Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Backeround of the invention
Field of the invention
The present invention relates to improved electric cars and/or improved
infrastructures for recharging electric cars, and more specifically to
improved and
more efficient recharging of electric cars, preferably by using improved
batteries
and/or improved recharger arrangements in electric cars and/or in
infrastructures
that are used for recharging electric cars and/or other improvements in the
infrastructures.
Background
The outrageous costs of fuel, which have recently reached around $140 per
barrel
and have since fallen back considerably but are expected to eventually rise
again as
we are reaching peak oil or are at least unreliable, and the cumulative
environmental
and health costs of air pollution, are driving more and more serious search
for
alternatives to gasoline. One of the most promising alternatives is electric
cars,
however such cars still have various problems that delay their penetration in
the
markets, such as for example the need for efficient infrastructure for
recharging and
servicing such cars in service stations and the need for appropriate
arrangements
that enable users to recharge their cars for example at home or for example in
public
rechargers or recharge posts in the street in an efficient way. The present
invention
focuses among other things on solving efficiently the recharge problems of
electric
cars.
Summary of the invention
The present invention enables improved and more efficient recharging of
electric
cars, preferably by using improved batteries and/or improved recharger
arrangements in electric cars and/or in infrastructures that are used for
recharging
electric cars, and/or other improvements in the infrastructures, while
preferably also
protecting the electric grid from overload.
Preferably in electric cars the car can be quickly recharged in service
stations
(the equivalent of gas stations in normal cars) preferably by designing the
batteries
in a modular fashion so that preferably one or more of the batteries can be
preferably instantly removed from the car and replaced with charged batteries,
and
preferably the batteries in the car are configured so that they can
automatically
recharge each other or spread the power among them, so that for example if 12
batteries were replaced and 6 not then the 12 charged batteries can
automatically
share their charge with the other batteries that have not been replaced. (In
the
variations where modular elements can be replaced one by one this also means
that
preferably for example the user can remove for example separately each
individual
element manually without need for special equipment, thus for example also
being
able to recharge for example at home spare batteries or elements. But still
preferably
the user needs for example a smart card and/or password to be able to excess
the
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batteries, as explained elsewhere in this application). The replaced batteries
are then
preferably recharged automatically at the service station (which means of
course
that the station can spread the recharging time as convenient for example over
24
hours and/or for example mainly during cheaper night hours), and preferably
the
service is based on some monthly subscription and/or some other identification
of
the customers, so that for example the user is extra-charged if his/her
batteries are
faulty, and/or for example the service includes also an extra charge for
insuring the
batteries. Another possible variation is that, since not everyone has a
private garage
when he/she can set-up an outlet for recharging an electric car, preferably
for
example the municipal authorities are responsible for creating preferably for
example near street light poles and/or near power line poles also electric car
recharging outlets, so that preferably the same electric wiring that already
exists for
the power line poles or the street light poles can be used also for the car
recharging
outlet preferably without having to add wires, and preferably the users pay
for this
by a credit card or smart card which is preferably read automatically by the
outlet.
Another possible variation is to use for example in service stations for
example one
or more cooled super conductor for example in a ring shape or other structure
and/or
for example one or more super cap capacitors as accumulators, and/or for
example
one or more molten salt accumulators (such as for example the new molten salt -
sodium with metal chlorine accumulator battery which GE developed for their
new
evolution hybrid locomotors, in which 20 such batteries can generate 2000
horse
powers within a second) so that the service station can accumulate the energy
more
freely for example 24 hours a day or for example (preferably automatically)
mainly
in the cheaper night hours, so that preferably the service station can this
way even
charge fast car batteries without the need to swap batteries, for example in
cars
which with new Ml batteries developed by A123 Systems or similar batteries
which
can be recharged for example to 80% capacity within 5 minutes or other fast
recharge devices such as for example one or more super capacitors such as for
example EEStor, which can also be recharged in a few minutes, since otherwise
the
service station would need to have a huge capacity power supply to enable such
fast
recharges. Another possible variation is that the service station uses for
example a
preferably large number of local Ml batteries or similar batteries or other
fast
charge batteries or super capacitors such as for example EEStor to recharge
through
these batteries or super capacitors the car batteries in cars that come for
recharge -
thus similarly preferably being able to charge such cars in real time without
the need
to replace the batteries (since typically batteries that can be recharged so
fast can
also be discharged very fast for recharging cars that come to the station), so
that
preferably the station uses its local fast batteries as accumulators,
recharging them
for example 24 hours or for example mainly for example in the cheaper night
hours.
Another possible variation is for example to create a preferably small
electrical
power station in at least some of the service stations, for example based on
burning
gas. Another possible variation is that preferably in order to enable faster
recharge
time of the cars, especially if for example the cars use Ml or similar fast
charging
batteries (such as for example the new fast charge batteries for example by
Toshiba
or by LG) or other fast recharge devices such as for example one or more super
capacitors such as for example EEStor (EEstor for example is expected to be
considerably cheaper then Ml batteries and offer a 3-4 times larger range,
eventhough Ml is already cheaper and much better then normal lithium-ion
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batteries), so that preferably a car can be recharged at the service station
for example
on the fly preferably in a few minutes, and preferably in order to solve
problems
such a huge current would create (such as needed very thick wires, and
reducing
huge amounts of heat from even 1% lost energy during the transfer), preferably
the
recharging can preferably be done at much higher voltages than the normal
operating voltage of the electric car batteries. This is preferably done by
electrical
and/or mechanical switches and/or multiplexers in the car and/or in the array
of the
for example batteries used by the service station to charge the car, so that
preferably
during recharge, the batteries (preferably both the car batteries that are
being
recharged and the for example batteries that are recharging them) are
preferably
automatically preferably reconnected serially instead of in parallel, so that
for
example if there are 20 50-volt batteries or battery modules in the car,
preferably
during recharge at the service station or for example at home these batteries
and/or
elements (for example internal cells) in them and/or at least some of them are
preferably connected serially, so that they can be recharged at preferably for
example 1000 volts or even more (or other convenient high voltagesj, which
means
much less current, less need for ultra thick wires even at high speed
recharges
(preferably both in the car and in the extemal recharging interface), and much
less
problems of heat from the typical 1% loss of energy during the recharge.
Similarly,
preferably while the station is recharging their batteries outside of cars
(for example
their own batteries and/or accumulators and/or superconductors that are
preferably
charged for example mainly at night hours to be used for later recharging car
batteries during the day) and/or while recharging car batteries which are
replaced for
the recharge, preferably this recharging at the night time is preferably also
done in
serial batches of preferably a least 1000 volts (or other convenient high
voltages),
for similar reasons (preferably by connecting serially batteries of multiple
cars for
recharging together at the same time). Similarly, if for example cars with Ml
batteries or for example the similar fast new batteries by Toshiba or for
example the
BYD Iron Phosphate batteries or for example the Altair Nanotechnologies
Nanosafe
battery or similar fast recharge batteries or other batteries or other fast
recharge
devices such as for example one or more super capacitors such as for example
EEStor are recharged also for example at the homes, preferably mainly during
the
night hours (and/or for example in offices where the car is typically parked
during
the working hours), preferably the same or similar electrical and/or
mechanical
switching and/or multiplexing mechanism can be used for example for creating
preferably the most optimal voltage conditions for the relevant power supply,
so that
for example in areas like Israel where there is a power supply of 220 volts in
normal
connections and around 400 volts if a 3-phase connection is available,
preferably the
batteries can be for example preferably automatically switched in a position
of for
example part parallel and part serial (for example some batteries are
connected in
parallel in some serially and/or for example other concurrent types of
combinations
are used) and/or connected serially with a proper voltage adjustment and/or
other
electronic compensation and/or conversion (preferably the rerouting to serial
or part
serial connections enables using the available voltage without a need for
transformers, which would increase wastes and make the recharger more
expensive), so that preferably they can be recharged most efficiently at the
home for
example with for example 220 volts in 1-phase systems or for example around
400
volts in 3-phase systems, and for example in the US where the typical electric
outlet
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voltage is half of that, preferably the batteries can be again preferably
rewired
accordingly during the recharge, preferably automatically, and similarly if
the
recharging in the service station can be done for example with 1000 Volts or
more,
then the serial routing is changed accordingly for that, preferably
automatically, as
explained above. This rewiring is preferably done through computerized control
so
that preferably the user can enter for example on an LCD console for example
the
available voltage value and/or the duration of time available or desired for
the
recharge and/or for example the maximum amperage desired or available during
the
recharge, and/or for example more preferably the recharger senses the
available
voltage automatically, which is also safer in case the user might give the
wrong
voltage parameter by mistake (for example by analogue means and/or by digital
communication with the recharger), and then preferably the computer that runs
this
in the car recharger preferably first moves the switches and/or multiplexers
and/or
other electrical controls to the appropriate configuration and preferably only
then
makes the connection and/or allows the recharging current to start flowing,
and
preferably controls the rate of the recharge for example through PWM or other
known means. If for example the car contains only a single large and/or
powerful
battery (or for example only few more powerful batteries than the typical
preferably
about 20 batteries, such as for example 5 or less), then preferably the
battery itself
(which would typically contain multiple cells of smaller voltage internally)
preferably contains appropriate mechanical and/or electrical switches and/or
multiplexers (and/or for example chemical means) internally in order to enable
this
switching internally so that preferably internal elements within the battery
can be
switched to become connected more serially during the recharge of the car
batteries,
and if multiple batteries are used then preferably these mechanical and/or
electrical
switches and/or multiplexers are included in the housing of the batteries in
the car
(which can be for example part of the car or for example a modular part or
frame
which contains the batteries, so that for example this modular part contains
the
actual batteries and can be inserted into the car like a larger battery, so
that the car
itself does not have to be changed for this). As explained above, the
appropriate
serial rerouting for recharging and/or the rerouting back to for example
parallel or
partly parallel connections after the recharging are preferably done
automatically for
example after the recharge connector unit senses the voltage (for example 3
phase or
normal, as explained above), and preferably the car computer or the
recharger's
processor automatically preferably issues the command for rerouting
accordingly
before allowing the circuit to close and the recharge to begin. So for example
if the
electric car has 2 or 3 sets of battery stacks in which for example during
normal
operation each stack is composed of a number of serially connected batteries
or cells
which produce for example 250 or 300 or 350 volts, so that for example these
stacks
work together in parallel with each other in order to boost the current (or
for
example one or more stacks are activated only when the car is accelerating),
so
when recharging the stacks serialiy if there are for example 2 stacks then the
recharging voltage can be for example 600 or 700 volt and if there are for
example 3
stacks then the recharging of all the 3 stacks can be done for example at 900
or 1050
volt (which can be done for example at the service station or preferably for
example
also at special street recharges), and for example if recharged at home the
stacks in
this example can remain parallel. This has also an additional advantage since
this
means that preferably while recharging the system has automatic additional
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safeguards against the user getting electrified, since until the connection is
complete
preferably only low current and preferably also only low voltage is used for
the
preferably digital communication (i.e. preferably a current and/or voltage
that are
safe even if humans are exposed them directly, such as for example 12 volts or
below and/or for example a current below a few milliamperes or other low
voltage
and/or low current which is considered non-dangerous even if humans are
exposed
them directly). In addition, preferably there is for example a mechanical
and/or
electrical sensor which preferably does not enable high voltages and/or high
currents
to go through before the recharge connector is fully and properly plugged in
its
position. Another possible variation is that for example preferably
immediately after
connecting the cable and/or for example before allowing the actual recharging
to
begin (for example the first time after connecting and/or for example also
when
automatically resuming recharging for example after a temporary stop)
preferably
the recharge post and/or for example the car's recharger preferably
automatically
test the function and/or safety of the cable and/or for example that the cable
and/or
its interface for example in the car and/or for example the plug has not been
damaged, for example by sending first only a low current and/or low voltage
but
more preferably a high voltage with preferably extremely low or very low
current,
such as for example the recharge voltage of for example 380 volt or for
example
even 1000 volt but with a current of only a few microamperes (so that for
examples
power breaches can be more easily detected) and preferably checking for
example if
there is leaking to the grounding (preferably for example the car's chassis is
preferably always connected to the grounding of the cable) and/or preferably
also
for example checking preferably before that if the grounding wire is properly
connected (for example by a switch and/or microcontroller on the car and/or on
the
recharge-post that reroute the connection to go back through the grounding and
checking if it is received back properly) and/or for example similarly if the
other
wires are properly connected, and/or for example checking if there is an
internal
short circuit in the cable (for example by sending low current with low
voltage or a
high voltage with for example a few microamperes as explained above and for
example letting the car computer or the car's recharger report back for
example how
much current it received, and/or for example measuring automatically for
example if
sending a current for example on two wires creates a current on another wire
or for
example). These reroutings for testing can preferably be done for example by
automatic switches on the power wires and/or the grounding wire and/or for
example by one or more rotating elements that can change the connections by
rotation so that for example when it returns to the normal position all the
relevant
connections are back to normal, or for example the testing circuits are
insulated
from the actual wires and are for example based on induction, so that the
testing
does not risk changing the actual connections (which means that for example
the test
currents and/or their sensing is preferably based on induction and preferably
at least
in the areas where the induction is applied or sensed preferably the power
wires
and/or grounding wire are preferably properly separated so that the induction
does
not effect directly the other wires or is not affected directly by them).
Another
possible variation is that during these tests for example the wires are
automatically
disconnected from the recharger and connected instead for example to a current
flow meter. Preferably the entire test sequence for the grounding and/or the
other
wires can be completed for example within a few seconds or for example less
than a
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minute or for example less than a second altogether. These variations mean of
course that preferably the recharge post has a controller and/or switch that
can
control the amount of current and/or voltage that can go through or disable
it,
preferably even if it does not have a recharger circuitry, i.e. for example
through a
remote and/or locally controlled electrical and/or mechanical switch and/or
for
example a switch which is automatically opened for example only after
receiving a
command for example from the recharger and/or for example from the main
computers of the service provider and/or of the electric company for example
after
the plug has been properly connected and preferably for example the car's
Id/or
user's Id have been properly verified and preferably after the cable has been
automatically tested with low current and/or low voltage as explained above,
and/or
for example if a problem is detected preferably the car's computer updates the
user
and/or for example the service provider's main computer about the nature of
the
problem preferably with recommendation to the user what to do and preferably
if
the problem is severe enough for example the recharge is aborted and the user
is for
example requested to enter a service station or for example to use temporarily
the
other cable (for example if the car has at least to recharge cable for example
one at
the front and one at the back as explained elsewhere in this application, or
for
example if there is spare cable for example in the baggage which can be for
example
modularly connected instead of the faulty cable). Preferably the low current
is
created for example by a small power supply and/or transformer in the recharge
post
and/or for example by a small battery which is preferably used anyway in the
recharge posts for example for receiving instructions even when the power is
down,
so that for example low current and low voltage can be taken from the battery
and
for example high voltage with for example a few microamperes is preferably
taken
from the power supply or transformer (or for example there is another power
supply
for the low volt low current, or for example the same power supply can
generate
both sets). Since after plugging-in the cable the user will typically remain
already
out of the car, preferably the car computer remains active also after the car
is turned
off and preferably also after the user exits the car, for example at least in
standby
mode, as explained also elsewhere in this application, and/or can for example
tum
itself off or into standby mode but can preferably be awakened automatically
for
example by events received for example through the cellular communication or
for
example generated by the recharger. So for example if a malfunction in the
cable or
for example in the plug or for example in the cable interface in the car is
discovered
or for example there is a problem for example with recharge permissions or
authorization for example after the car's Id is automatically identified by
the
recharge post or after the car identifies the recharge post's Id, preferably
this can be
indicated to the user for example through synthesized speed or for example a
set of
pre-recorded available messages for example through the same external car
speakers
that are used during driving for example for engine sound simulation, or for
example by the recharge post, for example through a small LCD monitor and/or
for
example through synthesized speech or prerecorded messages, or for example the
user is directed back to the car for example through a short message or for
example
light indicator (for example on the recharge post) to receive a more detailed
explanation and/or recommendations what to do for example at the cars
computer's
terminal. (If there is a problem for example with recharge permissions,
preferably
the service provider's main computer can automatically inform the user about
his
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for example through the car's computer direct cellular communication
preferably
even before reaching any recharge post for example if the problem is general,
but if
for example the problem is that the recharge post is limited for example to
certain
cars then the message can be displayed for example after connecting the cable,
however in such case preferably there are proper warnings in advance for
example
that this recharge post is limited for example for only certain uses). These
features
or variations preferably work the same or similarly regardless of if the cable
is
connected from the car to the recharge post or from the recharge post to the
car or
for example between a socket on the car and a socket on the recharge post. As
explained above and in other places in this application preferably the
recharge post
is designed so that until a car is properly plugged-in and authorized and/or
until the
user is authorized the only currents the recharge post allows to go through
are safe
low currents or safe low voltage low currents for testing and/or
communication, or
no currents at all, and preferably even the above described low currents are
preferably activated only after a compatible plug has been properly connected
and
preferably after the data link has been properly connected - as explained also
elsewhere in this application. For example in a recharge post with two sockets
preferably the connection testing and/or short-circuit testing system is
separate for
each socket or for example the same system can be switched to test either of
the
sockets. Another possible variation is that the grounding connection is tested
for
example by using in the recharge cable for example two separate wires for the
grounding instead of one, so that they are connected for example on the side
of the
car, and preferably the recharge post preferably constantly sends for example
a low
voltage low current through them and checks if it returns properly and
preferably
stops recharging immediately if it finds that the grounding has been
disconnected
and/or issues a preferably severe warning for example through the car's
computer
monitor (or for example this is done at short intervals such as for example
very few
seconds or other reasonable period, but the constant checking is more
preferable and
preferably also has very little effect on energy waste since it is preferably
for
example just a few milliamperes or less), which has the advantage that this
way
preferably the grounding can be automatically tested preferably all the time
for
example also during the recharge itself, thus reducing the risk of people who
stand
on the outside and touch the car getting electrified for example in case of a
malfunction. In this case preferable the two grounding wires are preferably
away
from each other - for example at opposite sides of the cable, in order to
reduce the
chance of a short circuit between them, and/or for example they are also
tested for
short circuits between them (for example by disconnecting between them at the
edge
where they are normally connected and checking if current still flows between
them) preferably during the preferably quick short circuits tests (and/or
disconnections test) which are preferably automatically done for example when
the
cable is connected or before the actual recharging begins. (This is important
because
Eventhough the residual current fuse will jump anyway immediately or almost
immediately for example in case of current starting to flow to the ground
through a
person standing next to the car even if there is a problem with the grounding,
it can
still be dangerous if the grounding is disconnected or does not function
properly).
This means that for example if the cable is a 3 phase cable, i.e. typically
has 4 wires
plus a grounding (i.e. 5 wires with 5 pins in the plug), a cable which
contains the
additional grounding wire and for example two additional wires for balanced
data
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transfer will preferably have for example 8 wires and 8 pins (or for example
the 2
grounding wire share the same pin by using for example a pin that is divided
into
two separate metal parts with an insulation between them). Another possible
variation is that preferably the grounding wire (or wires) is preferably
designed so
that they are preferably the first to connect (preferably when inserting the
plug) and
the last to disconnect (preferably when removing the plug) - for example by
making
it or them with the longest pin in the plug.
Another possible variation is to use similar precautions even in systems
without the
serial rerouting during recharge. Another possible variation is to use for
example
internal mini or micro rechargers for example for individual elements within
the
battery so that each such mini recharger (preferably each with its own
microprocessor) is preferably considerably cheaper than a normal recharger and
preferably takes care more optimally of the relevant element or elements.
Another possible variation is that for example the electric car's engine
itself is
also designed to work at much higher voltages, such as for example around 1000
volts or other desired high voltages, so that for example the optimal recharge
voltage and the working voltage can be the same or close, which also has the
advantage that the engine can be made smaller and lighter, but on the other
hand in
that case better isolation and better precautions against voltage gap breaches
are
needed. Another problem is that in case of an accident with such high working
voltages, or even with lower working voltages of for example 220 volts or 360
volts,
especially if for example the battery compartment has been hit, there is a
danger of
sparks or voltage gap breaches causing a fire or of dangerous materials from
the
batteries flying around. So preferably this is improved so that for example
the
battery itself and/or stack of batteries and/or frame that contains the
batteries and/or
for example the car's container that contains the batteries is also isolated
for
example by wrapping or enveloping it for example with one or more preferably
thin
layers of highly tear resistant material, such as for example carbon fiber, or
for
example fiberglass fiber, such as for example the same material from which car
air
bags are made. Another possible variation is that preferably the system has
for
example accident sensors which can preferably in the case of a serious
accident
preferably instantly at least cut off the circuit of the high power batteries
that power
the engine. Preferably at least the car's computer and/or other systems, such
as for
example at least some of the display boards, are connected to at least one
separate
battery with lower voltage and current which is not affected by this, and
preferably
this small battery (which is preferably in the front like in normal cars) is
preferably
also a small fast recharge battery preferably of the same type as the main
power
batteries which are preferably at the back lower part of the car (preferably
for
example below the baggage chamber and/or for example below the back seat),
such
as for example Ml batteries, so that preferably the small front battery also
has the
same lifetime as the main power batteries (which for example in the case of Ml
batteries is expected to last for about 10 years). (Another possible variation
is that
for example the main power battery or batteries are in the front of the car,
for
example near the engine and the small front battery, but that is less
preferable since
it can take up too much room in the front, and also it might make the car less
stable
in term of weight distribution). Another possible variation is that for
example the
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front small battery is placed instead for example at the back near the power
batteries, but that is less preferable since keeping it at the front is what
users expect
in a normal car and offers more easy access, and also this way the chance that
both
batteries will be destroyed for example in case of an accident is
significantly lower.
