CN118103252A

CN118103252A - Battery management device

Info

Publication number: CN118103252A
Application number: CN202280068484.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 沼田将成; 大船悠; 福井康晃; 梯伸治; 山本启善
Original assignee: Denso Corp
Current assignee: Denso Corp
Priority date: 2021-10-12
Filing date: 2022-09-09
Publication date: 2024-05-28
Also published as: WO2023062990A1; JPWO2023062990A1

Abstract

The battery management device is a battery management device that manages the state of a battery (B) for running mounted on a vehicle (a). The battery management device is provided with a temperature adjustment unit (42), an environmental information acquisition unit (10 a), an input/output estimation unit (10 b), a temperature determination unit (10 c), and a temperature adjustment amount control unit (10 d). The environment information acquisition unit acquires environment information including information on a travel route of a vehicle traveling in the future toward a destination. The input/output estimation unit estimates, based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit, the input/output of the battery required at a specific point specified for the travel route when the vehicle travels on the travel route using the electric power of the battery. The temperature determination unit determines the necessary temperature of the battery required to realize the input/output of the battery estimated by the input/output estimation unit. The temperature adjustment amount control unit controls the operation of the temperature adjustment unit so that the temperature of the battery becomes the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit at the time when the battery reaches the specific point.

Description

Battery management device

Cross-reference to related applications

The present application is based on patent application 2021-167246, invented in japan, 10/12 of 2021, and the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a battery management device that manages a battery for traveling mounted on a vehicle.

Background

Conventionally, in order to fully exhibit the performance of a battery, a battery for traveling mounted on a vehicle is managed from various viewpoints. For example, in the battery management device described in patent document 1, the temperature of the battery is adjusted before charging the charging device based on travel information to the charging device in the future.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2021-27797

Here, the following is assumed: in a battery for running, since the input/output system of the battery changes according to the temperature of the battery, in a vehicle running using the electric power of the battery for running, the temperature of the battery affects the speed region of the running speed. Consider, for example, the following: when the battery temperature is low, a sufficient running speed cannot be ensured due to output limitation of the battery.

The road on which the vehicle travels includes a general road and a road having a different speed area like an expressway. Therefore, when traveling on a general road, the battery output system is different from that when traveling on an expressway, and the minimum required battery temperature is also different.

In view of these points, for example, consider the following: when the battery temperature is low and the vehicle enters the highway from the general road, the vehicle cannot output the traveling speed required for the highway due to the influence of the output limit of the battery.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a battery management device for managing a battery for traveling of a vehicle, which adjusts the temperature of the battery according to a change in the future traveling environment of the vehicle.

The battery management device according to an aspect of the present invention is a battery management device that manages a state of a battery for traveling mounted on a vehicle. The battery management device includes a temperature adjustment unit, an environmental information acquisition unit, an input/output estimation unit, a temperature determination unit, and a temperature adjustment amount control unit.

The temperature adjustment unit adjusts the temperature of the battery. The environment information acquisition unit acquires environment information including information on a travel route of a vehicle traveling in the future toward a destination. The input/output estimation unit estimates, based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit, the input/output of the battery required at a specific point specified for the travel route when the vehicle travels on the travel route using the electric power of the battery. The temperature determination unit determines the necessary temperature of the battery required to realize the input/output of the battery estimated by the input/output estimation unit. The temperature adjustment amount control unit controls the operation of the temperature adjustment unit so that the temperature of the battery becomes the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit at the time when the battery reaches the specific point.

According to the battery management device, the temperature adjustment amount control unit controls the operation of the temperature adjustment unit so that the temperature of the battery becomes the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit at the time when the battery reaches a specific point. Thus, the battery management device can perform the operation of the temperature adjustment unit in advance before reaching the specific point without being limited by the input/output of the battery, and can sufficiently ensure the input/output performance of the battery when the vehicle runs after passing through the specific point.

Drawings

The above objects and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by referring to the attached drawings and from the following detailed description. The attached figures are as follows:

Fig. 1 is a structural diagram of a vehicle to which a battery management device according to a first embodiment is applied.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the energy manager according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a flowchart of a battery management program according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the relationship among the battery temperature, the battery charging rate, and the discharge amount.

Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the relationship among the battery temperature, the battery charging rate, and the charge amount.

Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the heating amount determination table in the first embodiment.

Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the influence of the battery early-heating control according to the first embodiment on the upper limit of the battery output.

Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the influence of the battery early-heating control according to the first embodiment on the battery temperature.

Fig. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the heating amount determination table at the time of high heat generation in the second embodiment.

Fig. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship among a load amount, a discharge amount, and a running speed in the vehicle.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, various embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each embodiment, the same reference numerals are given to the portions corresponding to the items described in the previous embodiment, and redundant description is omitted. In each embodiment, when only a part of the configuration is described, other embodiments described above can be applied to other parts of the configuration. Not only in each embodiment, the portions that can be combined are specifically and clearly indicated to be combined with each other, but also in each embodiment, the portions may be combined with each other as long as there is no particular obstacle to the combination even if not clearly indicated.

(First embodiment)

First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the first embodiment, the battery management device according to the present invention is implemented as the energy manager 1 mounted on the vehicle a.

As shown in fig. 1, a vehicle a is a BEV (Battery ELECTRIC VEHICLE: battery electric vehicle) that is mounted with a Battery B for running and runs by electric power of the Battery B. The energy manager 1 includes a centralized control unit 10, a battery manager 20, a motion manager 30, a thermal manager 40, and an information notification unit 50, and manages the state of the battery B.

