Portable electric load bank apparatus, system, and method of operation
11571982 · 2023-02-07
Inventors
Cpc classification
H02J7/0063
ELECTRICITY
B60L58/21
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L58/12
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L53/22
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L53/62
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L50/60
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L58/10
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
Y02T10/70
GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
H02J7/0013
ELECTRICITY
B60L53/11
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
Y02T10/7072
GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
International classification
B60L53/62
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
B60L58/12
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
H02J7/00
ELECTRICITY
Abstract
This disclosure presents a portable load bank apparatus, system, method of control, and method of manufacture. A portable load bank apparatus may comprise one or more of a vehicle, a load bank, a set of batteries, a set of battery chargers, one or more processors, and/or other components. The load bank may be configured to perform a load test of an external power source. The processor(s) may be configured to cause one or more battery chargers in the set of battery chargers to direct an amount of a power output received by the load bank from the external power source to the set of batteries. The set of batteries may be used to provide electrical energy to one or more of an electric motor of the vehicle, one or more other electric vehicle, and/or other sources that may need electrical energy.
Claims
1. A portable load bank apparatus comprising: a load bank, the load bank being configured to cause an external power source to generate a power output as part of a load test of the external power source; a set of batteries electrically coupled to the load bank; a set of battery chargers electrically coupled between the load bank and the set of batteries; and one or more physical processors configured by machine-readable instructions to: obtain a request for the power output by the external power source as part of the load test; cause the external power source to generate the power output, such that the power output is received at the load bank; and cause one or more battery chargers in the set of battery chargers to direct an amount of the power output received by the load bank to the set of batteries, the amount of the power output directed from the load bank to the set of batteries comprising a battery input power that charges the set of batteries, such that a remaining power from the power output is converted to thermal energy by the load bank and dissipated as heat, the remaining power being the power output less the battery input power.
2. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: determine the battery input power based on a current state of charge of the set of batteries.
3. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 1, wherein the set of batteries include a first subset of batteries dedicated to powering the portable load bank apparatus, and a second subset of batteries dedicated for power storage.
4. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 3, wherein the set of battery chargers includes: at least one high voltage direct current charger; and at least one Level 2 EV charger configured to be removable and electrically coupled to individual electric vehicles to charge the individual electric vehicles via the second subset of batteries.
5. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: obtain an indication that the load test is complete; cause the power output by the external power source to be reduced; cause the load bank to be shut down; and cause the external power source to be shut down.
6. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: determine an amount of travel power the portable load bank apparatus needs to reach a destination; and determine the battery input power based on the amount of travel power.
7. The portable load bank apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a battery monitoring system.
8. A portable load bank system comprising: an electric vehicle; a load bank mounted on the electric vehicle, the load bank being configured to cause an external power source to generate electricity as part of a load test of the external power source; a set of batteries mounted on the electric vehicle and electrically coupled to the load bank; a set of battery chargers mounted on the electric vehicle and electrically coupled between the load bank and the set of batteries; and one or more physical processors configured by machine-readable instructions to: obtain a request for a power output by the external power source to the load bank as part of the load test; obtain, at the load bank, the power output generated by the external power source; and cause one or more battery chargers in the set of battery chargers to direct an amount of the power output obtained by the load bank to the set of batteries, the amount of the power output directed from the load bank to the set of batteries comprising a battery input power that charges the set of batteries, such that a remaining power from the power output is converted to thermal energy by the load bank and dissipated as heat, the remaining power being the power output less the battery input power.
9. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: determine the battery input power based on a current state of charge of the set of batteries.
10. The system of claim 8, wherein the set of batteries include a first subset of batteries dedicated to powering the electric vehicle, and a second subset of batteries dedicated for power storage for charging other electric vehicles.
11. The system of claim 10, wherein the set of battery chargers include: at least one high voltage direct current charger; and at least one Level 2 EV charger configured to be removable and electrically coupled to individual ones of the other electric vehicles to charge the individual ones of the other electric vehicles either directly from the battery input power or via the second subset of batteries.
12. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: obtain an indication that the load test is complete; cause the power output by the external power source to be reduced; cause the load bank to be shut down; and cause the external power source to be shut down.
13. The system of claim 8, wherein the one or more physical processors are further configured by the machine-readable instructions to: determine an amount of travel power the electric vehicle needs to reach a destination; and determine the battery input power based on the amount of travel power.
