JP2024027694A - Information processing device and system - Google Patents

Abstract

To correct inequality in a usage fee between users when energy is supplied to an energy supply target.SOLUTION: An information processing device 100 that manages an energy usage fee comprises: an acquisition unit 101 that acquires supply-rate-related information relating to an energy supply rate when energy is supplied to an energy supply target 30 of a user; and a usage fee calculation unit 105 that calculates a usage fee to be charged to the user. The usage fee calculation unit calculates the usage fee to include an added fee that increases as the energy supply rate rises, on the basis of the supply-rate-related information acquired by the acquisition unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an information processing device and system that manage usage charges for energy such as electric power.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, systems for managing electricity usage charges through electrical outlets have been known. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a power supply gate device that controls power supply, a server device (information processing device) that manages usage fees according to the amount of power supplied from the power supply gate device, and a power supply gate device that controls power supply. A system is disclosed that includes a mobile outlet (energy output section) that connects between a gate device and an electric vehicle (energy supply target). After the power from the power supply gate device is output from the mobile outlet and supplied to the electric vehicle, the current power supply amount (energy supply amount) detected by the power usage totalizer of the mobile outlet is transferred from the mobile outlet to the server device. The information is transmitted, and the server device calculates the power usage fee from the received power supply amount.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-325357

Conventionally, when energy is supplied to an energy supply target of a user, the usage fee charged to the user is calculated based only on the amount of energy supplied. However, with such a usage fee calculation method, inequality in usage fees may occur among users.

An information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing device that manages energy usage charges, and acquires supply rate related information regarding an energy supply rate when energy is supplied to an energy supply target of a user. an acquisition unit; and a usage fee calculation unit that calculates a usage fee to be charged to the user, and the usage fee calculation unit calculates whether the energy supply rate is high based on the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit. The usage fee including the additional fee, which is the higher the fee, is calculated.
In the information processing device, the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit may include information based on a result of detection by a speed detection unit of an energy supply rate when energy is supplied to the energy supply target.
Further, in the information processing device, the usage fee calculation unit calculates, when the energy supply rate changes during energy supply, the usage fee including the additional fee according to each energy supply rate before and after the change. may be calculated.
The information processing device may further include a notification unit that notifies a user when the energy supply rate changes during energy supply based on the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit. .
Further, in the information processing device, the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit includes setting condition information indicating a setting condition selected from among a plurality of setting conditions in which the energy supply rate to the energy supply target is different from each other. May include.
Further, in the information processing device, the plurality of setting conditions may include an upper limit setting condition that limits an upper limit of the energy supply rate, and the usage fee calculation unit, based on the setting condition information acquired by the acquisition unit, The usage fee may be calculated including an additional fee depending on the upper limit value of the energy supply rate.
Further, in the information processing device, the plurality of setting conditions may include a priority setting condition in which an energy supply rate is prioritized over other users, and the usage fee calculation unit is configured to set the setting conditions acquired by the acquisition unit. Based on the condition information, when the priority setting condition is met, the usage fee may be calculated including an additional charge that is different from when the priority setting condition is not met.
Further, in the information processing device, the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit may include information on an energy supply method selected from a plurality of different types of energy supply methods.
Further, in the information processing device, the plurality of types of energy supply methods may include a low-speed charging method that supplies electrical energy with an AC voltage, and a fast charging method that supplies electrical energy with a DC voltage.
Further, in the information processing device, the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit may include supply target information indicating the type of the energy supply target.
Further, the information processing device may include a provision fee calculation unit that calculates a provision fee to be paid to a provider of energy supplied to the energy supply target, and the provision fee calculation unit Based on the supply rate-related information acquired by the acquisition unit, the provision fee may be calculated, including an additional fee that increases as the energy supply rate increases.

Further, a system according to another aspect of the present invention is a system for managing energy usage charges, and includes the information processing device and a transmitting device that transmits the supply rate related information to the information processing device. .

According to the present invention, when supplying energy to an energy supply target, it is possible to correct inequality in usage charges among users.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the entire service management system according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the main configuration of the service management system. (a) to (c) are explanatory views each showing an example of an image attached to an outlet according to the embodiment. The graph which shows an example of the upper limit setting condition which limits the upper limit of a power supply speed. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of main functions of a service management server in the service management system. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of service management processing in the service management server. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the main configuration of a service management system according to a modification. (a) is a graph showing an example of the relationship between charging time and charging amount when one vehicle is charged from an outlet. (b) is a graph showing an example of the relationship between charging time and charging amount when charging the other vehicle from an outlet.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
The system according to this embodiment is a system that manages an energy supply service from an energy output unit to an energy supply target. The energy output unit is, for example, owned or managed by a provider that provides energy in an energy supply service. The supplied energy may be, for example, primary energy in the form of oil, natural gas, coal, etc., or secondary energy in the form of electricity, hydrogen, gasoline, light oil, heavy oil, city gas, alcohol, etc. .

The energy supply target to which energy is supplied is, for example, an electric moving body driven by a motor equipped with a battery. The moving object may be a moving object that moves on the ground such as an electric vehicle or a fuel cell vehicle, a moving object that moves in the air such as a drone, or a moving object such as a ship that moves on water such as the sea. Good too. The moving object may be a vehicle with four or more wheels, a tricycle, a two-wheeled vehicle (motorcycle, bicycle), a truck, a bus, a private car, a business vehicle, or the like. The energy supply target is, for example, something used, owned, or managed by a user of the energy supply service. The energy supply target may be leased from a leasing company, or may be owned by a business other than the user. Moreover, the energy supply target may be electric equipment or electronic equipment such as portable or installed home appliances, office equipment, and communication terminal devices.

In the following embodiments, as an example, the energy to be supplied is electrical energy, the energy output unit that outputs the energy is an outlet that outputs electrical energy, and the energy supply target to which the energy is supplied is a vehicle or the A case of a service management system that manages a charging service (energy supply service) for charging the vehicle battery using electric power output from an outlet, which is a battery built into a vehicle, will be described.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a service management system 10 according to this embodiment.
This service management system 10 manages a charging service that charges the battery of a vehicle from an outlet 20 within an area of a parking lot 80 that has a parking space where a plurality of vehicles 30-1 to 30-3 can be parked. It is. The entrance/exit 81 is one place where the vehicles 30-1 to 30-3 enter and exit the parking lot 80. A gate device 82 is installed at an entrance 81 of the parking lot 80.

In the parking lot 80, charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 each having an outlet 20 are installed near each parking space. In the example of FIG. 1, five charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 are installed in the parking lot 80, but the number of charging stations installed in the parking lot is arbitrary. There may be more than one.

The five charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 in the parking lot 80 receive power via power lines from the power distribution equipment 210 of the same power company, which is an energy provider (Step A), and are managed by the power company. The amount of power supplied is measured by a single power meter 83. Therefore, in this embodiment, the configuration is such that the amount of power supplied from the five charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 cannot be measured separately for each charging station.

In addition, the power meter 83 measures the amount of power supplied to the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 as well as the gate device 82 and various power usage equipment 85 that use power. Therefore, in this embodiment, the configuration is such that it is not possible to distinguish and measure the amount of power supplied by the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 and the amount of power supplied by the other power utilization facilities 82 and 85. .

The power supply amount (power amount data) measured by the power meter 83 is sent to the power management device 200 of the power company (step B). For example, if the watt-hour meter 83 is equipped with a communication function, such as a smart meter, the watt-hour data is transmitted to the power management device 200 of the electric power company via a communication line.

The power usage equipment (charging stations 25-1 to 25-5, gate device 82, power usage equipment 85) whose power supply amount is measured by the power meter 83 is provided by the parking lot manager who is the provider (installation of the outlet 20). managed by a person). Therefore, the electricity fee (energy fee) for the amount of power supplied by the power company and used by these power usage facilities 25-1 to 25-5, 82, and 85 will be paid by the parking lot manager to the power company. (Step C).

The electric power fee paid by the parking lot manager to the electric power company can be covered by, for example, the parking lot fee collected by the parking lot manager from the parking lot users who use the parking lot. This electricity fee includes the amount of electricity supplied to the vehicle 30-1 from the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5, but some parking lot users charge This also includes non-users who do not use the stands 25-1 to 25-5 (such as users of cars that do not have a charging function). Further, even for users who use the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5, the amount of power supplied from the charging stations usually differs. Therefore, it is unfair and undesirable for the parking lot users to uniformly collect the amount of electricity paid by the parking lot manager to the power company on top of the parking lot fees of the parking lot users.

The service management system of this embodiment collects usage fees from users who receive power supply from charging stations 25-1 to 25-5, and stores fees for the amount of power supplied to the users (provided fees). Manage charging services paid to parking lot managers (providers). According to this service management system, the parking lot manager pays the electricity fee for the amount of electricity supplied from the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 to the electric power company for the amount of electricity supplied by the charging service. This can be covered by fees.