Here, the energy manager 1 is implemented by an in-vehicle computer including a processing unit, a RAM, a storage unit, an input/output interface, a bus connecting these components, and the like. The processing unit is hardware for arithmetic processing combined with the RAM. The processing unit performs various processes for realizing functions of the respective functional units described later by accessing the RAM. The storage unit is a structure including a nonvolatile storage medium. The storage unit stores various programs (battery management programs and the like) executed by the processing unit. Hereinafter, the specific structure and each functional portion of the energy manager 1 will be described in detail.

The vehicle a is mounted with the energy manager 1 with a communication module 60, a navigation device 70, a user input unit 80, a plurality of consumption domains DEc, a power supply domain DEs, a charging system 21, and the like.

The communication module 60 is a communication module (Data Communication Module: data communication module) mounted on the vehicle a. The communication module 60 transmits and receives radio waves to and from base stations around the vehicle a by wireless communication conforming to communication standards such as LTE (Long Term Evolution: long term evolution) and 5G. By mounting the communication module 60, the vehicle a becomes a networked car that can be connected to the network NW.

The communication module 60 can transmit and receive information to and from the cloud server 100, the site manager 90, and the like via the network NW. The cloud server 100 is an information distribution server provided on the cloud, and distributes weather information, road traffic information, and the like, for example.

The site manager 90 is a computing system provided in the charge management center CTc. The station manager 90 is communicably connected to a plurality of charging stations CS provided in a specific region via a network NW. The station manager 90 grasps station information about each charging station CS. The station information includes installation location of the charging station CS, use availability information indicating whether or not it is in use, charging capability information of the charger, and the like. The charge capability information is, for example, whether or not to perform quick charge, a standard of the corresponding charge, a maximum output of the quick charge, and the like. Site information is an example of environment information.

The charging station CS is an infrastructure for charging the battery B for traveling mounted on the vehicle a, and corresponds to a charging device. Each charging station CS charges the battery B using alternating current supplied through the power grid or direct current supplied from a solar power generation system or the like. The charging stations CS are provided in respective parking lots such as shopping malls, convenience stores, and public facilities.

The navigation device 70 is a vehicle-mounted device that guides the vehicle to a travel route to a destination set by the user. The navigation device 70 performs guidance such as straight, right-and-left turning, and lane changing at intersections, bifurcation points, and junction points by displaying a screen, playing a sound, and the like. The navigation device 70 can provide information such as a distance to a destination, a vehicle speed in each traveling section, and a height difference as navigation information to the energy manager 1 as environmental information.

In addition, the travel route may include a section having a different speed region depending on the travel section, such as a general road and an expressway. Since the legal speed on the expressway is greater than that prescribed by the general road, it is assumed that the output of the battery B required for traveling on the expressway is greater than that in the case of traveling on the general road.

The travel route may include a travel section including a plain portion and a travel section including a mountain portion. Consider the following: in some cases, the travel section for traveling in the mountain section is a travel section for climbing a slope equal to or greater than a predetermined slope, and the output of the battery B required for traveling in the climbing section is greater than that required for traveling in the plain section.

The user input unit 80 is an operation device that accepts an input operation by a user, which is an occupant of the vehicle a. The user input unit 80 is input with, for example, a user operation for operating the navigation device 70, a user operation for switching between start and stop of temperature adjustment control (described later), a user operation for changing various setting values associated with the vehicle a, and the like. The user input section 80 can provide input information based on a user operation to the energy manager 1.

For example, a steering switch provided in a spoke portion of a steering wheel, a switch provided in a center console or the like, a dial, a sound input device for detecting a speech of a driver, and the like are mounted as the user input portion 80 on the vehicle a. The touch panel or the like of the navigation device 70 may also function as the user input unit 80. Further, a user terminal such as a smart phone or a tablet terminal may be connected to the energy manager 1 by wire or wirelessly, and thus may function as the user input unit 80.

The consumption domain is a vehicle-mounted device group that realizes various vehicle functions by using electric power of the battery B or the like. One consumption domain includes at least one domain manager, and is constituted by a group of in-vehicle devices of one group that manages consumption of electric power by the domain manager. The plurality of consumption domains include a travel control domain and a temperature adjustment control domain.

The travel control domain is a consumption domain that controls the travel of the vehicle a. The running control domain includes motor generator MG, inverter INV, steering control system SCS, brake control system BCS, and motion manager 30.

The motor generator MG is a drive source that generates a drive force for running the vehicle a. Inverter INV controls power running and regeneration based on motor generator MG. The steering control system SCS controls the steering of the vehicle a. The brake control system BCS controls the braking force that is caused to be generated by the vehicle a.

During power running based on motor generator MG, inverter INV converts direct current supplied from battery B into three-phase alternating current, and supplies the three-phase alternating current to motor generator MG. Inverter INV can control the generation driving force of motor generator MG by adjusting the frequency, current, and voltage of the alternating current. On the other hand, at the time of regeneration by motor generator MG, inverter INV converts ac power into dc power and supplies it to battery B.

The motion manager 30 comprehensively controls the inverter INV, the steering control system SCS, and the brake control system BCS to realize the running of the vehicle a according to the driving operation of the driver. Motion manager 30 functions as a domain manager of the running control domain, and comprehensively manages power consumption of each of motor generator MG, inverter INV, steering control system SCS, and brake control system BCS.

