# US 12,005,804 B2 · Power supply system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,005,804 B2 - Document ID: US12005804B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/715,035 - Filed: 2022-04-07 - Published: 2022-10-13 - Granted: 2024-06-11 - Earliest claimed: 2021-04-09 - Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Shigeki Kinomura - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12005804B2 ## CPC - B60L 53/68: Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control - B60L 53/31: Charging columns specially adapted for electric vehicles - B60L 53/36: by positioning the vehicle - B60L 53/66: Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles - G01C 21/3469: {Fuel consumption; Energy use; Emission aspects} - B60L: PROPULSION OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (arrangements or mounting of electrical propulsion units or of plural diverse prime-movers for mutual or common propulsion in vehicles B60K1/00, B60K6/20; arrangements or mounting of electrical gearing in vehicles B60K17/12, B60K17/14; preventing wheel slip by reducing power in rail vehicles B61C15/08; dynamo-electric machines H02K; control or regulation of electric motors H02P); SUPPLYING ELECTRIC POWER FOR AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES (electric coupling devices combined with mechanical couplings of vehicles B60D1/64; electric heating for vehicles B60H1/00); ELECTRODYNAMIC BRAKE SYSTEMS FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL (control or regulation of electric motors H02P); MAGNETIC SUSPENSION OR LEVITATION FOR VEHICLES; MONITORING OPERATING VARIABLES OF ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES; ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICES FOR ELECTRICALLY-PROPELLED VEHICLES - G01C: MEASURING DISTANCES, LEVELS OR BEARINGS; SURVEYING; NAVIGATION; GYROSCOPIC INSTRUMENTS; PHOTOGRAMMETRY OR VIDEOGRAMMETRY (measuring liquid level G01F; radio navigation, determining distance or velocity by use of propagation effects, e.g. Doppler effects, propagation time, of radio waves, analogous arrangements using other waves G01S) ## Abstract A power supply system includes a plurality of charging stations accommodatable under a ground surface. The power supply system comprises a determination unit that determines a power supply facility available for supplying power to a target vehicle, and a transmission unit that transmits, to the target vehicle, guidance information for guiding the target vehicle to the determined charging station by automatic driving. The target vehicle is guided to the available charging station by automatic driving. The user can reach the available charging station without searching for it. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A power supply system, comprising: a plurality of power supply facilities, each of the plurality of power supply facilities accommodatable under a ground surface, said each of the plurality of power supply facilities including: a movable portion including: a touch panel display configured to receive instructions for supplying power to a target vehicle, and a power supply port, wherein the movable portion is displaced within a movability range including a first position in which the power supply port is accommodated under the ground surface and a second position in which the power supply port is exposed on the ground surface, an actuator configured to move the movable portion, and a controller configured to control the actuator; a determination unit configured to determine, among the plurality of power supply facilities, a power supply facility available for supplying the power to the target vehicle; and a transmitter configured to transmit, to the target vehicle, guidance information for guiding the target vehicle to the determined power supply facility by automatic driving, wherein the controller of the determined power supply facility is configured to control the actuator to displace the movable portion to the second position, as timed as prescribed for parking the target vehicle at a power supplying position for the determined power supply facility, and in response to the target vehicle automatically driven and approaching the determined power supply facility, control the actuator to displace the movable portion from the first position to the second position. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The power supply system according to claim 1, wherein said each of the plurality of power supply facilities includes the determination unit and the transmitter. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The power supply system according to claim 1, further comprising: a server configured to communicate with said each of the plurality of power supply facilities, wherein the server includes the determination unit and the transmitter. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The power supply system according to claim 3, wherein the determination unit is configured to determine the power supply facility available for supplying the power in a vicinity of a destination of the target vehicle. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The power supply system according to claim 3, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the guidance information to the target vehicle at a time when the power supply facility is determined. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The power supply system according to claim 1, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the guidance information to the target vehicle at a time when the target vehicle reaches a predetermined position for the power supply facility determined by the determination unit. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The power supply system according to claim 1, further comprising: a server configured to communicate with said each of the plurality of power supply facilities, wherein the server includes the determination unit and the transmitter, and the server is further configured to determine whether the transmitter has received, from the target vehicle, information indicating a destination of the target vehicle, and in response to determining that the information indicating the destination is received, search for the power supply facility available in a vicinity of the destination, and transmit the guidance information to the target vehicle. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The power supply system according to claim 7, wherein the server is further configured to in response to transmitting the guidance information to the target vehicle, determine whether a request for guidance to the determined power supply facility has been received from the target vehicle, and in response to determining that the request for guidance has been received, determine whether the target vehicle assumes a position in a vicinity of an entrance of an area in which the plurality of power supply facilities including the determined power supply facility is installed, in response to determining that the target vehicle assumes the position, search for the determined power supply facility in the area, and transmit the guidance information to the target vehicle, and in response to transmitting the guidance information to the target vehicle, determining whether arrival information indicating an arrival of the target vehicle at a predetermined distance from the determined power supply facility has been received from the target vehicle, and in response to determining that the arrival information has been received, transmit an instruction to the determined power supply facility to elevate the movable portion. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The power supply system according to claim 8, wherein the controller of the determined power supply facility is configured to determine whether the instruction to elevate the movable portion has been received from the server, and in response to determining that the instruction to elevate the movable portion has been received, control the actuator to elevate the movable portion. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The power supply system according to claim 9, wherein the target vehicle further comprises a processor configured to determine whether the guidance information has been received from the server, in response to determining that the guidance information has been received, start to control automatically driving the target vehicle in accordance with the guidance information, and determine whether the target vehicle has reached the predetermined distance, in response to determining that the target vehicle has reached the predetermined distance, transmit the arrival information to the server, determine whether the target vehicle has reached a further position to start parking the target vehicle in the power supplying position, and in response to determining that the target vehicle has reached the further position, start to control automatically parking the target vehicle in the power supplying position. ### Claim 11 (depends on 7) The power supply system according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of power supply facilities further comprises a main charging station configured to determine whether a request for guidance to the determined power supply facility has been received from the target vehicle, and in response to determining that the request for guidance has been received, search for the determined power supply facility, transmit the guidance information to the target vehicle, and transmit an instruction to the determined power supply facility to elevate the movable portion of the determined power supply facility. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The power supply system according to claim 11, wherein the controller of the determined power supply facility is configured to determine whether the instruction to elevate the movable portion has been received from the main charging station, and in response to determining that the instruction to elevate the movable portion has been received, control the actuator to elevate the movable portion. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The power supply system according to claim 12, wherein the target vehicle further comprises a processor configured to determine whether the guidance information has been received from the server, in response to determining that the guidance information has been received, start to control automatically driving the target vehicle in accordance with the guidance information, and determine whether the target vehicle has reached an area of the determined power supply facility, in response to determining that the target vehicle has reached the area, transmit a request to the main charging station of the area for guidance to have the target vehicle guided to the determined power supply facility designated by the guidance information, determine whether the target vehicle has reached a further position to start parking the target vehicle in the power supplying position, and in response to determining that the target vehicle has reached the further position, start to control automatically parking the target vehicle in the power supplying position.