BATTERY MONITORING METHOD IN A RAIL VEHICLE

Abstract

A method for monitoring the on-board battery of a rail vehicle. The state of charge of the on-board battery is regularly ascertained in an automated manner and is compared with a desired state of charge value. In case the ascertained state of charge value drops below the desired state of charge value, a message is generated for initiating measures for charging the on-board battery.

Claims

1-13. (canceled)

14. A method of monitoring an on-board battery of a rail vehicle, the method which comprises: regularly and automatically determine a state of charge of the on-board battery while the rail vehicle is switched off; regularly transmitting the state of charge so determined to a land-side, stationary control station that is located at a spatially remote location from the rail vehicle; with the control station regularly comparing the state of charge so determined with a state of charge target value and, if the state of charge target value is undershot, generating a message configured to initiate measures for charging the on-board battery; transmitting the message from the control station to the rail vehicle to cause an automatic raising of a pantograph of the rail vehicle, an automatic activation of components that are needed to charge the on-board battery, and charging the on-board battery; and when the on-board battery has reached a desired state of charge, lowering the pantograph and terminating the charging of the on-board battery by deactivating the components which were needed to charge the on-board battery.

15. The method according to claim 14, which comprises transmitting the state of charge and transmitting the message via a radio connection established between the rail vehicle and the control station.

16. The method according to claim 14, which comprises transmitting an item of information relating to the state of charge of the on-board battery together with a further item of information relating to the rail vehicle to the control station, wherein the further item of information contains at least one detail selected from the group consisting of: a vehicle number of the rail vehicle; a date and time assigned to the determined state of charge; and a current position indication of the rail vehicle.

17. The method according to claim 16, which comprises displaying the information by the control station in order to implement continuous control and an overview of the state of charge of the rail vehicle at the control station.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the rail vehicle is one of a plurality of rail vehicles subject to monitoring by the control station, and the information is displayed for a selected rail vehicle of the plurality of rail vehicles.

19. The method according to claim 14, which comprises transmitting a completion message from the rail vehicle to the control station as soon as the on-board battery has reached the desired state of charge.

20. The method according to claim 14, which comprises determining the state of charge of the on-board battery based on a current weather or based on a weather forecast.

21. The method according to claim 14, which comprises determining the state of charge of the on-board battery by way of a voltage measurement at respective poles of the on-board battery.

Description

[0044] The present invention is explained in more detail by way of example below on the basis of a drawing, in which:

[0045] FIG. 1 shows the principle of the method according to the invention on the basis of a first block diagram, and

[0046] FIG. 2 shows, with reference to FIG. 1, an advantageous development of the method according to the invention on the basis of a second block diagram.

[0047] FIG. 1 shows the principle of the method according to the invention on the basis of a first block diagram.

[0048] A rail vehicle SFZ has an on-board battery BAT, the state of charge LZ of which is intended to be monitored.

[0049] The state of charge LZ of the on-board battery BAT is determined in a regularly recurring and automated manner with the aid of a battery monitoring system BATC.

[0050] The determined state of charge LZ is transmitted to a land side LS or control station CS with the aid of a radio unit FES in the rail vehicle and with the aid of a radio antenna FAS in the rail vehicle.

[0051] The transmission between the rail vehicle SFZ, on the one hand, and the land-side control station CS, on the other hand, is carried out via a secure radio connection SFV.

[0052] An item of position information POS is obtained by the rail vehicle SFZ with the aid of a GPS system GPS and is transmitted, together with the state of charge LZ, to the land-side control station CS. This transmission is effected using the radio unit FES in the rail vehicle, the radio antenna FAS in the rail vehicle and the secure radio connection SFV.

[0053] The land-side control station CS has a land-side radio antenna FAL and a land-side radio unit FEL which is connected downstream of the radio antenna FAL. The information relating to the position POS and the state of charge LZ is received on the land side with the aid thereof and is forwarded to a display ANZB.

[0054] The state of charge LZ of the on-board battery BAT is regularly compared with a predefined, predetermined state of charge target value BAT-SOLL with the aid of the display ANZB.

[0055] If the determined state of charge LZ of the on-board battery BAT undershoots the state of charge target value BAT-SOLL, a message MEL is generated and is displayed on the display ANZB.

[0056] The message MEL initiates measures for charging the on-board battery BAT, as described below:

[0057] The message MEL is transmitted by the control station CS back to the affected rail vehicle SFZ, wherein this transmission likewise uses the following components: [0058] land-side radio unit FEL, [0059] land-side radio antenna FAL, [0060] secure radio connection SFV, [0061] radio antenna FAS in the rail vehicle, and [0062] radio unit FES in the rail vehicle.

[0063] If the rail vehicle SFZ is switched off, the rail vehicle SFZ causes, by virtue of the message MEL, a pantograph STA to be raised until it makes contact with a current-carrying conductor SFL. Components KOMP of the rail vehicle SFZ which are needed to charge the on-board battery BAT are accordingly activated.

[0064] The on-board battery BAT of the rail vehicle SFZ is charged and the respective state of charge LZ is continuously monitored, as described above, and is transmitted to the land-side control station CS.

[0065] The land-side comparison between the respective state of charge LZ of the on-board battery BAT and the state of charge target value BAT-SOLL again generates a message MEL as soon as the on-board battery BAT has been charged.

[0066] The rail vehicle SFZ then causes, via the message MEL which is transmitted back, the pantograph STA to be lowered, and the components KOMP which were needed to charge the on-board battery BAT are accordingly deactivated. The charging of the on-board battery BAT has therefore been concluded.

[0067] FIG. 2 shows, with reference to FIG. 1, an advantageous development of the method according to the invention on the basis of a second block diagram.

[0068] In this case, the state of charge LZ of the on-board battery BAT is determined on the basis of the current weather. This implements state of charge monitoring which is carried out on the basis of measured or expected temperatures.

[0069] In this example, the rail vehicle SFZ measures the current temperature TEMP using a weather forecast device WTV.

[0070] Preventative charging of the on-board battery BAT is initiated in the event of a cold spell which is predicted or detected here.

[0071] For example, the temperature TEMP is transmitted for this purpose to the land-side control station CS as additional information and is additionally taken into account when generating the message MEL. For example, the message MEL for charging the on-board battery BAT is initialized and transmitted back earlier in the case of cool or low temperatures TEMP than in the case of normal or higher temperatures TEMP.