The motion manager 30 further includes a vehicle speed control unit 30a. The vehicle speed control unit 30a comprehensively controls the inverter INV, the steering control system SCS, and the brake control system BCS, and controls the running speed of the vehicle a.

The temperature control area is a consumption area for performing air conditioning of the living space of the vehicle a and temperature control of the battery B. The temperature regulation control area includes an air conditioner 41, a temperature regulation system 42, and a thermal manager 40. The air conditioner 41 may be provided in plural for one vehicle a.

The air conditioner 41 is an electric vehicle air conditioner that heats, cools, ventilates, and the like, a living room space by using electric power supplied from the battery B. The air conditioner 41 includes a refrigeration cycle device, a blower fan, an electric heater, an indoor air conditioner unit, and the like. The air conditioner 41 can control a compressor, an electric heater, an indoor air conditioner unit, and the like of the refrigeration cycle device to generate warm air and cool air. The air conditioner 41 supplies the generated warm air or cool air as air-conditioned air to the living room space by the operation of the blower fan.

The temperature adjustment system 42 is a system that performs cooling or heating of the battery B. Temperature control system 42 may cool or heat motor generator MG, inverter INV, and the like together with battery B. The temperature control system 42 maintains the temperature of the electric vehicle system within a predetermined temperature range by circulating the heat medium heated or cooled by the air conditioner 41.

As an example, the temperature control system 42 is constituted by a heat medium circuit, an electric pump, a radiator, a chiller, a liquid temperature sensor, and the like. The heat medium circuit is mainly configured by piping provided so as to surround each structure of the electric drive system such as battery B, motor generator MG, and inverter INV. The electric pump circulates the heat medium filled in the piping of the heat medium circuit. The waste heat of the battery B moved to the heat medium is discharged to the outside through the radiator or is discharged to the refrigerant of the air conditioner 41 through the cooler. The liquid temperature sensor measures the temperature of the heat medium. Therefore, the temperature control system 42 corresponds to an example of the temperature control unit.

The thermal manager 40 is an in-vehicle computer that controls the operation of the air conditioner 41 and the temperature control system 42. The thermal manager 40 compares the air-conditioning set temperature of the living room space with the measured temperature of the temperature sensor provided in the living room space, thereby controlling the air-conditioning operation of the air-conditioning apparatus 41. In addition, the thermal manager 40 controls the temperature adjustment operation of the air conditioner 41 and the temperature adjustment system 42 with reference to the measurement result of the liquid temperature sensor.

That is, the thermal manager 40 functions as a domain manager of the hot domain. The thermal manager 40 includes a temperature control unit 40a, and the temperature control unit 40a comprehensively manages the power consumption of each of the air conditioner 41 and the temperature control system 42.

The power supply domain is a vehicle-mounted device group for being able to supply power to the consumption domain. The power supply domain includes at least one domain manager, similar to the power consumption domain, including a charging circuit, a battery B, and a battery manager 20.

The charging circuit functions as a junction box that comprehensively controls the flow of electric power between each of the consumption domains and the battery B by cooperating with the battery manager 20. The charging circuit supplies electric power from the battery B and charges the battery B.

Battery B is a secondary battery capable of charging and discharging electric power. The battery B is constituted by a battery pack including a plurality of battery cells. Examples of the battery cell include a nickel-hydrogen battery, a lithium ion battery, and an all-solid-state battery. The electric power stored in battery B can be used mainly for traveling of vehicle a and air conditioning of a living room space.

The battery manager 20 is an in-vehicle computer functioning as a domain manager of the power supply domain. The battery manager 20 includes a power management unit 20a that manages power supplied from the charging circuit to each of the power consumption domains. In addition, the battery manager 20 notifies the centralized control section 10 of the energy manager 1 of the remaining amount information on the battery B as the environmental information.

The charging system 21 supplies electric power to the power supply domain to enable charging of the battery B. The charging system 21 is electrically connected to an external charger through a charging station CS. The charging system 21 outputs the charging power supplied through the charging cable to the charging circuit.

In the case of normal charging, the charging system 21 converts ac power supplied from a charger for normal charging into dc power and supplies the dc power to a charging circuit. On the other hand, in the case of performing the quick charge, the charging system 21 outputs the direct current supplied from the charger for quick charge to the charging circuit. The charging system 21 has a function of communicating with a charger for quick charging, and controls a voltage supplied to a charging circuit in cooperation with a control circuit of the charger.

As shown in fig. 1, the energy manager 1 according to the first embodiment includes a centralized control unit 10, a battery manager 20, a motion manager 30, a thermal manager 40, and an information notification unit 50. As described above, each of the battery manager 20, the motion manager 30, and the thermal manager 40 is an onboard computer that manages control related to a specific function (e.g., a running function of a vehicle, a temperature regulation function), and forms part of the energy manager 1.

The centralized control unit 10 uses various information output from the battery manager 20, the motion manager 30, and the thermal manager 40 to comprehensively manage the use of electric power in each of the consumed domains. The centralized control unit 10 is constituted by an in-vehicle computer, and constitutes a part of the energy manager 1. The centralized control unit 10 plays a main role in the control process in the energy manager 1.

The information notifying unit 50 is an in-vehicle computer functioning as a domain manager for notifying information specified by various kinds of information such as the battery manager 20, and forms a part of the energy manager 1. The information notifying unit 50 is connected to a consumption domain for notifying the user of the vehicle a of information. For example, a display unit of the navigation device 70, a speaker, a display unit of an instrument panel (i.e., an instrument panel) disposed at the forefront part of the vehicle interior, and the like are connected to the information notifying unit 50.