Further, in the service management system of this embodiment, users who receive power supply from the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 are charged a usage fee according to the content of the power supply service (charging service). Therefore, an appropriate usage fee can be collected from the users of the charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 according to the content of the power supply service to which the users receive power supply.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the main configuration of the service management system 10 according to the present embodiment.
In FIG. 2, a service management system 10 manages the provision and use of electric power (charging service) to a supply target to which electric power is supplied from an outlet 20. The object of supply in this embodiment is the vehicle 30 or the battery 31 of the vehicle 30 that is charged with the power from the outlet 20. Power is supplied from the outlet 20 via a wired power cable 40 and a plug 41, for example. Power may be supplied from the outlet 20 by wireless power supply such as electromagnetic induction, power supply using radio waves such as microwaves, or power supply using light such as laser light. Further, the voltage (current) supplied from the outlet 20 may be alternating current or direct current.

The service management system 10 includes a service management server 100 as an information processing device that manages the provision and use (charging service) of electric power (electrical energy). The service management server 100 may be configured as a single computer device, may be configured to have multiple computer devices working together, or may be configured as a cloud system on a network.

The outlet 20, which serves as an energy output unit capable of outputting electric power (electrical energy), may be a general-purpose outlet whose use is not limited, or may be a dedicated outlet whose use is limited. Furthermore, the outlet 20 may be an outlet for which users are not limited, or may be an outlet that can be used only by a specific user. Furthermore, the energy output unit of this embodiment is not limited to an outlet, as long as it is capable of outputting electric power, and may be, for example, a dedicated coupler inlet used in a normal charger, a quick charger, or the like.

FIGS. 3A to 3C are explanatory views showing examples of images attached to the outlet 20 of this embodiment, respectively.
A code image (for example, an image of a QR code (registered trademark)) 21 is attached to the outlet 20 in FIG. 3(a). The code image 21 may be a one-dimensional code image or a two-dimensional code image. The code image 21 is an image in which information such as the name, identification number, installation location, and installation entity (parking lot manager) of the outlet 20 is encoded.

An image of characters (for example, handwritten characters) 22 is attached to the outlet 20 in FIG. 3(b) as an auxiliary image for identifying the outlet 20, which is arbitrarily attached by a parking lot manager or the like. Further, the outlet 20 in FIG. 3(c) has an image of an illustration 23 arbitrarily added by a parking lot manager or the like as an auxiliary identification image. The text 22 or the illustration 23 may be attached to the outlet 20. The characters 22 and illustrations 23 of the outlet 20 may be drawn on a seal member 24 by a parking lot manager or the like and pasted on the side of the outlet 20. Note that the identification auxiliary image may be a pattern or a mark in addition to characters and illustrations.

A terminal device 51 of a user 50 who wishes to use the power supplied from the outlet 20 can communicate with the service management server 100 via a communication network 60 such as a mobile communication network or the Internet. The terminal device 51 includes an operation section such as keys, buttons, and a touch panel, a display section such as a liquid crystal display, and an imaging section such as a camera that captures an image of a code of an outlet, an identification aid image, and the like. The terminal device 51 can start and execute a pre-installed predetermined power usage application (power usage application) by a user's operation. The terminal device 51 may include a current location acquisition unit such as a GNSS receiver that acquires information about its current location. The terminal device 51 is, for example, a mobile station (also referred to as a "mobile device", "user equipment (UE)", etc.) that can communicate via a mobile communication network of the fourth generation or the fifth generation or later. Good too.

The vehicle 30 can communicate with the service management server 100 of the service management provider and the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer via the communication network 60 using the external communication unit 32 of the on-vehicle device. Note that the external communication unit 32 may separately include a communication unit that communicates with the service management server 100 and a communication unit that communicates with the vehicle management server 300.

The external communication unit 32 may be, for example, a remote control unit (TCU: telematic control unit) connected to an in-vehicle network (CAN: Controller Area Network) via a gateway. The remote control unit (TCU) may have a short-range wireless communication function such as a wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark) in addition to a communication function via the communication network 60. In addition to the remote control unit (TCU), a battery management system (BMS) that manages the battery 31 and one or more electronic control units (ECU) that control other parts are connected to the in-vehicle network (CAN). There is.

Next, the flow of the charging service managed using the service management system 10 according to this embodiment will be explained.
Power usage information (for example, battery identification information, electric power amount, charging start time, charging end time), which is energy supply information regarding power supply related to charging of the battery 31, is transmitted from a battery management system (BMS) to a remote control unit ( TCU) to the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer (step 1). In addition, vehicle identification information, which is user identification information on the side that uses electric power, is transmitted from an electronic control unit (ECU) having a memory that stores basic information of the vehicle to a remote control unit (TCU) for vehicle management. It is sent to server 300. The transmission of this information to the vehicle management server 300 is performed, for example, based on timing specified by the vehicle management server 300, or based on a transmission request generated by an application running on the terminal device 51. Ru. The transmission request from the terminal device 51 may be received by a remote control unit (TCU) of the vehicle, for example, via short-range wireless communication such as wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark). The vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer stores the power usage information of the vehicle 30 in association with the identification information of the vehicle 30, and manages the latest power usage information almost in real time.

On the other hand, when the user 50 parks the vehicle 30-1 in the parking lot 80 and charges the battery of the vehicle 30-1 from the outlet 20 of the charging station 25-1, the user 50 uses the terminal device 51 to The application to be used is executed to read a code image (for example, a QR code (registered trademark) image) 21 (see FIG. 3(a)) attached to this outlet 20. Then, the user 50 operates the terminal device 51 to transmit the reading data of the code image 21, which is the provider identification information of the power provider, and the user identification information from the terminal device 51. The user identification information includes, for example, identification information of the user 50 or the terminal device 51, and identification information of the supply target to which power is supplied from the outlet 20 (for example, identification information of the vehicle 30 or the battery 31). These pieces of information are received by the terminal communication unit 101 of the service management server 100 via the communication network 60 (step 2).

The user side identification information, such as the identification information of the user 50 or the terminal device 51, and the identification information of the supply target (for example, the identification information of the vehicle 30 or the battery 31), may be registered in advance in the power usage application of the terminal device 51, for example. Ru. The read data of the code image 21, which is the provider identification information, may be, for example, image data obtained by capturing the code image 21 with a camera of the terminal device 51, or may be data obtained by decoding the image data. . In addition, as the provider identification information, instead of the read data of the code image 21, the read data of the identification auxiliary image 22 or 23 attached to the outlet 20 (see FIGS. 3(a) and 3(c)) is used. , and the location information of the terminal device 51 may be used. The location information of the terminal device 51 is, for example, the location information (latitude, longitude, altitude) of the terminal device 51 determined by the GNSS receiver of the terminal device 51.

Note that examples of provider identification information are not limited to those described above. For example, the charging stand 25 provided with the outlet 20 may be provided with an RF tag that stores identification information of the outlet 20. In this case, the user 50 executes the power usage application on the terminal device 51, communicates wirelessly with this RF tag, and acquires the identification information of the outlet 20 stored in the RF tag. Then, the user 50 operates the terminal device 51 to transmit the identification information of the outlet 20, which is the provider identification information, from the terminal device 51 to the service management server 100 via the communication network 60.

In this embodiment, the user identification information and provider identification information described above are transmitted from the terminal device 51 of the user 50 to the service management server 100 via the communication network 60, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a communication device such as an IoT communication module is installed in the charging stand 25 equipped with the outlet 20, and the communication device communicates with the terminal device 51 of the user 50 via the communication network, and from the terminal device 51 to the user side. The identification information and provider identification information may be acquired and transmitted to the service management server 100 via a communication network.

Next, the service management server 100 of the service management company receives read data of the code image 21 from the terminal device 51 of the user 50, and also receives variable parameter information as energy supply information from the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer. Obtain power usage information including supply amount information (step 3). The supply amount information is information regarding the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 to which the user 50 supplies power.

In addition, the service management server 100 responds to the read data of the code image 21, etc., as necessary, according to the service contract details (setting conditions) of the charging service of the user stored in the storage unit 104 of the service management server 100. Setting parameters corresponding to the setting conditions are transmitted to the charging station 25 (step 4). Thereby, the power supply speed at which power is supplied from the outlet 20 of the charging station 25 is determined according to the service contract details (setting conditions).

Then, the service management server 100 performs necessary processing to collect usage fees for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 from the user 50 based on the amount of supply information included in the acquired power usage information. (Usage fee charging process) is performed (Step 5). At this time, in this embodiment, based on information regarding the power supply speed during charging (supply speed related information), the higher the power supply speed is, the higher the additional charge is determined, and the usage fee including the additional charge is calculated. be done. Then, the service management company that operates the charging service collects a usage fee from the user 50 for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 (including an additional fee that increases as the power supply speed increases). (Step 7).

