KR102330230B1 - Electric vehicle charging management system with OCPP-based message and signal processing - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention, disclosed is an electric vehicle charge management system performing OCPP-based message and signal processing. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the electric vehicle charge management system includes: at least one electric vehicle charger; a charging station including a control module controlling a charging process of the electric charger, and a communication module processing a control signal with the control module and a message with a charging station management system; and the charging station management system including a management server managing the at least one charging station, and a communication server processing a control signal with the management server and a message with the charging station. The communication module and the communication server are provided with communication protocols for transmitting and receiving messages and signals in accordance with OCPP-based protocols.

Description

Electric vehicle charging management system with OCPP-based message and signal processing

The present invention discloses an electric vehicle charging management system in which OCPP-based message and signal processing is performed.

Recently, as the problem of depletion of fossil fuels and the problem of air pollution caused by excessive use has become serious, research and development of the use of renewable energy and eco-friendly means of transportation are being actively conducted.

Among eco-friendly means of transportation, electric vehicles do not emit air pollutants at all during operation and do not cause noise pollution. In addition, countries around the world are making efforts to develop and install electric vehicle charging systems for the spread and smooth use of such eco-friendly electric vehicles.

The domestic electric vehicle charging infrastructure is led by the Environmental Management Corporation, and in the private sector, the Korea Electric Power Corporation, Korea Land and Housing Corporation, and POSCO ICT are leading the way. These entities use different communication protocols to manage the charger or charging system depending on the manufacturer or charging system of the charger, and are operated without mutual compatibility or operability for each charger or charging system operation.

On the other hand, in recent years, as the supply of chargers has rapidly increased, standard protocols that are compatible with each other have been proposed internationally for efficient management of chargers or charging systems. demand is on the rise.

For example, the Open Charge Alliance (OCA) is distributing the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) as a standard protocol in an electric vehicle charging system, and OCPP 2.0 is currently reflected in the IEC 63110 standard, and standardization is in progress. OCPP is an application protocol for communication between an EV charging station and a central management system. It is an open application protocol that enables the central management system to communicate with an EV charging station and multiple EV charging companies. These OCPPs are being applied and used in numerous electric vehicle charging stations and central management systems around the world.

Korean Patent No. 10-2176417 Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2021-0024333

An object of the present invention is to provide an electric vehicle charging management system having a communication protocol with high interoperability and high interoperability between individual systems by performing message and signal processing using a standardized OCPP-based communication protocol.

The electric vehicle charging management system of this embodiment for solving the above problems processes one or more electric vehicle chargers, a control module controlling the charging process of the electric vehicle charger, a control signal between the control module, and a message with the charging station management system A charging station management system including a charging station having a communication module to And, the communication module and the communication server is characterized in that it is provided with a communication protocol for transmitting and receiving messages and signals according to an OCPP-based protocol.

In addition, the electric vehicle charging management system includes a control module for managing the charging station in a group unit, a communication protocol for transmitting and receiving messages and signals according to an OCPP-based protocol, and a control signal with the control module and the charging station or the charging station Further comprising a field controller having a communication module for processing a message with the charging station management system, the charging station management system may be configured to manage the charging station via the on-site controller.

In addition, the communication protocol is an OCPP Receiver that receives an OCPP message from the OCPP Entity and delivers it to the Message Handler, receives a control signal from a control module and requests generation of an OCPP matching the corresponding control signal through the Signal Converter. Message Control Receiver delivered to the Handler, checks and classifies the validity of the OCPP message delivered from the OCPP Receiver, or classifies the OCPP generation request message delivered from the Control Receiver and delivers it to OCPP Ctrlrs according to the classified content, and a message from OCPP Ctrlrs A Message Handler that receives a return and performs an operation according to its contents, a control message that can be stored in the Control Queue or a Response OCPP message that can be stored in the Sending Queue is generated from the OCPP message delivered from the Message Handler and received from the Message Handler. OCPP Ctrlrs that creates a new OCPP message that can be stored in the Sending Queue according to the OCPP creation request message and returns the generated message to the Message Handler. It includes a Control Queue to keep, and Scheduled Jobs to keep scheduled jobs.