Therefore, the information notifying unit 50 can display information (for example, information on a recommended traveling speed described later) specified by the central control unit 10 on a display or the like of the navigation device 70. The information notifying unit 50 can output the information specified by the central control unit 10 from the speaker of the navigation device 70 as sound. The display, speaker, etc. of the navigation device 70 corresponds to an example of the information transmission unit.

Further, the supply of electric power to the energy manager 1 as the in-vehicle computer is continued even when the vehicle a is in a non-traveling possible state (for example, an ignition off state). Therefore, even during the set-up, the energy manager 1 can activate each functional section to execute a prescribed process as long as there is a need to execute control.

Here, the centralized control unit 10 of the energy manager 1 is integrally configured with a control unit that controls various control target devices connected to the power consumption domain and the power supply domain. As shown in fig. 2, the configuration (hardware and software) for controlling the operation of each control target device in the centralized control unit 10 constitutes a control unit for controlling the operation of each control target device.

For example, the configuration of the centralized control unit 10 for acquiring the environmental information including the information on the travel route along which the vehicle a will travel to the destination corresponds to the environmental information acquisition unit 10 a. The environmental information contains information affecting the state of the battery B at the destination of the vehicle a. As the destination, a parking lot or a standby place where the vehicle a is placed, a charging station CS, or the like can be set. The state of battery B is, for example, the remaining amount and the temperature.

The environment information includes information provided from outside of the vehicle a, and can be exemplified by center information distributed by the site manager 90, the cloud server 100, and the like. The center information contains usage availability information and charging capability information related to the charger of the charging station CS. The environmental information includes weather information, road traffic information, and the like. The weather information includes the outside air temperature, the amount of sunlight, the amount of radiant heat from the road surface, and information indicating whether or not there is rainfall, snowfall, or the like, which are set on the travel path of the navigation device 70.

Further, information generated in the interior of the vehicle a among the information affecting the state of the battery B is included in the environmental information. For example, the information provided by the navigation device 70, the power supply domain, the consumption domain, and the like corresponds to one example of the environment information. As the information provided by the navigation device 70, information such as the number of traffic signals (the number of times of parking), legal speed, inclination of the road, and the like is included in addition to the distance to the destination, the vehicle speed and the difference in height of each section.

And, the information provided by the power supply domain in the environment information includes state information indicating a state of the power supply domain. The status information includes remaining amount information and temperature information of the battery B. The remaining amount information includes, for example, a value Of a charging rate (States Of Charge).

The information provided by the motion manager 30 includes, for example, information indicating a driving tendency of the driver, specifically, at least information indicating a tendency of an accelerator opening degree and a brake pedal force of the driver.

Further, the information provided by the user input unit 80 may be acquired as the environment information. In this case, the information input to the user input unit 80 by the user who is riding the vehicle a may be information input to a user terminal functioning as the user input unit 80 by a user who is located outside the vehicle a. Further, the information may be information which is input in real time by the user to a query from the system side such as the energy manager 1, or may be information indicating a set value recorded by a past operation of the user.

In addition, as information provided from the consumption domain in the environment information, status information indicating the status of each consumption domain can be cited. For example, the status information includes air-conditioning information indicating a set temperature (hereinafter, "air-conditioning request information") and a current temperature of an air conditioner of the living room, temperature information of a heat medium in the heat medium circuit, information indicating a status (for example, a current temperature) of the motor generator MG, the inverter INV, and the like.

The environment information is not limited to information including the current actual measurement value, and may include information having a future estimated value. Specifically, the vehicle a can set a future use plan. The usage plan may include a travel plan after the vehicle a is placed, a travel plan under a high load, a charging plan, a travel plan after the battery B is placed in a state of being at a high temperature, a travel plan after the battery B is placed in a low temperature, and the like.

The configuration of the centralized control unit 10 that estimates the input/output of the battery B required at a specific point specified by the travel route when traveling on the travel route using the electric power of the battery B based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit 10a corresponds to the input/output estimation unit 10B.

In estimating the output of battery B, input/output estimating unit 10B estimates the predicted vehicle speed required at the specific point using information on the travel route from navigation device 70, center information from station manager 90, road traffic information from cloud server 100, and the like. Then, the input/output estimating unit 10B derives the output (hereinafter referred to as the estimated discharge amount) of the battery B required at the specific point using the predicted vehicle speed required at the specific point. Then, when estimating the input of the battery B, the input/output estimating unit 10B derives the input of the battery B required at the specific point (hereinafter referred to as the estimated charge amount) as the regenerative energy or the charge amount, using the predicted vehicle speed required at the specific point.

The configuration of the centralized control unit 10 for estimating the necessary battery temperature of the battery B required for realizing the input/output (the estimated discharge amount or the estimated charge amount) of the battery B estimated by the input/output estimation unit 10B corresponds to the temperature determination unit 10c. Specifically, the temperature determination unit 10c determines the necessary battery temperature of the battery B required to realize the predicted discharge amount or predicted charge amount, using the predicted discharge amount or predicted charge amount estimated by the input/output estimation unit 10B and the estimated value of the charging rate of the battery B when the battery B reaches a specific point. The necessary battery temperature is an example of the necessary temperature.