The billing process (processing necessary for billing) performed by the service management server 100 collects usage fees for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 from the user 50 based on the acquired supply amount information. This process is at least part of a series of processes (including all known billing processes) necessary to do so. As a specific example, for example, a process of calculating a usage fee (including the above-mentioned additional fee) for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 from the acquired supply amount information and supply speed related information, and the usage fee. This includes the process of completing procedures for charging users for the service charge, and the process of providing at least one of supply amount information and usage fee information to a management device managed by another business operator that collects the usage fee from the user. One example is processing.

Further, upon receiving the read data of the code image 21 from the terminal device 51 of the user 50, the service management server 100 supplies power for charging the vehicle 30-1 based on the acquired supply amount information and supply speed related information. The necessary processing (preparation process for payment of the provision fee) is performed to pay the parking lot manager the fee for the amount of electricity provided (including an additional fee that increases as the power supply speed increases) (step 6). As a result, the service management company that operates the charging service can pay the parking lot manager the fee for providing electricity (including the above-mentioned additional fee) for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 (step 8).

Payment processing (processing necessary for payment) performed by the service management server 100 is to pay the parking lot manager a fee for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 based on the acquired supply amount information. This is at least a part of the series of processes necessary for this (including all known payment processes). As a specific example, for example, a process of calculating a provision fee for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1 from the acquired supply amount information and supply speed related information, and a process of calculating the provision fee for the amount of power supplied for charging the vehicle 30-1, and calculating the provision fee by the parking lot manager (provider) Processes that include processing to complete procedures for payment to the parking lot manager, and processing to provide at least one of supply amount information and provision fee information to a management device managed by another business operator that pays the provision fee to the parking lot manager. It will be done.

In the present embodiment, the amount of power supplied (energy supply amount) supplied from the outlet 20 (energy output section) to the battery 31 (energy supply target) of the vehicle 30 is used as variable parameter information for varying the provision fee and usage fee. supply information is used, but is not limited to this. For example, when changing the provision fee or usage fee depending on the charging time (charging end time - charging start time), information on the charging time can be used as variable parameter information. In this case, since there is no need for a detection unit that detects the amount of power supplied during charging, it is possible to provide a service management system with a simple configuration.

In particular, in this embodiment, information on the power supply rate (power supply amount per unit time) during charging is used as variable parameter information. For example, some outlets 20 have different power supply speeds (amount of power supplied per unit time) to the vehicle 30. That is, some outlets 20 are capable of rapid charging with a faster power supply speed than other outlets 20. In such cases, the difference in power supply speed (energy supply speed) during charging (for example, whether the charging method is a quick charging method or not, or the difference between multiple charging methods with different power supply speeds) Fees and usage fees may be varied. Specifically, the faster the power supply speed (energy supply speed) during charging, the higher the additional charge (for example, if the fast charging method is used, the additional charge will be higher than if the fast charging method is not used). , calculate the provision fee and usage fee.

Examples of the quick charging method include a charging method (fast charging method) in which electrical energy is supplied as a direct current voltage. This charging method has a faster power supply speed than a normal charging method (low-speed charging method) that supplies electrical energy with AC voltage.

In this case, it is possible to correct the inequality between users due to differences in power supply speeds (such as whether or not charging can be completed in a short time), and it is possible to provide a charging service that gives a sense of equality to users. . In addition, it is possible to correct inequalities among parking lot managers due to differences in power supply speeds (such as whether or not they are using fast-charging outlets that require expensive capital investment), which makes it easier for parking lot managers to It is possible to provide a charging service with a sense of equality. Particularly, it is possible to create an appropriate path for recovering the investment for the parking lot manager who has invested a large amount of money in equipment for the outlet 20 that is capable of rapid charging.

Furthermore, the power supply speed may vary depending on the type, configuration, or state of the vehicle 30 and battery 31 to which energy is supplied. Specifically, the AC power consumption rate (electricity cost) of the vehicle, battery capacity, remaining battery level, degree of battery deterioration (mileage of the vehicle 30, usage period of the battery 31, etc.), charging efficiency, vehicle position (the vehicle 30 is For plug-in hybrid vehicles, the power supply speed may vary depending on the area where the battery is being charged (the area where the battery is being charged), the amount of gasoline remaining, etc. Therefore, by acquiring this supply target information as variable parameter information to understand the difference in power supply speed, the usage fee charged to the user is determined so that the faster the power supply speed during charging, the higher the additional charge. Alternatively, the provision fee to be paid to the parking lot manager may be calculated. Note that this information can be obtained, for example, by acquiring information on the type (classification) of the vehicle 30 (energy supply target), which will be described later. Further, the usage fee charged to the user and the provision fee paid to the parking lot manager may be calculated by including a fee according to the time period in which the parking lot where the vehicle 30 is parked is occupied.

Furthermore, the power supply speed may vary depending on the service contract details of each user who uses the charging service of this embodiment. For example, the power supply speed supplied from the outlet 20 may be determined according to a contract condition selected by the user from among a plurality of contract conditions (setting conditions) with different power supply speeds.

As a specific example, if the user's service contract includes an upper limit setting condition that limits the upper limit of the power supply speed, the power supply speed supplied from the outlet 20 will exceed the upper limit if there is no such upper limit setting condition. Even though charging is possible at a power supply rate that is lower than the upper limit, the power supply rate is limited to the upper limit. In this case, information on the user's contract conditions (setting conditions) is acquired as variable parameter information to understand the difference in power supply speed, and the user is billed so that, for example, the lower the upper limit, the lower the additional charge. The usage fee to be paid to the parking lot manager or the provision fee to be paid to the parking lot manager may be calculated. According to this, by selecting contract conditions (setting conditions) that include the above-mentioned upper limit setting conditions, users can keep usage fees low, even though the power supply speed is low and charging time is long. can. In addition, by keeping the power supply speed low for some users, the provider can increase the power supply speed for other users, or increase the number of users charging at the same time (number of simultaneous connections). This makes it possible to provide services at low additional charges. Note that depending on the method of operating the service, the usage fee to be charged to the user and the provision fee to be paid to the parking lot manager may be calculated such that, for example, the lower the upper limit is, the higher the additional fee is included.

The upper limit setting condition for limiting the upper limit of the power supply speed may be, for example, a condition for limiting the upper limit of the slope value of the amount of electric power (kWh) supplied from the outlet 20, as shown in the graph shown in FIG. . Specifically, the upper limit of the time differential value of the electric energy (kWh) may be limited. The example shown in Figure 4 corresponds to a contract condition in which the upper limit of the power supply speed (the upper limit of the slope of the amount of power supplied (kWh)) is gradually lowered each time a specified period of time elapses. It is.

As another specific example, if the user's service contract includes a priority setting condition in which the power supply speed is prioritized over other users, the power supply speed supplied from the outlet 20 may be set such that the power supply speed is higher than that of other users. determined to be faster than other users. In this case, information on the user's contract conditions (setting conditions) is acquired as variable parameter information to understand the difference in power supply speed.For example, when a priority setting condition is included, the price is higher than when the priority setting condition is not included. The usage fee to be charged to the user and the provision fee to be paid to the parking lot manager may be calculated so as to include the additional fee. According to this, by selecting contract conditions (setting conditions) that include the priority setting conditions as described above, users can increase the usage fee, but the number of users charging at the same time (the number of simultaneous connections) will increase. Even if the power supply increases, the power supply speed is maintained or the speed decrease is suppressed, and charging can be performed in a shorter time. Further, the priority setting condition may be selected for users or energy supply targets (emergency vehicles, medical institutions, etc.) who should prioritize power supply speed over general users. Depending on how the service is operated, for example, when a priority setting condition is included, the usage fee charged to the user or paid to the parking lot manager may be changed to include an additional fee that is lower than when the priority setting condition is not included. A provision fee may be calculated.

Furthermore, for example, some of the outlets 20 have different types of output power (energy) generation methods. This type includes, for example, types recommended by national energy policies, types with low production costs, and the like. In this way, when there are different types of output power (energy) generation methods, the provision fee and usage fee may be varied depending on the difference in the type of power (energy) generation method. , information on the type of generation method of the electric power (energy) can be used as the variable parameter information.

As a specific example of the type of generation method of the output power (energy), the power source that generates the power is one that generates power from fossil fuels such as oil or coal, or one that generates power from fossil fuels such as oil or coal, or one that uses wind power or solar power. , and those that distinguish whether electricity is generated from natural energy such as biomass (living resources). Further, it may be possible to further differentiate the types of these fossil fuels and natural energies (for example, in the case of natural energy, to distinguish between wind power, sunlight, and biomass (biological resources)). The type can be determined, for example, based on the presence or absence of a certificate (such as a green power certificate) issued by a predetermined certification authority. The type of generation method of the output power (energy) is not limited to the type of power source as described above, and may be a method that distinguishes the amount of CO ₂ (carbon dioxide) generated in the power generation process.