In addition, the communication protocol checks the Sending Queue and transmits a message to the OCPP Entity, checks the Control Queue and transmits a control signal to the control module through the Signal Converter, and confirms the Scheduled Jobs to make a reservation job. It can further include a Scheduler that delivers it to the Message Handler.

In addition, the OCPP Ctrlrs are composed of an aggregate of OCPP Controllers corresponding to one of the messages defined in OCPP, and the Message Handler is configured to deliver a message to the OCPP Controller corresponding to the received message and to receive a message returned from the OCPP Controller. can be

According to the present invention, the charging station, the field controller, and the communication module of the charging station management system are configured to process messages and signals using a standardized OCPP-based communication protocol, so that messages and signals between OCPP entities are efficiently processed and , it has the effect of greatly improving the interoperability and operational efficiency of OCPP entities.

1 is a block diagram showing an electric vehicle charging management system according to an embodiment of the present task;
2 is a block diagram showing an electric vehicle charging management system according to another embodiment of the present invention;
3 is a block diagram showing a communication protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention;
4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of notifying the start of the charging process through the communication protocol of the present embodiment.

The present invention and the technical problems achieved by the practice of the present invention will be made clear by the preferred embodiments described below. Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It should be understood that the differences between the embodiments described below are not mutually exclusive. That is, it should be understood that, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, one embodiment may be implemented in another embodiment, and the position or arrangement of individual components within each disclosed embodiment may be changed. In the drawings, like reference numerals refer to the same or similar functions in various aspects. In the description of the present embodiment, expressions such as first, second, etc. are expressed differently according to their relative positions or order with respect to a specific configuration, and the technical meaning is not limited to the dictionary meaning.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an electric vehicle charging management system according to an embodiment of the present task, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electric vehicle charging management system according to another embodiment of the present task.

Referring to FIG. 1 , an electric vehicle charging management system according to an embodiment includes a charging station management system (CSMS) for managing a charging station (CSMS) and a charging station (CS: Charging Station, 20) for managing a charger. ), and a charger for charging an electric vehicle (EVSE: Electric Vehicle supply Equipment, 30).

Here, the charging station management system 10 is a configuration that monitors and manages one or more charging stations, and functions as an operation server for operating the electric vehicle charging management system, and for this purpose, a management server 11 that manages the charging station 20 and a communication server 12 for transmitting and receiving OCPP messages to and from the charging station 20 .

The charging station 20 is connected to a plurality of chargers 30 to directly control and manage an electric vehicle charging process performed in the charger 30 . For example, the charging station determines a charging priority or distributes power to each charger so that efficient charging can be performed for a plurality of chargers 30 . For this purpose, the charging station 20 includes a control module 21 for controlling the charging process of the charger, and a communication module 22 for transmitting and receiving OCPP messages to and from the charging station management system 10 and transmitting and receiving control signals to and from the control module 21 . ) is provided. The charging station 20 is installed at a charging station provided with one or more chargers 30 , and for example, the charging station may be a public parking lot, a parking lot of a highway rest area, an underground parking lot of an apartment house, and the like.

The charger 20 is configured to supply power to the electric vehicle by connecting the inlet of the electric vehicle, and a plurality of chargers 20 may be installed in one charging station area.

As described above, the electric vehicle charging management system of the present embodiment is configured such that the charging station management system 10 directly monitors and manages the charging station.

2, the electric vehicle charging management system according to another embodiment includes a charging station management system (CSMS: Charging Station Management System, 10) that manages a field controller and a field controller (LC: Local Controller, 40), a charging station that manages the charger (CS: Charging Station, 20), and a charger (EVSE: Electric Vehicle supply Equipment, 30) for charging an electric vehicle.