In the centralized control unit 10, the configuration that controls the operation of the temperature control system 42 so that the battery temperature of the battery B becomes the necessary battery temperature of the battery B determined by the temperature determination unit 10c at the time when the vehicle a reaches the specific point corresponds to the temperature adjustment amount control unit 10d. The temperature adjustment amount control unit 10d determines the temperature adjustment amount (i.e., the heating amount) based on the temperature adjustment system 42 based on the difference between the target battery temperature TbO determined as the necessary battery temperature and the current battery temperature Tb.

The configuration of the centralized control unit 10 that determines the highest speed of the vehicle a that can be output at the present time using the temperature of the battery B at the present time and the charging rate of the battery B at the present time corresponds to the highest speed determination unit 10e.

In the centralized control unit 10, the configuration of controlling the operation of the navigation device 70 and the like via the information notifying unit 50 so as to transmit the highest speed of the vehicle a determined by the highest speed determining unit 10e to the occupant of the vehicle a corresponds to the transmission control unit 10f.

Next, the processing content of the battery management program according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 3 to 6. The battery management program according to the first embodiment is executed to regulate the temperature of the battery B by the temperature regulation system 42 and to enable the output of the battery B required at a specific place when the vehicle a is traveling.

As described above, the battery management program according to the first embodiment is stored in the storage unit of the energy manager 1, and is read and executed by the central control unit 10 constituting the processing unit. In the following description, a destination related to the travel of the vehicle a is set, and a travel route from the current location to the destination is determined by the navigation device 70.

Then, a plurality of specific points are defined for the travel route set by the navigation device 70, and the travel route is divided for each travel section according to the specific points. The plurality of specific points include points in the travel section where the travel load is greater than in the travel section immediately before. Examples of such specific points include an entrance to a highway from a general road to a highway, an entrance to an uphill road from a plain portion to an inter-mountain portion, and the like.

As shown in fig. 3, first, in step S1, the traveling vehicle speed at the time of traveling along the traveling route from the current location to the destination and the battery output that can be output at any location are estimated using the environmental information acquired from the navigation device 70, the cloud server 100, and the like.

For example, the travel speed at an arbitrary position on the travel route can be estimated by referring to information such as legal speed related to a travel section before reaching the arbitrary position, road traffic information up to the arbitrary position, and the like as environmental information. The output of battery B that can be output at an arbitrary position can be estimated by referring to the state information of battery B at the current time, battery temperature Tb, road traffic information related to an arbitrary position, weather information, and the like as environmental information. After estimating the travel speed, battery output, and the like in the travel path from the current location to the destination using the environmental information, the flow advances to step S2.

In step S2, the arrival time at the specific point set on the travel route is set as the specific time on the execution of the battery management program. As described above, the specific point includes a point in the travel section where the travel load is greater than that in the travel section immediately before. Therefore, the specific time includes a time when the running load in the next running section is larger than that in the immediately preceding running section (for example, a time when the expressway entrance is reached).

In step S3, the charging rate of battery B at a specific time is estimated. The charging rate of the battery B at the specific time can be estimated by referring to the estimated travel load and the like from the state information of the battery B at the current time, the travel speed up to the specific time, the road traffic information, and the like.

In step S4, the necessary battery temperature at the specific time is estimated using the charging rate of the battery B at the specific time estimated in step S2 and the estimated value of the input/output (the discharge amount or the charge amount) of the battery B at the specific time. Here, the necessary battery temperature represents a lower limit value of battery temperature Tb required to achieve input/output of battery B required at a specific time.

Here, it is known that there is a relationship shown in fig. 4 among the battery temperature, the output (discharge amount) of the battery B, and the charging rate of the battery B. The line La in fig. 4 shows the relationship between the output of the battery B and the battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of the battery B is 100%, and the line Lb shows the relationship between the output of the battery B and the battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of the battery B is 50%. The line Lc represents the relationship between the output of the battery B and the battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of the battery B is 20%, and the line Ld represents the relationship between the output of the battery B and the battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of the battery B is 10%.

As shown by lines La to Ld in fig. 4, the higher the battery temperature Tb is, the larger the output of battery B is, and thus the required output of battery B can be immediately achieved. Therefore, in step S4, the necessary battery temperature at a specific time is determined using the relationship between battery temperature Tb, battery B output, and battery B charging rate shown in fig. 4.

It is also known that there is a relationship shown in fig. 5 among the battery temperature, the input (charge amount) of the battery B, and the charging rate of the battery B. A line Ls in fig. 5 shows a relationship between the input of battery B and battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of battery B is 100%, and a line Lt shows a relationship between the input of battery B and battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of battery B is 80%. The line Lu indicates the relationship between the input of the battery B and the battery temperature Tb when the charging rate of the battery B is 10%.

As shown by lines Ls to Lu in fig. 5, the higher the battery temperature Tb is, the larger the input of battery B is, and thus the required input of battery B can be immediately achieved. Therefore, in step S4, the necessary battery temperature at a specific time is determined using the relationship between battery temperature Tb, battery B input, and battery B charging rate shown in fig. 5.

In step S5, it is determined whether or not the battery temperature Tb at the present time is lower than the necessary battery temperature estimated in step S4. That is, in step S5, it is determined whether or not it is necessary to heat battery B in order to realize the output of battery B at a specific place.

Since it is necessary to raise the battery temperature Tb to the necessary battery temperature before a certain time in the case where the battery temperature Tb is lower than the necessary battery temperature, the process proceeds to step S6. On the other hand, when the battery temperature Tb is equal to or higher than the necessary battery temperature, it is determined that the battery B does not need to be heated, and the process proceeds to step S7.