Note that the type of power generation method corresponding to each outlet 20 can be associated with each outlet 20 in advance based on, for example, an application from a parking lot manager. Specifically, in the storage unit 104 of the service management server 100, information on the type of power generation method corresponding to the outlet 20 (for example, green power (Information on whether there is a certificate or not) is memorized.

Further, for example, the outlet 20 in the system of the present embodiment may differ in type (type) of the vehicle 30 (energy supply target) to which the output power is supplied. This type includes, for example, the manufacturer and model of the vehicle 30, or the manufacturer and model of the battery 31 installed in the vehicle 30. In this way, when the types of vehicles 30 are different, the power supply speed may be different, and the cost for power supply (the equipment cost of the outlet 20) may be different. In such a case, the provision fee or the usage fee may be varied depending on the type of vehicle 30 receiving power supply (energy supply target), and in this case, the information on the type of the vehicle 30 (energy supply target) may be changed. It can be used as parameter information. Note that the type of vehicle 30 that receives power supply from each outlet 20 may be determined by the service management server 100 based on the vehicle identification information of the vehicle 30 transmitted from the external communication unit 32 of the vehicle 30, for example. can.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of main functions of the service management server 100 according to the embodiment.
In FIG. 5, the service management server 100 includes a terminal communication section 101 as a supply information acquisition section, a server communication section 102, a management processing section 103, a storage section (DB: database) 104, a billing processing section 105, and a payment processing section 105. A processing unit 106 is provided.

The terminal communication unit 101 communicates with the terminal device 51 of the user 50 via the communication network 60. The terminal communication unit 101 includes, for example, read data of the code image 21 transmitted from the terminal device 51, identification information of the user 50 or the terminal device 51, identification information of the object to be supplied with power from the outlet 20 (for example, a vehicle 30 or identification information of the battery 31).

The read data of the code image 21 functions as identification information (provider identification information) of the parking lot manager who is the provider of the outlet 20 that supplied power to the vehicle 30 of the user 50. The identification information of the terminal device 50 or the terminal device 51 and the identification information of the supply target (for example, the identification information of the vehicle 30 or the battery 31) function as user-side identification information. Therefore, the terminal communication section 101 functions as a supply information acquisition section.

The server communication unit 102 communicates via the communication network 60 with the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer to which the vehicle 30 to be supplied is registered. The server communication unit 102 receives, for example, at least supply amount information (variable parameter information) of the power usage information of the vehicle 30 stored by the vehicle management server 300 from the vehicle management server 300 via the communication network 60. do.

Note that the terminal communication unit 101 and the server communication unit 102 may be configured as an integrated communication device (for example, a mobile communication module).

The management processing unit 103 performs authentication ( At least one of authentication (user authentication) and authentication of the supply target (for example, vehicle 30 or battery 31) (supply target authentication) is performed.

For example, the management processing unit 103 compares the identification information (user ID) of the user 50 received from the terminal device 51 and the identification information (user ID) of the user registered in advance in the service management server 100. By doing so, user authentication is performed to confirm whether the user 50 is an authorized user registered in advance in the service management system of this embodiment. In this case, use of the charging service may be permitted when the user is an authorized user, and use of the charging service may be restricted (for example, use may be prohibited) when the user is not an authorized user.

Further, for example, the management processing unit 103 uses the identification information of the supply target (for example, the identification information of the vehicle 30 or the battery 31) received from the terminal device 51 and the identification information of the supply target registered in advance in the service management server 100. (for example, identification information of the vehicle 30 or battery 31), it is possible to determine whether the supply target (for example, the vehicle 30 or battery 31) is a regular supply target registered in advance in the service management system of this embodiment. Supply target authentication may be performed to confirm the following. In this case, use of the charging service may be permitted when the charging service is an authorized supply target, and use of the charging service may be restricted (for example, usage may be prohibited) when the charging service is not an authorized supply target.

Furthermore, the management processing unit 103 receives information from the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer via the server communication unit 102 based on the identification information of the supply target (for example, identification information of the vehicle 30 or the battery 31) received from the terminal device 51. , receives and acquires the supply amount information of the supply target (step 3).

As described above, the supply amount information is information regarding the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 to which the user 50 supplies power. The supply amount information may be any information that can specify the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 to which the user 50 supplies power. In this embodiment, this supply amount information is included in the power usage information transmitted from the vehicle 30 to the vehicle management server 300, and is stored in the vehicle management server 300.

A specific example of the supply amount information is, for example, information that can be detected by the detection unit 33 included in the vehicle 30, and the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 and used to charge the battery 31 (power supply amount). ), the detected information can be used as supply amount information.

Further, for example, if the detection unit 33 included in the vehicle 30 is capable of detecting the remaining amount of power in the battery 31, information on the detected remaining amount of power may be used as the supply amount information. In this case, for example, the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 and used to charge the battery 31 (power supply amount) can be obtained by subtracting the remaining amount of power before charging from the remaining amount of power after charging.

Furthermore, since many electric vehicles are equipped with a detection unit 33 that detects the state of charge (SoC) of the battery 31, SoC data may be used as supply amount information. In this case, unless the full charge capacity of the battery 31 is known, the remaining power level of the battery 31 cannot be determined from the SoC data. However, by storing the correspondence between the identification information of the battery 31 and the full charge capacity in the storage unit (DB) 104, the full charge capacity can be specified from the identification information of the battery 31, and the SoC data of the battery 31 can be stored. The remaining amount of power of the battery 31 can be calculated from .

A storage unit (DB) 104 stores information and data necessary for various processes performed by the service management server 100. Specifically, the reading data of the code image as the output unit identification information received by the terminal communication unit 101, the identification information of the user 50 or the terminal device 51, and the identification information of the supply target, and the identification information received by the server communication unit 102. The supply amount information and the power supply speed related information during charging are stored in association with each other. For example, as shown in Table 1, for each series of power usage transactions, the outlet ID, user ID, terminal ID (for example, IMEI), vehicle ID, power supply amount, and service of the user as information related to the power supply speed. One record is stored in which the contract contents are associated with each other, and a power usage transaction table (power usage ledger) is formed as a whole.

Furthermore, the storage unit (DB) 104 stores various tables used for managing charging services via a plurality of outlets. For example, the storage unit (DB) 104 stores an outlet management table shown in Table 2, a user management table shown in Table 3, and a vehicle management table shown in Table 4. Note that Table 2 may be an example in which the read data of the auxiliary identification image 22 or 23 attached to the outlet 20 and the position information of the terminal device 51 are used instead of the read data of the code image 21. Furthermore, the storage unit (DB) 104 may further store an installer (provider) management table for managing the installer (provider) of the outlet 20, such as a parking lot manager. In the installer (provider) management table, information such as the name, address, etc. of the installer (provider) is recorded, for example, using the installer ID as a key.

In the user management table, if necessary, for example, using the user ID as a key, the service contract details of the charging service corresponding to the user (setting conditions such as the presence or absence of upper limit setting conditions and the presence or absence of priority setting conditions) etc. are recorded.

The outlet management table, the user management table, and the vehicle management table respectively include the outlet 20, user 50 (terminal device 51), and vehicle 30 (battery 31) for using the charging service provided by the service management server 100 of this embodiment. ) A new record is added when there is a new registration.

In addition, the storage unit (DB) 104 contains the installer ID (identification information of the parking lot manager) and the processing (payment processing) necessary to pay the provision fee for the amount of electricity supplied to the parking lot manager. A payment processing table is stored in which provider information such as used information (account number of payee, etc.) is associated with information of the energy output unit such as the name of the corresponding outlet and code image read data. A record is added to this payment processing table when a new installer (provider) of the outlet 20 is registered. By linking and referring to the payment processing table and the various tables described above, in the charging service of this embodiment, it is possible to process the payment process for the amount of electricity supplied to the installer (parking lot manager). can.

The storage unit (DB) 104 also contains information such as a user ID and information ( A billing processing table may be stored in which user information such as usage fee billing destination information is associated with information on energy supply targets regarding vehicles, batteries, etc. A record is added to this billing processing table when a user 50 is newly registered in the charging service of this embodiment. By linking and referring to the billing processing table and the various tables described above, in the charging service of this embodiment, it is possible to perform billing processing for the usage fee for the amount of power supplied to the user.

For example, when using SoC data as the supply amount information, a battery information table indicating the correspondence between identification information of the battery 31 and full charge capacity is stored in the storage unit (DB) 104.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of service management processing in the service management server 100 according to the present embodiment.
In FIG. 6, the service management process of this embodiment includes a preliminary preparation phase (S100) and an operation phase (S200).