14. The system of claim 8, further comprising a battery monitoring system.
15. A method to control a portable load bank apparatus, the method comprising: obtaining a request for a power output by an external power source as part of a load test; causing the external power source to generate electricity as part of the load test of the external power source; obtaining, at a load bank, the power output generated by the external power source; and causing one or more battery chargers in a set of battery chargers to direct an amount of the power output obtained by the load bank to a set of batteries, the amount of the power output directed from the load bank to the set of batteries comprising a battery input power that charges the set of batteries, such that a remaining power from the power output is converted to thermal energy by the load bank and dissipated as heat, the remaining power being the power output less the battery input power.
16. The method of claim 15, further comprising: determining the battery input power based on a current state of charge of the set of batteries.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein the set of batteries are included in the portable load bank apparatus and include a first subset of batteries dedicated to powering the portable load bank apparatus, and a second subset of batteries dedicated for power storage.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein the set of battery chargers include: at least one high voltage direct current charger; and at least one Level 2 EV charger configured to be removable and electrically coupled to individual electric vehicles to charge the individual electric vehicles via the second subset of batteries.
19. The method of claim 15, further comprising: obtaining an indication that the load test is complete; causing the power output by the external power source to be reduced; causing the load bank to be shut down; and causing the external power source to be shut down.
20. The method of claim 15, further comprising: determining an amount of travel power the portable load bank apparatus needs to reach a destination; and determining the battery input power based on the amount of travel power.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
(5)
(6) Vehicle(s) 102 may represent an individual specially constructed vehicle and/or a set of similarly configured vehicles. Vehicle(s) 102 may be self-propelled. A vehicle may comprise a specially constructed electrical vehicle. The vehicle may comprise a vehicle made for commercial purposes. The vehicle may include one or more components upon which equipment may be mounted, removably and/or non-removably. By way of non-limiting illustration, vehicle may take the form of a van, truck, semi-truck, and/or other vehicles.
(7) Vehicle(s) 102 may include (e.g., via permanent and/or removable mounting) one or more of one or more processors 104, non-transitory electronic storage 118, set of batteries 119, a load bank 121, set of battery chargers 123, and/or other components. Components may be mounted to vehicle(s) 102 through one or more mounting components and/or techniques. By way of non-limiting illustration, mounting may be accomplished by riveting, screwing, welding, strapping, and/or other techniques. The one or more processors 104 and/or electronic storage 118 may generally comprise a computer or computer system of vehicle(s) 102. A vehicle including the one or more of the processor(s) 104, non-transitory electronic storage 118, set of batteries 119, a load bank 121, set of battery chargers 123, and/or other components may generally define a portable load bank apparatus 101 of the present disclosure.
(8) The set of batteries 119 may include one or more batteries. An individual battery of set of batteries 119 may be comprised of batteries conventionally used for the power source of electric vehicles. By way of non-limiting illustration, an individual battery may include one or more of a lithium-ion battery, nickel-metal hydride battery, lead-acid battery, and/or other batteries. In some implementations, the set of batteries 119 may be separated into one or more subsets. The subsets may be physically separated and and/or electrically separated by virtue of their electrical connections to individual ones of the chargers. By way of non-limiting illustration, the set of batteries 119 may include one or more of a first subset, a second subset, and/or other subsets. The first subset of batteries may be dedicated to providing power to the portable load bank apparatus 101. The second subset of batteries may be dedicated for power storage.
(9) The set of battery chargers 123 may include one or more battery chargers. The set of battery chargers 123 may be configured to direct flow of power output from an external power source to the set of batteries 119 to charge one or more of individual batteries in the set, individual subsets of batteries, and/or the set of batteries 119 as a whole. In some implementations, the set of battery chargers 123 may include at least one high voltage direct current charger and/or other devices suitable for the intended purpose. In some implementations, the set of battery chargers 123 may include at least one EV charger (Level 2 or otherwise) configured to be removable and electrically coupled to individual electric vehicles to charge batteries of the individual electric vehicles via the second subset of batteries.
