JP5911717B2 - Charging station network system and charging station authentication method for electric vehicles - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a charging stand network system for charging a running battery such as an electric vehicle and a charging stand authentication method for an electric vehicle.

  In recent years, electric vehicles are becoming widespread, and infrastructures for charging stations (power supply stations) are being developed. Specifically, with regard to charging electric-powered vehicles, charging stations for charging, such as conventional gas stations for refueling, are installed in various places, where the batteries (batteries) mounted on the vehicles are charged. The method of doing is proposed.

  A general charging stand includes a capacitor having a capacity larger than that of a vehicle battery, and the capacitor is charged with electric power from a commercial power source, and is discharged from the capacitor to charge an in-vehicle battery.

  Charging stations are scattered in various places, and systems that connect these charging stations via a network and perform charging station reservation, user authentication, charging for charging, etc. are becoming widespread. For example, there has been proposed an electric vehicle charging system having charging stations scattered in various places and a management server connected to these charging stations and existing mail servers via a network such as the Internet (see Patent Document 1). .

  On the other hand, for example, a charging service system including a charging service station that charges an electric vehicle and a battery of the electric vehicle through a power line and a charging server that charges a charging fee has been proposed (see Patent Document 2). The person recognition device recognizes the user who uses the charging (service) provided by the charging service station. For this authentication, a physical device such as a smart key or an IC card, an image recognition apparatus, a biometric authentication apparatus such as a fingerprint, or the like is used.

JP 2010-267110 A JP 2009-240552 A

  However, charging stations are scattered in the area and are often away from service stations where maintenance personnel are waiting. For example, when maintenance of the charging station is necessary, such as when a failure occurs in one of the charging stations or when the charging station is regularly maintained, maintenance personnel actually go to the charging station and work. The problem is that it is necessary and cannot respond promptly, the load required for system operation increases, the electric vehicle cannot be charged during maintenance work, and the service must be interrupted was there.

  In addition, the electric vehicle charging system described in Patent Document 1 only reserves charging stations and authenticates users through a network, and uses this network to handle failures and periodic maintenance. There was a problem that I could not do it.

  Furthermore, the system described in Patent Document 2 has a problem that charging cannot be performed when a user forgets to bring a physical device (for example, an IC card) for authentication. . In addition, according to the image recognition device and the biometric authentication device, authentication can be performed even if the IC card is forgotten, but it is expensive to equip all such charging stations with such a device. There was a problem.

  Therefore, the present invention does not interrupt the charging service even when charging station maintenance is required, such as when a failure occurs in each charging station connected to the network or when performing regular maintenance of each charging station, An object of the present invention is to provide a charging station network system capable of system recovery and maintenance through a network. It is another object of the present invention to provide a charging stand authentication method capable of performing charging with a simple configuration even when a user forgets an IC card.

  A charging station network system for an electric vehicle according to the present invention includes a plurality of charging stations, a maintenance server that is connected to the charging station through a network, manages the charging station, and is connected to the charging station through the network. An authentication server that performs authentication of the charging station, the server resetting the charging station, a mode switching unit for switching the charging station mode, an uploading unit for uploading data from the charging station, and the charging Download means for downloading data to the stand.

  The charging station network system for electric vehicles of the present invention is connected to the charging station through a plurality of charging stations, a network, and a maintenance server for managing the charging station, and connected to the charging station through the network. An authentication server that performs user authentication, and the server includes control means for switching the charging station from the first mode to the second mode, and the first mode is authenticated by the authentication server. The second mode is a mode in which charging is performed even if authentication by the authentication server is not performed.

  A charging station authentication method for an electric vehicle according to the present invention includes a plurality of charging stations, a maintenance server connected to the charging station through a network, the charging station managing the charging station, and connected to the charging station through the network. A user authentication method in a system comprising an authentication server that performs authentication of the maintenance server, wherein the maintenance server transmits a temporary ID to the charging stand, and the charging stand sends the temporary ID to the authentication server. Requesting authentication, the authentication server authenticating the temporary ID, and the charging stand provides a charging service using the temporary ID instead of a user ID based on the authentication of the temporary ID. And a process.

  According to the charging station authentication method of the present invention, the step of identifying the user ID based on information provided by the user, and the user ID identified with the temporary ID issued by the maintenance server Including the step of associating, the step of moving the charge set to the temporary ID to the user ID, and the step of invalidating the temporary ID.

  The charging station network system of the present invention can restore and maintain the system through the network without interrupting the charging service even when the charging station needs to be maintained. Further, even if the user forgets the IC card, it can be charged with a simple configuration.

It is the schematic of the network system of this invention. It is a block diagram of an authentication server. It is a block diagram of a maintenance server. It is a flowchart of an authentication process. It is a flowchart of a mode switching process. It is a flowchart of a reset process. It is a flowchart of an upload process. It is a flowchart of a download process. It is a flowchart of a setting process (write instruction). It is a flowchart of a setting process (acquisition instruction). It is a flowchart of a one-time authentication process. It is a flowchart of a temporary ID billing process.