In the advance preparation phase (S100), when the service management server 100 receives an application for electrical outlet registration for the charging service from the installer (provider) of the electrical outlet 20, such as a parking lot manager, the service management server 100 acquires information regarding the application. Remember. For example, when the operator inputs data regarding the outlet 20 of the installer (parking lot manager), the service management server 100 creates the outlet management table shown in Table 2 and the payment processing table described above (S101). . Specifically, when an application for outlet registration is received, the operator uses a keyboard or touch panel to input provider registration information, including information about the provider and information about the energy output unit, into the service management server 100. Data is input using an input device such as (provider side registration information acquisition unit). As a result, the service management server 100 stores in its storage a table that associates the provider registration information input via the input device with the output unit identification information (outlet ID, etc.) for identifying the energy output unit. 104 database. By managing such a table, it is possible to perform appropriate payment processing for a plurality of providers with charges corresponding to the amount of power supplied from each outlet 20 (energy output unit).

Note that the provider registration information acquisition unit in the service management server 100 is configured to receive and acquire provider registration information transmitted from a provider's terminal device via a communication network instead of data input by an operator. Good too.

Further, when a user 50 who uses a charging service (energy supply service) applies for the use of a charging service using a terminal device 51, the service management server 100 sends an application to the user 50 and the terminal device 51 from the terminal device 51. Receive and acquire new registration data (user side registration information) including information (user information), information on supply targets (vehicle 30 and battery 31) (information on energy supply targets), charging service contract details, etc. do. The terminal communication unit 101 that receives this new registration data functions as a provider registration information acquisition unit.

The service management server 100 uses the received user side registration information, supply target identification information (vehicle ID and battery ID) that identifies the energy supply target, and information on the mobile terminal device used by the user when using the charging service (terminal ID) is stored in the database of the storage unit 104. As a result, the user management table shown in Table 3, the vehicle management table shown in Table 4, and the above-mentioned billing processing table are created (S102).

Next, in the operation phase (S200), when the user 50 charges the battery 31 of the vehicle 30 by receiving power supply from the registered outlet 20, the user 50 first operates the terminal device 51 to use the charging service. Activate the application (power usage application) for this purpose. Then, the user uses the terminal device 51 to image and read the code image 21 including the identification information of the outlet 20, and selects "My Car" from the menu selection displayed on the display screen of the terminal device 51. Through this operation, the identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51), the read data of the code image 21, and the identification of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31) pre-registered as "my car" in the terminal device 51 are obtained. Information is transmitted from the terminal device 51 to the service management server 100. Thereby, the service management server 100 receives the identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51), the read data of the code image 21, and the identification information of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31) from the terminal device 51 of the user 50. Receive (S201).

Next, the service management server 100 uses the identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51) received from the terminal device 51 and the identification information of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31) to Authentication processing is performed for the combination of the identification information 51) and the vehicle 30 (or battery 31) (S202).

After completing the authentication process, the service management server 100 refers to the user management table stored in the storage unit 104 based on the received identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51), and identifies the user 50. Check the service contract details of the charging service that corresponds to. Furthermore, the service management server 100 refers to the outlet management table of Table 2 described above based on the read data of the received code image, and specifies the identification information of the outlet 20. The service management server 100 then configures the charging stand 25 of the outlet 20 corresponding to the identification information of the outlet 20 with setting parameters according to the confirmed service contract details of the user 50 (the user 50 regarding the power supply speed). setting conditions) are transmitted (S203). Thereby, when the battery 31 of the vehicle 30 is charged with the electric power supplied from the outlet 20, charging is performed at the power supply rate according to the setting parameter.

The service management server 100 also sends information to the vehicle management server 300 about the vehicle 30 based on the received identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51) and the identification information of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31). Request SoC data (supply amount information). As a result, the latest supply amount information (SoC data before charging) regarding the vehicle 30 is acquired from the vehicle management server 300 to the service management server 100 via the communication network 60 (S204).

Thereafter, the battery 31 of the vehicle 30 is charged with the electric power supplied from the outlet 20, and when the charging is completed, the vehicle 30 receives the electric power supplied from the outlet 20 in response to a request from the terminal device 51 of the user 50 or autonomously. The power usage information (for example, battery identification information, amount of power (SoC data), charging start time, and charging end time) used to charge the battery 31 of the vehicle 30 is transmitted to the vehicle management server 300. As a result, the SoC data after charging is registered in the vehicle management server 300.

Further, when charging is completed, a charging completion notification including identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51) and identification information of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31) is sent from the user's terminal device 51 to the service management server 100. sent to. Upon receiving the charging completion notification, the service management server 100 sends the vehicle to the vehicle management server 300 based on the identification information of the user 50 (or terminal device 51) and the identification information of the vehicle 30 (or battery 31). Request SoC data (supply amount information) for 30. As a result, the latest supply amount information (SoC data after charging) regarding the vehicle 30 is acquired from the vehicle management server 300 to the service management server 100 via the communication network 60 (S205).

In this way, the service management server 100 that has received the SoC data before charging and the SoC data after charging refers to the battery information table in the storage unit (DB) 104 to obtain the full charge capacity of the battery 31. . Then, the remaining power of the battery 31 before charging is calculated from the SoC data before charging and the full charge capacity, and the remaining power of the battery 31 after charging is calculated from the SoC data after charging and the full charge capacity. . Thereafter, the remaining amount of power before charging is subtracted from the remaining amount of power after charging to calculate the amount of power supplied for this charging (S206).

Next, the service management server 100 refers to the outlet management table of Table 2 described above based on the read data of the code image, and specifies the identification information of the outlet 20. Furthermore, the service management server 100 stores identification information of the outlet 20 (outlet ID), identification information of the user 50 or terminal device 51 (user ID, terminal ID), and identification information of the supply target (vehicle ID or battery ID), the current charging amount (power supply amount) calculated in processing step S205, and the service contract details of the user 50 (settings such as presence or absence of upper limit setting conditions, presence or absence of priority setting conditions, etc.) as power supply speed related information. conditions) are associated with each other and stored in the storage unit (DB) 104 so as to be added to the power usage transaction table (power usage ledger) in Table 1 described above (S207).

The service management server 100 can manage a charging service that involves the supply of power through an outlet by referring to a power usage transaction table (power usage ledger) as shown in Table 1.

In this embodiment, the service management server 100 refers to the power usage transaction table (power usage ledger) to determine whether the user 50 or the supply target (vehicle 30 Alternatively, processing necessary for charging at least one of the battery 31) and the terminal device 51 (charging processing) is performed (S208). In this billing process, for example, the total amount of electricity supplied by each user during a predetermined period (for example, one month) is calculated, and this is multiplied by the unit price of the usage fee to calculate the usage fee to be collected from each user. . Then, with reference to the billing table in the storage unit 104, the billing process necessary to collect usage fees from each user is performed.

At this time, variable parameter information other than supply amount information (information on charging time (charging end time - charging start time), information on power supply speed (power supply amount per unit time), power (energy) generation method , information on the type of vehicle 30 (energy supply target), etc.) may be taken into account to calculate the usage fee.

In particular, in the present embodiment, the usage fee is calculated by including an additional charge, which increases as the power supply speed increases, into the usage fee based on the supply speed related information regarding the power supply speed during charging. Specifically, for example, if the content of the service contract of the user as supply speed related information includes an upper limit setting condition that limits the upper limit of the power supply speed, the lower the upper limit, the lower the additional charge will be used. Included in the price. Also, for example, if the user's service contract includes a priority setting condition that gives priority to the power supply speed over other users, the additional charge will be higher than when such priority setting condition is not included. Included in usage fee.

In addition, the supply speed related information regarding the power supply speed during charging is provided using supply target information indicating the type of the vehicle 30 or battery 31 to which energy is supplied, together with or in place of the service contract contents. Good too. This is because, as described above, the power supply speed may differ depending on the type of vehicle 30 or battery 31 to which power is supplied.

Further, the supply rate related information regarding the power supply rate during charging may be charging method information indicating the charging method used for charging together with or instead of the service contract contents. This is because, as described above, the power supply speed during charging differs between a plurality of charging methods having different power supply speeds (whether or not the charging method is a quick charging method).

In addition, in the present embodiment, the amount of power supply calculated in processing step S206 (the amount of power supplied in the current charging), the charging start time and the charging end time of the current charging registered in the vehicle management server 300 From this, it is possible to calculate the power supply speed during the current charging. Therefore, the power supply rate calculated in this manner may be used as the supply rate related information regarding the power supply rate during charging, together with or in place of the service contract details.

There is no particular restriction on the method of collecting the usage fee from the user as long as the usage fee includes an additional fee for the power supply speed when power is supplied from the outlet 20 to the user's vehicle 30. When collecting usage fees according to the amount of power, a completely metered system may be used, or a flat rate system may be used in which a fixed amount is charged until a specified amount of power is supplied. The business that collects usage fees from users may be a service management business that operates the service management server 100, or another business that collects usage fees upon commission from the service management business. There may be.