In addition, preferably the recharging of the small front battery is done
directly from
the main power batteries, for example through a power supply controller (for
example as is done in a normal PC computer), and preferably this power supply
includes for example a few branches of for example DC power cables, for
example
at the same voltage or at various different voltages, and preferably as many
devices
as possible (such as for example the car's headlights and/or other devices)
are run
for example at 48 volts instead of the normal 12 volts (since 48 volt is
considered
the maximum voltage which is considered low voltage) or other voltages above
12
volts, or even at higher voltages with preferably additional safety &
isolation
protection, which has the advantage that much thinner and lighter wires can be
used,
since for example in normal gasoline cars that have only a 12 volt battery the
wires
have to be quite thick and heavy to allow the high amperage that is needed for
example for the headlights, and preferably for example only the main car
computer
and for example the radio and/or internal displays preferably work for example
on
lower voltages. In addition preferably the car's headlights preferably use for
example mini-fluorescent light bulbs that preferably fit the same sockets used
for
normal light bulbs, for example similar to the type used in homes to replace
normal
light bulbs in the normal light bulb sockets (but preferably with shape and/or
other
parameters that are optimized for serving as headlights in cars), and/or for
example
more preferably for example similarly strong LED lights, and/or for example
OLED, and/or for example other forms of light that produce light much more
efficiently than normal light bulbs by wasting much less energy on heat (these
are
much more preferable than fluorescent light bulbs since for example in case
fluorescent light-bulbs get smashed for example while working they can release
mercury fumes), and/or for example if fluorescent lights are used they are
preferably
protected for example within special strong and hermetic-to-air for example
transparent plastic cases which protect them and/or for example with sensors
that
automatically turn off the current when they are about to be smashed. However
for
example the headlights are preferably powered directly from the main power
batteries, thus enabling an ever more compact and dedicated battery for the
computer and other devices that typically require much less power, and/or for
example preferably the power supply from the power batteries can power all the
car's devices, and one of its cables is used for recharging the small front
battery, and
preferably the front battery serves mainly as a backup for the car's computer,
internal display, and/or other emergency systems, so that for example only the
car's
computer and a few small energy other devices get their energy directly from
the
front small battery, or for example even they can get their energy both from
the
small front battery and from the power supply (for example if one of these is
empty
or malfunctioning). The power supply can be for example located at the back
near
the main power battery or batteries or for example located at the front near
the
engine, so that the main high voltage power lines from the power batteries go
to the
engine and near the engine there is a juncture that routes power both to the
engine
and to the power supply. Another possible variation is that preferably at
least some
of the power lines in the car use both a power line and a 0 or neutral line
(for
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example like in normal apartments, except that this is preferably DC), with
the car
body itself for example acting grounding, so that preferably this way the
system can
for - example automatically detect power leakage, thus preventing power waste
and/or fire hazard.
Another possible variation is that preferably especially the locations of the
transformers and/or inverters and/or the engine and/or the DC cable from the
main
power battery or batteries are preferably strongly shielded against
electromagnetic
and/or EMF and/or magnetic radiation (for example by proper metal casing,
metal
meshes, nickel -iron, and/or other types of magnetic and/or electromagnetic
energy
shields), so that preferably the driver and passengers and preferably also
outsiders
standing close to various parts of the car (for example while the car is being
started
for example after parking) are preferably properly shielded from levels of
electromagnetic or magnetic radiation that are considered dangerous or might
be
dangerous or are for example beyond the typical levels for example in normal
or
equivalent gasoline cars, and preferably there are preferably in the car at
least one or
more preferably built-in sensors of electromagnetic and/or magnetic fields for
example at the most problematic areas and/or at the areas most relevant to the
passengers, such as for example near the passengers head level and/or at the
center
of the car, which preferably report directly to the car computer so that
preferably the
users can view preferably whenever they want the radiation levels for example
on
the car computer monitor and/or the computer can for example issue automatic
warnings if the sensor or sensors indicate that there is a problem of
radiation levels
(for example after an accident), and/or for example at least authorized
service
garages are preferably required by law to run for example appropriate EMF
measurements in the car for example after accidents or certain types of
accidents
and/or for example after performing certain services that could affect the EMF
levels and/or for example as part of regular checkups or service. Another
possible
variation is that preferably for example in electric busses and/or trains
and/or for
example also in normal busses or trains, preferably in order to reduce the
radiation
that passengers are exposed to due to other people speaking by cellphone next
to
them and/or due to reflections of the radiation within the metal of the
vehicle,
preferably at least some busses and/or trains or example have and/or are
required by
law to have for example one or more pico-cells for example preferably at a
certain
height above the roof of the bus or for example at the back of the bus for
example
near the exhaust pipe of normal busses (but preferably at some distance of for
example 1 meter or more to the right or to the left of it) - preferably as far
as
possible from the passengers' heads (and for example at least in a trains the
pico-
cell is preferably on an extension even further from the location of the
passengers),
so that preferably at least some or most or all of the cell phones in the buss
will
assume that the pico-cell is the nearest cell and will talk through it instead
of
through real cells which are typically much further away, and preferably these
pico-
cell or cells at the exterior of the bus or train are preferably for example
limited to
supporting for example only up to for example 20 or 30 phones at the same time
or
other reasonable number and/or are preferably limited in the amount of
radiation
that they are allowed to emit, so that preferably they cannot emit for example
an
amount of radiation of for example more that a normal cell phone can emit (for
example up to 2 watts or a few watts) or for example more than N times a
normal
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phone, where N is for example 2 or 3 times more than a normal phone or other
reasonable number. In addition, preferably at least in busses or trains which
have
such one or more pico-cells preferably there are at least one or more cellular
radiation sensors preferably for example every few meters, which preferably
for
example start to beep or speak automatically (for example with prerecorded
messages or synthesized speech) for example if the cellular radiation level
for
example exceeds a certain threshold. Another possible variation is that
preferably at
least some busses and/or trains preferable have at least one areas where
talking with
cell phones is allowed or not allowed and/or for example busses and/or trains
are
preferably required by law to have at least one area where talking with
cellphones is
not allowed for example like having smoking and non-smoking areas (so that
preferably for example the non-smoking and no-cell-phone talking areas are the
same area or for example separate areas with preferably some overlap), and
preferably passengers in the no-cell-phone area can preferably for example
fine
people who talk on a cell phone next to them and refuse to stop immediately or
for
example within a few seconds when asked to. If one or more pico-cells are used
for
example in the bus or in the train preferably they have on the inside of the
bus or the
train for example on the inner side of the roof preferably one or more low
power
antennas which are preferably at least partially directional and/or
sufficiently limited
in range so that preferably they are mainly limited to the areas of the inside
of the
bus or train, so that for example in a crowded station preferably for example
other
phones used by people outside the bus don't use these pico-cells thus reducing
the
number of remaining channels which they can handle, and/or for example the
number of pico-cells, and/or for example the number of channels which they can
handle is preferably planned in advance to be sufficient. for example even if
for
example in a crowded station the pico-cells also communicate with a typical
number
of people who for example use cellular phones for example on the outside near
the
bus or train.
Similarly another problem is that for example many people are stupid or
unaware
enough to speak with cell phones inside metal elevators without realizing that
in
order to transmit from this Faraday cage the cell phone has to use maximum
power
and also every passenger who is unfortunate enough to be at the elevator at
the same
time is exposed to reflections of the energy again and again thus increasing
the
effect even much more until almost all of the microwave radiation is absorbed
in
their bodies, just like in a microwave oven, except for the lower wattage,
which can
still cause headaches and damage concentration and memory. So preferably this
is
improved do that cell phones preferably sense automatically (for example based
on
using their own antenna and their CPU to detect for example if their own pulse
patterns are reflected back strongly almost instantly and/or for example based
on
sensing that the level of signals received from nearby cells suddenly drops
sharply
for example to levels close to or below a threshold that typically happens for
example in elevators, which means that preferably simply a change in the
firmware
is needed for enabling these featuresj cases where they are within a small
metal box
such as for example an elevator (for example by sensing the reflections and/or
the
fact that the phone has to increase to maximum power and/or for example still
has
limited reception even at maximum power) (and/or for example sense similarly
that
they are encased for example in a closed for example thick concrete structure
if for
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example it has a similar effect as being encased in a metal box, and/or for
example
closed structures that have a similar effect - i.e. that are for example
creating strong
reflections back and force and blocking almost all the communication energy,
thus
for example forcing the phone to use maximum power) and preferably they
automatically shut themselves down (i.e. for example disable any cellular
communication attempts and preferably for example indicate that there is no
reception for example on their monitor and/or for example that no cellular
communication is allowed in an elevator or similar closed space and preferably
indicate to the user clearly that no further communication attempts should be
made
for example until exiting the elevator, for example by a message on their
screen
and/or for example by synthesized speed or prerecorded message, and/or for
example shut themselves down completely preferably after displaying the
message)
in such cases preferably immediately or as soon as they reach the conclusion
that
they are in such a place, and preferably they also similarly stop sending
automatic
probes or responses to cells that are trying to determine if they are still
available in
their area (otherwise even people who are merely carrying a closed cellular
phone in
an elevator and all the other passive vict'ims who are in the elevator at the
same time
are exposed to the radiation whenever such location probes signals are
automatically
sent by the cell phones, eventhough it is less than when taking on the phone),
and
preferably similarly they also sense this when receiving an incoming call and
then
preferably automatically only receive the message without ringing or for
example
automatically ignore it like being in non-reception zone (i.e. preferably the
phone
automatically senses that in is in an elevator or similar closed transmission-
blocking
structure for example also if it tries to connect with cells or senses an
incoming
transmission and preferably avoids these activities even if the user has not
tried to
talk on the phone in the elevator). Preferably the phone remains in this state
(of
preferably not allowing the user any cellular communication and preferably
also
stopping to attempt to connect to cells or to answer their attempt to contact
the
phone, as explained above) -' for example for a pre-set time (such as for
example 1
or 2 or 3 minutes or other reasonable period which should be sufficient to get
out for
example of a typical elevator ride - for example from the time the phone has
detected the situation), and preferably after that time and/or for example
only after
the user tries to actually open the phone again, the phone preferably first
checks
automatically if it is still in the closed space for example by sending
preferably short
(for example a few millisecond or less or the minimal pulse size which the
phone is
capable of sending and detecting and preferably with low energy -for example
the
lowest level of energy in which the phone can communicate for example with a
close cell) or for example more preferably sending an even lower power test
signal
for example by using short-range bluetooth or UWB for example if the phone is
able
to use and detect these types of signals anyway for example for communication
with
such types of headsets) and preferably checks automatically if there are still
strong
reflections of its own signals that indicate that the phone is still in the
elevator or
similar structure (for example by sending a special wave pattern or for
example
digital sequence of data and/or other characteristics and/or for example the
same
type of encryption which it preferably uses with wireless headsets in order to
recognize more easily the reflections of its own transmissions and/or for
example by
recognizing the timings of the reflections as almost instantaneous with the
time of
sending the pulses, so that for example even if one or more other phones are
doing
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the same testing in the elevator their pulses will be sufficiently at
different times, so
that if for example the phones send the pulses for example for a few
milliseconds
each time thus reducing the chance that they will be sent at the same time,
and/or for
example if the phone is receiving reflections of another phone which do not
correspond to its own transmission then preferably it waits for example for a
few
more seconds or other reasonable period before trying to send again for
example test
pulses in order to avoid interactions between the other phones, and/or for
example
by using the normal means which are typically used to avoid interactions
between
nearby cell phones for example when using the normal cellular communication or
for example when communicating wirelessly with headsets). Another possible
variation is that for example after the phone identifies that it is in an
elevator and
disables communication it preferably records the level of signals that it can
receive
for example from the nearest cells and preferably also remembers the normal
levels
that were before entering the elevator (for example a few minutes before that)
and
for example continues to test it for example after 1 or 2 minutes or other
reasonable
time or for example within short intervals (such as for example every few
seconds
or other reasonable interval) and preferably decides that it is no longer in
the
elevator for example after the signals become much stronger again or similar
to the
levels that were for example a few minutes before the elevator condition began
or
for example above a preset threshold that is typically substantially stronger
than the
signals from the cells can be typically heard elevators, which is more
preferably
since this sensing is passive and does not require even low radiation testing
for
example within the elevator. After this preferably the phone tries again to
make a
link with cells and/or respond to their queries and/or allows the user to
resume
cellular communications preferably only after the automatic test indicates
that the
phone is no longer in the closed metal box or similar structure. Preferably
this
feature is made required by law for example like the required safety
mechanisms
that stops the radiation immediately when people open a microwave oven by
mistake without first turning it off, and/or preferably the law is corrected
to require
putting warning signs preferably on elevator doors, reminding people that it
is
extremely dangerous and forbidden to use the cell phone inside the elevator,
and
preferably the dangers of talking on a cellphone in an elevator are published
in
preferably any possible way, and/or preferably people are for example allowed
and/or encouraged for example to fine other people or to sue them for example
if
they talk an a cell phone when riding with them in an elevator and/or refuse
to close
it immediately - for example like people are encouraged in some countries for
example to fine or sue people who smoke next to them in at least some types of
public places, such as for example coffee houses or restaurants or offices or
for
example non-smoking areas in public transportation, thus forcing them to
become
passive smokers. Another possible variation is that for example instead or
alternatively talking on cell phones in elevators can be allowed for example
if the
elevator owners install for example a pico-cell for example above the roof of
the
elevator, so that for example inside the elevator there is a low power antenna
that
enables cell phones to talk with it preferably at the lowest energy level
which they
can use such as for example when they sense that they are very close to a
cell, and
preferably on the outside of the elevator the pico-cell communicates with
other cells
of the cellular networks. In this case preferably there is clear indication
that in such
elevators that this is an elevator with a pico-cell that enables talking on
the cell
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phone inside the elevator with much less danger, and preferably there are also
automatic safeguards that protect users for example from situation where the
pico-
cell might be for example not functioning for some reason and then users might
be
exposed again to very high levels of radiation without even noticing it. This
is
preferably done for example by having to install at least one cellular
radiation level
sensor in the elevator preferably on the inside which preferably starts to
beep or
speak immediately a warning for example if the cellular radiation level
exceeds a
certain level and/or for example a device that automatically monitors the pico-
cell
and preferably immediately issues a preferably auditory and/or also visual
warning
for example if there is ainy indication that the pico-cell is not functioning
properly,
and/or for example at least some elevators preferably have and/or are required
to
have at least one such sensor anyway even if they don't have a pico-cell - for
example in order to warn users that didn't notice that someone is talking on
the cell
phone next to them and/or to warn the people who use the phone in the
elevator.
Another possible variation is that preferably the pico-cell which is for
example on
the roof of the elevator or for example on the cable for example at some
distance
above the elevator's roof preferably talks for example with an additional pico-
cell
which is preferably for example at the top of the elevator shaft (since
otherwise the
first pic-cell might still have a similar problem for example if thee elevator
shat
itself is also blocking most of the radiation), and preferably for example the
room at
the top of the elevator shift preferably at least has some openings that allow
cell
phone wireless radiation to go through more easily.
Another possible variation is that preferably for example the dashboard or
other
parts preferably in the internal front part of the car contain preferably
multiple
electrical sockets, preferably with different standard voltages and/or
different
maximum currents, for example for connecting various typical external devices,
and/or for example there is at least one additional socket with changeable
voltage
and/or changeable maximum current (for example with one or two buttons like in
variable transfonners, or for example controlled through for example RFID or
EPROMM or for example through a digital code within the cable or the plug of
the
external device that connects to the socket, so that for example different
devices or
plugs can for example automatically draw a different voltage from the same
socket
as needed, or through programming for example through the car's computer, so
that
preferably the changeable sockets are powered for example by a step-down
element
in the power supply so that it can for example supply 48 volts (or for example
higher maximum voltage) and go down to lower voltages as needed), so that for
example various external devices can be easily connected. So for example if
the user
wants to connect a mobile computer, preferably at least one of the standard
sockets
or the changeable socket can be used for example for connecting directly to
the
computer the same power that comes out of the transformer that typically seats
on
the cable that connects between the computer and the wall (which is much
better
then normal cars, in which the user typically has only 1 or 2 electric sockets
from
the lighter socket, which have only one available voltage and so for example
for
connecting a mobile computer the user typically has to connect first a device
that
boosts the voltage to 110 or 230 volt and than connect to it the normal
electric cable
of the mobile computer, which contains the transformer that lowers it again),
and/or
for example there are preferably at least some additional similar sockets for
example
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also in the middle and/or back of the car (for example at the back of the
front seats
or for example on a protrusion from the floor between the seats) so that they
can be
easily accessed for example from the back seats. However, preferably this is
accompanied by appropriate means for securing the various external devices in
a
firm way so that they don't fly around the car for example in the case of an
accident
or sudden stop - for example by special belts or hooks that can attach them
preferably firmly for example to the back of the front seats or for example to
the
bottom between the seats. All of these sockets preferably get their power from
various cables that come out of the power supply as explained above. Another
possible variation is that preferably the power supply contains also an
element that
can generate for example directly from the power batteries for example also a
standard AC current of for example 230 or 110 Volt or similar voltages, which
preferably is connected to at least one such socket, so that preferably this
can be
used also for connecting standard home electrical appliances which expect for
example 230 or 100 Volt AC or similar voltages. Another possible variation is
that
the car preferably has for example on or near the front panel for example in
front of
the passenger that sits next to the driver and/or for example on the back of
the front
seats for example standard connections for example for connecting a keyboard
and/or for example an LCD screen, so that for example the other passengers can
interact more intensively with the car's computer while the user is driving
and/or for
example the car computer can enable such monitors to connect directly remotely
for
example with computers for example at work or at home (for example through
cellular or Wifi or Wimax Internet or similar technologies), so that for
example
passengers can use the time more efficiently. Another possible variation is
that
preferably the car contains an improved internal communication network for
example consisting of more than one data line and/or at least one analogue
data line
and at least one digital data line, preferably with multiple add/drop
capabilities.
However, the car preferably still has an alternator like in normal gasoline
car or a
similar device, since this is needed for the automatic recharge during
breaking or for
example when going downhill in a neutral or similar mode, but preferably the
engine itself can be used also as an alternator for example by reversing its
switching
(i.e. for example using at least some of its coils or special additional coils
that it has
for this in reverse so that preferably it also functions like a DC device in
this state),
so preferably there is no separate additional alternator, as explained also
elsewhere
in this application, or for example there is also an additional for example
small
separate alternator which is preferably activated for example only in case of
emergency or under special circumstances. However, in the electric car the
alternator (which is preferably the engine itself acting as alternator)
preferably
recharges mainly the main power battery or batteries, but preferably when
activated
it also recharges automatically the small front battery for example if it
senses that it
is not full enough for any reason or if there is a malfunction with the power
batteries
or with the power supply, and/or for example the small front battery is also
connected for example to solar panels which are for example on the front hood
and/or for example on the car's roof. In addition, preferably the car has
various
failsafe mechanisms in case of power failure or for example software failure,
so that
for example there is a separate watchdog application which for example checks
every second or less or for example every few seconds or other reasonable time
if
the power and/or various software applications are functioning properly and in
case
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of malfunction it can for example immediately activate other failsafe
emergency
functions and/or can for example automatically return at least some systems to
more
direct manual control, and/or for example automatically neutralize or
disengage the
engine and/or for example apply the brakes, preferably gradually, and/or for
example in case of serious function or power failure the engine can become
automatically disengaged and/or the brakes automatically start to brake
preferably
gradually, for example by a spring or air pressure or hydraulic pressure
mechanism
in which when there is no electrical force active against it the natural
action is
preferably gradual turnoff. Another possible variation is that for example in
case of
discovering various important or dangerous bugs in the car computer's software
(for
example in the Operating System and/or in various applications, for example
like in
PC's with Windows) and/or for example in the firmware (and/or for example in
other elements in the car) and/or for example in the course of offering
various
additional improvements once in a while, preferably one of the options of
updating
them is for example through the recharge posts or rechargers network, so that
for
example when connecting to the recharger or recharge post, the messages from
the
service provider's main computers can include for example warnings about
required
patches or software or firmware updates and/or for example an announcement of
an
improved version and an invitation to download it, and then preferably the
driver
can for example allow the software or firmware update for example through the
communication with the recharger or recharge post (preferably the display of
this
type of messages and the user confirmation are done through the car computer's
display, and then preferably the car computer can download it from the
recharger or
recharge post and install it). Preferably such updates can be issued for
example by
the service provider and/or for example by the car manufacturer, which is
using the
service provider as a channel for fast distribution of for example at least
some
updates (which is preferably based on the car automatically providing also
details
about its manufacturer and/or model and/or preferably also for example
manufacture
year when connecting to the recharger or recharge post, and/or for example the
unique code of the car already includes also a part that represents the code
of the
manufacturer and/or model and/or manufacture year. However, this is preferably
accompanied by tight security, such as for example encrypted digital
signatures so
that the car's computer preferably refuses for example to accept any updates
that are
not digitally signed properly for example by the service provider or by the
auto
manufacturer, and preferably no automatic update is done without requiring
clear
explicit confirmation from the user. Another possible variation is that for
example
various such updates can be similarly downloaded for example through the
Internet
for example through secure servers in the site of the service provider or for
example
the car manufacturer, and downloaded to the car's computer for example through
a
flash memory stick (for example through a USB connector or for example
firewire
or similar interfaces) or similar mobile data devices or media. In addition,
preferably
whenever applying updates for example by any of the above methods, preferably
in
case of malfunction or some problem in the update process preferably the user
can
press for example a reset button which preferably automatically returns the
car's
computer to the state it was before the update, and/or for example there is a
separate
self monitoring element in the car's computer that can detect such problems
automatically and can for example revert to the previous state automatically,
preferably together with an automatic announcement or other indication to the
user,
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and this reset or reverting is preferably done for example by keeping
automatic
snapshots of the previous stable conditions and restoring from them when
needed.