  Next, a charging stand network system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, although the Example shown below is a suitable specific example in the charging stand network system of this invention, and there may be various limitation preferable with respect to a treatment, the technical scope of this invention is especially this invention. As long as there is no description which limits these, it is not limited to these aspects. In addition, the constituent elements in the embodiments shown below can be appropriately replaced with existing constituent elements and the like, and various variations including combinations with other existing constituent elements are possible. Therefore, the description of the embodiment described below does not limit the contents of the invention described in the claims.

In FIG. 1, the charging station network system 10 includes a plurality of charging stations 30 and a center 40 connected through a network 20. The charging stand 30 includes a charger (a plurality of units) for charging an in-vehicle battery mounted on an electric vehicle and a communication device for communicating with the center 40. The center 40 includes data related to authentication and maintenance according to the present invention. Centralized management.
The center 40 includes an authentication server 50 and a maintenance server 60. The authentication server 50 includes an authentication unit 51 and a user information unit 52 described later. The maintenance server 60 includes a mode switching unit 61, a reset unit 62, an upload unit 63, a download unit 64, and a setting unit 65, which will be described later.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the authentication server 50, and the authentication server 50 includes an authentication unit 51 and a user information unit 52. The authentication unit 51 is a control part in which a user authenticates with an IC card or the like at the charging stand 30. The user information unit 52 performs unified management of information registered in advance by the user.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the maintenance server 60. The maintenance server 60 includes a mode switching unit 61, a reset unit 62, an upload unit 63, a download unit 64, and a setting unit 65.
The mode switching unit 61 performs a mode switching process between an offline mode and a normal mode (online mode) that allow charging without authentication of the IC card. The reset unit 62 resets the charging stand 30 through the network 20. The upload unit 63 and the download unit 64 upload information from the charging station 30 to the maintenance server 60 through the network 20 and download the information from the maintenance server 60 to the charging station 30. When the setting unit 65 replaces a part of the charging stand 30, the maintenance server 60 acquires and writes the setting value of the replacement part from the charging stand 30 through the network 20.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the authentication process from the user's IC card authentication to the start of charging when the user charges with the IC card in the charging stand 30.

  In step S401, the user holds or inserts the IC card, and the charging stand 30 reads the information on the IC card and acquires the user information. The acquired user information is transmitted to the authentication server 50 through the network 20, and the user information is searched for in the user information unit 52 of the authentication server 50 in step S402. In step S403, the authentication unit 51 authenticates whether or not the user is registered in the user information unit 52, and when the authentication is properly performed, in step S404, the authentication OK is performed to the charging station 30 through the network 20 by the authentication OK. The charging start is instructed, and in step S405, the charging station 30 starts charging.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining processing in which the maintenance server 60 performs mode switching of the charging station 30 through the network 20. The charging station 30 in the charging station network system 10 of the present invention has two modes, an online mode and an offline mode. The online mode (first mode) is a mode in which charging is performed on condition that authentication by the authentication server 50 is performed. The offline mode (second mode) is a mode in which charging is performed even if authentication by the authentication server 50 is not performed.

In step S501, the charging station 30 notifies the maintenance server 60 of the mode of the charging station 30. Receiving the mode notification of the charging station 30, the maintenance server 60 sets the mode in step S502, switches the mode in step S503, and notifies the charging station 30 of the mode switching in step S504. Receiving the mode switching notification, the charging station 30 performs mode switching of the charging station 30 (for example, switching from the online mode to the offline mode) in step S505.
By this mode switching, charging can be performed without stopping the charging stand 30 when the charging stand 30 cannot communicate with the center 40, such as when a disaster occurs or when the center 40 is maintained.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a reset process for resetting the charging station 30 through the network 20 when an abnormality is detected in the charging station 30.

In step S601, after abnormality of the charging station 30 is detected, in step S602, it is confirmed whether charging is in progress. If charging is in progress, charging is stopped. To the maintenance server 60. After the abnormality information is notified to the maintenance server 60, the reset unit 62 issues a reset instruction and notifies the charging stand 30. After receiving the reset instruction, the charging station 30 resets in step.
By resetting the charging stand 30, even when an abnormality occurs in the operation of the charging stand 30, the charging stand 30 can be restarted from the maintenance server 60 at a remote location. As a result, it is not necessary for maintenance personnel to actually go to the charging station 30 to perform work, and it is possible to respond quickly to abnormalities, and as a result, the load required for system operation can be reduced.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an upload process when information in the charging station 30 is uploaded to the maintenance server 60 through the network 20.

In step S701, the maintenance server 60 issues a stand information acquisition instruction to the charging station 30, and the charging station 30 that has received the instruction acquires the stand information in step S702, and transmits the acquired information to the maintenance server 60 in step S703. In step S704, the stand information is received.
The maintenance server 60 acquires the stand information from a remote location, so that maintenance personnel do not have to actually go to the charging station 30 and collect information, but quickly collect information from a large number of scattered charging stations 30. As a result, the load required for system operation can be reduced.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining download processing when various data and firmware such as version information are downloaded from the maintenance server 60 to the charging station 30 through the network 20. The data to be downloaded may be audio data or image data used as guidance for the user at the charging station 30. Further, the data to be downloaded may be local tourist information or advertisement information.