That is, the electric vehicle charging management system of the present embodiment further includes an on-site controller 40, and the on-site controller 40 is configured to monitor and manage charging stations in a group unit. When the charging station is divided into multiple areas, such as an underground parking lot of an apartment house, the on-site controller 40 is advantageous in classifying the charging stations of each area into group-based charging stations, and monitoring and managing the group-based charging stations. For this purpose, the on-site controller 40 includes a control module 41 for managing the charging station, and a communication module 42 for transmitting and receiving OCPP messages to and from the charging station management system 10 and the charging station 20 .

The electric vehicle charging management system of this embodiment is configured such that the charging station management system manages it through the on-site controller 20 . Accordingly, the charging station management system 10 can directly manage the charging station 20 or manage it through the on-site controller 40 , and the on-site controller 40 may or may not be provided as necessary.

In the electric vehicle charging management system of this embodiment, the OCPP message and control signal are transmitted between the charging station management system 10, the charging station 20, and the on-site controller 40 through the communication server 12 and the communication modules 22 and 42. It is controlled so that the electric vehicle is charged by transmitting it. These communication servers 12 and communication modules 22 and 42 are configured to process messages and signals according to a communication protocol based on OCPP.

3 is a block diagram illustrating a communication protocol according to an embodiment of the present task, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process of notifying the start of the charging process through the communication protocol of this embodiment. In the description of this embodiment, a counterpart system communicating with any one of the charging station management system 10 , the charging station 20 and the field controller 40 is defined as an OCPP entity. In addition, the control module and communication module described in this embodiment refer to a management server and a communication server in the charging station management system 10 .

Referring to FIG. 3 , the communication protocol 100 of this embodiment includes a Message Handler 110 , OCPP Ctrlrs 120 , a first Signal Converter 130 , a Sending Queue 140 , and a Control Queue 150 . and a second Signal Converter 160 and Scheduled Jobs 170 .

Here, the Message Handler 110 receives the OCPP Message from the counterpart OCPP Entity, and at the same time receives the Control Signal from the control module of the corresponding system through the first Signal Converter 130 . That is, the message handler 110 forms an OCPP message thread for receiving an OCPP message through the OCPP receiver, and at the same time forms a control signal thread for receiving a control signal through the control receiver.

The OCPP Receiver receives a message from the counterpart OCPP Entity communicating with the OCPP, delivers the message to the Message Handler 110, and waits for the next message. The Control Receiver receives a control signal from the control module, creates a message requesting generation of an OCPP message matching the corresponding control signal through the first Signal Converter 130, delivers it to the Message Handler 110, and waits for the next signal or message. .

And, the OCPP Message stored in the Sending Queue 140 is transmitted to the counterpart OCPP Entity, and the Control Signal stored in the Control Queue 150 is transmitted to the control module 200 through the second Signal Converter 160, and Scheduled The reservation information stored in the Jobs 170 is provided to the Message Handler 110, and their operation is performed by the Scheduler.

Such a scheduler performs the following operations at regular intervals. That is, the Scheduler checks the Sending Queue 140 and transmits the corresponding OCPP Message to the counterpart OCPP Entity if the message exists and the current message can be sent. In addition, the Scheduler checks the Control Queue 150 and, if a message exists and can send a current message, converts it into a signal that the control module can identify using the second Signal Converter 160 and transmits it. In addition, the Scheduler checks the Scheduled Jobs 170 and, if a job exists and the job can be performed, delivers the job to the Message Handler 110 .

In the communication module 100 of the above configuration, the OCPP Receiver, the Control Receiver, the Message Handler 110 called by the Scheduler, and the OCPP Ctrlrs 120 called by the Message Handler 110 OCPP by the correlation Message, Control Signal, and reserved jobs are derived, and a job for storing them in the Sending Queue 140 , Control Queue 150 , and Scheduled Jobs 170 can be defined as Main Work, respectively.

Specifically, the Message Handler 110 checks and classifies the message received from the OCPP Receiver, or classifies the message generation request received from the Control Receiver and Scheduled Jobs 170 and delivers it to the OCPP Ctrlrs 120 . carry out Thereafter, the operation result is received from the OCPP Ctrlrs 120 and checked, and the following operation is performed according to the content.