(Preferably the above methods of updates can also be used for example for
downloading new sounds or for example elements for the sound simulations). The
automatic cutting off of the circuit of the high power batteries for example
in case of
an accident as described above can preferably be done for example by
preferably
using the same type of sensors that are used for example for detecting crashes
in air
bag systems, and when the sensors detect a serious crash preferably they can
disconnect the circuit for example by issuing a command to disconnect for
example
by using the same multiplexers that are preferably used for serial rerouting
during
recharges as explained above, or for example they cause an air blast in a
preferably
small compartment area where a part of the circuit is connected for example by
a
thin metal conductor film or other blast sensitive element, which then for
example
becomes torn apart by the blast. The automatic preferably instant
disconnection can
be done for example between the batteries and the car and/or for example
between
the batteries themselves and/or between elements in them. Another possible
variation is that for example the battery compartment in the car has one or
more
preferably small air bags which in the case of an accident preferably inflate
automatically and thus both protect the batteries against mechanical shock and
act as
isolation. Another possible variation is that for example in electric cars
(preferably
especially in systems where all 4 wheels are connected to the engine but also
in
normal 2-wheel drive) preferably for example when the user is trying to apply
the
brakes the car's computer can for example automatically calculate and adjust
the
speed of rotation of the wheels to fit to the speed of movement of the car
even for
example if one or more wheels are temporarily in the air (so that preferably
for
example the car's computer preferably senses the change in that wheel's speed
compared to the other wheels and/or the fact that it is in the air and changes
the
speed of the wheel that is in the air for example to match the speed of the
wheels
that are on the ground), thus increasing braking efficiency and reducing the
need for
ABS and/or improving its efficiency, so that there is less chance for example
that
the wheel that was in the air will become locked when it hits again the
ground,
which is preferably based on the electric engine's ability to respond to speed
changes much faster then a gasoline engine (and/or this is done for example in
combination with automatically reducing or increasing temporarily the pressure
of
the brakes on the wheel that is in the air). Another possible variation is
that for
example at least in one mode the car's computer can preferably automatically
decide
for example if to use the engine power on two wheels or on 4, for example
based on
automatically sensing the flatness of the road (for example based on sensing
the
pressure on each of the wheels), so that for example 4 wheel drive is
automatically
activated only if the road is for example bumpy or uneven beyond a certain
level
and/or for example according to automatically sensing for example the amount
of
friction on the road and/or additional parameters, thus preferably saving
energy
when 4 wheel drive is not needed. Preferably the switch between 2-wheel drive
and
4 wheel drive is preferably done for example by automatically activating or
deactivating for example a relay that reaches the second set of wheels or for
example by electrically activating or deactivating a second preferably small
electrical engine which is connected to the second set of wheels.
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Another possible variation is that preferably at least some electric SUVs can
be
built for example with wheels on special poles and/or for example more free or
wider range suspensions which preferably enable the wheels for example to be
automatically and preferably instantly pulled up or down for example by the
car's
computer or by the more free suspension based on the conditions of the
surface, so
that preferably the car can remain preferably in the same horizontal balance
or for
example in some other preferably stable inclination (so that for example the
wheels
are preferably automatically moved up or down as needed in order to keep the
car in
said horizontal or other balance, thus for example correcting inclinations as
they
starts to occur) and this way there is preferably also less pressure on the
chassis than
in normal SUVs, thus preferably also enabling the car to be built from lighter
materials, and/for for example the chassis is built with strong hollow tubes
such as
for example based on aluminum and/or carbon fibers (which preferably are
designed
in a 3d network structure, including for example also vertical and/or diagonal
tubes)
and/or example if the SUV is bigger than a normal car like in gasoline based
SUVs
in order to enable it also to carry additional weights and/or for example it
is not an
SUV but is a commercial pickup car, preferably the electric SUV or pickup car
preferably has for example an additional middle hinge with wheels (thus having
for
example 6 wheels instead of 4), and/or for example has only one additional 5d,
wheel, but this wheel is preferably located in the center of the car for
example both
lengthwise and widthwise, thus enabling better support to the middle of the
chassis,
which preferably again means that the chassis can preferably be made of
lighter
materials, and/or for example on the front wheels hinge and/or on the back
wheels
hinge there can be for example an additional wheel for example in the middle
widthwise between the two normal wheels, with also has the advantage of
enabling
better stability for example over bumps or holes in the road - for example if
it is
preferably accompanied for example by better springs or suspensions thus
preferably allowing the relevant wheels more freely to go up or down to adapt
themselves for example to bumps below them.
Another problem is that since electric cars can be much more silent than
gasoline
powered cars, it can be dangerous if people walking nearby in the street do
not
notice the car. So preferably the car includes proximity sensors than can
detect for
example nearby people and/or small children or animals (for example by
computerized analysis of video camera input and/or for example ultrasound
and/or
for example infrared and/or similar technologies) and if for example they are
too
close, for example walking on the side of the street a few meters in front of
the car
(preferably even if not in a collision course) and/or similar sensors, so that
preferably for example the car's computer can automatically decide in certain
situations for example to generate for example a simulation of for example a
normal
noise of a car or for example can automatically sound the horn and/or other
auditory
and/or visual indicator (such as for example flashing or dancing colored
lights
which can for example reflects from objects in front of the person even if
he/she is
walking in front of the car with his/her back to the car) that can draw
people's
attention that the car is passing by. Another possible variation is for
example that the
user can preferably choose from a list of available sounds of cars, such as
for
example Ferrari or Harley for playing during the drive, as Shai Agassi has now
suggested in Businessweek on Aug. 6, 2008 and as has been suggested already on
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Feb. 19, 2008 on http://www.cheersandi!ears.coni/forumslindex.nhu?s=
e9be7f57dc15U02ca05b18d37ef904d3&showtoAic=226i39&st--0&u=369571 &#en
try369571. However, since merely making such a noise might be confusing and
even dangerous if it is not properly correlated with the car's actual
performance
(since for example in normal cars people typically associate the type of noise
and/or
its level with the car's speed and/or distance), preferably this is improved
so that the
engine noise is simulated for example by the car's computer based on the
actual
speed and/or acceleration of the car and/or other parameters such as for
example the
theoretical gear position that would be typically used at such a speed and/or
acceleration in a gasoline powered car (preferably this is done for example by
using
appropriate "phonemes" or other preferably basic elements of the simulated
sounds,
for example in a way similar to creating various musical instruments
simulations
when playing MIDI music files, and/or for example by automatically switching
between different recorded sound files according to the current state of the
car, such
as for example playing the acceleration noise during acceleration and playing
the
appropriate recording according to the speed, and/or for example automatically
increasing or decreasing the volume of the sampled sound and/or its speed
and/or
pitch and/or other parameters according to the current state of the car).
(This can be
also done for example by a separate dedicated device, but that means that it
would
have to constantly get these parameters from the car's computer) In addition,
preferably the driver can control the volume of this sound for example as one
general volume level (for example by moving a physical or digitally simulated
lever
or turning a physical or simulated button) and/or for example by specifying
the
minimum and maximum levels (so that for example even at high speeds the sound
level will not exceed a certain maximum), and/or for example the driver can
control
for example two or more separate sound levels - for example one for the sound
that
will be heard inside the car (for example by controlling the volume for
playing in
internal speakers, if for example the driver prefers also such sound feedback
for
himself/herself, for example based on previous habits of driving normal cars
or for
example silencing the internal sound simulation altogether), and one for the
sound
that will be heard outside the car, for example generated by one or more
external
speakers for example in front of the car, for example near the headlights or
for
example under the front hood (this speaker or speakers are preferably
directional
and preferably point for example forward, or for example at an angle forwards
and
to the right, so that the noise is heard mainly by people in the nearby
sidewalk or in
front of the car and less by people behind the car or for example on the other
side of
the street or for example above the car, thus preferably avoiding for example
noise
to nearby apartments, and for example, if an angle in used, in places where
the
driving direction is opposite such as England the angle is preferably instead
forward
and to the left), and preferably also a small rear speaker for example for
warning
people for example when the car pulls out of parking in reverse. Another
possible
variation is that for example when driving in inter-city highways, where there
are no
pedestrians walking, the car's computer automatically squelches these sounds
or at
least makes them significantly lower, for example by digital signals or
sensors that
tell the car if this is an inter-city highway or a normal road (for example by
using
road signs or traffic signs which also automatically broadcast for example
constantly
or for example every second or other short interval for example a wireless
preferably digital message which tells the car for example if it is entering
an inter-
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city highway or for example entering an urban area), and/or for example this
switch
is automatically done according to speed (so that for example from a certain
speed
and upwards the air resistance itself makes sufficient noise and so the
computer can
automatically reduce or turn off the simulated noises), and/or for example the
driver
can for example change a lever or other control which switches between inter-
city
highway mode to normal mode, so that for example in the highway mode these
sounds are automatically lower or for example silenced or for example use a
different program or different set of rules. In addition, preferably the
driver can also
control for example the pitch of such simulated engine sounds and/or for
example
the computer preferably automatically removes annoying components from the
simulated sounds, such as for example high pitched sounds which annoy and are
not
needed for drawing the attention to the car (which is preferably done for
example by
removing them once in advance from the recorded samples or phonemes and/or by
automatic dynamic filtering as needed when the sounds are simulated), and/or
for
example the car's computer can automatically adjust the sounds or their level
for
example also based on other parameters, such as for example if it is daytime
or dark
(for example based on a clock and/or on light sensors) and/or for example
based on
the level and/or types of other background noises in the area. Preferably at
least by
default the sound level is lower than the car sound it simulates, so that it
is less
annoying, but sufficient for alerting pedestrians or animals, and/or for
example the
sound is intermittent - for example going on and off every second or other
reasonable short interval. Another possible variation is that preferably the
user can
for example choose from a number of available noise-increase profiles that
enable
for example the noise to increase with speed at a rate lower than in the real
simulated cars, since there is no need to make the noise as loud as the
original cars
as long as it is sufficient for pedestrians to notice the car, and/or this is
preferably
the default, and/or for example the user can set a maximum noise or a maximum
speed after which the noise does not further increase with increasing speed or
for
example even automatically starts falling off and/or stops since as explained
above
at certain speeds such as for example 60 Mph the noise of the wind resistance
makes
the car noticeable enough or can become even louder than the simulated engine
noise even in normal cars. Another possible variation is that the car's
computer can
for example at least in one of the modes for example use the internal speakers
also
for example for anti-noise - for example for automatically counteracting the
wind
noise when the user is traveling for example at high speeding in inter-city
highways,
so that the user can have a more controlled sound environment. Another
possible
variation is that the user can choose for example from a set of various car
simulations and/or additional types of noises - preferably independently for
different elements or stages, so that for example the user can choose for
example the
acceleration sound of for example a Ferrari (and/or for example some other
type of
sound effect, such as for example other natural or artificial types of sound)
and the
driving sound of some other car (and/or for example some other type of sound
effect) and/or for example some car (or for example other type of sound
effect) for
low speed driving and another car (or for example other type of sound effect)
for
high speed driving, and/or can for example at least for some sounds choose
also
different sound effects for example to be heard inside the car and different
sound
effects to be heard outside the car, etc. This can be done for example by
showing the
user a separate menu for each stage or for example a unified menu in which the
user
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can mark for example which element or elements to use for which stage or
stages,
and/or for example the car's computer can offer the user various pre-defined
recommended profiles or profiles of recommended combinations, for example with
pre-selected or pre-marked options which the user can for example accept or
adjust.
The transition between the various car type simulations or types of sound
effects can
be done for example abruptly when the car switches between these states or for
example based on gradual fade-in and/or fade out. Another possible variation
is that
the noise can be generated for example by preferably simple one or more add-on
devices which can be for example attached to external mirrors or some other
protrusion in the car and generate a certain amount of noise for example by
one or
more elements which are affected for example by wind resistance and/or by
vibrations, such as for example one or more small for example rubber bands
that
wiggle in the air or for example a small wheel or rattler that rotates in the
wind, and
preferably the device contains also an automatic cap or cover which for
example
beyond a certain speed becomes automatically locked for example by the effect
of
the air resistance, thus preferably stopping the noise beyond that speed, and
preferably the device is small enough so that its effect on creating air
friction is
minimal, and/or for example such devices are controlled also at least
partially
electronically and can respond for example to the wind speed to sense the
speed of
the car for example in order to activate or deactivate or for example change
the
sound level or its type for example based on the,speed. In addition,
preferably local
governments and/or municipal authorities will preferably enact laws or
regulation
which limit the sound levels and/or for example the allowed types of sound
and/or
for example the allowed pitch of such simulated sounds, so that drivers do not
use
unnecessary simulated noises (for example to "show off") beyond a reasonable
level
that is sufficient to warn pedestrians, so that for example the sound is
preferably
required to be for example at or above a certain minimum level and below a
certain
maximum level, for example when the car is moving below a certain speed, and
preferably the regulation also determine for example what types of sound
effects are
allowed. Another possible variation is for example using a visual conspicuous
indicator such as for example colored flashing lights. Another possible
variation is
that for example pedestrians can buy a preferably cheap device such as for
example
a small sensor or RFID (which preferably costs less than a few dollars) which
can
for example be coupled to a wrist watch, which for example transmits a certain
wireless signal when probed by an automatic transmission from a nearby passing
car
so that the car can automatically sense the nearby person and make the
auditory
warning, or which for example makes a preferably small noise itself when
receiving
the wireless broadcast from the car. Another possible variation is that if the
car for
example has one or more video cameras as sensors, preferably this can be used
also
for additional features, such as for example automatically lowering strong
dazzling
lights to normal lights for example when the sensors sense that one or more
cars are
coming in from the opposite side (for example by sensing their headlights and
the
distance of the opposite car for example by the brightness and/or by the
distance
between the two headlights). Another possible variation is that the user can
also
choose for example from a set of more than one available horn sounds, however
these are preferably under strict standards so that the user can only choose
from
officially allowed standard sounds. Another possible variation is that there
can be
for example at least two different types of warning sounds which are for
example
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the default at the same time, so that for example the horn sound for warning
is
different for example from the horn sound when the user for example intends to
alert for example another driver for example in the street lights that the
light has
changed. This is better than the prior art in which there is no
differentiation between
sounding the horn for warning of imminent danger and sounding it in order to
make
the car in front move, and so every sounding of the horn can be stressing and
confusing. This is better done also in normal cars, and preferably by setting
official
standards for the allowed set of sounds for each of these two uses. Preferably
similar
variations of sound effects are also available for example for electric bikes
or
motorcycles, except that the available sound effects are preferably more
similar to
the typical sound of bikes or motorcycles and there is less ability to
separate
between internal and external sound effects (except for example if some sound
effects are displayed for example inside the helmet).
Of course like other features of this invention and as explained also in the
glossary
and clarification section, these features can be used also independently of
any other
features of this invention.
In addition, preferably while recharging the batteries serially preferably the
recharger takes into account various measurements and/or various relevant
parameters of the individual batteries or elements which are being recharged
serially, such as for example their temperature and/or age and/or voltage
and/or their
behavior during the recharging, and preferably adjusts the recharging
parameters
(such as for example the voltage, current, pulses and/or duration of the
recharge)
preferably according to the weakest battery or element in the series.
Preferably each
battery or relevant ele'ment contains a microchip which automatically
determines or
measures the relevant parameters, preferably including also for example how
much
current went in and out of the battery during its lifetime and/or for example
how
many times it has been already recharged, and preferably these microchips can
communicate the information about the relevant parameters preferably digitally
to
the recharger and/or to the car, and/or preferably they can also be displayed
automatically for example on a small LCD screen coupled to the battery or on
the
car's display through the communication with the car's computer, as explained
below, and/or this parameters can preferably include also for example the
manufacturer, preferably exact model, and/or various other parameters, such as
for
example year of manufacture and/or for example the maximum current and/or
voltage and/or peaks that can be handled during recharge. Another possible
variation is that for example when such electric car batteries are replaced
and
recharged at the service station, preferably the batteries or relevant modular
elements are preferably automatically sorted by the relevant parameters
(preferably
by one or more computers which read the parameters automatically directly from
the relevant microchips and sort them for example by automatically dropping
the
batteries over different conveyor lines), so that preferably they are grouped
automatically into preferably more or less homogenous groups, so that for
example
batteries or elements which are in a similar state or have similar relevant
parameters
are preferably grouped together (which means of course that if for example
there are
also different models or types of batteries for example with different
recharge
parameters or different behaviors then this is preferably also taken into
account in
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creating the groups), and then preferably each group is recharged separately
(preferably in a separate serial row for each group and preferably the
recharging in
each group is for example optimized according the average parameters of the
group
or for example according to the weakest batteries in the group) in order to
improve
the efficiency of the recharging of the batteries in that group. So for
example if an
average service station services for example on average around 1,000 cars per
day
and if for example each car contains for example around 20 batteries, this
means
that for example the service station preferably has for example at least 200
parallel
productions lines which can each for example recharge for example up to 100
batteries serially (or for example 100 production lines that can each for
example
recharge for example up to 200 batteries serially, or for example 400
production
lines that can each for example recharge for example up to 50 batteries
serially, or
other reasonable combinations), so that preferably for example the entire
20,000
batteries can be recharged together at the same time, preferably during night
hours,
and so preferably for example if each battery has for example a voltage of 12
volts,
this means that each group of for example around 100 batteries is preferably
recharged for example at around 1200 volts or for example each group of for
example around 150 batteries is preferably recharged for example at around
1800
volts or for example if each battery has for example a voltage of 12 volts,
this means
that each group of for example around 100 batteries is preferably recharged
for
example at around 1200 volts, or for example if each battery has for example a
voltage of 50 volts, this means that each group of for example around 40
batteries is
preferably recharged for example at around 2000 volts. This way there is the
advantage that preferably a much smaller number of rechargers is needed
compared
to when recharging each individual battery or cell or unit separately, and
there can
be much less current and heating and losses problems, and yet each homogenous
group can preferably be recharged almost optimally. The multiple serial
rechargers
are preferably stacked together for example in parallel preferably both
sideways
next to each other and to the height - one above the other, to allow better
use of the
available space. After the recharging preferably the batteries are
automatically
collected preferably in a way that preferably mixes together batteries of the
different
groups in order to improve the statistical behavior of the batteries in the
car, so that
for example when the recharged batteries are inserted back into cars that come
for
service for example the next day preferably there is a good mixture of
batteries from
various groups, for example by random mixing or for example by automatically
collecting for example each time one battery from each group for example while
choosing automatically an order that creates a good mixing, which is
preferably
done for example by another computer or computers or for example by the same
computer or computers that also sort incoming batteries into groups when they
arrive for recharging.
Another possible variation is that the user can for example add a preferably
small
measurement and/or control unit for example to the electrical switchboard for
example in the home on in the office, which preferably can measure
automatically
the current levels (for example by shunt resistor and/or for example induction
coils
around the electrical wires, and/or for example hall effect sensor or sensors)
and for
example the user or the installing electrician tells it the maximum allowed
amperage
and/or the unit for example senses this automatically for example according to
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various features of the switchboard or can for example read this digitally
from the
switchboard, and preferably this unit measures preferably all the time or at
close
intervals the actual amperage for example in the house or office and/or in the
building and can preferably for example broadcast this information for example
to
the car recharger unit for example through wireless radio transmission or for
example through transmitting information over the electrical wires (and/or for
example the car recharger unit can also preferably measure at least part of
these
parameters itself), and then preferably the car recharger unit preferably
takes into
account these current measurements in order to be able to preferably
automatically
reduce its recharge power and/or speed so that preferably the total current
consumption in the house or office for example preferably does not exceed and
preferably remains sufficiently below the maximum allowed amperage which would
cause the fuse to jump, such as for example 40 amperes in normal 1-phase home
electrical supplies or for example 40-60 amperes in houses with a 3-phase
system.
This has the advantage that this way preferably for example cars with Ml
batteries
or similar fast recharging batteries or other fast recharge devices such as
for
example one or more super capacitors such as for example EEStor can preferably
be
recharged dynamically at preferably the fastest rate available, with dynamic
fitting
to the place where it is being recharged so that it can preferably be
recharged at the
most efficient available level for example whether it is being recharged in a
normal
home 1-phase electrical outlet or a 3-phase home or office system, or for
example at
the service station, where it can preferably be recharged for example even at
speeds
up to a few minutes recharge. Since according to
http://www.stanford.edu/group/
greendorm/participate/cee124/TeslaReading_pdi the Tesla electric car for
example
needs about 110 watt-hour for each kilometer and for example the GM EV1 needed
about 102 watts-hour for each kilometers at a typical speed of about 90
Km/hour
(which is about 13-15 horse powers) and the EV1 could go about 80-100 miles
after
a night recharge, this means that for example an EV1-like car which is charged
at a
normal single phase house electrical outlet would typically need about 8-10
hours at
night for a full recharge, while a more advanced car with for example Ml or
similar
fast recharge batteries or other fast recharge devices such as for example one
or
more super capacitors such as for example EEStor with sufficient capacity to
run for
example up to 200-300 miles after recharge would require for example 8-10
hours at
night with a 3-phase electrical outlet, and of course a higher output system
can be
recharged even faster. However, there is also another problem for example in
homes, since unless it is for example a villa in the suburbs, a normal multi-
apartment building in the city does not have convenient connection for
recharging a
car in the garage or parking lot from the electrical outlet in the apartment,
and
similarly for example in offices in multi-storey buildings where the car is
parked
typically in a parking lot in the basement. So preferably this is improved so
that for
example office buildings and for example people in apartment buildings can
preferably request for example from the electrical company to prepare one or
more
recharge outlets preferably in the parking lots, which are preferably
connected
directly to the building's electric switchboard, which is typically also at
the
basement or ground floor level of the building, typically near the area of the
parking. Preferably these outlets are at or near the parking lots and are for
example
personal outlets which are logically or physically linked to the electrical
counter of
the specific home or office and can be used only by the allowed user or users
for
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example with the help of a mechanical and/or electrical lock and/or for
example
RFID technology and/or similar preferably password and/or key protected
technologies, and/or for example even more preferably such recharge outlets
are
public and so can be preferably used by anyone in the building or for example
by
outsiders and/or are for example made available for example by the electrical
company or for example by the municipal authority for example also on streets
and/or for example near at least some streetlamp poles and/or electric power
poles
(which means that at least some of these recharge posts are preferably coupled
to
these poles or at least receive their energy directly from them), and are
preferably
operated for example by inserting a credit card or for example smart card as
explained above, and preferably for example when the cable is removed from the
car a new insertion of credit card is required, and/or for example only the
card
holder can authorize removal of the cable from a car that is currently being
recharged for example unless the recharge has ended (to prevent stealing a
public
recharger or recharge post away from someone else who is currently
recharging),
which is preferably done for example by mechanically locking the cable's plug
for
example automatically in the car (or for example automatically in the
recharger - if
the plug comes from the car into a socket in recharger), so that the lock is
automatically released only for example when the recharge has ended (i.e. for
example the battery is full or for example the decided amount of recharge has
been
reached, as explained below) or for example if the user for example enters or
passes
his/her smart card again or for example re-enters his/her password in order to
stop
the recharge and disconnect prematurely, and/or for example the user can press
a
button or lever inside the car which releases the lock, and/or for example the
car's
computer automatically decides to release the lock for example under certain
conditions. Another possible variation is that the user can for example
release the
lock that keeps the cable plugged-in for example through his/her remote car-
lock
and/or alarm control - so that for example by pressing the button in the
remote
control that unlocks the car the lock that keeps the plug in place is also
released
(and/or for example there is a special separate button on the user's remote
for
releasing the plug's lock) - preferably for example by causing the car's
computer to
send an appropriate command the recharge post through the data line (for
example if
the cable comes out of the car into a socket in the recharge post) or for
example to
automatically release the lock directly (for example if a cable comes for
example
from the recharge post or for example from a fast recharger to a socket in the
car)
and/or for example by quickly passing an RFID or smartcard or other device for
example at or near the recharge post (but preferably anyway if the user for
example
lost the relevant device he/she can also simply tell the computer for example
from
inside the car for example to instruct the recharge post to release the
cable). Another
possible variation is that for example if a certain time (such as for example
2 or 3
minutes or more or other reasonable period) has passed after releasing the
lock and
the user has not yet pulled out the plug and/or for example more preferably if
the
user for example locks the car again with the remote while the plug is still
connected, preferably the plug becomes automatically locked again, for example
by
the car computer automatically sending the appropriate instruction to the
recharge
post for example through the data link. Another possible variation is that for
example if the user tries to pull out the plug before the lock is released
preferably
the recharge post for example issues an automatic warning for example through
a
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visual display and/or for example through synthesized speech or pre-recorded
message - for example warning that the plug is still locked and/or also
reminding
the user preferably how it can be properly released - for example that it
should be
released for example by pressing he appropriate button in the car's remote
control or
for example by pressing the relevant control for example inside the car or for
example by other available means (which means that preferably the recharge
post
can not only sense cases where the plug is pulled for example with a strong
force for
example above the threshold for forceful removal as explained elsewhere in
this
application but can also sense for example a normal force which people for
example
typically use for example for removing the plug normally - for example by
using
one or more switches for example at the bottom part of the socket so that for
example the same switch can sense at least two separate amount of displacement
or
for example at least two switches respond to different amounts of movement of
the
plug, so that for example if the plug is pulled only the minimal movement that
can
be made for example with normal force (for example 1 mm or other reasonable
distance) for example only the first switch is for example activated or
released for
example by being un-pressed and for example the more forceful movement beyond
the threshold (which creates for example a movement of 3 mm or other
reasonable
threshold) or for example activates or releases the second switch, and
preferably
even for the smaller displacement caused by normal force preferably the
elements
that lock the plug also flexibly bend a little so that for example as soon as
the user
stops pulling the plug it preferably automatically snaps back into its deeper
position
thus stopping for example the warning display), and/or for example when the
plug is
locked there is for example a red or other color light that lights up a
message such as
for example "Cable locked" or for example "plug locked" or for example similar
wording for example at the top part of the recharge post, and/or for example
if the
user tries to pull out the plug while it is locked for example this light
begins to flash
or for example the recharge post for example beeps or makes another sound that
reminds for example new users that the plug is locked and needs to be released
first.