In addition, in this embodiment, the service management server 100 refers to the power usage transaction table (power usage ledger) to notify the installer of the outlet 20 (parking lot manager) that the vehicle connected to the outlet 20 30 (S209). In this payment process, for example, the amount of electricity supplied corresponding to each installer's outlet 20 during a predetermined period (for example, one month) is calculated, multiplied by the unit price of the provision fee, and the amount is paid to each installer. Calculate the fee. Then, with reference to the payment processing table in the storage unit 104, the payment processing necessary to pay the provision fee to each installer is performed.

At this time, variable parameter information other than supply amount information (information on charging time (charging end time - charging start time), information on power supply speed (power supply amount per unit time), power (energy) generation method , information on the type of vehicle 30 (energy supply target), etc.) may be taken into account to calculate the provision fee.

In particular, in this embodiment, the provided charge is calculated by including an additional charge, which increases as the power supply speed increases, in the provided charge, based on supply speed related information regarding the power supply speed during charging. Specifically, for example, if the content of the service contract of the user as supply speed related information includes an upper limit setting condition that limits the upper limit of the power supply speed, the lower the upper limit, the lower the additional charge will be provided. Included in the price. Also, for example, if the user's service contract includes a priority setting condition that gives priority to the power supply speed over other users, the additional charge will be higher than when such priority setting condition is not included. Included in the provision fee.

In addition, the supply speed related information regarding the power supply speed during charging is provided using supply target information indicating the type of the vehicle 30 or battery 31 to which energy is supplied, together with or in place of the service contract contents. Good too. Further, the supply rate related information regarding the power supply rate during charging may be charging method information indicating the charging method used for charging together with or instead of the service contract contents.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the amount of power supply calculated in processing step S206 (the amount of power supplied in the current charging), the charging start time and the charging end time of the current charging registered in the vehicle management server 300 From this, it is possible to calculate the power supply speed during the current charging. Therefore, the power supply rate calculated in this manner may be used as the supply rate related information regarding the power supply rate during charging, together with or in place of the service contract details.

As described above, in this embodiment, the service management server 100 uses the billing processing unit 105 to adjust the electricity usage fee calculated from the supply amount information (variable parameter information) received by the server communication unit 102 according to the supply speed related information. Necessary billing processing is performed to bill the user 50 for the usage fee including the additional fee. As a result, the service management business operator who operates the service management server 100 receives electric power from the user 50 who has received power from the outlet 20, which is an energy output unit registered in the charging service (energy supply service) of this embodiment. It is possible to provide a service that collects an appropriate usage fee according to the power supply speed when the power is supplied.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the service management server 100 causes the payment processing unit 106 to adjust the electricity supply rate calculated from the supply amount information (variable parameter information) received by the server communication unit 102 according to the supply speed related information. Performs the necessary payment processing to pay the provision fee including the additional fee to the parking lot manager who is the provider. As a result, the service management business that operates the service management server 100 can provide a charging service (energy supply service).

In addition, in this embodiment, as described above, the outlet 20 as an energy output unit is used not only for a predetermined specific user (a user registered in the charging service) but also for a person other than the specific user. It may be a shared outlet (such as a general-purpose outlet) that can also be used by unspecified general users (users who are not registered with the charging service (energy supply service) of this embodiment). Using such a shared outlet as the energy output unit of the service management system of this embodiment makes procedures such as permission for installation easier than when installing an outlet that can only be used by a specific user. This will contribute to increasing the number of energy output units that can be used in charging services (energy supply services) and expanding the installation area.

However, a shared outlet is usually equipped with a power meter that detects information on the amount of power supplied from the outlet; It detects quantity information and supply speed related information all at once, without distinguishing between users. Therefore, in a system that detects supply amount information and supply speed related information using a detection unit provided on the shared outlet side, it is difficult to detect supply amount information and supply speed related information by distinguishing specific users from general users. This makes it difficult to manage the provision and use of electricity (energy) provided to and used by specific users. Therefore, when using a shared outlet, it is necessary to understand the amount and speed of power supplied from the outlet to a specific user, distinguishing it from that of general users.

According to the present embodiment, the power supply amount and power supply speed supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 of the user 50 are detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30. This can be determined based on the supply amount, charging start time, charging end time). Therefore, even when using a shared outlet, the amount and speed of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 of the user 50 (specific user) may be different from that of other users (general users, etc.). It can be understood separately. Moreover, in this case, the installer of the shared outlet (parking lot manager, etc.) is responsible for distributing the amount and speed of power supplied to a specific user from that outlet to other users (general users, etc.). ) There is no need to install new equipment to distinguish between and detect. Therefore, for the parking lot manager, equipment costs (introduction costs) can be kept low even when a shared outlet is used in the charging service (energy supply service).

In addition, in this embodiment, an outlet (energy output unit) installed in a common area such as a common area of an apartment or a parking lot of a shopping center is used as an outlet (energy output unit) that can be used in the charging service (energy supply service). ) also contributes to increasing the number of outlets (energy output units) that can be used in the charging service (energy supply service) of this embodiment and expanding the installation area. However, such common areas are often equipped with a detection unit that detects information related to the supply amount and supply speed of electricity (energy) supplied within the common area; The section detects the total amount of power supplied within the common area and the power supply speed. Therefore, it is difficult for a detection unit provided in a common area to grasp only the amount and speed of power supply supplied from the outlets installed in such a common area.

In this embodiment as well, the amount of power and the power supply speed of the parking lot 80, which is a common area including the outlet 20, the gate device 82, and various power utilization equipment 85, are determined. The power meter 83 measures the sum of the power supply amount and power supply speed, and other power supply amounts and power supply speeds supplied to the gate device 82 and various power utilization equipment 85 at once. The parking lot manager then pays the electric power company a fee corresponding to this total amount. In this case, the service management company will charge the parking lot manager (provider) a fee for the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 of the user 50 (including an additional fee depending on the power supply speed). In order to pay for this, it is necessary to know, separately from the electricity meter 83, only the amount of power supplied to the vehicle 30 of the user 50 from the outlet 20 and the power supply speed.

According to the present embodiment, power supply information (energy supply information) regarding power supply supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 of the user 50 is converted into power usage information detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30 (for example, (battery identification information, electric energy, charging start time, charging end time). Therefore, even if the parking lot 80 including the outlet 20, the gate device 82, and various power usage equipment 85 is equipped with only the equipment (wattmeter 83) that collectively measures the amount of electricity in the parking lot 80, the vehicle of the user 50 can be accessed from the outlet 20. It is possible to grasp the amount of power supplied to 30 and the power supply speed. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the parking lot manager receives the provision fee for the amount of electricity used by the user 50 who received the power supply from the outlet 20 (including the additional fee according to the power supply speed), There is no need to newly install equipment for detecting the power supply amount and power supply speed supplied from the outlet 20 to the vehicle 30 of the user 50. Therefore, for the parking lot manager, the equipment cost (introduction cost) can be kept low when registering as an energy provider for the charging service (energy supply service).

Further, for the parking lot manager, there is no need for the above-mentioned complicated procedures for installing new equipment, and registration as an energy provider in the charging service (energy supply service) is promoted. For example, if the parking lot 80 is a common area of a condominium, and the parking lot manager is the management association of the condominium, installing new equipment as described above in the common area requires a lot of sectional ownership in the condominium. Procedures such as obtaining consent from individuals are required, which is extremely complicated. According to the present embodiment, such complicated procedures are not required, so that the common outlet 20 provided in the common area of the condominium is used as an outlet (energy output part) for the charging service (energy supply service). registration will be promoted.

Furthermore, according to the service management system of this embodiment, collection of usage fees from users (billing) and payment of the provision fees to providers (parking lot managers) are performed by operating the charging service (energy supply service). This is done by the service management company that provides the service. Therefore, the provider (parking lot management business) does not need to prepare and manage the facilities necessary to collect usage fees from users, or perform the necessary billing processing, so the service management system of this embodiment can be used. The provided charging service (energy supply service) is highly convenient for parking lot management businesses. Therefore, it is expected that the number of providers (parking lot management businesses) that register for charging services (energy supply services) will increase, as it is easy for providers (parking lot management businesses) to register as providers. This facilitates an increase in the number of energy output units (outlets 20) that can be used by users and an expansion of the installation area.

Moreover, power usage information (for example, SoC data, battery identification information, power amount, The detection unit 33 that detects the charging start time and charging end time is a facility that is included in most existing vehicles (energy supply target) 30. Therefore, the user 50 is not burdened with additional costs for the detection unit 33.

