# US 2015/0149221 A1 · Methods and systems for charging electric vehicles > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2015/0149221 A1 - Document ID: US20150149221A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/551,944 - Filed: 2014-11-24 - Published: 2015-05-28 - Earliest claimed: 2013-11-24 - Inventors: Martin Tremblay - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20150149221A1 ## CPC - B60L 58/12: responding to state of charge [SoC] - B60L 53/305: {Communication interfaces} - B60L 53/65: involving identification of vehicles or their battery types - B60L 53/665: {Methods related to measuring, billing or payment} - B60L 53/68: Off-site monitoring or control, e.g. remote control - G06F 3/04842: Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements (G06F3/0482 takes precedence) - G06Q 10/02: Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events - G06Q 50/12: Hotels or restaurants - B60L 2240/70: Interactions with external data bases, e.g. traffic centres - B60L 2250/14: by input of vehicle departure time - B60L 2260/52: drive range estimation, e.g. of estimation of available travel distance - B60L 2260/54: Energy consumption estimation - Y02T 10/70: Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries - Y02T 10/7072: Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors - Y02T 10/72: Electric energy management in electromobility - Y02T 90/12: Electric charging stations - Y02T 90/14: Plug-in electric vehicles - Y02T 90/16: Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles - Y02T 90/167: Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for supporting the interoperability of electric or hybrid vehicles, i.e. smartgrids as interface for battery charging of electric vehicles [EV] or hybrid vehicles [HEV] - Y04S 30/14: Details associated with the interoperability, e.g. vehicle recognition, authentication, identification or billing - 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 - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - Y02T: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION - Y04S: SYSTEMS INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO POWER NETWORK OPERATION, COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR IMPROVING THE ELECTRICAL POWER GENERATION, TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION, MANAGEMENT OR USAGE, i.e. SMART GRIDS ## Abstract A charging service for electric vehicles is provided. The charging service may allow electric vehicles to be charged when certain conditions are met (e.g., at certain times, when certain battery charge levels are reached, when located at certain sites, etc.), without users of these electric vehicles having to charge the vehicles themselves. Other features pertaining to charging of electric vehicles are also provided, such as an application for estimating a driving range (e.g., distance and/or time) available with a current battery charge level of an electric vehicle. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A computer-implemented method comprising: applying a set of at least one charging rule to at least one parameter value in order to determine that at least one electric vehicle is to be charged; and outputting a command to charge the at least one electric vehicle. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, wherein the command is output towards a charging unit over a communications network. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, further comprising monitoring the at least one parameter value and storing the at least one parameter value in a memory. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 3, wherein monitoring the at least one parameter value comprises monitoring at least one parameter value for each of a plurality of electric vehicles that includes the at least one electric vehicle. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 4, wherein, for a given electric vehicle in the plurality of electric vehicles, monitoring the at least one parameter value for the given electric vehicle comprises receiving a signal indicative of at least one of the at least one parameter value for the given electric vehicle and storing the received at least one parameter value in a memory. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 5, wherein the signal is received from the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 5, wherein the signal is received from a user associated with the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 5, wherein the received at least one parameter value comprises an indication of a charge level of a battery used by the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 8, wherein applying the set of at least one charging rule to the at least one parameter value includes comparing the charge level of the battery used by the given electric vehicle to a threshold and, in case the charge level is below the threshold, identifying that the given electric vehicle is one of the at least one electric vehicle requiring charging. ### Claim 10 (depends on 5) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 5, wherein the received at least one parameter value comprises an indication of a location of the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 10, wherein the received at least one parameter value comprises an indication of an amount of time that the given electric vehicle is expected to remain at its current location. ### Claim 12 (depends on 5) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 5, wherein the received at least one parameter value comprises an indication a credit worthiness of a user associated with the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, wherein the at least one parameter value comprises an indication of a time of day. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, wherein the method is implemented at least in part by a charging service provider and wherein the at least one charging rule includes at least one rule defined by the charging service provider. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, wherein the at least one charging rule includes, for each given electric vehicle in a plurality of electric vehicles that includes the at least one electric vehicle, a charging rule defined by a user associated with the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 1, wherein the command includes information regarding the at least one electric vehicle. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 16, wherein, for a given electric vehicle of the at least one electric vehicle, the information regarding the given electric vehicle includes identification information identifying the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The computer-implemented method defined in claim 17, wherein the identification information identifying the given electric vehicle includes at least one of a make, a model, a color, and a license plate number of the given electric vehicle. ### Claim 19 A charge port system for an electric vehicle, the charge port system comprising: a charge port capable of being locked and unlocked such that, when unlocked, the charge port allows an electrical source to wiredly connect to a battery of the electric vehicle; and a control system for controllably unlocking the charge port in response to a signal received from outside the electric vehicle. ### Claim 20 A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-readable instructions which, when executed by a computing apparatus, cause the computing apparatus to execute an online booking process graphical user interface (GUI), the online booking process GUI comprising: a GUI object via which a user is able to input information regarding a hotel reservation; and a GUI object via which a user is able to input electric vehicle information regarding in association with the hotel reservation.