According to one embodiment of the present invention, a computer manages an electric vehicle charging transaction. A set of principals is identified associated with the charging transaction for an electric vehicle. A principal is an entity having an interest in the charging transaction. Electric vehicle charging information is retrieved from a set of sources. An energy transaction plan is generated during a pre-charge phase using the electric vehicle charging information and based on preferences of one or more principals to govern the charging transaction. The computer initiates a charging phase of the electric vehicle charging transaction for an electric vehicle connected to a charging station according to the energy transaction plan. The charging phase comprises charging the electric vehicle with electricity, storing electricity in the electric vehicle, and removing electricity to de-charge the electric vehicle. The computer settles the financial obligations among principals according to the energy transaction plan.

Electric vehicle charging transaction interface for managing electric vehicle charging transactions

A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer usable program product is provided for managing network based preferences associated with charging transactions for electric vehicles. The network based energy preference service receives an identification of a principal associated with a first computing device using a network connection. The network based energy preference service receives a selection of preferences from the principal associated with the first computing device over the network connection to form a set of preferences for the principal. In response to receiving a request for a subset of preferences from the set of preferences for the principal from a preference requesting service, the network based energy preference service retrieves the subset of preferences from the set of preferences by the network based energy preference service and sends the subset of preferences to the preference requesting service.

Network Based Energy Preference Service for Managing Electric Vehicle Charging Preferences

A vehicle including one or more computers to interface with electronics of the vehicle to access status data for systems of the vehicle and to make input settings to one or more of the systems. The vehicle includes wireless communication circuitry for providing connection to the Internet and to one or more wireless devices when paired with the vehicle. An occupancy sensor of the vehicle is configured to interface with the one or more computers of the vehicle to identify occupancy of seats of the vehicle. A processor of the one or more computers of the vehicle is configured to execute instructions to receive data from a wireless device that is paired with the vehicle. The data is used to identify a seat in the vehicle that is associated with a passenger. The processor executes instructions to provide data to a user interface accessed by the wireless device to expose a plurality of systems of the vehicle. The plurality of systems include systems that relate to an environment zone in which the seat is located in the vehicle. The user interface further includes controls to enable input of settings to one or more of the plurality of vehicle systems to make changes to the one or more of the plurality of vehicle systems. The changes made relate to one or more of the plurality of systems that relate to the environment zone of the seat.

Vehicles and vehicle systems for providing access to vehicle controls, functions, environment and applications to guests/passengers via mobile devices

Methods, systems and cloud processing are provided for coordinating and processing user input provided to vehicles during use. One example is for processing voice inputs at a vehicle to identify a mood of a user and then modifying or customizing the vehicle response based on the detected mood, physical characteristic and/or physiological characteristic of the user. One example includes sending, to a cloud processing server, data from the vehicle. The vehicle includes an on-board computer for processing instructions for the vehicle and processing wireless communication to exchange data with the cloud processing server. The method then receives, at the vehicle, data for a user account to use the vehicle. The cloud processing server uses the user account to identify a user profile of a user. Then, receiving, from the cloud processing server, voice profiles for the user profile. Each voice profile is associated with a tone identifier or audio signature. The voice profiles for the user are learned from a plurality of voice inputs made to the vehicle by the user in one or more prior sessions of use of the vehicle. The method further includes receiving, by on-board computer, a voice input. For the voice input, processing, by on-board computer, the voice input to identify a voice profile that is correlated to the voice input and generating a vehicle response for the voice input. The vehicle response is moderated based on the tone identifier of the identified voice profile. In one example, the tone identifier is used to infer a mood of the user, and the moderation of the vehicle response assists in selecting a type of response by the vehicle and/or setting made to a vehicle system.

Methods and systems for communicating content to connected vehicle users based detected tone/mood in voice input

A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer program product for generating an energy transaction plan to manage an electric vehicle charging transaction. The energy transaction planner identifies an electric vehicle associated with a charging station and a set of principals associated with a charging transaction for the electric vehicle. The charging transaction is a transaction associated with at least one of charging the electric vehicle, storing electric power in an electric storage mechanism associated with the electric vehicle, and de-charging the electric vehicle. The energy transaction planner receives charging transaction information. The charging transaction information comprises requirements, constraints, and preferences applicable to the charging transaction. The energy transaction planner generates an energy transaction plan based on the charging transaction information. The energy transaction plan comprises terms for governing all aspects of the charging transaction.

Generating energy transaction plans

A battery charger is provided with means to prevent overcharging of the battery. The battery is connected in series with a thyristor across a pulsating voltage source. One side of the voltage source and the cathode side of the thyristor is grounded. Circuit means is provided which measures the voltage of the battery side of the thyristor with respect to ground when the pulsating voltage from the source becomes substantially zero. When the pulsating voltage from the source becomes zero, the thyristor goes off and the voltage above ground at the connection point between the battery and the thyristor is the no-load voltage of the battery. A reference voltage is provided. When the voltage at the connection point reaches the reference voltage, a control signal is supplied to the thyristor control to keep the thyristor shut off, which in turn prevents further charging of the battery.

Battery charger with means for preventing overcharging of the battery

A brushless DC motor having a rotor magnet magnetized to provide a sinusoidal magnetic field and two-phase stator windings at positions which differ from each other by an electrical angle which is an odd multiple of 90° is provided with a drive circuit comprising a signal generator with an output having a frequency determined by the rotational speed of the rotor, and a memory having stored therein digital information data converted from sampled values of a sinusoidal signal free of distortion The digital information data stored in the memory is read out therefrom by the output of the signal generator in synchronism with the magnetic field from the rotor magnet, and such read-out information data is employed to determine currents flowing through the stator windings so that torque ripple is substantially eliminated

Brushless DC motor

A brush-less DC motor includes a stator member; a stationary cylindrical member projected from the stator member and having bearings on its inner circumferential surface; a rotary shaft being rotatably supported by the bearings of the stationary cylindrical member; a rotary cylindrical member into which the stationary cylindrical member is inserted, and to which the rotary shaft is fixed; two rotary discs of magnetic material, fixed to the rotary cylindrical member and spaced from each other; a permanent magnet fixed to one of the rotary discs; a rotational-position detecting member; and a coil assembly including a plurality of coil units. The working point of the rotary shaft is nearer to the stationary cylindrical member than to the rotary cylindrical member.

Brush-less DC motor

A device for sensing the type of magnetic coating on a magnetic tape while the latter is at rest, for example, in a magnetic tape recording and/or reproducing apparatus, has a DC magnetic recording head energizable by a predetermined DC voltage for applying a DC magnetic flux to the tape with which such head is engaged, a magnetic sensing element preferably coupled with the DC magnetic recording head for sensing the remanence or residual magnetism in the tape while the latter remains at rest following the application of the DC magnetic flux to the tape, and a level detector for detecting the level of the sensed remanence of the tape as an indication of the type of magnetic coating thereon. Such level detector may be advantageously employed for controlling a frequency equalizing circuit and/or a bias oscillator included in the signal recording circuit of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus so as to automatically adapt the latter for recording operations on the particular type of tape installed therein.

Hiroyuki Yamauchi

Papers

Battery charger with means for preventing overcharging of the battery

Brushless DC motor

Brush-less DC motor

Tape sensing device for magnetic tape recording and/or reproducing apparatus

Controller for motors