In addition, in recent years, various information including power usage information (for example, SoC data, battery identification information, electric power amount, charging start time, charging end time) detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30 is provided by each vehicle manufacturer. It is integrated into the vehicle management server 300 and used for various vehicle services. The service management server 100 of this embodiment does not acquire power usage information detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30 from each vehicle 30 individually, but acquires it from the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer. According to this, the service management server 100 can acquire the power usage information detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30 using existing equipment and facilities, so that There is no need to newly install a device that transmits power usage information to the service management server 100. Therefore, the cost burden on the user 50 is further reduced.

On the other hand, since it is assumed that there are users who do not use the service in which the power usage information detected by the detection unit 33 provided in the vehicle 30 is accumulated in the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer, the vehicle 30 of the user 50 A new device that transmits power usage information to the service management server 100 may be newly installed. In this case, for example, the supply amount information (SoC data, etc.) and supply speed related information (power supply amount, charging start time, charging end time) detected by the detection unit 33 of the vehicle 30 are acquired and sent to the service management server 100. A communication device as a transmitter that can transmit data may be connected to an OBD2 (On Board Diagnosis second generation) connector provided in the vehicle 30.

Further, in this embodiment, as supply target identification information, identification information of the user 50 or the terminal device 51, and identification information of the vehicle 30 to which power is supplied from the outlet 20 are used as the supply target identification information of the user 50's terminal device. Although the service management server 100 receives and acquires the supply identification information from 51, the supply identification information may be acquired by other methods. For example, the gate device 82 installed at the entrance/exit of the parking lot 80 is provided with a function of acquiring identification information of the vehicles 30 entering and exiting the parking lot 80, and the service management server 100 receives the identification information from the gate device 82 as the supply target identification information. The identification information of the vehicle 30 may also be received. In this case, for example, the license plate (vehicle registration number plate) of the vehicle 30 passing through the entrance/exit is captured by an imaging device such as a camera provided in the gate device 82, and the vehicle registration number of the vehicle 30 is recognized from the captured image. can be obtained as identification information. In addition, the ETC (Electronic
Toll Collection System) The identification information of the vehicle received from the on-vehicle device may be acquired.

In the embodiment described above, the terminal device 51 of the user 50 is used to transmit information such as user identification information and provider identification information to the service management server 100; , an external communication unit 32 mounted on the vehicle 30 may be used. Further, in the embodiment described above, information such as power usage information (power supply information, supply speed related information) is transmitted using the external communication unit 32 mounted on the vehicle 30. Instead of the external communication unit 32, the terminal device 51 of the user 50 may be used.

In addition, the above-mentioned usage fees charged to users and provision fees paid to providers such as parking lot managers may be used instead of or together with electricity usage information (power supply information). , may be calculated by taking other variable parameter information into consideration. For example, even if the amount of power supplied is the same, the usage fee or provision fee may be changed depending on other variable parameter information. In addition to the above-mentioned information, this variable parameter information includes, for example, user attributes (differences in fees paid for services, differences in service grade, differences in age of users, differences in regions to which users belong, etc.), Examples include attributes of the vehicle 30 to which energy is supplied (differences in vehicle manufacturer, differences in additional services related to the vehicle 30, etc.). In addition, as variable parameter information, for example, information on the type of energy output from the energy output unit (difference in energy source, whether it is specified clean energy, etc.), the type of energy output unit (from the provider's energy output unit, etc.), Differences in the supply speed of energy supplied to the user's energy supply target (quick charging or not) can also be cited.

[Modified example]
Next, a modified example of the service management system in the embodiment described above will be described.
Note that, in the following description, points that are different from the above-described embodiment will be mainly explained, and descriptions similar to the above-described embodiment will be omitted.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the main configuration of the service management system according to this modification.
In the management system in this modification, a detection unit that detects supply amount information and supply rate related information is installed in a power output device 400 as an energy output device that includes an outlet 20 as an energy output unit. This power output device 400, like the charging station 25 of the embodiment described above, receives power from the power distribution equipment 210 of the power company via the power line. The power output device 400 of this embodiment also functions as a power supply control device that controls power supply to the batteries 31 of the vehicles 30-1 and 30-2 via the outlet 20.

The power output device 400 includes a general-purpose plug 402 that is connected to the general-purpose outlet 26 on the power distribution equipment 210 side (power meter 83 side) shown in FIG. Furthermore, the power output device 400 is provided with outlets 20-1 and 20-2 as energy output units, and by inserting and connecting a plug 41 into each outlet 20-1 and 20-2, the power output device 400 is connected to the vehicle 30-1 and -2 batteries 31, respectively.

The power output device 400 also includes switch sections 410-1 and 410-2 as opening/closing means for opening and closing the power supply path from each outlet 20-1 and 20-2 to the battery 31; 410-2, a network communication unit 430 as a communication unit that communicates with the service management server 100, etc. via the communication network 60, and a detection unit that detects the amount of power supplied during charging. It also includes a power amount measuring section 440 as a section.

The switch sections 410-1 and 410-2 can be configured with, for example, switches having normally open relay contacts.

The control unit 420 can be configured with, for example, a general-purpose microcomputer such as a CPU, a dedicated IC circuit element, or the like. The control unit 420 also includes a storage unit as a storage unit consisting of a semiconductor memory such as RAM or ROM, or a magnetic disk, and reads out a predetermined program stored in the storage unit, and according to the program, data and commands are sent. It may be configured to perform transmission/reception processing, user authentication data processing, control of the switch unit, etc. Further, the control unit 420 includes a first control unit connected to the switch units 410-1 and 410-2, and a second control unit controlled from the service management server 100 via the communication network 60. You can. In this case, control is performed between the first control section and the second control section via, for example, an API (Application Programming Interface).

The control unit 420 includes a timer as a time measurement means. For example, when receiving an authentication result indicating that the authentication process was successful from the service management server 100 or receiving a connection request from the terminal device 51 via the communication network 60, the timer measures the usage time included in the connection request. By presetting, the switch sections 410-1 and 410-2 are controlled to be turned ON (relay closed), and the timer function is started at the same time as the start of power supply to the battery 31. Then, when the usage time expires and the time is up, a time-up signal is output. Based on this time-up signal, the control section 420 performs control to turn off the switch sections 410-1 and 410-2 (open the relay), and terminates the power supply to the battery 31. Therefore, the control section 420 functions as a detection section (speed detection section) that detects the charging start time and charging end time for each outlet 20-1 and 20-2. Note that the control unit 420 may perform authentication processing performed by the service management server 100.

The network communication unit 430 sends information such as provider identification information such as an outlet ID to the service management server 100 via the communication network 60 and information from the outlets 20-1 and 20-2 to the batteries 31 of the vehicles 30-1 and 30-2. It functions as a transmitter that transmits supply amount information (variable parameter information) such as the amount of power to be output. The network communication unit 430 may be configured to communicate via a wired communication line such as an optical line, or may be configured using a wireless communication module to communicate via a wireless communication line. . Communication via a wireless communication line may be, for example, communication via a fourth generation or fifth generation cellular mobile communication network, or communication via a wireless LAN such as WiFi.

The power amount measurement unit 440 functions as a detection unit that detects the amount of power used to charge the battery 31 from the outlets 20-1 and 20-2 (power supply amount). As the electric energy measuring section 440, for example, an induction type electric energy meter, an electronic electric energy meter, or the like can be used. The power usage information (power supply information) detected by the power amount measurement unit 440 is sent to the control unit 420, and the control unit 420 transmits the information to the service management server 100 from the network communication unit 430 via the communication network 60 at a predetermined timing. Send the power usage information (power supply information) to.

In this modification, the service management server 100 directly receives power usage information (power supply information) from the power output device 400 that is necessary for calculating the usage fee to be charged to the user 50 and the provision fee to be paid to the parking lot manager. can be obtained. Therefore, even without acquiring SoC data from the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer, usage charges and provision charges according to the amount of power supplied from the outlet 20 to the battery 31, and additional charges according to the power supply speed can be calculated. can be calculated appropriately. Note that the power supply speed can be calculated from the power supply amount detected by the power amount measurement unit 440 and the charging time (charging end time−charging start time) measured by the control unit 420. Furthermore, if the power output device 400 is provided with a speed detection section that directly detects the power supply speed of charging performed at each outlet 20-1, 20-2, the power supply speed detected by this speed detection section can be May be used.

Here, in this modification, the power output device 400 is provided with a plurality of (two shown in FIG. 7) outlets 20-1, 20-2, and each outlet 20-1, 20-2 is provided with a plurality of outlets 20-1, 20-2. 2, it is possible to simultaneously charge the batteries 31 of the vehicles 30-1 and 30-2. In a configuration such as this that allows simultaneous charging of multiple supply targets, due to output capacity limitations, etc., as the number of supply targets that are simultaneously charged increases, the power supply speed to each supply target generally decreases. It is true.

FIG. 8A is a graph showing an example of the relationship between charging time and charging amount when one vehicle 30-1 is charged from the outlet 20-1.
FIG. 8(b) is a graph showing an example of the relationship between charging time and charging amount when the other vehicle 30-2 is charged from the outlet 20-2.

