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CDA
April 6, 2023
Ford has filed a patent that will detect blackouts and optimize vehicle charging based on different variables.
The popularization of the electric car is assuming a radical transformation in the automotive world and, in this section, recharging is one of the biggest challenges we face
In this sense, all the brands involved try to develop solutions that make charging processes more comfortable, accessible and profitable. Thus, Ford has just patented a new technology that could make refills smarter and more practical.
As Carbuzz has revealed, the vehicle (which would have to be bidirectionally charged, like the Ford F-150 Lightning) could share a series of data with a central server, such as its location, battery level and state of charge. This would generate a map indicating current power availability or outages on a street map. Based on this information and an overlay of the electrical grid on the street map, the server can predict where power outages are likely to occur.
A patent to make charging smarter
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When the system determines that a power outage is likely, it instructs the vehicle’s charging control unit to increase your charge level in anticipation of an outage. This will not only ensure that the electric vehicle has usable charge if it needs to travel, but will also make extra power available to power your home base until the battery charge level drops to a preset minimum allowable level.
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It would predict where severe weather conditions and power outages are likely to occur, and prepare the vehicle accordingly. The car would be fully charged, 100 percent, with the usual charge being 80 percentand it would be ready to send power to your home system until it reached its minimum acceptable load.
In the event of a blackout, it would keep owners informed of potential risk, the state of the vehicle and the nearest charging points. Unlike a home battery, the car could leave for a while, quickly charge to 80 percent, and come back to continue powering devices.
This patent makes a lot of sense in the United States, Ford’s native home, where they are used to extreme weather conditions, especially in summer and winter. However, for the apocalyptics who maintain that the proliferation of the electric vehicle can cause collapses in the electrical network, we are facing a more than acceptable solution.