First, the Message Handler 110 puts the message in the Sending Queue 140 if there is a message to be delivered to the counterpart OCPP Entity, and puts the message in the Control Queue 150 if there is a message to be delivered to the control module. . In addition, the Message Handler 110 puts reservation information into the Scheduled Jobs 170 if a reservation for a specific operation is required, and calls the OCPP Ctrlrs 120 if there is content to be transmitted to a specific OCPP Controller.

OCPP Ctrlrs 120 is a collection of OCPP Controllers. One OCPP Controller corresponds to one of the messages defined in OCPP, respectively, and the OCPP Ctrlrs 120 includes a plurality of OCPP Controllers classified according to functions. The OCPP Controller performs the following tasks.

First, the OCPP Controller generates a message that can be put in the Control Queue 150 to deliver the OCPP message received through the OCPP Receiver to the control module, and the OCPP Controller responds to the OCPP request message received from the counterpart OCPP Entity through the OCPP Receiver. In response, an OCPP response message that can be put in the Sending Queue 140 is generated. In addition, the OCPP Controller generates an OCPP message that can be put into the Sending Queue 140 based on the contents received from the Control Receiver and Scheduled Jobs 170 . In addition, the OCPP Controller performs practical tasks such as updating the DB or modifying flags or variables according to the contents requested from the counterpart OCPP Entity through the OCPP message, and sends the resulting message back to the Message Handler (110). return

The Sending Queue 140 stores the completed message to be transmitted to the counterpart OCPP Entity. Since the Sending Queue 140 is composed of a Queue, the transmission order is determined. If the communication module is communicating with a plurality of counterpart OCPP entities, the sending queue 140 consists of a plurality of pieces corresponding to the number of counterpart OCPP entities.

The Control Queue 150 stores contents to be transmitted to the control module in the corresponding system.

On the other hand, the first signal converter 130 transmits the control signal of the control module in the corresponding system to the communication module, and the second signal converter 160 transmits the operation result of the communication module to the control module. That is, the first signal converter 130 receives a control signal from the control module, creates a message requesting generation of an OCPP message matching the control signal, and delivers it to the message handler 110 , and the second signal converter 160 . converts the operation result of the Control Queue 150 into a signal that the control module can identify and transmits. Here, the control module is a control module provided inside the system, and may be a management server, a module for managing CS, a module for controlling EVSE, or EVSE itself, depending on the type of system. The communication means between the communication module and the control module may be a communication protocol such as CP, UDP, Websocket, http, or its own protocol or electric signal.

Scheduled Jobs 170 stores all scheduled jobs defined in OCPP. As an example, Scheduled Jobs 170 is a TransactionEvent message that is triggered to report the metering value of the charger being charged every predetermined time, a Heartbeat message that is triggered to synchronize time with the server every predetermined time, Registered Timeout of various ongoing jobs, etc. contents can be stored.

The communication protocol 100 having the above configuration is equally applied to the communication modules of the charging station management system 10, the charging station 20, and the on-site controller 40 to implement a standardized communication module of the electric vehicle charging management system. and can exhibit high compatibility or operability between these systems.

Hereinafter, the process of notifying the start of the charging process through the communication protocol in the electric vehicle charging management system of the present embodiment will be described in detail. ) to illustrate the process of notifying the start of charging, the driving of the communication module 42 of the field controller 40 is the standard. In addition, in this embodiment, the message for charging start is defined as 'TransactionEvent', and the charging station 20, the on-site controller 40, and the charging station management system 10 are called CS, LC, and CSMS, respectively.

First, when the CS transmits a TransactionEventRequest message to the LC, the OCPP Receiver of the LC delivers the received OCPP message to the Message Handler (S11, S12). Then, the message handler of the LC puts the message received from the CS into the sending queue of the CSMS connection matching the CS (S13), and the scheduler checks the sending queue and transmits it to the CSMS (S14).