In step S6, at the time when the specific point is reached, the amount of battery heating up to the specific time is calculated so that the battery temperature Tb becomes equal to or higher than the necessary battery temperature. The battery heating amount corresponds to an example of the temperature adjustment amount. The battery heating amount up to a specific time is determined by referring to a heating amount determination table stored in the storage unit and a difference between the battery temperature Tb and the necessary battery temperature.

As shown in fig. 6, the heating amount determination table of the first embodiment is configured such that the larger the difference between the necessary battery temperature and the battery temperature Tb is, the larger the battery heating amount is. In the heating amount determination table, a hysteresis width for preventing control fluctuation is set. After the amount of battery heating up to a specific time is calculated from the difference between the battery temperature Tb and the necessary battery temperature and the heating amount determination table shown in fig. 6, the process proceeds to step S7.

In step S7, it is determined whether or not the specific time is the destination arrival time. That is, in step S7, it is determined whether or not the destination is set to a specific place. When the specific time is the destination arrival time, the process proceeds to step S8 because the calculation of the battery heating amount for the travel path from the current destination to the destination is completed. On the other hand, if the specific time is not the destination arrival time, the process advances to step S9.

In step S8, the battery heating amount at the current time is determined using the processing results of step S2 to step S7. As described above, since the amount of battery heating in the travel path from the current destination to the destination has been determined in steps S2 to S7, the amount of battery heating at the current time can be determined from the processing results. In this way, the battery B is heated in accordance with the running load in the running route from the current location to the destination, and thus the output of the battery B required at the specific point can be reliably achieved.

On the other hand, when the specific time is not the destination arrival time, since there is a specific point in the travel path that has not yet been the processing target, the calculation target of the battery heating amount is updated to the next specific point. After updating to the next specific place, the process returns to step S2. Thereby, the arrival time associated with the updated specific location is set as the new specific time.

In step S10, notification of the highest speed that can be output at the current time is performed. The highest speed that can be output at the present time is determined by referring to the characteristic map shown in fig. 4 using the battery temperature Tb at the present time and the charging rate of the battery B at the present time. The highest speed that can be output at the current time may be determined based on the battery temperature Tb at the current time.

Then, the energy manager 1 notifies the user of the highest speed that can be output at the current time via the information notification unit 50. Various methods such as image output and audio output can be used as a notification method for the user. For example, the information related to the target value of the travel speed may be displayed on the display of the navigation device 70 or may be output by sound via an audio system mounted on the vehicle a.

Thus, the user of the vehicle a can grasp the highest speed that can be output at the present time, and thus can perform the driving operation of the vehicle a within the range that can be output by the battery B.

Next, the effects of the battery management program according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 7 and 8. Fig. 7 and 8 illustrate an example in which an entrance of an expressway is set as a specific point and a vehicle travels on the expressway from a general road through the entrance of the expressway.

Fig. 7 shows the influence of the preliminary heating control of battery B by the battery management program on the upper limit of the battery output. The battery output upper limit Oa in fig. 7 indicates the upper limit of the output of the battery B in the case where the preliminary heating control of the battery B is performed, and the battery output upper limit Oc indicates the upper limit of the output of the battery B in the case where the preliminary heating control of the battery B is not performed.

The first battery output upper limit OLa is the output of the battery B by a predetermined amount, and means the output of the battery B required when the vehicle a is traveling at the traveling speed Va (for example, 120km per hour). The second battery output upper limit OLb means a value smaller than the first battery output upper limit OLa, and means an output of the battery B required when the vehicle a is traveling at the traveling speed Vb (for example, 50km per hour).

Fig. 8 shows the influence of the preliminary heating control of battery B based on the battery management program on battery temperature Tb. The battery temperature Tba in fig. 8 shows the battery temperature Tb in the case where the preliminary heating control of the battery B is performed. The battery temperature Tbc indicates the battery temperature Tb when the preliminary heating control of the battery B is not performed.

First, a change in the battery output upper limit and the battery temperature Tb when the preliminary heating control of the battery B is not performed will be described. With the start of the vehicle a, when traveling along the traveling route from the departure point to the destination, the vehicle a is directed to the entrance of the expressway as the specific point. At this time, self-heat generation based on the output accompanying the running of the vehicle a occurs in the battery B.

Therefore, as shown in fig. 8, the battery temperature Tbc does not change greatly when the battery temperature Tbc is directed to a specific place. Further, since the vehicle a travels on the general road to a specific place, the battery output upper limit Oc shifts by the same value as the first battery output upper limit OLa as indicated by the battery output upper limit Oc in fig. 7.

When the vehicle a reaches the entrance of the expressway as the specific place without performing the preliminary heating control of the battery B, the output from the battery B needs to be obtained to realize the speed region corresponding to the expressway because the vehicle a travels on the expressway. However, since the battery temperature Tbc at the time of reaching the specific point is maintained low, only the same output as that of the battery B at the time of traveling on the general road can be obtained.

Therefore, after passing through the specific point, the battery output upper limit Oc gradually approaches the second battery output upper limit OLb by realizing an increase in the battery temperature Tbc. Therefore, without performing the battery heating control, the output of the battery B is insufficient near the entrance of the expressway, and it is difficult to provide comfortable running of the vehicle a.