Another possible variation is that for example when the lock is released for
example
the recharge post or for example the remote control preferably indicates this
automatically for example by visual and/or auditory indication. Of course like
in
other places in this application, various combinations of the above and/or
other
variations can also be used. The above variations have the advantage that it
can
work easily and automatically also for example if the recharge post does not
have its
own external user interface and relies on the data link and for example on the
user
interface of the car's computer for the communication with the user - as
explained
elsewhere in this application as one of the possible variations, and this way
for
example even in such a case preferably the user can release the cable without
having
to go into the car and do something and then go out again and physically
release and
retract the cable, and/or similarly preferably for example if the user needs
to relay
any information or for example request to the recharge post for example before
starting the recharge preferably the user can for example enter the
information or
request for example in advance through the car computer's user interface and
then
preferably when the user connects the cable to the recharge post preferably
the
computer automatically sends the data or request to the recharge post
preferably
through the data link, so that preferably the user does not need to go back
again into
the car after connecting the cable even if the recharge post does not have its
own
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monitor or keyboard, and/or in such case preferably for example if the service
provider's main computers need or want to send some messages to the user for
example at the parking place even if they are for example from the recharge
posts
they are preferably sent through the normal direct cellular or other wireless
communication between the service provider's main computers and the car's
computer, so that the user can preferably receive the message before exiting
the car
and connecting the cable. As explained also elsewhere in this application, for
example in this case preferably the user can simply plug the cable in the
recharge
post and the identification of the car Id is preferably automatic through the
data link,
and the user can be for example required for example preferably. before even
plugging the cable and before exiting the car for example to enter a password
or
pass a smart card or similar device for example through the car's computer
terminal
(for example in order to make it harder for car thieves to charge the car), or
more
preferably the user does not have to enter any password and for example if the
car
was reported as stolen then the recharge is automatically blocked for example
through the service provider's main computers (for example through a remote
preferably encrypted instruction to the cars computer or to the recharge
posts),
and/or for example the user has an RFID for example in the remote control so
that
for example as long as the remote control is nearby the user is verified
automatically
for example by the car computer). In case the remote control can be used to
release
the plug's lock as explained above, preferably locking the car again with the
remote
preferably also causes the plug to become locked again and/or for example the
user
has a separate button on the remote for locking again the plug, and/or for
example as
a safety measure preferably for example if the lock has been released but the
user
does not physically remove the plug for example within 1 minute or other
reasonable time, preferably the plug becomes automatically locked again.
Another
possible variation is that for example if the cable comes out of the car to a
socket in
the recharge post, preferably for example an additional button on the user's
remote
control or for example a control from inside the car can also for example
cause the
socket to actually release the plug (for example through an automatic command
from the car's computer to the recharge post) and preferably once released for
example this way or manually preferably the cable preferably retracts
automatically
into the car - preferably for example by spring or small electric motor, as
explained
elsewhere in this application, and preferably the preferably small door of the
cable's
compartment also closes and locks itself automatically after the cable has
been
retracted. This has the advantage that for example on a rainy day for example
if the
car has been recharging in an open space preferably the user does not have to
start
fiddling with the cable but can get immediately into the car. Since there are
preferably at least two cables and/or two sockets on the car preferably at the
front
and at the back as explained elsewhere in this application, preferably the
distance
that the cable is stretched till the recharge post is small and since
preferably the
cable is shaped like a spiral phone cord, as explained elsewhere in this
application,
preferably even if there is mud below and even if the cable is for example
automatically fully released from the socket and starts to retract
automatically for
example into the car preferably the spiral design and the short distance
preferably
reduce the chance that the cable will for example fall into the mud before
retracting
into the car even if the user is not holding the cable in the hand while
letting it
retract into the car. Preferably if the spiral design of the cable has a
larger
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circumference such as for example a spiral with a diameter of 5 or more
centimeters,
then preferably when folded into the car the spiral can be for example pressed
into a
round hollow tube with a preferably slightly larger diameter than the diameter
of the
spiral and/or for example the cable is pressed over a smaller-diameter rod in
the
cable compartment so that preferably the rod goes through the hollow space
formed
by the internal shape of the spiral, so that the cable can preferably fit
easily, and/or
for example the cable can be automatically pulled in for example by a
preferably
thin for example nylon or rubber wire of for example a few mm diameter or less
which for example through the hollow space formed by the internal shape of the
spiral and is for example rolled back for example on a roller with a spring
(or for
example small electric motor) for example through a preferably small hole at
the
end of the tube, so that for example when the cable spiral is released the
wire that
runs through the internal space of the spiral of the spiral can cause the
spiral to
contract automatically into its housing preferably for example with a wider
funnel at
the entrance to the tube, and/or for example the cable goes through a
preferably
small hole which is preferably bigger than the diameter of the cable but
preferably
substantially smaller than the diameter of the spiral - for example in the car
for
example at the entrance to the tube, and for example the tube rotates in order
to
cause the cable to retract, but that is less preferably since it can for
example wear
out the cable through friction, and/or for example the cable is rolled for
example on
a sufficiently large and/or wide roller (preferably by going through a hole
preferably
at the inner end of the cable compartment which is preferably larger the
diameter of
the spiral) for example like a non-spiral cable or for example like a spiral
cable with
a smaller diameter of the spiral. Another possible variation is that if for
example
despite the automatic lock the recharge cable becomes unplugged anyway (for
example due to enabling release of the lock for example if excessive force is
used in
order to prevent damage to the cable or to the locking mechanism, as explained
elsewhere in this application) or for example the electric or data connection
is
somehow stopped for example in a way that is not supposed to happen normally,
i.e.
for example without the lock being properly released (for example because
someone
has damaged the cable or broken the lock)(which can be preferably be sensed
for
example by the car computer or recharger or by the recharge post, for example
by
sensing that the data connection and/or power connection is not working or is
not
working properly even though there was no lock-release command), preferably
this
is reported automatically for example by the car computer and/or by the
recharge
post for example to the service provider's main computers and/or for example
the
car computer or for example the recharge post or for example the service
provider's
main computers preferably send the user preferably immediately (i.e. for
example
within a few seconds or for example within a few minutes or other reasonable
period) for example an automatic message about it, for example through SMS
and/or email and/or Instant Message and/or automatic phone call or similar
means.
Preferably when the lock is released for example a special indictor for
example on
the cable itself (for example if the cable comes out of the recharge post to a
socket
in the car) such as for example flashing LEDs) and/or on the recharger
indicate in a
preferably visually conspicuous way that the recharge has ended, and then
other
users can remove the cable and attach it to another car. However, since the
relative
car priorities might cause the car for example to be recharged for example
only at
low speed and/or for example cause the actual recharge to start for example
only
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after some time - for example only in the afternoon, it might be a while till
the
recharge is considered to have ended and the lock is released. (This means
that
preferably the system takes into account also for example the number of
rechargers
in the area, since if for example initially there are in the area only a small
number of
rechargers, the system might prefer to finish recharging each connected car as
soon
as possible even if it has low priority and would be normally for example
recharged
only in the afternoon - by simply giving it the amount of energy that it
needs, if it
needs any daytime recharge, in order to release the recharger as soon as
possible and
allow other cars to connect to it). Another possible variation is that for
example after
the lock is released the cable can also be automatically retracted for example
by the
recharger (for example into the car or into the recharge post), but if this is
done, this
is preferably done for example only if the battery is full or if these are
rush hours
and/or there is for example a shortage of rechargers in the area, since for
example if
there is no shortage of rechargers in the area and the battery is not yet
full, the
system might for example automatically decide to add charge anyway to the car
for
example when there is less load or for example when a certain lower rate hour
has
been reached, and in that case it is preferably that the cable remains
connected to the
car as long a nobody else needs it. This has the advantage that since
obviously most
people don't need a full recharge every night or at least not during the day,
preferably a smaller number of rechargers can be divided between a larger
number
of users, preferably on a need based first-come service model. Another
advantage is
that such public rechargers or recharge posts for example in apartment
buildings or
for example on the street do not have to be limited to the typical limitations
of a
single apartment and thus can preferably enable using for example higher
voltages
and/or higher amperage limits, thus preferably enabling a faster recharge time
- for
example only 2-3 hours at night or even faster. And since typically electric
companies in the current prior art typically turn off for example 1/3 up to
2/3 of
their turbines during night time hours, this means that for example until
about 25%
of the population start using electric cars the electric companies can support
this
without capital infrastructure changes by simply starting to turn off less
turbines at
night as needed, and by the time more users start using electric cars, the
electric
companies will have made already sufficient profits to invest in increased
infrastructure as the economy gradually moves into more and more people using
electric cars instead of the prior art polluting gasoline cars. Preferably the
above or
similar principles are used preferably both for only-electric cars and/or for
hybrid
cars and also for example if the cars have for example solar panels for
example on
their roofs and/or their sides and/or even for example preferably transparent
solar
panels for example on at least some or parts of the car windows (for example
based
on covering the sides and/or roof and/or windows with some transparent
chemicals)
and can therefore be also for example preferably be recharged automatically
during
daylight hours while in the sun. Preferably the above described sensing and/or
communication and/or automatic adjustment of the speed or amperage of recharge
can be done for example by the computer in the car's own part of the recharge
unit
and/or for example by the car's general purpose computer and/or for example by
the
computer in the public recharger or recharge post, and/or for example some of
the
functions are done by the car computer or car's own recharger computer and
some
by the computer of the preferably public recharger. Another possible variation
is
that the recharger can preferably for example take into account also the
electrical
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prices according for example to day hours (for example by using its own
database)
and can preferably automatically for example start the recharge or for example
increase the recharge speed mainly at the cheaper night hours so that
preferably the
user does not have to remember or worry about the optimal hours manually
and/or
for example the computer can get this information directly by connecting for
example to information provided automatically for example through the Internet
or
for example through the power station, and/or for example such public
rechargers or
recharge posts can for example receive direct commands for example from the
electrical company and/or for example the service provider preferably for
example
by information transferred preferably over the electric wires themselves, so
that for
example this way the electric company and/or the service provider can for
example
better control the division of power between various rechargers or recharge
posts or
areas in a more efficient way. Another possible variation is that preferably
such
public rechargers or recharge posts are made available also in many parking
lots
and/or for example in railway stations parking lots where people can park
their car
and continue by trains and/or for example on trains in which the user can
board
special coaches with their car, since typically modem trains run already on
electricity and therefore there is already an existing electrical
infrastructure at the
railway which can preferably be converted also for recharging users' electric
cars.
Another possible variation is that preferably the for example preferably
public
charger, which preferably has anyway at least one coil for flattening the
pulses of
the PWM that typically is needed for controlling the recharge speed and/or
amperages, preferably has also a second coil and thus preferably contains a
transformer which preferably increases the voltage to for example preferably
1000
volts or other desired high voltage for the more efficient recharge even for
example
at the home or office parking lot. Another possible variation is that
preferably these
preferably public rechargers or recharge posts for example in the building's
parking
lot preferably also communicate with a similar controller and/or sensor for
example
for the entire building, which preferably can behave similarly like the
possible
individual apartment's sensor or controller described above and/or preferably
also
the preferably public rechargers or recharge posts can preferably communicate
with
each other, so that this controller preferably measures automatically the
amperage of
the entire building and preferably communicates this automatically to the
preferably
public controllers, so that they can preferably automatically adjust
themselves
preferably to an optimal recharge rate possible without risking for example
the
building fuse or the neighborhood fuse jumping, and/or this is done
automatically
for example between more than one building and/or between street rechargers so
that preferably the controllers of multiple buildings and/or for example a
similar
controller and/or sensor for example instead or in addition in the
neighborhood or
street's switchboard measures for exainple the general amperage in the street
or
neighborhood and this information is preferably automatically shared between
the
public controllers of the relevant nearby buildings public rechargers or
recharge
posts and/or street public rechargers or recharge posts and/or these
rechargers also
communicate with each other and thus preferably for example the entire or
local
neighborhood or street area which is connected to the relevant neighborhood or
street switchboard can preferably automatically regulate their recharge speed
to
work preferably at an optimal recharge speed without endangering the fuse of
the
street or neighborhood fuse jumping. Another problem is that for example in
normal
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home of office switchboards eventhough there can be many fuses for individual
rooms or sockets, typically there is only one residual current fuse, so that
for
example malfunctions in which the current overflows to the grounding cause the
fuse of the entire apartment or office to jump. So preferably this is improved
so that
for example the home or office's main switchboard is improved so that it
contains
for example in advance (preferably through mass production) a hierarchical
routing
so that for example there is the appropriate wiring and place for adding for
example
a residual current fuse for example for each of N rooms or other grouping or
branches of devices (so that for example different size pre-designed
switchboards
are available according to the maximum number of desired residual current
fuses),
so that for example at least each room or group is insulated from the others
and does
not cause the main fuse to jump even for example in case of overflow to the
grounding. Another possible variation is that for example the fuses are
improved so
that there are available preferably cheap combined fuses which for example
preferably cost for example $15-20 or less or for example only a few dollars
more
than a nonnal fuse and preferably function both as a normal fuse and as a
residual
current fuse, for example by using the same box and switch for both devices
and
including the coils and magnets and/or other components for each of the two
devices
in the same box. Similarly preferably the switchboard contains more than one
smart
meter or for example a smart meter or meters that can monitor separately more
than
one room, so that preferably the user can see independently the electricity
usage for
example on a room basis or for example even per socket or group of sockets.
Another possible variation is that the user can also be shown automatically
for
example how much electricity each device or for example each type of device is
consuming - for example by improving electrical devices to contain for example
special chips which can for example automatically communicate with the smart
meter or meters and can for example send them an Id or code or for example
other
fingerprint that indicates their type and/or for example more specific
identification
details (such as for example also manufacturer and/or model) for example over
the
power lines and/or for example by using smart sockets in which the user can
for
example indicate the type of device which he/she plugs in to it for example
from a
menu or for example by moving a dial and then the sockets for example
communicates this information. Preferably the user can see the relevant
display for
example on an LCD display on the smart meters or on the switchboard, or for
example through the Internet on the electric company's web site preferably in
real
time (since preferably the smart meter automatically updates the main computer
of
the electric company and receives orders from them) and for example on the web
site the user can preferably see for example additional data such as for
example
statistics and/or graphs of the change in usage over time for example for the
total
apartment and/or for example on a room by room basis and/or for example based
on
device types and/or for example for individual devices, and/or preferably the
web
site can display also for example similar statistics for example about other
apartments or buildings for example in the area, such as for example the
average
consumption across other apartments for example in the building or for example
in
the street or for example in the neighborhood or for example in the town or
for
example in the country (these are preferably averages without identifying
details of
the specific apartments) so that the users can also see for example how much
energy
they are using compared to other similar reference points. Another possible
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variation is that when recharging the electric cars, the rechargers or
recharge posts
and/or for example one or more central computers (for example in the
electrical grid
service and/or for example in the specific service provider to which the user
subscribes or for example connects once in a while even without a
subscription)
preferably take into account also for example car-specific and/or user-
specific
parameters, for example in order to optimize the recharging priorities, so
that for
example at least in areas and/or times where the concurrent recharging
capacity is
limited, for example in crowded work areas for example at least in the main
work
hours and/or electricity demand peak hours or for example in crowded
neighborhoods for example when recharging at night, preferably the rechargers
or
recharge posts and/or said computers can decide for example automatically
which
priorities to give to different cars - for example based on the state of their
batteries
(so that for example cars in which the battery is more empty or for example is
almost completely empty preferably get automatically higher recharge priority
than
for example cars in which the battery is less empty or for example is almost
completely full) and/or for example also based on additional parameters and/or
heuristics and/or statistics and/or for example automatic repeated
identification of
cars based for example on a unique preferably digital ID number, so that for
example the system can take into account also various regular and/or
historical car-
specific parameters and/or patterns and/or statistics, such as for example
typical
arrival and departure times, typical distances traveled, etc., so that for
example a car
that is regularly parked for example in the work space for example between 9am
to
5pm for example can get lower recharge priority than for example a car that
typically leaves at 2pm, since the car that leaves earlier needs the recharge
earlier
(so for example the car that leaves at 5 preferably will still get the energy
that it
needs, if it needs any daytime recharge, but it can be recharged more flexibly
during
this time for example after taking care of the more urgent recharges first),
and/or for
example a car that typically travels a longer distance each day for example
between
home and work for example gets higher recharge priority than a car that
travels for
example considerably shorter distances, and/or for example a car which
typically
leaves for example for work for example earlier gets by default higher
recharge
priority at night than a car that typically leaves the home area later. In
other words,
as explained also elsewhere in this application, preferably the recharge
priorities are
preferably applied both preferably globally for example over an entire country
or
state or electric supplier network (or for example even across countries which
exchange electricity, such as for example in Europe) and preferably also
locally
within smaller areas such as for example cities and/or neighborhoods and/or
streets,
etc., since this is needed also within smaller areas for example to prevent
overload
for example on local high power transformers and/or for example fuses.
(Another
possible variation is that for example at least temporarily for example at
least in
some areas where there are cars or recharge posts which enable charging the
electric
cars without accepting direct commands for example from the main computers of
the service provider and/or the electric company, preferably for example the
electric
company and/or the service provider can also for example control overloads
and/or
activate priority policies for example by automatically disconnecting recharge
posts
for example individually if possible or for example based on groups, such as
for
example the recharge posts of an entire street or neighborhood, so preferably
they
work when they can without overloading their area and they are preferably time
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shifted as needed so at to prevent overload also across areas). As explained
above
these statistics and/or calculations can be for example calculated
automatically by
the service provider's computers, and/or for example at least some of them can
be
automatically generated by the car's computer and for example communicated
automatically to the recharger or recharge post when connecting to it and/or
for
example directly to the main computers of the service provider for example
through
cellular or other wireless communication - which can be for example more
processed data, or even for example automatic requested recharge times based
on
the statistics, although that is less preferable since the service provider's
computers
have a bigger picture and can enforce more standard rules. However these
statistics
preferably do not include identifying or for example keeping track of for
example
the specific destinations or locations to which the car travels but preferably
only for
example the distances or for example more generalized patterns, in order to
prevent
privacy issues. The data communication between the car and the recharger or
recharge post can be for example by transferring data over the power wires,
but
more preferably the plug-in cable contains also a separate data cable
(isolated of
course from the power wires but preferably within the same external envelope
of the
cable, so that for example the power wires are covered with a metal mesh to
block
interference and the data cable is outside this mesh and there is for example
an
additional for example plastic envelope around all of this), and so preferably
the
plug and the socket contain apart from the power connectors also a connector
or
connectors for the data link, and preferably the plug and sockets are shaped
in a way
that the plug can be inserted only when oriented properly (this means that
preferably
the data connector or connectors are in the same socket in which the power
connectors are, or for example the socket is divided for example into separate
sections or for example two physically coupled sockets, for example with a big
circle or other shape for the power connectors and for example a smaller
extension
of the socket into the shape of a smaller circle or other shape for the data
connector).
Another possible variation is that data link can even be for example based on
optic
fiber in order to further reduce possible interferences from the power wires.
Another
possible variation is that the communication is for example wirelessly, for
example
through Bluetooth or UWB or for example Wimax, as explained also elsewhere in
this application, but in this case preferably the correct car and the correct
recharger
or recharge post can preferably identify each other in a way that prevents
confusion
for example with the next nearby car or next nearby recharger or recharge
post,
which means that preferably at least some data is exchanged preferably at
least
initially preferably digitally for example through the cable connection
(preferably
with the unique IDs of the car and of the recharger or recharge post), or for
example
the car and/or the recharger or recharge post carry for example some optical
digital
code or other physical code which can be identified based on proximity, in
order to
confirm the correct match, but that is more problematic and less preferable.