After checking the TransactionEventRequest message received from the LC, the CSMS will generate a TransactionEventResponse message and transmit it to the LC (S15). Then, the OCPP Receiver of the LC receives the TransactionEventResponse message from the CSMS and delivers it to the Message Handler (S16, S17).

Then, the Message Handler calls OCPP Ctrlrs to deliver the OCPP message received from the CSMS to the TransactionEvent OCPP Controller (S18), and the TransactionEvent OCPP Controller checks and adds information to be added to the TransactionEventResponse message, and sets the internal variables for the message. Update (S19). As an example, if the TransactionEvent OCPP Controller has a ChargingProfile as information to be added, it generates a message by adding the ChargingProfile to the TransactionEventResponse and returns it to the Message Handler (S20).

Next, the message handler puts the returned message into the sending queue of the corresponding CS (S21), and the scheduler checks the sending queue and transmits it to the CS (S22).

In this embodiment, the process of notifying the start of charging is exemplified based on the communication module 42 of the LC, but the communication module having the same protocol is applied to the CS and CSMS so that the process can proceed, and the communication module of each system has various For Event, message can be processed in the same process.

Although exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described as described above, various modifications and other embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art. All such modifications and other embodiments are intended to be contemplated and included in the appended claims without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present invention.

10: charging station management system
20: charging station
30: charger
40: field controller
100: communication protocol
110: Message Handler 120: OCPP Ctrlrs
130: 1st Signal Converter 140: Sending Queue
150: Control Queue 160: 2nd Signal Converter
170 : Scheduled Jobs

Claims (5)

one or more electric vehicle chargers;
a charging station having a control module for controlling the charging process of the electric vehicle charger, and a communication module for processing a control signal with the control module and a message with a charging station management system; and,
A charging station management system including a management server for managing one or more charging stations, and a communication server for processing a control signal with the management server and a message with the charging station;
The communication module and the communication server include a communication protocol for transmitting and receiving messages and signals according to an OCPP-based protocol, the communication protocol comprising:
OCPP Receiver that receives OCPP message from OCPP Entity and delivers it to Message Handler;
Control Receiver that receives a control signal from the control module, creates a message requesting generation of OCPP matching the control signal through the Signal Converter, and delivers it to the Message Handler;
The validity of the OCPP message received from the OCPP Receiver is checked and classified, and the OCPP generation request message received from the Control Receiver and Scheduler is classified and delivered to OCPP Ctrlrs according to the classified content, and the message is returned from the OCPP Ctrlrs and its contents According to the OCPP Entity, the message to be delivered is put in the Sending Queue, the message to be delivered to the control module is put into the Control Queue, and the reservation information is put into the Scheduled Jobs Message Handler;
A control message that can be stored in the control queue or a response OCPP message that can be stored in the sending queue is generated from the OCPP message delivered from the message handler, and a new OCPP creation request message delivered from the message handler can be stored in the sending queue. OCPP Ctrlrs for generating an OCPP message and returning the generated message to the Message Handler;
Sending Queue to hold OCPP messages to be sent to OCPP Entity;
Control Queue for storing control messages to be transmitted to the control module;
Scheduled Jobs to keep scheduled jobs; and,
a scheduler that checks the Sending Queue and transmits a message to the OCPP Entity, checks the Control Queue and transmits a control signal to a control module through a Signal Converter, checks the Scheduled Jobs and delivers a reservation job to the Message Handler; Including, OCPP-based message and signal processing is made electric vehicle charging management system. The method of claim 1,
A control module for managing the charging station in a group unit, and a communication protocol for transmitting and receiving messages and signals according to an OCPP-based protocol, a control signal with a control module and a message with the charging station or the charging station management system It further includes; a field controller having a communication module for processing
The charging station management system manages the charging station via the on-site controller, an OCPP-based message and signal processing for an electric vehicle charging management system. delete delete According to claim 1, wherein the OCPP Ctrlrs,
It consists of an aggregate of OCPP Controllers corresponding to one of the messages defined in OCPP,
The Message Handler is configured to deliver a message to the OCPP Controller corresponding to the received message and to receive a message returned from the OCPP Controller.

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