(10) The load bank 121 may comprise a conventional load bank configured to be mounted on a vehicle. In some implementations, load bank 121 may comprise a load bank that is specially adapted and/or constructed to have specifications, dimensions, and/or other aspects that are specially configured for mounting on a vehicle. The load bank 121 may include one or more of a housing, ventilation louvers, a ventilation grid, rapid cooling fans, and/or other components. In some implementations, the load bank 121 may include specially constructed circuitry, connectors, and/or other components (not shown in
(11) External power source(s) 125 may represent an individual power source and/or a set of power sources. An external power source may include one or more of a generator, uninterruptible power supply (UPS), and/or other devices.
(12) In
(13) In some implementations, server(s) 122 may be configured to provide remote hosting of features and/or functions of machine-readable instructions 106 to vehicle(s) 102, computing platform(s) 126, and/or other components. By way of non-limiting illustration, server(s) 122 may include machine-readable instructions which are the same as, or similar to, machine-readable instructions 106. Vehicle(s) 102, server(s) 122, and/or computing platform(s) 126 may be remotely located from one another. The server(s) 122 may communicate with other components of the system 100 via client/server architecture, and/or other communication schemes. By way of non-limiting illustration, individual computing platforms of one or more computing platforms 126 may download an application (e.g., non-transitory electronically stored information) configured to provide access to features and/or functions of machine-readable instructions 106. For example, individual computing platforms may present graphical user interfaces through which users interact with vehicle(s) 102 and/or system 100 as a whole.
(14) Individual computing platforms may include one or more of a mobile computing platform (e.g., one or more of a cellular telephone, a smartphone, a laptop, a tablet computer, and/or other mobile platforms), a stationary computing platform (e.g., a desktop computer), and/or other computing platforms.
(15) In some implementations, vehicle(s) 102 and/or computing platform(s) 126 may include devices configured to present and/or generate content. Content may include visual and/or audio content. By way of non-limiting illustration, vehicle(s) 102 and/or computing platform(s) 126 may include a display configured to present visual content. The visual content may include one or more of individual images, image sequences, video, text, and/or other content. Presentation via a display may be facilitated by a graphics processing unit (GPU) and/or other components incorporated into vehicle(s) 102 and/or computing platform(s) 126. A display may include one or more of screen, a touchscreen, a monitor, a head-mounted display, a set of screens, and/or other displays.
(16) The non-transitory electronic storage 118 may include storage that is integrally coupled with a vehicle, included with server(s) 122, included in one or more computing platforms 126, and/or included in other locations. The non-transitory electronic storage 118 may store information utilized by one or more components of the system 100. By way of non-limiting illustration, the information may include computer program components and/or other information.
(17) The one or more processors 104 may be configured by machine-readable instructions 106. Executing machine-readable instructions 106 may cause one or more processors 104 to facilitate controlling a portable load bank apparatus 101 and/or other components. The machine-readable instructions 106 may include one or more computer program components. The one or more computer program components may include one or more of a testing component 108, a charging component 110, and/or other components.
(18) The testing component 108 may be configured to obtain a request for power output by external power source(s) 125, as part of a load test being performed by the load bank 121. By way of non-limiting illustration, a display may be configured to present a user interface through which a user may submit a request for power output. The request may include one or more of an amount of the power output, timing of the power output (e.g., when to start, when to stop, etc.), and/or other information.
(19) The testing component 108 may be configured cause the external power source to generate electricity as part of a load test of the external power source. In response to the request, the external power source(s) 125 may be activated such that a power output may be generated. By way of non-limiting illustration, submission of the request may cause the sending an electrical signal (e.g., duty cycle commands corresponding to a desired load) to external power source(s) 125 which causes the external power source(s) 125 to be powered “on.” The power output may be obtained at the load bank 121, through an electrical coupling of the external power source(s) 125 and the load bank 121.
(20) The charging component 110 may be configured to cause one or more battery chargers in the set of battery chargers 123 to direct an amount of the power output obtained by the load bank 121 to the set of batteries 119. The amount of the power output directed from the load bank 121 to the set of batteries may comprise a battery input power (and/or energy). The battery input power (and/or energy) may comprise the electrical energy that charges the set of batteries 119, either to a complete charge or other charged state. It is noted that while some descriptions herein describes the distribution of electricity as a measure of power (e.g., rate, per unit time, at which electrical energy is transferred), this is for illustrative purposes only. Those skilled in the art may appreciate that the distribution may alternatively and/or concurrently be based measures of electrical energy, and/or other measures.