Another
possible variation is that for example the car and the recharger or recharge
post can
make sure they are talking wirelessly to the correct recharger or recharge
post or car
for example by the car's computer requesting the recharger or recharge post
for
example to make a certain signal for example by creating a certain temporary
pulse
or fluctuation or other change for example in the power or voltage, or vice
versa, or
such fluctuations are for example automatically used when first connecting in
order
to transfer the correct IDs to each other.
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As explained above, preferably the above described sensing and/or
communication and/or automatic adjustment of the speed or amperage or power
consumption of the recharge can be done for example by the computer in the
car's
own part of the recharge unit and/or for example by the car's general purpose
computer and/or for example by the computer in the public recharger, and/or
for
example some of the functions are done by the car computer or car's own
recharger
and some by the computer of the preferably public recharger or recharge post.
The
advantage of keeping the recharger circuitry in the car are that this way the
car can
also be recharged for example from normal electric sockets, for example in the
user's garage or home, for example if the user lives in a villa, and in fact
this is the
standard in nonnal prior art electric vehicles, except that prior art electric
cars do not
have a recharger which can vary the recharge speed or current or power
consumption dynamically for example according to communication and
instructions
which it receives for example from the electric company or the service
provider. In
addition, many people live in apartment buildings without private parking and
thus
would have to recharge their car even at night in the street and/or sometime
also
have to recharge in parking places for example at work, so the public recharge
posts
are needed anyway on streets and parking places, and even people who live in
an
apartment building with a private parking lot might still need these posts
because it
is illegal to lower cables from the windows, although there can be for example
sockets or private recharging posts that are connected for example directly to
the
electricity room for example at the basement or bottom floor of the building,
as
explained elsewhere in this application. Another problem is that even if the
car's
internal recharger receives instructions from the public recharge post for
example
when to start or stop or for example to increase or reduce its recharge speed
or
current or power, some hackers might for example rig the car's computer or the
recharger to pretend to follow the instructions but in fact for example give
itself
higher priority. So preferably for example public recharge posts which
interact with
a car that is using its own internal recharger preferably automatically
request the
car's internal recharger to report how much current or energy it used
(typically the
recharger and/or the battery has to calculate this anyway during the
recharging
process so this information is readily available), and/or preferably also
check for
example the actual amperage and/or power that passes to the car and thus can
for
example preferably instantly fmd out for example if the car's recharger is not
following the instructions correctly (for example by fmding that the amperage
or
energy measured by the recharge post substantially exceeds the energy that
should
have been used according to the instructions or the energy usage as reported
by the
car's recharger and/or for example that the energy usage reported by the car's
recharger substantially exceeds the energy that should have been used
according to
the instructions), for example due to malfunctioning or due to tempering, and
can in
that case preferably for example automatically send an alert for example to
the main
computers of the service provider and/or of the electric company and/or for
example
automatically refuse to give further service to that car until the issue is
checked
and/or for example issue a warning to the car's driver (and/or for example the
car
reports this directly to the service provider for example through cellular or
other
wireless communication while the recharger preferably also reports its own
measurements preferably at the same time). (This automatic measurement of the
actual power consumption is preferably used anyway also for example for
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calculating the actual charge for example in money or for example credit point
or
debit point, since for example even if the car's internal recharger has
received
instructions that allow it for example high power consumption, it might still
for
example use less for example depending on the state of the batteries). The
measuring of amperage is preferably done for example by using a transformer
with
an appropriate circuitry and/or chips to measure the amperage data from it
(for
example by using induction coils around the electrical wires), and/or for
example
hall effect sensor or sensors and/or for example by shunt resistor and/or for
example
other sensors that measure the electromagnetic filed, or even cheaper meters
which
give an estimate which can have for example an error range of 1-5% or other
reasonable number, so that preferably the recharge post in this case
preferably issues
a warning for example only if the deviation (for example of taking more power
than
allowed by the instructions) is bigger or substantially bigger than its
typical or
maximum measurement error (this deviation -can be calculated for example for
any
point in time that more power than allowed by the last instructions is used,
for
example in case the instructions limit for example the allowed peaks but is
preferably based on some average over time - such as for example a few minutes
or
more, since for example the recharger might need to use cycles of more or less
power based on the state of the batteries and/or the recharge pattern, and
preferably
the instructions limit for example the average power consumption for example
over
preferably small time unit, such as for example the average power consumption
for
example per minute or a few minutes or other reasonable time frame, and/or for
example the deviation is calculated for example by the total or average
recharge
speed for example compared to the allowed speed or for example compared to an
allowed average in a period determined in the instructions). Another possible
variation is that for example the electric company and/or the service provider
for
example relies more on the amperage or power reported by the car's internal
recharger, but for example each group of rechargers (for example 5 or 10 or 50
or
other reasonable number) has for example an amperage or power meter, so that
for
example based on the repeated identification of the individual cars and the
individual recharge post, for example cheating or malfunction can also be
detected
statistically based on the group meter for example after a number of
rechargings.
Another possible variation is that for example only a certain sample of
recharge
posts contains the meters (for example 1 in 10 or 1 in 20 or 1 in 50 or other
reasonable number), preferably in a way that there is no external indication
if the
recharge post contains a meter or not, but that is still problematic, since
for example
hackers might exchange information about "safe" or "unsafe" recharge posts for
example based on trial and error. So if such sampling is used, preferably the
location
of the meters is changed periodically, for example by using the preferable
modular
preferably underground interface in order to switch between recharge posts, or
for
example by having an empty compartment within the recharge post into which the
meter can be inserted or removed in a modular fashion, or for example by using
preferably underground multiplexers which enable for example to route the
meters
to different recharge posts, for example by remote command from the service
provider's main computers and/or for example by changing something for example
in a street switchboard. Another possible variation is that preferably the
communication between the car and the service provider is preferably done for
example by encryption which uses automatically as keys for example also data
from
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internal devices that are integrated in the car, such as for example the
engine or
other parts, and is preferably embedded in the internal hardware of the car,
such. as
for example in ASIC chips, so that for example in order to forge a message the
hacker would have to know also these encryption keys. Anyway, the point is
that if
the car is recharged by an internal recharger, preferably the car's recharger
has to
report the amount of power it used for example from the time of connecting the
recharge post until disconnecting, for example to the recharge post or
directly to the
electric company or service provider, and preferably the service provider has
at least
some means of checking if there are substantial deviations between this report
and
the actual amperage used, as explained above, and preferably the monetary
charge
and/or for example credit points or debit points are preferably based directly
on the
actual energy taken by the recharger, as explained elsewhere in this
application. The
above variations are much'better than Shai Agassi's suggested model of
charging
the car only based on mileage, since unless the amount of energy used by the
recharger is reported and taken into account and unless the report is
preferably
related directly to the recharge session from a specific recharge post it can
be much
harder to verify, and since the mileage might also be related to many other
things
apart from the actual amount of recharge energy, such as for example if the
car is
going uphill or downhill or for example in a plane, if the driver enables
using
automatic Neutral or similar mode for example when driving downhill (as
explained
elsewhere in this application), and for example if the driver uses for example
the
recommended top speed of for example 80-90 Km/H, or for example drives in a
highway much faster, such as for example 120Km/H, which is much more wasteful
due to air resistance, as explained elsewhere in this application. So paying
only
according to mileage (for example in money and/or credit point or debit
points) is
bad practice because it can encourage people to drive faster in a wasteful
manner if
they pay only according to mileage instead of according to the actual recharge
energy. In addition, in a charge scheme based on mileage the service provider
would
have to deduct for example mileage which stems for example from recharging for
example at home for example directly from the electric company or for example
energy that is for example from solar panels for example on the roof of the
car or for
example other private renewable sources, such as for example a private wind
turbine
on the user's house, which would complicate things and would have to rely also
on
reports about charging through other sources. So, as explained above,
preferably in
case of charging at least partially by mileage and/or for example by mileage
instead
of by energy, preferably this additional data about other ways of recharging
is
preferably taken into account, and in addition preferably the service provider
also
gets for example from the car's computer for example periodically automatic
reports
such as for example various statistics about the traveling speeds used and/or
for
example about the general fuel-per mileage efficiency, and/or for example
various
statistics and/or additional parameters about the driver's behavior, so that
for
example drivers that drive in more wasteful ways or for example beyond a
certain
wastefulness threshold are preferably warned and/or charged extra even for
example
if the main charge is according to mileage, and/or for example there is a
different
rate of charge for different ranges of speed (so that for example until 80Km/H
there
is one rate, for example between 80-110 there is another rate, and for example
above
110 there is another are, or for example other values and/or divisions) and/or
for
example the rate changes continuously according to speed for example based on
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some fonnula. Another possible variation is that if the user is for example in
a
monthly subscription plan with a service provider (when the service provider
is
other than the electric company) for example with a certain pre-paid amount of
energy but for example also recharges the electric car for example directly
from an
electric company socket, for example at home, preferably at least as one of
the
options and/or for example as long as the quota of free or covered energy has
not
been reached, preferably the service provider has automatic coordination with
the
electric company, so that for example even when recharging the car directly
from an
electric company socket, preferably the charge automatically goes through the
service provider, so that the service provider pays the electric company
(preferably
with the available reductions that it has through large scale deals with the
electric
company) and calculates this like a normal recharge through the service
provider's
recharge posts, so that for example the user has to actually pay only after
exceeding
the covered monthly quota. Another possible variation is that for example when
connecting to a normal electric company socket the car's computer (preferably
based on automatically choosing the cheapest option) or for example the user
can
for example choose each time or for example on an ongoing basis. (for example
until
changing the choice) for example if to pay directly to the electric company or
to pay
through the service provider (so that for example the user or the computer
will
choose to pay through the service provider for example if this is still below
the
covered for example monthly quota and/or for example if the service provider's
rates even after commission are still lower than when paying directly to the
electric
company, for example due to the large scale reductions that the service
provider is
able to get). However, as explained elsewhere in this application, even when
the
user connects the car's recharge cable for example to a normal electric
socket,
preferably the car's computer and/or recharger and/or smart interface
preferably still
has to connect automatically for example through cellular or other wireless
communication with the main computers of the service provider and/or of the
electric company and work with their instructions and/or priority management,
so
that preferably the service provider runs the recharging of these cars for
example
directly or for example through the main computers of the electric company, or
for
example the electric company gets preferably regular or constant updates about
the
car priorities and/or other relevant data and/or parameters from the service
provider
and can thus for example implement the instructions to these rechargers also
directly, and/or for example the electric company can also for example
implement
the relevant car priorities or policies for example by setting its own
policies, but in
that case preferably there are clear rules of coordination and/or preferably
immediate updates between recharging run by the electric company and
recharging
run by the service provider, since otherwise there could be various conflicts.
Similarly, preferably if more than one service provider is allowed to run
electric car
recharging for example in the same or near areas or areas which get energy
from the
same electric company, preferably similar coordination and/or preferably
instant
updates are required, so that for example conflicts are avoided and/or for
example
clear rules prevent for example situations of overload or for example
situations
where one service provider takes too much power at a certain time and thus
prevents
the other service provider from operating in an optimal or reasonable manner,
and/or
for example one service provider offering higher priorities than are justified
for
example in order to appear more attractive to clients. In addition, preferably
in order
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to prevent monopolistic behavior, preferably at least if there is only one
service
provider in the relevant area or state or country and/or for example if there
is more
than one service provider, preferably the government and/or the electric
company
requires the service provider to comply with at least certain price
regulations, so that
for example the prices or rates charged by the service provider at least for
the
electricity preferably have to be authorized for example by government
authorities
(for example like electric company rates) and/or for example have to comply
with
certain rules, so that for example the rates at least for the electricity
itself preferably
have to be cheaper or substantially cheaper for example compared to the rates
normally charged by the electric company for example for the same amount of
energy for example when normally charging devices other than electric cars for
example on average or for example at the same hours (since the automatic
priority
management of electric car recharging can be much more efficient than normal
electricity usage), or for example at least if the user for example recharges
through a
normal socket of the electric company and/or chooses to pay through the
electric
company, and/or for example the service provider is required to allow users
that
don't want to use a monthly subscription and/or for example own their own
battery
to pay just for the electricity and/or other services according to the allowed
rates
and/or rules, and/or for example if the user works with the service provider
for
example based on a for example monthly subscription, preferably the service
provider lists or has to list separately the charges for the energy part of
the monthly
charges for example in service contracts and/or in for example monthly bills
(or
other period), and/or for example the service provider preferably reports or
has to
report to the user also the total amount of electricity which the user
received for
example through the month (or other period) for example through direct
charging or
through battery swap (preferably the service provider reports the data for
these two
sources for example together and/or also separately), which can also be good
for the
service provide since it preferably increases transparency and lets users see
that they
are getting a good and fair deal, especially for example if the service
provider has
invested also in setting up the relevant infrastructures or for example if a
certain
service provider is paying for example another service provider or for example
the
electric company or the government for example for using the relevant
infrastructures or some of them. Preferably the service provider lists
separately for
example on the monthly bill (or other period) for example how much the user
paid
for the car (if bought for example through service agreement from the service
provider), how much for the battery (if owned by the service provider), and
how
much for the electricity, and/or preferably also how much for other services,
such as
for example for returning the investment for the infrastructure (preferably at
least
for example the recharge posts and battery swap stations), maintenance,
parking
management service fee and/or for example the parking payments transferred to
the
municipal authorities (for example for users who choose to pay parking through
the
service provider, as explained elsewhere in this application), etc. Preferably
for
example on the service provider's web site the user can preferably for example
also
view for example other periods (for example by choosing a period between two
selected dates) and/or for example back bills and/or for example the expected
near
bill, and/or for example general statistics (preferably without any
identifying details)
for example about how much other users are typically paying, for example based
on
location (such as for example a specific town) and/or type of location (such
as for
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example living in a large city or in a rural area) and/or type of car and/or
amount of
miles or kilometers driven for example each month and/or average driving speed
and/or chosen subscription plan, and/or other parameters, for example in
general or
for example for specific chosen period. However, since even users who bough a
car
with the battery will want or need to use also the battery swap stations at
least once
in a while, preferably if the car complies with the supported standards of the
battery
swap stations and/or can be adapted to that, preferably the service providers
offers
such users a certain credit for their existing battery and/or a certain charge
if the car
needs for example some additional installation to enable compatible battery
swap,
so that the user can enjoy the full service. Another possible variation is
that for
example in some apartment buildings there are recharge posts in the parking
lot
which for example draw their power for example from the common building's
electricity room but preferably when using them the user pays directly to the
electric
company or through the service provider and then the electric company
automatically deducts this from the building's common electricity bill.
Preferably
this method can be used for example at least as a temporary solution and/or at
least
for example for installing recharge posts for example for people who bought or
for
example plan to buy soon an electric car and for example there is no
infrastructure
for electric cars yet in their area, since this way the service provider or
the electric
company do not have to lay new underground wires for example to the relevant
area
except for example a short underground or above ground cable for example from
the
building's electricity room for example to the parking lot or for example to
one or
more spots on the street near the house preferably at least if the recharge
post can be
used for example by more than one person in the building or in the street,
and/or for
example the coupling of recharge posts for example to existing street light
poles or
to electric power poles as explained elsewhere in this application can be used
for
example as a temporary arrangement for example for providing recharge posts
for
people who need it before a more full infrastructure is laid in their area, so
that for
example after digging new wires underground the same for example temporary
recharge posts can be for example rerouted to get their energy now from the
new
underground cables, and/or for example the service provider or the electric
company
preferably install the underground wiring for example from the nearest street
(or for
example neighborhood) switchboard or transformer to the location of the needed
recharge post preferably with additional underground modular interfaces or
stubs
along the way as explained elsewhere in this application, so that for example
when
adding additional recharge posts along that line the service provider only has
to dig
or open the cover over preferably small holes and connect the additional
recharge
posts, and/or for example areas where there are one or more early adopters
preferably get the infrastructure installed before other areas, preferably
based also
on additional considerations, such as for example the general plans for that
area or
priority or centrality of the area (the above two variations mean that
preferably the
service provider does not work differently than normal infrastructure
installation
procedures, except that preferably the early adopters and/or their areas can
get the
infrastructure or its skeleton before other areas, which has also the
advantage that
this way parts of the infrastructure can be tested in advance for example in
various
areas for example by at least some of the early adopters for example a long
time
before the full infrastructure is complete, so that for example various
problems can
be solved or improvements can be made for example based on installation
problems
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and/or user feedback preferably already after installing only a small percent
of the
full infrastructure). Preferably in order to speed up such special need-based
installation of recharge posts and/or local infrastructures or their
skeletons,
preferably for example users who already bought or ordered the car or for
example
signed up for one of the relevant subscription plans can get the recharge
posts
installed. preferably for free and preferably within a short time from the
time of
requesting the installation - such as for example within a few days or up to a
week
or other reasonable period, and/or for example users who want to order the
installation in advance before ordering the car or before signing up for the
subscription preferably have to pay some installation fee, and then when they
buy
the car or sign up for the subscription they can preferably get back for
example a
full or partial refund for the installation cost. Similarly, preferably for
example if
there are free recharge sockets offered for example in certain places for
example by
the municipality or for example by certain resorts such as for example some
malls or
for example some hotels or for example some restaurants or for example some
big
shops or networks, etc., preferably such sockets for example have a special
unique
Id and/or for example some other special code or special marker or hardware
which
is for example pre-listed for example in a database for example in the main
computers of the electric company and/or of the service provider and for
example
according to these Ids or codes or other special markers or hardware the
service
provider and/or the electric company know not to charge the user or for
example
charge the municipality or the company that offers the socket instead, and
preferably
if for example such interface is stolen the owner can for example report its
special Id
or code and have that Id or code for example revoked. This is preferably done
regardless of whether the communication with the main computers is through the
outlet or for example through direct communication with the car's computer,
since if
the car computer communicates directly with the main computers it preferably
also
sends the unique Id of the outlet to which it connected or for example at
least its
exact location, as explained elsewhere in this application. In addition,
preferably
when connecting to such recharge posts preferably the recharge post or the
service
provider's main computer preferably automatically send a signal or message to
the
car's computer that indicates that this is a free of charge recharge post and
the car's
computer preferably automatically displays this information to the user.
Another
possible variation is that for example the service provider uses at least
sometimes
also the reports by the car about the mileage, but only for example as
additional
evidence for example in case of a mismatch and debate about the amount of
energy
reported for example not fitting the amount of energy measured. Another
possible
variation is that preferably similarly the smart recharger network or electric
network
preferably has also for example one or more higher hierarchy levels of for
example
gateways which for example measure also directly the current or power passed
through them and can compare it for example with the current or power reported
for
example by individual rechargers or other devices and can for example issue an
automatic alert if for example there is a significant mismatch between the
power
consumption reported for example by various rechargers and the actual amount
it
measures itself. In addition, keeping an internal recharger circuitry in the
car has the
disadvantage of substantially increasing the car's cost (and also increases
the weight
and takes up room in the car) compared to an electric car that only relies on
external
recharging of the recharge post. On the other hand, keeping the recharger
inside the
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electric cars has other advantages - for example because it enables building a
much
cheaper infrastructure, since the recharge posts do not have to contain the
recharger
circuitry and the heat dissipation unit, and this also has the advantage that
if for
example in the near future new types of batteries or for example super
capacitors or
for example other fast electricity storing devices become available in cars
which
might for example need a significantly different type of recharge circuits, or
for
example different types of recharger circuits are needed for different types
of cars
which are available at the same time, this saves the service provider the need
to
change the circuitry in recharge posts or add circuitry to them or have to
deal with
statistical distribution of rechargers for different types of devices, and in
addition it
enables for example to built cheaply more recharge posts than the number of
cars.
Another possible variation is that for example public rechargers or recharge
posts
preferably have software and/or firmware elements which can preferably be
updated
easily, preferably for example through remote preferably encrypted downloads
for
example directly from the main computers of the service provider, so that for
example programs for recharging new types of batteries or for example super
capacitors or other new storage means can preferably be updated automatically
from
a central place preferably without additional costs to the service provider.
Another
possible variation is that if an internal recharger is used in the car and for
example a
new type of batteries is introduced by the service provider, preferably a
similar
relevant automatic software and/or firmware update for example for the
recharger
and/or for the car's computer can also be automatically downloaded for example
from the service provider to the car's recharger and/or to the car's computer,
for
example through the direct cellular or other wireless communication between
the car
and the service provider's main computers or for example when connecting with
the
battery swap station (for example through wireless communication or through a
data
link) or for example when connecting for example through the data link to a
recharge post. So as explained above, if for example the electric car can also
be
recharged directly for example from a normal electric socket, preferably the
recharger unit within the car is also able to communicate and receive
instructions for
example from the electric company and/or the service provider, for example
through
transferring data over the power lines and/or for example through Wimax or Wi-
Fi
or UWB or cellular or other wireless communication, for example by using a
built in
cell phone or cellular modem in the recharger or for example in the car's
computer.