Next, a change in the battery output upper limit and the battery temperature Tb when the preliminary heating control of the battery B is performed will be described. With the start of the vehicle a, the battery management routine shown in fig. 3 is executed, estimating the timing of reaching the entrance of the expressway as the specific location and the battery output (second battery output upper limit OLb) required at the entrance of the expressway. Then, based on the second battery output upper limit OLb required at the entrance of the expressway, the battery temperature Tb required for output at the time of arrival at the entrance of the expressway is determined as the target battery temperature TbO corresponding to the arrival time. In addition, the battery heating amount before reaching the highway entrance is determined using the target battery temperature TbO and the current battery temperature Tb.

When the vehicle a starts traveling from the departure point toward the specific point, the operation of the temperature adjustment system 42 is controlled based on the determined battery heating amount. Thereby, as the vehicle travels toward the entrance of the expressway, the battery temperature Tba gradually increases toward the target battery temperature TbO. Then, the battery output upper limit Oa also rises toward the second battery output upper limit OLb in correspondence with the rise of the battery temperature Tba.

As shown in fig. 8, at the time when the vehicle a reaches the highway entrance, the battery temperature Tba reaches the target battery temperature TbO. Accordingly, since the battery output upper limit Oa at the time of reaching the expressway entrance is equal to or greater than the second battery output upper limit OLb, the output of the battery B suitable for the expressway running can be ensured. That is, by performing the preliminary heating control of the battery B, it is possible to output the battery B in accordance with a change in the running load, and it is possible to realize comfortable running of the vehicle.

As described above, according to the energy manager 1 as the battery management device according to the first embodiment, the operation of the temperature control system 42 is controlled so that the battery temperature Tb becomes the necessary battery temperature at the time when the battery management program reaches the specific point. Thus, the energy manager 1 can perform the operation of the temperature control system 42 in advance before reaching the specific point without being limited by the input/output of the battery B, and can sufficiently ensure the input/output performance of the battery B when the vehicle a travels after passing through the specific point.

In step S4, the necessary battery temperature at the specific point is determined using the expected input/output of battery B at the point of time when the specific point is reached, or the expected input/output and the expected charging rate of battery B at the point of time when the specific point is reached. This can reliably reflect the conditions of the vehicle a and the battery B at the time of arrival at the specific point, and can perform the preliminary heating control of the battery B with higher accuracy.

Then, in step S5, in the case where the battery temperature Tb at the present time is different from the necessary battery temperature, the preliminary heating control of the battery B by the temperature adjustment system 42 is performed. Since the necessary battery temperature is a battery temperature for realizing the output of the necessary battery at a specific place, the energy manager 1 can accurately judge the necessity of the preliminary heating control.

In addition, in step S6, the larger the battery heating amount is determined to be the difference between the battery temperature Tb and the necessary battery temperature, the larger the battery heating amount for heating the battery B is set by the temperature adjustment system 42. In this way, the current state of the battery B and the state of the battery B estimated as the time of arrival at the specific point can be reflected, and therefore the energy manager 1 can realize the output of the battery B required at the specific point by the preliminary heating control.

When the necessary battery temperature is determined in step S4, the larger the expected output of the battery B at the time of reaching the specific point is, the larger the necessary battery temperature is determined. Since the necessary battery temperature is determined in view of the correspondence relationship between the battery temperature and the upper limit of the output of the battery, the output of the battery B required at a specific place can be reliably achieved.

Further, in step S4, when determining the necessary battery temperature at the time of output of the battery B, the smaller the expected charging rate of the battery B at the time of reaching the specific point is, the larger the necessary battery temperature is determined. In view of the fact that the smaller the charging rate of the battery B is, the more efficient the output from the battery B is required, the energy manager 1 can reliably realize the output of the battery B required at a specific place.

In addition, when determining the necessary battery temperature at the time of input of the battery B, the smaller the expected charging rate of the battery B at the time of reaching the specific point is, the lower the necessary battery temperature is determined. In view of the fact that the smaller the charging rate of the battery B is, the more efficient the input (e.g., charging) of the battery B is required, the energy manager 1 can reliably realize the input of the battery B required at a specific place.

Then, in step S10, the user of the vehicle a is notified of the highest speed that can be output at the present time by the navigation device 70 or the like. Thus, the user of the vehicle a can grasp the highest speed that can be output at the present time, and thus can perform the driving operation of the vehicle a within the range that can be output by the battery B.

(Second embodiment)

Next, a second embodiment different from the above-described embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 9. In the second embodiment, the processing content related to the calculation of the battery heating amount in step S6 is different from the above-described embodiment. Since other basic structures and the like are the same as those of the above-described embodiment, a description thereof will be omitted.

In step S6 of the battery management program according to the second embodiment, the battery heating amount is determined using the high-heat-generation-time heating amount determination table shown in fig. 9 in addition to the heating amount determination table shown in fig. 4.

As shown in fig. 9, in the high heat generation heating amount determination table, the difference between the target battery temperature (necessary battery temperature) and the battery temperature Tb when the battery heating amount is changed is set to be larger than in the heating amount determination table shown in fig. 4. The difference in the difference between the target battery temperature and the battery temperature is based on the difference in the self-heating value of battery B. That is, the high-heat-generation-time heating amount determination table is applied to the case where the self-heat generation amount of battery B is larger than the heating amount determination table shown in fig. 4. Since the self-generated heat amount of the battery B is an expected value, this corresponds to an example of the expected generated heat amount.