(21) In some implementations, the charging component 110 may be configured to determine the battery input power (and/or energy) based on a current state of charge of the set of batteries 119. By way of non-limiting illustration, a current state of charge of the set of batteries 119 may be measured through a battery monitoring system (not shown in
(22) In some implementations, the charging component 110 may be configured to determine an amount of travel power (and/or energy) the portable load bank apparatus 101 may need to reach a destination. The charging component 110 may be configured to determine the battery input power (and/or energy) based on the amount of travel power (and/or energy), so that the amount of charge of one or more batteries may be sufficient to supply the amount of travel power (and/or energy).
(23) In some implementations, the charging component 110 may be configured to cause a remaining power (and/or energy) from the power output to be converted to thermal energy by the load bank 121 and/or other components, and dissipated as heat. The remaining power (and/or energy) may be measured as the power output less the battery input power (and/or energy). Through the active charging of batteries using the power output from an external power source, the portable load bank apparatus 101, and/or system 100, is now able reduce the amount of “waste” energy that is the consequence of load tests.
(24) In some implementations, the testing component 108 may be configured to obtain an indication that the load test is complete. The indication may be derived from one or more of a duration of the load test ending, a predetermined amount of energy being supplied (e.g., kilowatt-hour output being reached), and/or other indications.
(25) The testing component 108 may be configured to cause a reduction in the power output by an external power source. In some implementations, the external power source's output may be slowed reduced in power for safety reasons and/or for the proper functioning of the source. Upon reaching a safe or predetermined reduced power output, the testing component 108 may be configured to cause the load bank 121 to be shut down. Upon reaching a safe or predetermined reduced power output, the testing component 108 may be configured to cause the external power source to be shut down. In some implementations, causing actions at the external power source may be accomplished through control signals or commands being generated and sent from the processor(s) 104 to the external power source.
(26) By way of non-limiting illustration, a 100 kW load on the load bank 121 from a generator. Traditionally, the entire 100 kW would be dissipated as heat from a load bank during and/or after a test. Now, with the portable load bank apparatus 101 and/or system 100, at least some (if not all) of that energy can be utilized to charge one or more batteries. Those batteries, in turn, may power an electric vehicle carrying the load bank 101, other electric vehicles that need a charge, and/or other batteries. By way of non-limiting illustration, from that 100 kW that is requested, 25 kW (or other amount) may be delivered to an HVDC charger to charge one or more batteries, while the other 75 kW (or other amount) may be dissipated as heat. These values are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not to be considered limiting.
(27)
(28) The portable load bank apparatus 400 may be comprised of one or more of an electric vehicle 401, a load bank 404, one or more processors 406 (e.g., onboard computer), a set of battery chargers 408, a set of batteries 410, an electric vehicle propulsion system 412 (e.g., one or more electric motors), a battery monitoring system 414, and/or other components. The elements shown using reference numerals 404 to 412 refer to components that may be integrally coupled (e.g., mounted) within, on, or otherwise to, vehicle 401. The presentation of those elements above and outside of vehicle 401 is merely provided for illustrative purposes as those elements are intended to be integrated with vehicle 401. The solid lines represent preferred electrical coupling between components; however, other coupling arrangements/schemes may be employed. Accordingly,
(29) Returning to
(30) External resource(s) 124 may include sources of information, hosts, and/or providers of information outside of system 100, external entities participating with system 100, and/or other resources. In some implementations, some or all of the functionality attributed herein to external resource(s) 124 may be provided by resources included in system 100. By way of non-limiting illustration, external entities may include one or more of infrastructure of locations that have individual external power sources. For example, an external entity may include the infrastructure of one or more of hospitals, assisted living centers, and/or other locations.
(31) Processor(s) 104 may include communication lines or ports to enable the exchange of information with one or more of a network, server(s) 122, computing platform(s) 126, set of batteries 119, load bank 121, set of chargers 123, and/or other components. Illustration of processor(s) 104 in
(32) Electronic storage 118 may include electronic storage media that electronically stores information. The electronic storage media of electronic storage 118 may include one or both of system storage that is provided integrally (i.e., substantially non-removable) with vehicle(s) 102 and/or removable storage that is removably connectable to vehicle(s) 102 via, for example, a port or a drive. A port may include a USB port, a firewire port, and/or other port. A drive may include a disk drive and/or other drive. Electronic storage 118 may include one or more of optically readable storage media (e.g., optical disks, etc.), magnetically readable storage media (e.g., magnetic tape, magnetic hard drive, floppy drive, etc.), electrical charge-based storage media (e.g., EEPROM, RAM, etc.), solid-state storage media (e.g., flash drive, etc.), and/or other electronically readable storage media. The electronic storage 118 may include one or more virtual storage resources (e.g., cloud storage, a virtual private network, and/or other virtual storage resources). Electronic storage 118 may store software algorithms, information determined by processor(s) 104, information received from computing platform(s) 126 and/or server(s) 122, and/or other information that enables system 100 to function as described herein.