In step S801, the maintenance server 60 issues a version information acquisition instruction to the charging station 30, and in step S802, the charging station 30 acquires the current version information. The acquired version information of the charging station 30 is notified to the maintenance server 60 in step S803. The maintenance server 60 that has received the notification of the version information confirms whether or not the version needs to be updated in step S804. If the update is necessary, the update information is transmitted from the maintenance server 60 to the charging station 30 in step S805. However, if there is no need to update, the process is terminated. In step S806, the charging station 30 receives the version update information from the maintenance server 60, and writes the version update information to the charging station 30 in step S807. After the writing is completed, the charging stand 30 is restarted in step S809 if restarting is required, and if restarting is not required, the download is completed without restarting.
When the maintenance server 60 downloads data and firmware from a remote location to the charging station 30, it is not necessary for maintenance personnel to actually go to the charging station 30 to update the data and firmware, and a lot of scattered charging is performed. The data and firmware of the stand 30 can be easily updated, and as a result, the load required for system operation can be reduced.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining processing of a setting value writing instruction to the charging station 30 through the network 20. The set value includes a stand ID, a periodic notification interval between the center 40 and the charging stand 30, a full charge detection time, an offline display value, a battery remaining amount display (present / absent), a charging ready response timeout time, and the like. .

  In step S901, the maintenance server 60 issues a setting value writing instruction, and transmits the setting value to the charging station 30 in step S902. In step S903, the charging station 30 receives the setting value from the maintenance server 60, and writes the setting value received in step S904 to the charging station 30.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process in which the maintenance server 60 acquires the set value of the charging station 30 through the network 20.

In step S <b> 1001, the maintenance server 60 instructs the charging stand 30 to read the set value. Receiving the setting value read instruction, the charging station 30 reads the setting value of the charging station 30 in step S1002, and transmits the read setting value to the maintenance server 60 in step S1003. In step S1004, the maintenance server 60 receives the set value transmitted from the charging station 30, and the acquisition of the set value is completed.
When the setting value is written to the charging station 30 through the network 20 and the setting value is acquired from the charging station 30, the charging station 30 can restart charging with a short stoppage time when the components are replaced. It becomes.

  FIG. 11 shows a process for enabling charging by issuing a temporary ID through the network 20 when the user cannot authenticate because the user forgot the IC card (one-time authentication process). FIG.

In step S1101, the maintenance server 60 issues a temporary ID, and notifies the charging station 30 of the temporary ID issued in step S1102. The charging stand 30 acquires the temporary ID issued from the maintenance server 60 in step S1103, and performs authentication processing using the acquired temporary ID. The authentication server 50 authenticates the temporary ID in step S1104, and in step S1105, instructs the charging stand 30 to start charging through the network 20 by authentication OK. In step S405, the charging stand 30 starts charging.
By performing this one-time authentication process, even if the user forgets the IC card, charging can be performed with a simple procedure.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a process for charging the temporary ID issued in the one-time authentication process through the network 20.

In step S1201, the user provides information to the authentication server 50 in advance. Upon receiving the information, the authentication server 50 searches for user information in the user information unit 52 in step S1202, and in step S1203, the user ID is obtained. Identify. In step S1204, the authentication server 50 notifies the maintenance server 60 of the identified user ID. Actually, the above-described steps S1101 to S1106 are performed thereafter, but here, since the processing is described separately, it will not be described. In step S1206, the temporary ID billing is moved to the user ID. After the temporary ID billing is moved to the user ID, the temporary ID is invalidated in step S1206.
By performing the billing process through the network 20, it is possible to charge for the cost of the one-time authentication.

10 Charging stand network system 20 Network 30 Charging stand

Claims (2)

Multiple charging stands,
A maintenance server connected to the charging station via a network and managing the charging station;
An authentication server connected to the charging station through the network and authenticating a user;
The maintenance server
A reset means for notifying the table lamp of an instruction for resetting the charging station in response to the notification from the charging station;
Mode switching means for switching between a first mode for charging the charging stand on the condition that authentication by the authentication server has been made and a second mode for charging even if authentication by the authentication server is not performed ;
Upload means for uploading information from the charging station that has received an information acquisition instruction from the maintenance server ;
Download means for downloading information to the charging station based on the information acquired from the charging station by the uploading unit ;
The charging station network system for an electric vehicle , wherein the mode switching means switches the mode from the first mode to the second mode when the maintenance server cannot communicate with the charging station. Use in a system comprising a plurality of charging stations, a maintenance server connected to the charging station through a network and managing the charging station, and an authentication server connected to the charging station through the network and authenticating a user Authentication method,
The authentication server identifying a user ID based on information provided by the user;
The maintenance server transmits a temporary ID to the charging station in association with the user ID specified by the authentication server ;
The charging stand requesting the authentication server to authenticate the temporary ID;
The authentication server authenticating the temporary ID;
The charging stand providing a charging service using the temporary ID instead of a user ID based on the authentication of the temporary ID ;
A step of moving the charge set to the temporary ID to the user ID;
A charging station authentication method for an electric vehicle, comprising: invalidating the temporary ID after the billing is transferred to the user ID .

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