In step S6 of the second embodiment, the self-heating value of battery B is estimated, and either one of the heating amount determination table and the high-heating-time heating amount determination table is selected based on the estimation result. Then, the battery heating amount is determined with reference to the selected table and the difference between the battery temperature Tb and the necessary battery temperature. The processing thereafter is the same as the first embodiment.

In this way, according to step S6 of the second embodiment, the battery heating amount is determined based on the self-heating amount of battery B. Specifically, the larger the cumulative amount of self-heating amount of battery B before reaching a specific place, the smaller the battery heating amount is set. As a result, the amount of self-heating of battery B can be reflected in the determination of the amount of battery heating, and therefore, the energy efficiency associated with the preliminary heating treatment of battery B can be improved.

As described above, according to the energy manager 1 of the second embodiment, the larger the time accumulation amount of the self-heating amount of the battery B, the smaller the battery heating amount can be set, and thus the preliminary heating control of the battery B can be performed in consideration of the self-heating amount of the battery B. Thereby, the energy manager 1 can realize energy saving related to the preliminary heating control of the battery B.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made as follows within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention.

In step S1 of the above embodiment, the load weight of the vehicle a may be considered when estimating the input/output of the battery B. This is because, even if the running speed of the vehicle a is the same, if the load weight for the vehicle a is heavy, the running load of the battery B becomes large, and the input/output of the battery B becomes large.

For example, the output (discharge amount) of battery B may be estimated using the control characteristic map shown in fig. 10. The line Da in fig. 10 indicates the output of the battery B and the running speed of the vehicle a for the case where the loading weight of the vehicle a is small (for example, in the case where only one driver is riding). The line Db in fig. 10 indicates the output of the battery B and the running speed of the vehicle a when the load weight of the vehicle is heavier than the line Da (for example, when four occupants are seated in the vehicle a). In addition, in the case of estimating the input of the battery B, a control characteristic map indicating the relationship between the input of the battery B (the charge amount) and the load weight to the vehicle a can be used as well.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in fig. 7 and 8, the preliminary heating control of the battery B is started so that the target battery temperature TbO at the specific point from the start time is reached, but the present invention is not limited to this. The preliminary heating control of the battery B may be performed in various ways as long as the battery B is heated to the target battery temperature TbO before reaching a specific place (for example, an entrance of an expressway). That is, the time period for starting the preliminary heating control and the length of the period for performing the preliminary heating control may be set appropriately, or may be started at any time point before reaching the specific point, or may be performed in a short period immediately before reaching the specific point.

In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the energy manager 1 is applied as the battery management device has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, since the battery management program is executed in the energy manager 1 as the in-vehicle computer, the technical idea of the present invention can be understood as the battery management program. The technical idea according to the present invention can be understood as a battery management method.

In the above-described embodiment, the temperature control system 42 is used as an example of the temperature control unit, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. As the temperature adjusting unit, any device or system capable of adjusting the temperature of battery B may be used.

Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments and the configurations. The present invention also includes various modifications and modifications within the equivalent range. It is to be noted that various combinations and modes, and other combinations and modes including only one element, more than one or the following are also within the scope and spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. A battery management device for managing the state of a battery (B) for traveling mounted on a vehicle (A) is characterized by comprising:

A temperature adjustment unit (42) that adjusts the temperature of the battery;

an environment information acquisition unit (10 a) that acquires environment information including information relating to a travel route of the vehicle for future travel toward a destination;

An input/output estimation unit (10 b) that estimates, based on the environmental information acquired by the environmental information acquisition unit, an input/output of the battery required at a specific point specified for the travel route when the vehicle travels on the travel route using the electric power of the battery;

A temperature determination unit (10 c) that determines a necessary temperature of the battery required to realize the input/output of the battery estimated by the input/output estimation unit; and

And a temperature adjustment amount control unit (10 d) that controls the operation of the temperature adjustment unit so that the temperature of the battery becomes the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit when the battery reaches the specific point.

2. The battery management device of claim 1, wherein,

The temperature determination unit determines using an expected input/output of the battery at the time of reaching the specific point or an expected input/output and an expected charging rate of the battery at the time of reaching the specific point.

3. The battery management device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

The temperature adjustment amount control unit heats the battery by the temperature adjustment unit when the temperature of the battery at the current time is different from the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit.

4. The battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein,

The temperature adjustment amount control unit sets the temperature adjustment amount when the battery is heated by the temperature adjustment unit to be larger as the difference between the temperature of the battery at the current time and the necessary temperature of the battery determined by the temperature determination unit is larger.

5. The battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein,

The temperature adjustment amount control unit sets the temperature adjustment amount to be smaller when the battery is heated by the temperature adjustment unit as the expected heat generation amount of the battery before reaching the specific point is larger.

6. The battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein,

The temperature determination unit determines the necessary temperature of the battery to be higher as the expected output of the battery at the time of reaching the specific point is larger.

7. The battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein,

The temperature determination unit determines the necessary temperature of the battery to be higher as the expected charging rate of the battery at the time of reaching the specific point is smaller.

8. The battery management device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized by comprising:

an information transmission unit (70) that transmits information to an occupant of the vehicle;

a maximum speed determination unit (10 e) that determines the maximum speed of the vehicle that can be output at the current time, using the temperature of the battery at the current time, or the temperature of the battery at the current time and the charging rate of the battery at the current time; and

And a transmission control unit (10 f) that controls the operation of the information transmission unit to transmit the highest speed of the vehicle determined by the highest speed determination unit to the occupant.