(33) Processor(s) 104 may be configured to provide information-processing capabilities in vehicle(s) 102. As such, processor(s) 104 may include one or more of a digital processor, physical processor(s), an analog processor, a digital circuit designed to process information, an analog circuit designed to process information, a state machine, and/or other mechanisms for electronically processing information. Although processor(s) 104 is shown in
(34) It should be appreciated that although components 108 and/or 110 are illustrated in
(35)
(36) In some implementations, method 200 may be implemented in a system comprising one or more processing devices (e.g., a physical processor, a digital processor, an analog processor, a digital circuit designed to process information, an analog circuit designed to process information, a state machine, and/or other mechanisms for electronically processing information), storage media storing machine-readable instructions, one or more vehicles, one or more external power sources, and/or other components. The one or more processing devices may include one or more devices executing some or all of the operations of method 200 in response to instructions stored electronically on electronic storage media. The one or more processing devices may include one or more devices configured through hardware, firmware, and/or software to be specifically designed for execution of one or more of the operations of method 200.
(37) At an operation 202, a request may be obtained for a power output by an external power source as part of a load test. In some implementations, operation 202 may be performed by one or more processors executing a testing component the same as or similar to testing component 108 (shown in
(38) At an operation 204, the external power source may generate electricity as part of the load test of the external power source. In some implementations, operation 204 may be performed by one or more processors executing a testing component the same as or similar to testing component 108 (shown in
(39) At an operation 206, the power output generated by the external power source may be obtained at the load bank. In some implementations, operation 206 may be accomplished through electrical coupling of the external power source to the load bank.
(40) At an operation 208, one or more battery chargers in a set of battery chargers may direct an amount of the power output obtained by the load bank to a set of batteries. The amount of the power output directed from the load bank to the set of batteries may comprise a battery input power (and/or energy) that charges the set of batteries. A remaining power (and/or energy) from the power output may be converted to thermal energy by the load bank and dissipated as heat. The remaining power (and/or energy) being the power output less the battery input power (and/or energy). In some implementations, operation 208 may be performed by one or more processors executing a charging component the same as or similar to charging component 110 (shown in
(41)
(42) In some implementations, method 300 may be implemented using one or more manual and/or automated manufacturing techniques. A manual manufacturing techniques may include one or more mounting techniques used by skilled artisans in vehicle manufacture, heavy equipment manufacture, load bank manufacture, commercial electricians, and/or other persons of skill in the art. A mounting technique may include one or more of welding, riveting, screwing, bolting, adhering, electrically coupling, and/or other techniques. Other techniques known to skilled artisans are also within the scope of the present disclosure. An automated manufacturing technique may include machines and one or more processing devices. The one or more processing devices and/or machines may include one or more devices executing some or all of the operations of method 300 in response to instructions stored electronically on an electronic storage medium. The one or more processing devices and/or machines may include one or more devices configured through hardware, firmware, and/or software to be specifically designed for execution of one or more of the operations of method 300.
(43) At an operation 302, a load bank may be mounted on an electric vehicle.
(44) At an operation 304, a set of batteries may be mounted on to the electric vehicle. The set of batteries may be electrically coupled to one or more of the load bank, a BMS, an electric motor, and/or other components.
(45) At an operation 306, a set of battery chargers may be mounted on to the electric vehicle. The set of battery charges may be electrically coupled between the load bank and the set of batteries. The set of battery charges may be electrically coupled to other components.
(46) Although the present technology has been described in detail for the purpose of illustration based on what is currently considered to be the most practical and preferred implementations, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that the technology is not limited to the disclosed implementations, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover modifications and equivalent arrangements that are within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. For example, it is to be understood that the present technology contemplates that, to the extent possible, one or more features of any implementation can be combined with one or more features of any other implementation.