Claim 8 is stored.

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