SYSTEM COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE POWER MANAGEMENT
A system and method that minimizes network traffic consumption in a power flow management system is described. A minimization system may include a network to communicate device information and power flow information between the power flow management system and the devices. The power flow management system reduces consumption of the traffic traversing the network via a network traffic consumption reduction technique. In addition, this application discloses a system and method for communications protocol translation in a power flow management system that includes networks which connect electric devices and electric power supplies. One network utilizes a communications protocol that is different from the communications protocol utilized by another network. A communications protocol translation device communicates with the networks, and formulates messages from one communications protocol to the other communications protocol. The reformulated messages pass from one network to another network.
1 . A system for minimizing network traffic consumption in a power flow management system, comprising:
a plurality of devices operable to generate, consume, or store electric energy;
a power flow management system, wherein the power flow management system manages power flow transferred between the plurality of devices and a power grid; and, device information and power flow information communicated, via a network, between the power flow management system and the plurality of devices, wherein the device information is received by the power flow management system, wherein the power flow information is transmitted by the power flow management system, wherein the power flow information comprises an energy rate command received by at least one of the plurality of devices, and
wherein the power flow management system reduces consumption of traffic traversing the network via a network traffic consumption reduction technique.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the power flow management system is centralized.
3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the power flow management system is decentralized.
4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the energy rate command provides a time and a rate of energy transfer from the at least one of the plurality of devices.
5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the energy rate command provides a time and a rate of energy transfer to the at least one of the plurality of devices.
6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the power flow management system determines an optimal time and rate for energy transfer.
7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the energy rate command requests an immediate flow of power at a requested level.
8 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the energy rate command provides a schedule of power flow for the at least one of the plurality of devices.
9 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the schedule of power flow provides an activation time for a power flow level.
10 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the schedule of power flow provides a sequence of power flow levels for activating at predetermined times.
11 . The system of claim 8 , wherein the schedule of power flow is repeated by the at least one of the plurality of devices on a dynamic pattern or fixed pattern.
12 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the device information relates to a current state of at least one of the plurality of devices.
13 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the device information is related to at least one of the plurality of devices and is selected from a group consisting of the following: an amount and a direction of power flow associated with the at least one of the plurality of devices; a capacity relating to the at least one of the plurality of devices; faults or error messages; a device presence indicator for the at least one of the plurality of devices; a scheduling constraint; or energy consumption in a period.
14 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the network traffic consumption reduction technique is a technique selected from a group consisting of the following: data compression, data overhead reduction, action/schedule pre-distribution, minimum change dispatch, communication of all status changes, configurable limitations on relevant device behavior, or non-time-critical information bundling.
15 . A system for communications protocol translation in a power flow management system, comprising:
electric devices and electric power supplies connected via a plurality of networks, wherein at least one network of the plurality of networks utilizes a first communications protocol that is different from a second communications protocol utilized by at least a second network of the plurality of networks;
a communications protocol translation device operable to communicate with the plurality of networks, wherein the communications protocol translation device formulates a message from the first communications protocol to the second communications protocol, whereby the reformulated message passes from the first network to the second network.
16 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the first network connects an electric device to the power flow management system, and wherein the second network connects an electric power supply to the power flow management system.
17 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the first network connects an electric power supply to the power flow management system, and wherein the second network connects an electric device to the power flow management system.
18 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the first network connects an electric power supply to an electric device, and wherein the second network connects a second electric device to the electric power supply.
19 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the communications protocol translation device is an electric device.
20 . The system of claim 19 , wherein the electric device is an electric vehicle service equipment.
21 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the communications protocol translation device is located within a power outlet.
22 . The system of claim 15 , wherein at least one of the plurality of networks utilizes a communications protocol selected from a group consisting of the following: SAE2836 or ZigBee.
23 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the communications protocol translation device comprises:
a microprocessor;
a power supply;
physical transceivers for each of a plurality of supported communications protocol stacks; and,
a software stack capable of decoding messages coded in the first protocol to the application level and re-encoding the decoded messages into the second communications protocol.
24 . The system of claim 15 , wherein the communications protocol translation device is located remotely from the electric devices connected to the plurality of networks.
25 . A device comprising
a first transceiver adapted to be connected to a first network supporting a first network protocol;
a second transceiver adapted to be connected to a second network supporting a second network protocol;
a translation module comprising one or more processors programmed to execute software code retrieved from a computer readable storage medium storing software configured to receive, using the first transceiver, at least one application level message in the first protocol from the first network;
decode the at least one application level message;
encode the at least one application level message in the second protocol;
transmit, using the second transceiver, the at least one application level message encoded in the second protocol over the second network.
26 . The system of claim 25 wherein the first network is a network in a vehicle and the second network is a network providing access to a central charge management server.
27 . The system of claim 26 wherein the first protocol is a SAE2836 protocol over PLC.
28 . The system of claim 27 wherein the second protocol is a wireless ZigBee protocol.
29 . The system of claim 25 wherein the translation module is integrated into the electric vehicle service equipment.
30 . The system of claim 25 the device is a self-contained box plugged in to a power outlet.