On the other hand if for example the car has an internal recharger but the
car's
recharger or for example the car's computer does not have such communication
abilities (i.e., for example the user has a prior art electric car, without
the
communication abilities and/or without a recharger which can increase or
reduce its
recharge speed or current or power consumption according to instructions),
then
preferably the user can for example use an additional intermediary unit or
interface
for example between the cable's plug and the socket, so that for example this
unit
contains also the cellular or other type of communication unit and preferably
a
unique ID of the user and/or of the car which is preferably communicated
automatically preferably with encryption, so that for example both the
cellular
number of the unit and the unique id can be taken into account for
identification
(using the cellular number alone for identification is not preferable since
hackers
might for example forge it), and preferably the car's normal cable is replaced
by a
cable that contains also a data link, or for example the car's power cable is
coupled
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with an external additional data cable, so that for example the interface unit
preferably contains on the wall side for example the normal for example 3 pins
for
normal electric sockets and on the other side (that connects with the car
cable's
plug) preferably has an electric socket together with an additional data link,
which
can be for example another hole or holes or for example one or more pins which
fit
in a hole in the plug (preferably the data link is based on two balanced
wires, which
can be cheaper and less sensitive to stress than an optic fiber and still
protected from
disturbances for example from the power wires), and the data link can for
example
connect to the car's computer or recharger, or for example the interface unit
contains its own circuitry for example for automatically opening or closing
the
electric connection or for example controlling the amount of current and/or
power
and/or for example increasing or reducing the recharge speed or average
current or
power for example by creating a desired sequence of closing and opening the
connection multiple times for example every few seconds so minutes or other
reasonable period in order to create statistically an effect similar to
reducing or
increasing the current or power or reducing or increasing the recharge speed
and/or
for example by changing the voltage and/or other electronic means (or for
example
the user can by for example a cellular or other wireless communication and/or
control unit for and example add it to the car's computer or recharger for
example in
a modular fashion). This is extremely important since if many users use normal
prior art electric vehicles which do not communicate with the electric company
or
with the service provider, then when many such people recharge at the same
time
the network could overload and crash. So preferably for such prior art
electric cars
the electric company encourages people to buy the above described or similar
interface unit, for example by using the unit also as a smart electrical meter
so that
preferably users can benefit for example from preferably significantly reduced
recharge rates for example at night preferably only by using this interface
(and
preferably when high amperage that is typical for recharging electric cars is
used,
preferably even if the user has already also another smart electric meter
which can
determine the time of day, preferably the electric company gives even such
users
only a partial reduction if they have are not using the interface unit), and
preferably
this interface unit costs approximately the same or less than a normal smart
meter
which can measure if the electricity is used for example at night or during
the day,
and preferably these rules apply for example also if this unit is for example
instead
built in for example in special sockets or for example private recharge post
for
example in the building's parking lot. Preferably the interface unit functions
as a
smart meter for example by sending to the electric company automatically the
data
about the amount of electricity or power used for recharging the electric car
and the
times of using it and so for example the electric company can automatically
cross
reference this data with the user's actual electricity usage for example
according to
the normal meter and can thus automatically give the user the reduction for
example
when calculating for example the final monthly bill. Preferably this unit also
contains for example an internal buffer and for example waits for
acknowledgements for its messages so that for example if temporarily there is
no
cellular reception it can for example keep the data and transmit it later when
the
connection becomes available again. Another possible variation is that this
interface
can also function as a smart meter also for reporting the electric usage times
also for
the rest of the apartment or for other devices in it or at least for some
other devices
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in it, for example by communicating with an additional element which is
installed
for example in the central electric switchboard at the apartment or for
example in
the relevant switchboard of the apartment for example in the electricity room
for
example at the bottom of the building (as explained also elsewhere in this
application) so that for example the smart interface reports to the electric
company
at the same time not only its own power consumption but also the power
consumption of the rest of the apartment at the same time, or for example it
automatically logs this data internally so that for example when the
apartment's
meter is checked once in a while the technician also collects for example the
logged
data from the smart interface unit, or for example the smart interface unit
transfers
this logged data automatically to the electric company for example one every
month
or for example other reasonable period.
But as explained above, if the car has its own internal recharger, preferably
it is an
improved recharger which can automatically increase or reduce its recharge
speed or
current or power according to instructions which it receives for example from
the
electric company's computers or from the service provider's computers, and
preferably it communicates directly with these computers for example through
cellular or other wireless communication as explained above, preferably even
when
connecting for example to a normal electric socket. In this case preferably
the
automatic communication from the car is preferably automatically used also for
example by the electric company or by the service provider to give the user
the
automatic reduction for example at night time. This also means that preferably
when
electric cars which have their own internal recharger connect to the service
provider's rechargers for example in the street or for example in parking
lots,
preferably public rechargers also have, preferably apart from preferably at
least one
socket for recharging electric cars that do not have their own recharger,
preferably
also for example one or more passive power transfer sockets for recharging
electric
cars that use their own recharger for recharging, and in this case for example
the
car's recharger can preferably for example communicate with the public
recharge
post for example by cellular or other wireless communication or for example by
a
direct additional data link, and/or for example after the user accesses the
recharge
post for example by passing for example a smart card or credit card or other
device
through an interface on the post and/or for example entering a password or
secret
code and/or for example by using a cable with a data link or by transferring
for
example at least the identification data over the power line, then preferably
for
example the car's internal recharger for example does not need to communicate
with
the public recharger or recharge post and can for example receive the
instructions
for example directly through the cellular communication for example directly
from
the electric company's computers and/or the service provider's computers
(which
means that for example in this case the cable and the plug can also be without
the
data link and for example the car's computer can also communicate the relevant
statistics and/or relevant needs and/or other parameters for example directly
to the
main computers of the service provider and/or of the electric company for
example
through the cellular or other wireless communication). (Since the
identification of
the connection between a specific car and a specific recharge post can be done
also
by automatic data exchange at the moment of connection, as explained above and
in
other places in this application, the main advantage of using for example a
smart
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card or credit card or other device and/or password or secret code is making
it
harder for a thief to recharge a stolen car, however, as explained elsewhere
in this
application, another possible variation is that for example the car and/or
specific
batteries can be automatically blocked from accessing the network for example
by
the service provider's computers for example after the car is reported and
preferably
verified a stolen, and so for example the identification might also be simply
based
just exchanging IDs through the data link without a need for further actions).
Another possible variation is that for example the user's smart card or other
device
might for example be linked or limited for example to a single car or for
example a
group of cars (for example belonging to a family or a company, for example by
defining this in the databases of the service provider), so that for example
if the
smart card or other device is stolen it cannot be used for example for
recharging
other cars. Another possible variation is that if is for example a prior art
electric car
which has an internal recharger without communication capabilities or ability
to
reduce or increase the recharge speed or current or power then preferably the
user
can use for example the same type of interface unit as can be used at home, or
for
example the additional alternative sockets at the recharge post contains such
a unit
built-in, or for example such an interface unit is also built-in for example
within the
private sockets for example in private parking places of buildings, since
otherwise
the interface unit might for example be stolen (so that preferably the built-
in unit
can also similarly control for example the recharge speed of even a dumb
internal
recharger of a car for example by lowering or increasing the amperage that
canpass
through and/or controlling a certain statistical pattern of closing and
opening the
connection, as explained above). Another possible variation is that for
example
when the connection is created preferably the interface unit becomes
automatically
mechanically locked until the recharge plan is finished as is preferably done
also
with normal recharging through the public rechargers or recharge posts, as
explained also elsewhere in this application, and in addition preferably the
user's.
plug that connects to the interface unit or for example to a recharge post
socket
which has such an interface unit built-in, is also preferably automatically
mechanically locked while the recharge is going on. However, since after the
recharge plan has completed preferably the lock is automatically released so
that
other users can recharge their cars, as explained elsewhere in this
application, this
means that preferably the interface unit is built into the recharge post
preferably
both in public rechargers or recharge posts and in private rechargers or
recharge
posts for example in the private parking lot, since otherwise the interface
unit might
for example be stolen after the lock is released. Another possible variation
is that if
the car's recharger has communication and speed change abilities then
preferably its
electric cable and preferably also its plug come in advance together also with
a data
link, like the cable of cars that are recharged directly by the recharger of
the
recharge post (as explained elsewhere in this application), and preferably
such a
cable can for example connect also normally to nonnal electric sockets but
preferably contains for example apart from the normal for example 3 connector
pins
preferably for example also one or more holes for the data link, so that for
example
when connecting to the appropriate socket in the public recharge post
preferably one
or more pins in the recharge post's socket connect into this hole or holes for
the data
communication. Another possible variation is that for example the same socket
in
the public recharger can be used both for recharging cars which don't have an
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internal recharger and for proving normal power links for a car with a
recharger, so
that for example after the data exchange the public recharge post can for
example
automatically switch into a different mode for example if it detects that the
car has
its own recharger and thus for example disconnects its own recharger circuitry
and
transfers for example the electric company's network's ac power on the power
cable
instead of for example the normal DC pulses from its recharger's circuitry.
However
that is less preferable since it wastes the recharger's circuitry, since if
separate
additional sockets exist they can allow for example an additional car with its
own
recharger to recharge at the same time, for example in a parking lot where for
example more than 2 cars can connect to the same recharge post (but on the
other
hand for example if in the street only up to 2 cars can connect to the same
recharge
post anyway, it does not matter if each of the two sockets can function as
needed
either as an active recharger or as a power connection, depending on the type
of car
that connects to it). However more preferably the socket for power interface
for cars
that recharge through their own recharger is preferably a physically and/or
mechanically incompatible socket, so that users for example cannot plug by
mistake
for example a cable of a car which does not have its own recharger for example
into
a power transfer post which does not have it own external recharger circuitry.
Another possible variation is that for example a socket in the recharge post
which
can automatically change its function is built in a special way that allows
both types
of plugs to fit in but for example a socket for only one of the types has for
example
one or more additional pins or protrusions which don't allow the incorrect
type of
cable to fit in. On the other hand, preferably the additional alternative
sockets for
power transfer are preferably the same socket both for prior art electric cars
which
do not have a rechrager with communication abilities or speed or current
change
abilities and for cars which have a recharger with these abilities, and
preferably the
recharge post can identify automatically which of these types the car's
recharger
belongs to, for example by sensing if the plug of the car's cable contains the
hole or
holes for the data link and/or by trying to communicate with the car's
recharger.
This means that preferably if for example the data link interface has for
example one
or more holes in the plug of the car's cable (which as explained above is a
good way
for enabling also connecting to a normal electric socket with the same plug),
preferably for example the matching pin or pins in the recharge post's
alternative
socket are preferably automatically collapsible, for example with a spring, so
that
for example if the user's plug does not contain the hole or holes for the data
link
then the relevant pin or pin preferably automatically retract into the
recharge post's
socket. Another possible variation is that for example the authorities for
example at
least in some countries do not allow cars to connect to normal electric
sockets
without the smart interface which can communicate with the electric company's
computers and/or the service provider's computers and control the recharge
speed or
power or at least can automatically close or open the connection, and so for
example
in order to import electric cars to that country preferably the manufacturer
(or for
example the importer) has to add the appropriate firmware and/or software
and/or
additional hardware for example to the recharger and/or to the car computer
and/or
other elements in order to enable these recharge speed or power change
abilities and
communication abilities (for example by adding an internal cellular phone to
the
car's computer or to the recharger) and/or replace the cable and plug with an
appropriate cable and plug that contain the data link (in case this is desired
or
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required instead of or in addition to the cellular or other wireless
communication),
or for example at least the plug and/or the cable have to be changed so that
they fit
only into a special socket in the interface unit or in the relevant socket in
the private
or public recharge post, and/or for example the electric company or service
provider
gives for example a significant or extended reduction for example at night
hours for
example only to cars with such smart rechargers - which is preferably also
substantially larger than the reduction that is received for example if the
user has a
prior art electric car which only uses the intermediary interface - because a
recharger
which can directly respond to instructions from the electric company or the
service
provider can work more efficiently than the power control which such an
intermediary unit can supply. Another possible variation is that for example
even a
car that has its own recharger can for example also operate at least in one
mode in
which it is recharged by the public post's recharger, so that for example
after
receiving a certain command from the public recharger the car's computer or
for
example the car's internal recharger's processor can for example automatically
disconnect the car's internal recharger and allow the public recharge post's
recharger to recharge the batteries directly as if the car does not have an
internal
recharger. Another possibility is that for example if the car does not have
this ability
to disconnect the internal recharger of the power batteries upon command,
preferably for example the importer or for example a service technician can
for
example preferably easily connect for example a bypass link which for example
connects the batteries for example to the car's cable without going through
the car's
internal recharger or for example also replace the cable to an appropriate
cable with
the data link (for example if the car is a prior art electric car with a
normal power
cable without the data link), and/or for example add a manual switch which the
user
can use for example to switch between using the internal recharger for example
when connecting to a normal electric socket or for example to a socket which
contains the smart interface, and for example for using the external recharger
for
example when connecting to the recharge post, and in such case for example
preferably the user gets a further reduction in recharge costs for example
only if
allowing the recharge post external recharger to charge the batteries. Another
possible variation is that for example the car batteries can come with their
own
separate interface for example to the car's cable or for example together with
the
alternative cable which contains also the data link and for example with or
without
an internal recharger so that for example the type of batteries or for example
of their
envelope can determine for example if the car's internal recharger will be
used or
not, and so for example by inserting the appropriate batteries with their
interface
preferably the car's internal recharger can be for example disconnected
anyway, or
for example the batteries or their envelops can for example add an internal
recharger
to a car that comes without it. Another possible variation is that for
example, since
public rechargers or recharge posts which function only as interface without
their
own recharge circuitry are much cheaper, preferably the service provider can
for
example at least initially for example spread different types of recharge
posts as
needed at the time (preferably based on the types of electric cars statistics
in that
area at that time), so that for example some of them contain the recharger
circuitry
(but preferably also one or more additional alternative sockets for more
passive
power supply for cars that recharge through their own recharger as explained
above,
or for example with sockets that can change their function automatically as
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explained above) and some posts contain only power supply or socket and
preferably the user interface for example for passing for example the credit
card or
smart card or other device and/or typing a password or secret code, etc.),
preferably
based on the statistics of the number of electric cars with an internal
recharger and
the number of cars without an internal recharger, or for example if all the
electric
cars have a smart internal recharger, then for example the recharge posts can
be for
example divided just to posts that contain only the power supply or socket and
preferably the user interface (for example 80%-90% or other reasonable ratio),
and
for example posts that contain fast rechargers, so that for example posts that
contain
the recharge circuitry are only or mainly fast rechargers which are used for
fast
recharging (i.e. for example enabling a full recharge for example in 1 hour or
for
example half hour or less or other reasonable time). Another possible
variation is
that for example there are for example at least some luxury cars that contain
a fast
internal recharger with sufficiently strong heat dissipation, and then for
example the
service provider provides for example also a certain spread of fast recharge
posts
which only contain for example the socket and preferably the user interface,
but
preferably enable for example preferably much higher amperage or power. But
even
in this case preferably the service provider provides also at least a certain
percent of
recharge posts which contain fast rechargers, since a certain percent of cars
might
need fast recharge for example each day (which might be the same cars or
different
cars, as explained elsewhere in this application) even if they don't have a
high speed
internal recharger, so having only passive recharge posts is less preferable
since it
would mean that only more expansive cars which have an internal fast recharger
could achieve for example a full recharge for example in an hour or for
example half
hour or less. Preferably the fast rechargers are visually marked or designed
in a way
that is clearly visually different from normal recharges or recharge posts so
that they
can be easily identified even from a certain distance of for example a few
meters or
more, and they can be for example interspaced at certain intervals among
normal
rechargers or recharge posts (for example on the street) or for example
concentrated
in a fast-recharge area (for example in parking lots), and preferably the user
can
request the main computers (for example through the wireless communication
with
the car's computer, or for example the car computer can do it directly for
example
from its own internal database, which is preferably for example automatically
updated periodically for example through the wireless link with the main
computers
or for example through the data-link when connecting to recharge posts) for
example to direct him/her to the nearest preferably currently available normal
recharge post or to the nearest preferably currently available fast recharger
as
needed and/or for example the computers do this at least some times
automatically
for example based on his/her needs and/or recharge priorities. Preferably if
the user
for example needs fast recharge for example beyond a certain for example
monthly
limit (or for example other period and/or criteria) preferably he/she can be
for
example charged extra or not charged extra for it and/or for example charged
extra
only by a certain extent or amount or rates for example based on his/her
service plan
(for example in money and/or credit or debit points), and/or for example if
the user
requests to use one of the fast rechargers for example even if his/her current
needs
and/or other relevant parameters do not justify it, preferably normal users
for
example have a certain for example monthly free quota also for this so that
they can
for example be charged extra if they exceed this quota and/or for example
based on
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their service plan, or for example the quotas and extra charges are the same
regardless of needs justification (but this is less preferably since it can
reduce the
quality of service for users who do really need the fast rechargers), and/or
for
example the service provider preferably takes into account also for example
the
current needs and/or demands and/or availability for using the fast
rechargers, so
that for example if in a certain parking lot for example of a work area for
example
there are sufficient free fast rechargers, for example the service provider's
main
computers and/or the local recharge post's computer and/or for example a main
computer in the area can for example decide for example at least on certain
days
and/or certain hours for example to allow recharging from the fast rechargers
for
example without extra charge and/or without losing credit points towards the
quote
or after the quote, and/or preferably when the user connects to a fast
recharge post
or for example requests to be directed to a fast recharger or for example
sends a
request or query about using it preferably the recharge post or for example
the
service provider's main computers preferably inform the user automatically for
example if this is considered justified for example based on the user's
current
battery state and/or other relevant parameters and/or needs which determine
car
priorities, and/or preferably if this is within the free or covered quote
and/or for
example how much fast recharge is still available for example freely until the
for
example monthly quota is reached. Another possible variation is that similar
rules
can also used for example in case of excessive and/or unjustified use of for
example
swap stations, and preferably this also takes into account for example the
amount of
congestion for example in the swap station. Another possible variation is that
for
example there are no quotas but for example using fast rechargers and/or for
example using swap stations automatically involves for example at least some
extra
charge (for example by money and/or credit or debit points), preferably for
example
while taking into account for example also the time of day and/or for example
which
day it is in the week and/or the current state of demand or congestion (since
for
example on weekends or holidays preferably the recharge costs are cheaper for
example even in daytime or for example midday time or for example in midday
there is for example more congestion in battery swap stations then for example
in
the evening or night), or for example using the swap stations at least when
justified
in fact involves receiving credit for example compared to recharging or fast
recharging during daytime since this enables the service provider to charge at
night
and thus reduce the energy cost compared to a situation where a recharge is
needed
during daytime or peak hours. Another possible variation is that for example
at least
some cars are sold without the actual internal recharger installed but only
for
example with a ready space or one or more compartments in which a recharger
and
preferably also its heat dispersion unit can be inserted, or for example the
battery or
its envelope can include also the internal recharger unit and/or for example
also the
recharge cable or an interface to the car's cable, so that for example the
type of
battery installed determines also if the car contains an internal recharger or
not.
Another possible variation is that for example the recharge post itself
preferably
contains for example a modular interface for example at the top and/or for
example
at the side so that for example the recharger circuitry and/or the heat
dissipation unit
and/or the relevant sockets can be for example preferably easily added to or
removed from existing posts, thus converting for example active recharges into
passive recharge posts or vice versa without having to swap the pole itself.
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Preferably if cellular communication is used, preferably for example the
cellular
communication between the recharge post and the main computers or between the
car and the main computers or for example between the car and the recharger is
preferably done for example mainly through Internet Protocol communication
and/or for example through the SMS network, since a large service provider
and/or
the electric company can use their size to get very cheap deals with the
cellular
companies. Of course, like in other places in this application, various
combinations
of the above and/or other variations can also be used.
If for example a high speed public recharger uses its own recharger circuitry
to
recharge the car, preferably even if it is connected for example to a 3-phase
socket
or interface in its own connection to the electric grid (i.e. a socket that
uses 3 phases
at the same time and typically requires 5 wires), preferably the cable that
goes to the
car still has for example only 2 or 3 wires preferably plus a data line, as
explained
elsewhere in this application, since the recharge is typically done with DC
pulses.
On the other hand, if the car can for example also connect to a 3-phase socket
on the
wall or for example in a public recharge post, this means that preferably for
example
the cable is still a 3-wire cable and for connecting to a 3-phase socket a
preferably
removable converter interface is used which makes the 3-phase socket appear as
a
normal socket, or for example this interface is internal within the recharge
post so
that even a 3-phase recharge post has sockets with only 3 power lines plus
preferably the data lines, or for example the car uses a five-wire cable which
ends
for example with two separate plugs, one for use with normal sockets and one
for
use with 3-phase sockets, or for example the plug has 5 pins preferably plus
the data
connection and for example when connecting to a non 3-phase socket preferably
for
example the two extra pins for example automatically collapse into the plug
for
example with a spring, and/or for example a similar arrangement can be used
for
example if a 5-wire cable is connected to a socket in the car.
In addition, preferably each recharge post or for example each socket or
connection in the public recharge post or recharger (preferably regardless of
if it is
an active or a passive recharger or socket, i.e. if it contains its own
recharger
circuitry) preferably comes with its own fuse and preferably also residual
current
device or for example these two types of fuses are combined into the same
device,
so that for example in case of a malfunction in any socket or connection (for
example due to a short circuit in the cable or connection or for example due
to a car
hitting a recharge post) preferably it does not affect for example the other
socket or
sockets or cables or other connections on the same post or for example other
nearby
posts, and preferably for example at least each group of posts is protected by
at least
one spike-protection unit (so for example each such unit can protect for
example a
few dozen rechargers or recharge posts or other reasonable number), so that
sudden
large jumps in voltage or current preferably do not cause damage to important
or
expensive components, and preferably the system can automatically sense and
report for example to the service provider's main computers for example if a
recharge post or socket or cable or other connection or other element or
elements in
the recharge post malfunctions or for example a fuse has jumped - for example
by
sensing if there is voltage after the fuse (for example by two cheap
resistors).