In the example shown in FIGS. 8(a) and 8(b), only one vehicle 30-1 starts charging first, and then while the other vehicle 30-1 is being charged, the other vehicle 30-2 starts charging. In this example, one vehicle 30-1 starts charging, and then, while charging the other vehicle 30-2, one vehicle 30-1 ends charging. In this example, during the period when only one vehicle 30-1 is charging, the power supply speed to each vehicle 30-1 and 30-2 is fast (the slope of the graph is large), but when both vehicles During the period when the vehicles 30-1 and 30-2 are charging, the power supply speed to the vehicles 30-1 and 30-2 is slow (the slope of the graph is small). In this modification, as shown in FIGS. 8(a) and 8(b), the power supply speed to each vehicle 30-1, 30-2 may change within the charging period from the start of charging to the end of charging. be.

The additional charge when the power supply speed changes within the charging period can be calculated, for example, by using the average value of the power supply speed within the charging period as the power supply speed during charging. In this case, as described above, it can be calculated from the power supply amount detected by the power amount measuring section 440 and the charging time (charging end time - charging start time) measured by the control section 420.

Furthermore, when the power supply speed changes within the charging period, additional charges may be calculated according to each power supply speed before and after the change, for example. Specifically, in the example of FIG. 8(a), the additional charge for the usage fee for one vehicle 30-1 is calculated during the period when only the one vehicle 30-1 is charging (the period when the power supply speed is high). ), the additional charge will be higher than during the period when the other vehicle 30-1 is being charged at the same time (the period when the power supply speed is slow).

Further, if the power supply speed changes within the charging period, the service management server 100 may notify the terminal device 51 of the user 50 via the communication network 60. This notification content includes content that notifies that the power supply speed has changed within the charging period or a matter that changes due to this. For example, you may be notified that the power supply speed has changed within the charging period, or you may be notified that the usage fee will change from the originally planned usage fee due to the change in the power supply speed within the charging period. Alternatively, it may be notified that the charging end time will change from the originally scheduled time due to a change in the power supply rate within the charging period.

Note that the configuration that allows simultaneous charging of a plurality of supply targets is the same in the above-described embodiments. That is, as the number of vehicles 30 (the number of batteries 31) that are charged from each outlet 20 of the five charging stations 25-1 to 25-5 shown in FIG. Feed rates can be low. Even in such a case, additional charges may be calculated as described in this modification.

According to this modification, there is no need for cooperation with the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer, and as a result, vehicle information such as power usage information is accumulated in the vehicle management server 300 of the vehicle manufacturer. This makes it possible to provide charging services that are easy for people to use.

Moreover, the power output device 400 of the present modification has a general-purpose plug of the power output device 400 attached to a general-purpose outlet 26 attached to an outlet installation location such as a parking lot 80 where the outlet 20 as an energy output unit is installed. 402 and the connection, the parking lot manager (provider) can start the charging service, similar to the embodiment described above. Therefore, in this modification, as in the above-described embodiment, the registration of the parking lot manager (provider) in the charging service (energy supply service) is promoted, and the energy output unit (outlet outlet) that can be used by the user is promoted. 20) The increase in the number of devices and the expansion of the installation area will be promoted.

In the above-described embodiment (including variations), an example of a charging service is given in which a vehicle 30 parked in a parking lot is charged with electric power from an outlet 20 to charge a battery 31, but the present invention is similarly applicable to other charging services. It is possible. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a charging service in which a non-contact charger embedded in the road surface on which the vehicle 30 travels charges the battery of a vehicle traveling on the road surface by non-contact charging. In this case as well, based on the supply speed related information (charging method information indicating the charging method of non-contact charging, information on the actual power supply speed, etc.), the usage fee including the higher additional charge will be calculated as the power supply speed is faster. The provision fee may be calculated.

Note that the processing steps and components such as the information processing device, gate device, vehicle-mounted device, terminal device, and server described in this specification can be implemented by various means. For example, these steps and components may be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or a combination thereof.

Regarding hardware implementation, the above steps and The processing units and other means used to implement the components may include one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processors (DSPDs), programmable logic devices, etc. (PLD), field programmable gate array (FPGA), processor, controller, microcontroller, microprocessor, electronic device, or other electronic unit designed to perform the functions described herein, computer , or a combination thereof.

Also, for firmware and/or software implementations, the means used to implement the components, such as processing units, may include programs (e.g., procedures, functions, modules, instructions) that perform the functions described herein. , etc.). In general, any computer/processor readable medium tangibly embodying firmware and/or software code may be used to implement the steps and components described herein. It may be used for implementation. For example, the firmware and/or software code may be stored in memory and executed by a computer or processor, eg, in a controller. The memory may be implemented within the computer or processor, or external to the processor. The firmware and/or software code may also be stored in, for example, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), etc. ), flash memory, floppy disks, compact disks (CDs), digital versatile disks (DVDs), magnetic or optical data storage devices, etc. good. The code may be executed by one or more computers or processors and may cause the computers or processors to perform certain aspects of the functionality described herein.

Further, the medium may be a non-temporary recording medium. Further, the code of the program may be read and executed by a computer, processor, or other device or apparatus, and its format is not limited to a specific format. For example, the code of the program may be a source code, an object code, or a binary code, or may be a mixture of two or more of these codes.

The description of the embodiments disclosed herein is also provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not to be limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

10: Service management system 20: Outlet 21: Code images 22, 23: Identification auxiliary image 24: Seal member 25: Charging stand 26: General purpose outlet 30: Vehicle 31: Battery 32: External communication section 33: Detection section 40: Power cable 41: Plug 50: User 51: Terminal device 60: Communication network 80: Parking lot 81: Entrance/exit 82: Gate device 83: Electric energy meter 85: Power usage equipment 100: Service management server 101: Terminal communication section 102: Server communication Section 103: Management processing section 104: Storage section 105: Billing processing section 106: Payment processing section 200: Power management device 210: Power distribution equipment 300: Vehicle management server 400: Power output device 402: General purpose plug 410: Switch section 420: Control Section 430: Network communication section 440: Electric energy measuring section

Claims (13)

An information processing device that manages energy usage charges,
an acquisition unit that acquires supply rate related information regarding the energy supply rate when supplying energy to the energy supply target of the user;
a usage fee calculation unit that calculates a usage fee to be charged to the user;
The information processing device is characterized in that the usage fee calculation unit calculates the usage fee including an additional fee that increases as the energy supply rate increases, based on the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit. The information processing device according to claim 1,
The information processing device is characterized in that the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit includes information based on a result of a speed detection unit detecting an energy supply rate when energy is supplied to the energy supply target. The information processing device according to claim 2,
The usage fee calculation unit is characterized in that, when the energy supply rate changes during energy supply, the usage fee includes the additional fee according to each energy supply rate before and after the change. Information processing device. The information processing device according to claim 2 or 3,
An information processing device comprising: a notification unit that notifies a user when the energy supply rate changes during energy supply based on supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Information processing characterized in that the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit includes setting condition information indicating a setting condition selected from among a plurality of setting conditions for different energy supply rates to the energy supply target. Device. The information processing device according to claim 5,
The plurality of setting conditions include an upper limit setting condition that limits the upper limit of the energy supply rate,
The information processing device is characterized in that the usage fee calculation unit calculates the usage fee including an additional fee according to the upper limit value of the energy supply rate based on the setting condition information acquired by the acquisition unit. The information processing device according to claim 5,
The plurality of setting conditions include a priority setting condition in which the energy supply rate is prioritized over other users,
The usage fee calculation unit calculates the usage fee including an additional fee that is different from the case where the priority setting condition is not the priority setting condition, based on the setting condition information acquired by the acquisition unit. Characteristic information processing device. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The information processing device is characterized in that the supply speed related information acquired by the acquisition unit includes information on an energy supply method selected from a plurality of different types of energy supply methods. The information processing device according to claim 8,
The information processing device is characterized in that the plurality of types of energy supply methods include a low-speed charging method that supplies electrical energy as an AC voltage, and a fast charging method that supplies electrical energy as a DC voltage. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The information processing device is characterized in that the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit includes supply target information indicating the type of the energy supply target. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The energy supply target is an electric mobile body equipped with a battery parked in a parking lot,
The information processing device is characterized in that the usage fee calculation unit calculates the usage fee including a fee according to the occupancy time of the parking lot. The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
comprising a provision fee calculation unit that calculates a provision fee to be paid to a provider of energy supplied to the energy supply target;
The information processing device is characterized in that the provision fee calculation unit calculates the provision fee including an additional fee that increases as the energy supply rate increases, based on the supply rate related information acquired by the acquisition unit. A system for managing energy usage charges,
The information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
A system comprising: a transmitting device that transmits the supply rate related information to the information processing device.

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