However, assuming that most recharge posts preferably contain just two sockets
for
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recharging one car before the recharge post and one car after it as explained
elsewhere in this application and in order to save costs preferably each such
recharge post has only one fuse and one residual current device (or combined
into
the same device as explained above) for both of its sockets. In addition, for
example
in case of a power outage preferably for example when power is restored
preferably
for example the main computers of the service provider or of the electric
company
can preferably automatically control the pattern and order of returning power
to
rechargers, for example by automatically closing or reopening gateways in
various
areas and/or for example by sending automatically commands to recharges (for
example if the recharges are in the cars, thus receiving commands wirelessly,
or for
example to public rechargers or recharge posts, which preferably have at least
one
backup battery for keeping the communication and at preferably least some
circuitry
or processors open even when there is no electric power from the grid) for
example
to shut themselves off and not to start working again for example for a
certain time
period and/or for example until receiving a command to start working again,
and
preferably apart from consideration of quickly and safely restoring the power
after
the outage, preferably the computers also take into account the various car
priorities
when deciding on the order of restoring the power. So for example if the
recharge
post contains for example its own cellular communication unit, preferably the
backup battery can be used both for keeping the minimal circuitry and/or the
communications running - preferably for example both for receiving
instructions
during or when beginning to recover from a power outage and/or for reporting
malfunction and/or jumping of fuses, or for example only one post in a group
of
posts has the for example cellular or for example other wireless communicator
and
for example its neighboring posts are connected to it through underground data
cable as explained elsewhere in this application as one of the possible
variations,
and/or for example a single backup battery can be used for more then one post
for
example through their underground power connection or through an underground
data cable which can also carry some power or for example through a separate
small
power cable which is used for example just for the backup power. Preferably
the
power from the backup battery can be used also for example for powering for
example some LEDs with a special color or shape or some other visual indicator
that can for example signal malfunction, so that for example users can know in
advance which recharge posts are not operational, or for example posts that
work
properly for example have some green or other light or other visual indicator
that
shows this so that for example during a malfunction or after a fuse jumps the
light is
off so the lack of the normal light or other visual indicator becomes an
automatic
indicator of malfunction. Another possible variation is that for example if
the
recharge plan of some car has ended and/or for example if the paid-for parking
time
of that car is about to end or has ended, preferably the recharge post can for
example
flash with a special light (for example orange) or other visual indicator,
which
signifies that for example the cable can now be removed so that another car
can use
the socket or that for example the parking spot is about to become vacant, and
preferably these visual indicators are conspicuous enough so that a passing-by
driver
can see them from within his/her car. Another possible variation is that if
for
example the user parks for example in a parking lot of a for example large
mall and
for example forgets to write down the floor number and/or column and/or row,
and/or for example parks in a street and/or otherwise forgets where he/she
parked
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the car, the user can for example send for example through a cell phone for
example
an SMS or other communication for example to the car and/or for example to the
service provider's computers so that for example the car computer can
automatically
report back to the user the car's position for example through GPS or through
automatic locating by the nearby cellular company's cells or similar or other
means,
and/or for example if the car is connected to or a recharge post for example
even if it
is merely located near a recharge post (for example in its parking lot or for
example
in an adjacent or nearby parking lot or for example even at a distance of for
example
a few cars or more from the recharge post) preferably the car computer can for
example communicate with the recharge post (for example through UWB or
Bluetooth or other preferably short range wireless communication, which is for
example preferably limited to 10 meters distance or less, or for example
through
cellular communication) or with the service provider's main computers and get
for
example the GPS coordinates or for example the floor, row and/or column and/or
for example street name and/or number and/or similar or other location data.
and can
preferably communicate it to the user (and/or for example the user can get the
reply
through the service provider's computers, since they preferably have both the
unique id of the recharge post and of the car that is currently connected to
it) - since
such data is preferably entered anyway for each recharge post for example by
the
service provider, since it is needed for example also to enable for example
service
technicians to quickly find it - so that for example the service provider's
main
computers and preferably also the recharge post itself preferably have a
database
which associates the unique id of the recharge post (and preferably also for
example
of at least its near neighbors) with specific geographic parameters or similar
location
data, so that for example when installing recharge posts in the mall for
example the
installing technicians preferably enter into the recharge post's processor for
example
the floor, row and column, and for example the recharge post automatically
reports
this also to the main computers, which then keep this data also in their own
database. Preferably the user can also see this information for example on the
service provider's web site, so that apart from seeing for example how the
recharge
is progressing, as explained also elsewhere in this application, preferably
the user
can also see for example the street name and preferably also number in which
the
car is parking near a recharge pots and/or for example the columns and/or row
and/or floor if the car is for example in an underground parking place, and
preferably if the car is currently plugged-in and/or for example if the car is
currently
being recharged in practice or is for example in a waiting state or is for
example
currently giving back energy for example through the V2G services. Another
possible variation is for example to add similar functionality for example to
parking
meters even when there are no recharge posts there, but this is more
preferably done
with recharge posts since they have a communication infrastructure which
parking
meters typically lack and since for example in parking places in malls there
are
typically no recharge meters, but there will soon be electric rechargers.
Another
possible variation is that this is done for example by adding special
dedicated
devices for this for example every few parking places or for example at least
for
sub-areas of the mall's parking lot, so that said devices are programmed for
example
with the relevant coordinates and can for example communicate with the car
and/or
with the user for example through cellular or UWB or WiMax or other wireless
communication. Another possible variation is that for example at least in
parking
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lots where there is more flexibility in the placement of cars than for example
in a
street, preferably if there is for example temporarily a shortage of recharge
sockets
and there is still room for one or more additional cars to park for example
near a
recharge post that has for example only two sockets or otherwise does not have
enough sockets, preferably there are special mobile socket splitters which are
preferably issued for example by the service provider and can be used for
example
for converting a single socket into two or more sockets, and preferably this
extension socket multiplier can preferably for example be obtained freely or
for
example against some deposit, preferably directly from the service provider or
for
example from the parking lot manager, and can for example be installed by the
user
or for example by the parking lot manager. Preferably even if a car is for
example in
the process of recharging from the socket, preferably for example by entering
a
special code and/or for example by passing a part of the splitter which for
example
acts like a smart card for example through the smart card reader of the
recharge
post, preferably the recharge post can for example temporarily stop the
recharge
from that socket, and enable the user to insert the splitter and then
reconnect the car
that was in the process of recharging. In addition, for example to prevent
abuse
preferably the splitter can for example enable the new connecting car to
recharge for
example only if the car's who's recharge was interrupted is also reconnected
on one
of the multiplied sockets. In addition, the socket multiplier preferably
contains a
separate fuse (preferably including the residual current fuse) for each new
socket, so
as to keep again the recharging of each car independent from problems in other
rechargers.
If for example the system also enables for example returning energy from
electric
cars to the grid for example in times of peak demand, as suggested in some
articles,
then preferably this is done either by adding circuitry and/or for example DC
to AC
converters to the rechargers (for example in the car or in the recharge posts)
that
enables them also to draw energy from the batteries preferably in the way
needed by
the electric companies, or for example this circuitry is built-in in the
recharge posts
and for example if the car has a recharger of its own then preferably the
recharge
post can issue a command which preferably causes the internal recharger to
disconnect and/or otherwise enables the circuitry in the recharge post to
access the
batteries di.rectly. However preferably the circuitry for this is included in
the car
itself so that it can preferably be used also for example when connecting no
normal
electric sockets, for example by using also an additional coil or coils for
this in the
electric engine preferably added to or inherently built in the rotor so that
for
example the engine can be used as a special efficient transformer preferably
even
without actually rotating the engine (which can work much more efficiently
than for
example normal 3-phase transformers since the engine can act this way like a
unified large core for 3 transformers that share the same large core, thus
making
good advantage from equipment that is mostly already in the car anyway). This
is
preferably done for example by temporarily disconnecting the engine's
electrical
power unit from the typical 3 coils that are normally used in the stator when
driving
the car and powering instead preferably with only two polarities the coil or
coils of,
the rotor, so that the correct voltage and frequency is drawn preferably as a
3 phase
AC current from the stator coils preferably with the desired parameters needed
by
the electric company. This is preferably accompanied for example by
mechanically
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preventing the rotor from rotating if needed, and/or by appropriate cooling of
the
engine and/or of power unit and/or the relevant circuits or coils during this
process.
Another possible variation in that a similar configuration can be used also
for
example during the recharging of the car's battery or batteries so that for
example
the 3 phases of the stator are connected to AC input from the network but
preferably
in an order or way that does not cause the engine's rotor to turn, and the
current for
the recharging is then preferably drawn out of the coil or coils of the rotor,
and thus
for example less diodes are needed for the diode bridge that rectifies the AC
current
and turns it into DC. Another possible variation is that for example
preferably the
recharge posts can for example automatically route sets of cars for example
when in
V2G mode for example in a way that uses their step-down units (which are
normally
used when driving the engine) for example so that one or two or more car
batteries
are used serially in one direction and one or two or more car batteries are
used in the
opposite direction, so that synchronized change in their step-down units
creates the
desired AC voltage and cycles, and/or for example if the car includes internal
battery elements which can be routed more serially for higher voltage during
recharge this can preferably also be similarly used for example as desired
while
drawing back energy to the grid for example in V2G mode. Another possible
variatiQn is that for example at least in some places for example within the
same
area or parking lot there are also for example at least some DC line
connections
between at least some recharge posts so that for example they can also
transfer
energy directly in DC more for example from vehicle to vehicle, which can be
called for example V2V (so that for example this can be used for example to
for
example temporarily supply energy for example to the small number of fast
rechargers) or for example to other nearby local devices, and preferably this
is done
for example by automatic serial rerouting of at least some of the connections
for
example between groups of recharge posts and/or for example fast multiplexing
of
the lines so that multiple DC inputs can behave in desired aggregations of
voltage
and/or amperage. In addition, preferably for example when users temporarily
freeze
their subscription for example for a few weeks or other period for example due
to
traveling out of the country or other reasons as explained elsewhere in this
application, preferably during this period preferably they are requested by
the
service provider to leave their car connected for example to the recharge post
in
their normal parking place or some other recharge post so that the service
provider
can for example utilize their car's battery or batteries for V2G services
preferably if
needed also to a substantially larger extent than batteries in cars that are
being used,
since until the user returns the service provider can enable for example even
considerably deeper draining of the battery as needed, and preferably this
enables
the service provider also to offer the user preferably special credit or
revenue during
this period for example out of the revenue which the service provider receives
from
the electric company for this service, so that for example if the user already
fmished
paying for the car and/or the battery he/she can preferably receive a net
income from
the service provider during that time and/or for example a credit that enables
for
example free energy or mileage for example for certain time or amount of
energy or
mileage afterwards. However, since even for example fast Ml batteries or
similar
advanced fast batteries still have a limited number of available recharge
cycles, such
vehicle-to-grid movements of energy can shorten the life of the battery, so
preferably this is done only for example if the driver agrees to this in
advance and/or
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is done only in rare cases of for example overload emergency or other
emergency
and/or is for example accompanied by monetary compensation and/or credit
points
for example to the driver and/or for example to the service provider (for
example if
the batteries are owned by the service provider, as suggested by Agassi, and
even in
this case as indicated above preferably at least part of the revenue is shared
with the
car's owner for example in order to increase his/her motivation to always
connect
the car to an available recharge post even if no recharge is currently needed
and to
accept the fact that many times the battery will not be 100% full), and/or for
example this is done only or mainly with cars that have for example one or
more
super capacitors instead of batteries, or other technologies in which the
number of
recharge cycles is much larger or for example almost unlimited or with
batteries
where small-range discharge-recharge cycles of for example up to 10-20% have
only relatively small effects on the battery's life. In addition, preferably
the user can
for example see preferably anytime for example on the car's computer (for
example
based on automatic updates from the service provider's main computers) and/or
for
example on the service provider's web site and/or for example on the electric
company's web site and/or for example on monthly bills or reports from the
electric
company or from the service provider for example an automatic summary of for
example how much revenue or credit points or for example deductions in monthly
bills or for example over other periods the user has received for example
based on
the V2G services. Another possible variation is that preferably the electric
car
marketing and/or the marketing of the service provider's services are
preferably also
based for example on preferably recursive Multi-Level Marketing (MLM), so that
for example users who get additional users to join the service preferably get
various
reductions and/or other benefits preferably both to themselves and at least to
a
certain extent also to the people who joined through them, and preferably
these
benefits extend at least to a certain limit and/or certain tree-depth also
recursively so
that they can also benefit something when the additional people which they
brought
bring additional people on their turn and preferably for example users who
agree to
participate in this marketing for example add preferably attention-drawing
stickers
on their car for example with their phone number and an invitation to inquire
about
getting such cars with a reduced deal and/or subscription fee and/or other
extra
benefits. In addition, such V2G (Vehicle to Grid) features preferably also
take into
account car priorities and/or other relevant parameters and/or patterns and/or
statistics preferably according to the same or similar criteria as those which
are
preferably used in deciding recharge priorities, which also means that
preferably if
there is an intermediary service provider other then the electric company,
preferably
the electric company does not take any energy back directly from the cars but
this is
done again preferably through the service provider (which is more preferable),
and/or for example if it is done directly by the electric company then the
electric
company preferably gets preferably automatically from the service provider the
relevant instructions about car priorities and/or other parameters and/or
needs as
explained above (however if it is done this way then preferably the electric
company's main computers preferably also automatically update the service
provider's main computers in preferably real time about exactly when in is
done and
with which cars or recharge posts in order to avoid for example conflicting
recharge
instructions from the service provider, and/or for example the car's computer
for
example automatically updates directly the service provider's main computers
for
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example when the car computer or the recharger has been ordered or requested
by
the electric company to draw energy from the battery instead of recharging
it), and
of course it is preferably properly recorded for example by the service
provider's
main computers and/or by the electric company's main computers and/or by the
car's computer and/or by the recharge post so that when the car gets the
energy back
again it is not calculated by mistake as if it has been given more energy than
the net
energy it actually received. Another possible variation is that preferably
this is done
also for example with at least some of the batteries at the battery swap
stations
(which can be called for example B2G - Battery-to-Grid, which means that
preferably they offer the electric company the same or similar services as
V2G, but
from swapped batteries which are currently not within a car) - since for
example
while batteries are staying at the battery swap station they can also be used
the same
way for offering for example up and down ancillary regulation services or
other
B2G services for the electric companies. This is preferably done for example
by
connecting the batteries to individual recharges which contain also the
inverter for
converting to AC and drawing energy back from the batteries and/or for example
by
using serial rechargers which deal with multiple serially linked batteries
which are
preferably pre-sorted for homogeneity as explained elsewhere in this
application, so
that these serial rechargers can preferably also draw energy from the
batteries and
convert it to AC and can preferably supply the electric company directly with
higher
voltage AC (such as for example 1000 Volts or more or even a few thousand
volts
or more) which can preferably be automatically regulated into the appropriate
voltage and cycles as needed by the electric company and can preferably be
supplied
preferably directly for example to high voltage lines. This also means that at
least
some of the recharged batteries at the swap station will always be for example
at
most only 80% full at any given time or for example between 80-100 (or other
reasonable range) for example especially at peak demand time for example at
mid-
day, but this is no problem since as explained elsewhere in this application
preferably the car priorities and/or special or specific or current needs are
used also
in the battery swap station so that for example cars that need to go less far
or have
lower priority are preferably offered less full batteries at least if there in
an
insufficient number of fully charged batteries at the time and preferably the
net
difference between the charge state of the car's incoming batteries and the
charge
state of the swapped batteries is preferably calculated and automatically sent
to the
service provider's main computers for keeping track of the amount of net
energy
supplied to each car, and preferably users receive credit points and/or avoid
debit
points for agreeing to receive less than full batteries if they don't really
need
completely full batteries, as explained already elsewhere in this application.
(Preferably the swap station gets the car priorities for example automatically
from
the car's computer and/or for example by automatic updates from the service
provider's main computers). In addition, preferably the battery swap stations
use the
statistics about the car priorities and/or needs (which it preferably gets
directly from
the service provider's main computers) to plan the desired distribution of
percentages of various recharge states of the batteries, so that for example
if 20% of
the cars than reach the swap station need more or less 100% full batteries
then
preferably the swap station makes sure that for example at least 20% of the
batteries
are always fully charged - for example by automatically setting different
parameters
for each set of batteries for example for their recharge priorities and/or for
example
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for the allowed amount or percent of discharge by the ancillary or other B2G
services (for example by direct programming commands to the relevant
rechargers,
so that for example some rechargers allow to discharge up to 20% from the
batteries
that are connected to them or for example allow reducing the charge only down
to
80%, others enable for example only down to 90%, etc.,) or for example by
putting
a certain percent of the batteries in recharges that don't enable the
ancillary or other
B2G services or for example by removing and keeping the relevant percentage of
batteries away from the recharges once they have been fully charged. In
addition,
since after the car batteries (for example after 7 or 10 years or other
period) reach a
level of reduced capacity (of for example 70% or less) in which they are
preferably
cycled out of car use and replaced by newer batteries they can still continue
to be
used for the ancillary or other B2G services for the electric companies,
preferably
for example if the batteries are owned by the service provider the batteries
which are
cycled out-of commission for car use are preferably still used by the service
provider for example by selling or renting them to electric companies or for
example
by continuing to offer the ancillary services or other B2G services to the
electric
companies for example by connecting them to special individual rechargers with
the
appropriate inverters for example at the swap stations or for example to
serial
rechargers of groups of batteries as explained above, so that for example a
certain
part of the individual rechargers and/or serial rechargers at the swap station
are
dedicated for connecting older batteries to the network just for the ancillary
or other
B2G services, and/or for example special similar stations are built for
example in
more remote and cheaper large areas (but preferably not too far from the
centers of
the electric company generators or centers or from the high demand areas) so
that
there are for example large arrays of these recharges and inverters in areas
where
they are used only for out-of-commission car batteries. This way for example
if the
electric company pays example $1000 a year for these services per battery, if
the
service provider can keep offering this service for example on average with
each
battery for example even for 10 years after removing it from car uses, then
for
example the service provider can make over 20 years for example $20,000 back
on
each battery that cost for example $6,000-10,000 initially - thus practically
nullifying the cost of the battery including the financing cost and making a
nice
profit of it even beyond its use for driving the electric cars. In addition,
the service
provider can this way for example also buy used batteries for example from
other
car owners which owed their own batteries after a their batteries after few
years
reach a level of reduced capacity that makes them no longer desirable for use
in the
cars, and/or for example offer trade-in services where owners of old reduced
capacity batteries can swap them for new batteries or for example can sign-in
for
starting to use the service provider owned batteries for example for a reduced
rate
by trading-in their old reduced capacity batteries. This is preferably done
for
example at least during the transition period when there is still 'an
insufficient
number of electric cars in the area or in the country to fulfill all the V2G
needs of
the electric companies. This can similarly be done for example while building
new
battery,swap stations in new areas or countries where the penetration of
electric cars
is still non-existent or new or low, so that for example the service provider
can
transfer old out-of-car-cycle batteries from areas where they were used in
electric
cars for a sufficient number of years to new areas where the infra-structure
is only
being built now - since during this time in the new area there can be a
transition
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period in which the newly constructed battery swap stations have little work
and
thus most of the rechargers on these swap station would otherwise be sitting
idle
unless used for example for B2G services for example with old batteries.
Another
possible variation is that for example the service provider also buys some
stock of
new batteries in advance for example for the new swap stations or for example
for
offering them in as leased batteries for new clients and thus preferably
starts using
also them for example for B2G services until called into actual car service.
In
addition, as described already elsewhere in this application, preferably the
service
provider creates in advance example at least in some places stubs or stems or
interfaces preferably underground in advance in places where future rechargers
or
recharge posts can be added, preferably this is done also in battery swap
stations, so
that for example if the swap station uses an individual recharger for each
battery
then preferably underground interfaces are added in advance for new recharges
so
that they can be easily or modularly added later as needed, and if at least
some serial
rechragers are used which recharge each more than one battery at the same time
then preferably they similarly have at least the underground or high-above-
ground
higher voltage relevant infrastructure installed in advance so that additional
serial
recharges can also be added later preferably to a modular interface for
example
without having to dig tunnels or canals again. Similarly, for example if the
swap
station includes also at least a certain percent of high-speed rechargers then
as
explained elsewhere in this application preferably they can use also for
example
underground cooling at least part of the way or for example they can be on top
of
each other, for example with liquid cooling pipes which go up for example to a
large
heat dissipation unit for example on the roof preferably including also air
conditioners, and/or similar liquid cooling and/or heat dissipation units are
used also
for example on the roof also for at least some of the normal speed rechargers
in the
swap station, or for example the same heat dissipation units for example on
the roof
same both normal speed and high-speed of rechargers and/or for example both
individual rechargers and serial multi-battery recharges and/or for example
rechargers which recharge multiple batteries in parallel and thus preferably
share at
least part of the circuitry, thus saving costs. Of course users that own their
batteries
can instead prefer after the battery is removed from car use to buy an extra
recharger
and inverter or for example remove them from their old car for example if the
old
car has also other problems and for example keep their old batteries for
example in
their basement or garage and thus offer the ancillary or other B2G services
directly
to the electric company, but the service provider can for example offer the
electric
company also automatic aggregation services and/or the existing network of
commanding the rechargers so that for example the electric company will prefer
to
continue doing this through the service provider. Another possible variation
is that,
as suggested recently for example by Shai Agassi's company Better Place, the
out-
of-commission (i.e. out-of-car-use) car batteries can be used for example in
house
basements for the user's own needs of charging cheaply at night for example
from
the electric company while the rates are cheaper (or for example from wind
turbines
for example on the roof or other renewable sources) and using the energy at
home.
However, if this is done, preferably this is improved so that for example this
is
preferably done similarly also for example in industrial plants or other
businesses
where even more energy might be needed during daytime, and preferably the
house's or plant's or business's smart meter or for example the user's normal
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computers (for example through communication with the battery or the smart
meter
and/or through for example automatic updates from the electric company's web
site)
or for example the electric company's web site (for example through its
communication with the smart meter), can preferably for example automatically
recommend to the user and/or for example automatically switch the battery
usage on
or off as needed preferably in an optimal way for example based on his/her
normal
use pattern for example when it is best to use the energy from the battery and
when
to use it from the electric company (for example if the user needs large
energy
during peak time but in the morning it is still relatively cheap then it might
be better
for example to still use the energy from the electric company in the morning
and
then for example automatically switch to the battery power for example at noon
or
when peak demand time starts, or for example if the battery charge is
sufficient for
the entire day use then for example it is better to start using the battery as
soon as
needed), and/or for example when it is best to sell for example energy from
photovoltaic cells or wind turbines or other sources directly back to the
electric
company and when it is best to use them to charge the battery. In addition,
preferably the two types of use are preferably integrated so that the same
batteries
are preferably used both for cheap or free charging at night for use during
the day
and for B2G services, so that for example the user is preferably automatically
offered for example by the electric company a plan in which his/her batteries
are
also automatically used by the electric company for B2G as needed and the user
gets
automatically compensation or electric bill reductions accordingly, and/or for
example the electric company can also lease to users for example the needed
rechargers and/or inverters and/or for example controllers and/or other needed
equipment as part of the deal. This way preferably the decision of when to
route
energy to or from the battery and/or for example when to sell energy to the
electric
company directly or to use it are preferably carried out automatically
preferably for
example by remote commands from the electric company for example to the
recharger and/or inverters that control the battery and/or for example to
controller
that control the energy routing from the renewable energy sources such as for
example wind turbines or solar energy sources which the user owns. In this
case
preferably the service provider can for example sell the old out-of-car-use
batteries
to consumers or companies and/or for example the service provider leases the
batteries to them (and/or for example sells them or leases to them the needed
rechargers and/or inverters and/or for example controllers and/or other needed
equipment) for example for a certain monthly fee and/or for example the
service
provider gets part of the revenues from the electric company or from the user
for
these services or at least for the B2G services, and/or for example the
service
provider for example through its main computers for example is the one that
offers
the user the above described automatic recommendations and/or automatic
decisions
when and how to use the battery or to provide the B2G services and/or when and
how to sell for example energy from renewable energy directly to the electric
company, as explained above. In addition preferably the service provider
and/or the
electric company preferably use for the B2G preferably similarly user
priorities for
example based on their usage patterns and/or other statistics and/or
parameters
and/or special or specific or current needs as described elsewhere for example
for
the car recharging and/or for the V2G (so that preferably these usage patterns
and/or
other statistics and/or parameters are similarly preferably collected
automatically for
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example by the service provider's main computers and/or by the electric
company's
main computers and preferably in addition the user can for example through the
web
site of the electric company or of the service provider for example enter
specific
special or current needs for example for the next few days or for example
until
further notice), so that also when using B2G services preferably the service
provider
or the electric company can when needed preferably automatically draw energy
mainly for example from batteries which are least needed by the users at that
time.
Similarly preferably when recharging such out-of-car-use batteries for example
at
night preferably the service provider and/or the electric company also take
into
account the relevant user priorities which are preferably based as explained
above
for example on their usage patterns and/or other statistics and/or parameters
and/or
special or specific or current needs, preferably like when recharging the
batteries
that are used in electric cars, and/or preferably in addition preferably the
recharging
of the out-of-car-use batteries is preferably done properly in coordination
with the
recharging of the batteries that are still used in cars, so that for example
the relevant
priorities and/or other parameters are preferably taken into account both
among
batteries that are used in cars and among out-of-car-use batteries, and in
addition
preferably for example car batteries have in general higher priority than out-
of-car-
use batteries, and/or for example both sets of priorities are integrated into
the same
set while preferably giving automatically higher priority scores to batteries
that are
used in cars, i.e. for example using the usage type (such as for example in or
out of
car-use) as one of the important parameters. Similarly for example the
priorities for
recharging for example replaced batteries for example at the swap stations for
example at night are preferably also determined for example based on taking
into
account also the relative priorities for example for recharging batteries
which are
currently in cars, and/or preferably in addition preferably also various
statistics
which are relevant to the swap stations so that for example swap stations
which for
example based on their location for example typically get large numbers of
incoming users for example in the morning or early morning preferably for
example
get higher recharge priorities at night then for example swap stations which
get
more users for example at later hours, etc., and preferably the statistic
patterns can
take into account for example also different behaviors for example based on
week
days such as for example different behaviors on weekends. Preferably in
general for
example the recharge at night is preferably sufficient for recharging by early
morning for example all or most of the batteries within electric cars
preferably to
full or almost dull capacity and preferably also at least a certain needed
percent or
amount of the batteries in the swap stations or for example most or all of
them, so
that preferably for example the priorities at night are used mainly for
example in
case of problems for example if eventually there is insufficient wind power
and/or
for example insufficient energy for example from other renewable sources for
example to fully charge all of the cars for example in the country or in the
relevant
area or for example to reach the desired percent of renewable energy usage,
and/or
for example there is insufficient power from the renewable energy sources plus
the
current or desired amount or percent of night-time operating power stations to
fully
charge all the of the cars, and/or for example the priorities are used to make
sure that
users who need to use their car earlier in the morning will have full or
sufficient
charge on time, as explained also elsewhere in this application, so that
preferably the
service provider and/or the electric company preferably in general strive to
recharge
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as many cars as possible to as full an extent as possible for example
especially
during night time (since this reduces the chance that people will need
recharge
during daytime and/or peak time and/or the amount of daytime or peak time
recharge needed, and since for example most people who need for example an out
of
town trip out of the recharge range will typically go to a battery swap
station instead
of recharging during daytime), but for example if additional unnecessary
recharge
would mean for example having to put into action for example at the night for
example one or more power stations or for example older carbon burning power
stations which are otherwise not needed, then for example the service provider
and/or the electric company can for example decide to limit the night
recharges at a
certain point according to the relevant priorities and/or statistics and/or
additional
criteria and/or considerations. Preferably both in the recharging of the
electric cars
and/or for example in the recharging of out-of-car-use batteries and/or for
example
in V2G uses and/or B2G uses preferably for example the main computers of the
service provider and/or of the electric company preferably for example
automatically log and/or keep statistics also of cases when users for example
enter
special or current or specific needs and thus get temporarily higher
priorities but
eventually don't use them, so that for example in such cases or for example
beyond
certain allowed deviations preferably such users are for example charged extra
for
such false alarms or misuse of the system and/or accumulate for example
various
debit points and/or lose credit points for this, and/or for example users are
charged
extra anyway (for example in money and/or credit points and/or debit points)
for
example for recharge or fast recharge for example during daytime or peak time
for
example in general or for example when exceeding a certain quota, as explained
also elsewhere in this application. Of course, like other features of this
invention
various combinations of these and/or other variations can also _be used.
Another
possible variation is that preferably at least some fast car batteries are
constructed
for example from cells similar in design and/or function to the biological
power
cells of electric eels, which are already used for example for powering some
organ
implants, which can preferably be recharged an almost infinite number of
times.
However, since the driver's needs might for example change in certain days or
times, preferably users can also over-ride the normal priorities, for example
by
requesting recharge priority when needed, which can be done for example based
on
some preferably slightly increased fees for example at least in higher
electric load
hours and/or for example based on a certain quota of freely available recharge
priorities for example each month (for example up to N free hours or N amount
of
power for example available freely each months for example during daytime or
during peak hours, so that the user pays extra for example only if he/she
exceeds
this quota, and/or for example the recharge price takes into account anyway
the load
on the grid so that for example recharge in the night is almost always cheaper
than
recharge during daytime). Similarly, as explained above, preferably the system
takes
into account also for example global priorities, so that for example
recharging is
preferably done mainly at night automatically and/or for example in various
hours
when the load on the electrical grid is lower, so that for example preferably
only or
mainly cars that have a sufficiently high priority (for example based on their
current
battery level and/or their individual needs according to their usage history
as
explained above and/or for example based on special request) are recharged
during
problematic hours and preferably most electric cars are recharged during night
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hours, for example fully if possible or for example less the fully if a full
charge as
not needed or for example if there is still a problem of resources and
priorities even
at night, at least initially. Another possible variation is that the user can
for example
program for example the desired recharge hours for example in advance for
example
on a weekly basis (i.e. for example as a repeating schedule in terms of days
of the
week). and/or for example with specific dates if there is a special need for
example
on a certain day, for example by entering it into the car's computer or for
example
into a smart card (or for example by entering the planed destinations and
approximate planned times of departure so that the needed recharge times can
be for
example calculated automatically), so that it is preferably communicated to
the
recharger or recharge post automatically when hooking to it, or for example by
updating the data with the user's subscription Identification on the web site
of the
service in which the user is a member, but again, as explained above, this is
preferably taken into account with the above limitations, so that for example
recharging is encouraged mainly at night hours and/or is preferably avoided
for
example in rush hours unless necessary. Another possible variation is that for
example the service provider's web page and/or for example the car's computer
(for
example from its internal database and/or by communication with the recharger
or
recharge post or for example by update for example through cellular
communication) and/or for example the recharger or recharge post (for example
through its own interactive display (which preferably also has a keyboard) or
through the car's display (which preferably also has a keyboard and preferably
can
also respond to voice at least for some menu choices) - by communication with
the
car's computer) can preferably for example automatically recommend to the user
(for example based on the car's profile or statistical parameters as explained
above
and/or on the user's specific needs at the present, such as for example the
need to
drive today to a more remote place than usual) - for example if according to
the
distance of the fed-in destination and/or for example the current state of the
batteries
and/or for example the recharge facilities at the destination and/or based on
the price
difference between recharge now and recharge at night (and/or for example
based
on the user's remaining free quota of recharges allowed at daytime or peak
hours for
example for that month or other period) and/or other parameters - it is for
example
recommended to recharge now or wait for night hours or for example it is
recommended to recharge now only a certain amount of energy or for example
certain percent of the battery, or for example it is recommended to go instead
to the
near battery-swap service station (for example if it is sufficiently close,
for example
if the user needs to go to a far place and these are peak hours) in order to
swap the
batteries or for example recharge them within a few minutes for example from
the
station's own high speed batteries or for example super capacitors, thus
recharging
at a cost independent from the electric company's charge at those hours, and
preferably this is accompanied by information about how to get to the nearest
service station or stations if relevant and preferably by automatic estimates
of the
cost in each alternative and/or for example showing the user his/her remaining
quota
of daytime or peak hour recharges for that month or other period, and then the
user
can for example choose the more preferred alternative and/or for example make
further adjustments. Preferably when swapping the batteries preferably the
user can
also swap for example batteries which are half full or for example almost full
or for
example at various or any states (for example if the batteries are currently
at 50%
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charge but the user has to travel to a far destination) and then preferably
the user
pays for example just for or in a way that takes into account the charge
difference
between his current batteries and the full ones or for example gets
appropriate credit
or debit points for example if this is based on a monthly subscription (and/or
for
example this is taken into account some other way). Another possible variation
is
that for example when the user swaps batteries preferably for example the car
priorities and/or current needs are also taken into account so that for
example if the
user needs to drive for a longer distance (for example to another town) he/she
is
preferably given batteries that are more fully charged and/or for example
fully
charged and/or for example with higher capacity or for example at their full
capacity, and/or for example if the user needs to drive for example for a
smaller
distance and/or for example if there is for example a temporary shortage of
fully
charged batteries, the user can also be given for example temporarily for
example
batteries that are not fuIly recharged, such as for example only for example
80% or
90% charged and/or for example are a few years old and/or have their capacity
for
example reduced for example to 95% or for example 90%, and in this case also
preferably the user pays for example just for or in a way that takes into
account the
charge difference between his current batteries and the new ones or for
example gets
appropriate credit or debit points for example if this is based on a monthly
subscription and/or this is otherwise taken into account so that only the
difference is
calculated as energy which the user received, and/or for example the user can
get
some extra credit for example for agreeing to accept for example temporarily
batteries that are not fully charged or for example have a somewhat depleted
capacity.
Another possible variation is that for example the service providers which
operate
public rechargers or recharge posts preferably use their own super capacitors
or
network of super capacitors to power at least some of the rechargers or
recharge
posts, so that for example at least some of them can offer recharges at lower
rates
even at electricity peak hours (for example by using for example underground
local
super capacitors for example below a parking lot - for example powering a
group of
recharges, or for example by connecting at least some of the rechargers or
recharge
posts to separate power lines which are moderated or connected through by the
service provider's network of super capacitors, and/or for example by making
deals
with the electric company so that the recharges are connected normally through
the
electric company's wires but the service provider for example supplies the
electric
company with electricity through its own super capacitors which were charged
at
night and/or for example through its own facilities of renewable energy, such
as for
example wind or solar, and in return gets for example special rates from the
electric
company for example at various hours). Preferably the for example monthly (or
other period) subscription model is based on a certain constant amount which
preferably enables a certain amount of free mileage or energy per month (or
other
period), preferably including also preferably a certain quota of recharging at
peak
hours as explained above, and preferably the user has to pay for extra mileage
or
energy beyond a certain limit of free energy or free miles or kilometers (for
example
based on the energy consumption or for example based on the actual mileage
traveled during that period), and preferably like in cell phone subscriptions
users can
preferably choose among more than one or multiple available plans, for example
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based on their average for example monthly needs and/or for example based on
if
they bought the car or got it with the subscription, and/or preferably for
example the
car's computer and/or for example the service provider's web site can for
example
recommend to the user for example each month or other period the best
recommended plan for him/her for example based on the statistics of his/her
mileage
and/or other usage patterns for example during the preceding months or other
covered period. This also means that preferably for example the car's computer
and/or for example the recharger or recharge post can for example also display
and/or print for the user for example a monthly (or other period) summary of
his/her
recharges, for example showing the recharges on a daily basis (for example
based or
time and/or amount of energy and/or percent of recharge of the battery and/or
estimated mileage for which such a recharge is usually sufficient) and/or for
example the actual distances traveled (which is for example based on the
statistics
which the car computer preferably automatically transfers to the main
computers
through the recharger or recharge post), preferably for example together with
the
costs and/or credit points and/or for example debit points and/or for example
percent
of available free quota, and/or for example the various statistics and/or
patterns
and/or parameters which are used for determining recharge needs and/or
priorities,
preferably together with for example monthly statistics and/or charts (and/or
for
example from the beginning of the month until today), preferably through the
recharger's or recharge post's automatic communication to the service
provider's
main computers and/or for example through data accumulated automatically by
the
car's computer, and/or for example the user can view or print this on the
service
provider's web site, and/or for example the user can automatically get for
example a
monthly statement for example with the above monthly summary and/or daily
recharge data and/or statistics or any of the above data and/or
recommendations,
and/or for example various special deal offers, for example like getting the
monthly
Visa statement. Another possible variation is that the user can for example
view on
the service provider's web site also for example his/her average energy
efficiency
and/or for example his/her average speed and/or for example other driving
behavior
parameters which affect the energy efficiency - preferably also for example in
comparison with automatically gathered average statistics of other drivers
which are
for example using the same electric car model and/or for example in comparison
with other models - so that the user can for example see how he/she is doing
compared to others and can for example learn about which parameters have most
effect on this efficiency. Another possible variation is that for example
users can
also buy for example a special plan or privilege that for.example gives them
higher
priority on recharges also in general, for example by paying extra, but
preferably if
such plans are allowed they preferably only mean that the user's car can for
example
be recharged for example to a certain extent sooner for example among other
cars
with the same or similar priority based on their needs, but not for example
that the
car gets regularly recharged in more expensive hours without any need-based
justification, since otherwise such programs could damage the energy
efficiency of
recharging electrical cars in general. Another possible variation is
preferably there
are also for example family deals or for example company deals, so that for
example
in a family that has more than one car or for example in a company with
multiple
cars, if for example a certain quota of miles or amount of energy is available
for
example for free or covered for a certain period (such as for example a month,
i.e.
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the payment is global through the subscription plan), preferably this can be
for
example based on a global aggregate of multiple cars, so that for example the
family
or company has to pay extra only if for example the sum of consumption of all
the
cars that are in the program for example exceeds the free or covered quota for
example for a given month (or other period), and/or for example this can be
applied
also for example to the quota of available free daytime recharges or peak time
recharges. Another possible variation is that for example separate users can
transfer
credit point or debit points also between them, so that for example a user who
has
used considerably below the free or covered amount of energy or mileage he/she
could have used for example for a certain month can for example transfer at
least
some of the credit for example to another friend of user who has exceeded the
free
or covered quota (for example for a certain allowance fee or for example for
free or
for example for free only within a certain limit), and/or for example users
that have
used below a certain amount of energy or mileage for example in a given month
can
for example transfer the credit to the next month (or other period, for
example any
spare amount or for example only if the under-usage is below a certain
threshold),
and/or for example users who are for example traveling out of the country for
example for a few weeks (or other period) or for example are going out for a
few
weeks complementary service in the army (or other period) (or for example are
not
going to use their car for a certain period for some other reason) can
preferably for
example freeze their subscription, preferably in advance, thus for example
paying
for the relevant period only for the car and the battery but not for the part
that covers
for example the free or covered quota of energy or mileage for that month (or
other
period for example in any of the above variations). Another.possible variation
is that
for example state or city regulations preferably at least in some places
preferably
require for example that the service provider who controls the rechargers or
recharge posts and/or for example the battery swap stations in that area for
example
must offer service also for example to competing cars and/or cars that were
for
example imported by competing importers, since for example controlling the
rechargers or recharge posts is like a monopoly and it would be very
inefficient if
competing suppliers had to install separate recharge networks, and preferably
the
right to install for example the rechargers or recharge posts in a certain
area is won
in official tenders, and preferably the service provider has to offer the same
recharge
prices and/or plans also to owners of cars that were imported by competitors
for
example at least for users that pay per recharge and/or also for at least some
of the
available for example monthly (or other period) subscription plans (preferably
except for example for the part of the monthly payment that pays for the car
and/or
for example the part that pays for the battery, for example if the user also
has his
own battery), and/or for example within certain guidelines or rules
that.insure fair
use of the monopoly, and/or for example the service provider has to allow the
main
computers of for example one or more other officially allowed other service
providers to use the same network of rechargers or recharge posts, so that for
example when a car that belongs to the other service provider connects to the
recharger or recharge post, its digital code or for example the user's smart
card or
other identification means also tells the recharger or recharge post for
example to
which service or network the car and/or the user belongs, and then for example
the
recharger or recharge post automatically talks to the main computers of the
other
service provider for example until the recharge is finished, and preferably
the other
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service provider has to pay a certain amount or percentage to the service
provider
that owns the recharges for example for the time the recharger or recharge
post is
occupied and/or for example according to the amount of energy transferred.
However, preferably the service provider has the right to require a certain
standard,
so that for example only certain types of batteries and/or for example certain
standard interfaces are allowed or supported. Preferably the monthly quota of
allowed free recharge hours or energy for example during daytime or during
peak
time (for example based on the amount of time and/or for example the amount of
energy drawn during these hours) can preferably be defined for example based
on an
absolute amount and/or for example based on percentages of the total recharge
time
and/or for example mileage during that period. In addition, if the user is for
example
in a subscription arrangement in which he/she gets the car for free and has to
pay a
constant fee per month which includes the energy (such as for example around
$500-600 per month), and after for example 4 years the car becomes his/hers -
as
Shai Agassi has suggested, preferably this model is improved so that after
this
period in which for example the car and preferably also the battery has been
paid
for, preferably the user can continue the subscription under similar
conditions,
except that for example the monthly payments become smaller with the part of
the
amount that was previously going for paying for the car and/or battery.
Another
possible variation is that preferably this change doesn't happen sharply at
one point
in time but for example the payments gradually become smaller as the time from
the
beginning of the subscription passes. Another possible variation is that for
example
users who bought the car itself elsewhere or for example users that prefer to
buy the
car itself in advance from the service provider can preferably enter a similar
subscription, in which preferably a considerably lower monthly fee is paid,
which
covers for example only the battery and the energy. Preferably all of the
above
described types of subscriptions preferably include automatic insurance for
the
battery or batteries, so that for example the service provider is responsible
for
replacing the battery even for example when it reaches the end of its life
time. And
preferably for example when selling such cars 2nd hand to other people
preferably
the seller is allowed for example to transfer the same subscription
arrangements
and/or plans (i.e. preferably also including the relevant obligations) to the
buyer
without losing for example seniority and/or accumulated credit points and/or
other
rights (which means that for example if the original owner got the car for
free and
only paid for example a monthly sum that included both a payment for the car
and a
payment for the lease of the battery plus the energy so that for example the
original
owner would own the car for example in 4 or 5 years, preferably the buyer pays
the
seller a certain price for the accumulated partial ownership of the car and
takes upon
himself the obligation to continue the appropriate payments for example to the
service provider) and preferably the buyer can also for example add years to
these
subscriptions, and/or for example the service provider preferably has similar
or
special deals and/or service offers for people who buy such cars second hand
for
example even if they were not on such service plans before, and/or the buyer
can
switch programs while preferably using for example credit points or for
example
seniority and/or other rights which were sold to him/her by the seller, and/or
for
example users can also sell back or for example trade-in the car and/or for
example
credit points and/or other rights to the service provider or for example buy
such
second hand electric cars from the service provider, so that for example if
the user
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pays only a monthly amount for the car and the service, preferably the part of
the
amount that covers the cost of the car is of course accordingly smaller when
the user
gets a second hand car and/or end sooner (for example when the original N
years
from the original buying of the car in which the monthly payments include the
payments for the car end). This is very important since many people decide
about
buying specific cars also based on taking in account in advance what will
happen if
they will want to sell them for example after a few years, and many people for
example in Israel and in other countries prefer to buy cars only 2nd hand (or
third
hand, etc). The preferred stages of this recharge process for example in the
Service
Provider's recharge posts (which as explained above can be for'example in the
streets in residential areas and/or in town centers and/or work places and/or
other
parking lots), are shown in more detail in Fig. 4.
Another problem is that for example since various electric car models will be
available, for example both within the same car manufacturer and between
different
car manufacturers, and/or for example at least some types of bigger cars might
for
example require more batteries or for example a somewhat different position of
the
battery or batteries or battery cells within the car, for example the battery
swap
service stations might have a considerable standardization problem or for
example
might be able to handle only certain types of cars or batteries. So preferably
this is
improved so that for example certain standards or standard interfaces exist
(for
example in a way reminiscent of the various types of standard PCI slots or for
example USB or firewire in computers), so that for example various types of
batteries can have the same interface for example in terms of digital socket
or
wireless for communicating their digital data and/or for example can come with
a
standard envelope that fits in the battery cell in the car as explained
elsewhere in this
application, and/or preferably there are for example special mechanical and/or
for
example electronic and/or for example electromagnetic and/or for example
optical
markers and/or other markers which preferably mark the position and/or borders
of
the battery cell or the battery or its envelope and can preferably be
automatically
identified for example by the elements or units that swap the batteries,
and/or for
example there are additional or similar such markers for example on the car
itself
that indicate for example the model of the car and/or for example other
parameters
so that for example if some additional info is needed it can be accesses for
example
from a database according to the car model (such as for example additional
relevant
parameters about the location of the battery and/or special features that are
relevant
for that model). Preferably the unit that performs the battery swap is a for
example a
mobile robotic autonomous small vehicle (and/or for example which is also
controlled at least partially by a human operator) that can for example crawl
under
the car (for example completely or for example only its arms crawl below the
car) or
more preferably for example can access the battery for example from the back
or
side of the car, and can preferably locate automatically preferably the exact
location
of the battery cell, remove the battery, and insert the replacement battery,
and/or for
example the battery can be pulled or slid in or out for example from the back
of the
car (or for example from the right or for example from the left side) for
example by
robotic arms that come out for example from a wall or other vertical device at
the
swap post, so that for example the arms can preferably for example slide for
example up or down and/or sideways and/or extend themselves and/or shorten
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themselves and/or or rotate automatically according to the automatically
located
position of the battery cell (access for example through the back or side of
car is
more preferable since it can be made easily and cheaply and it is easier for
example
to slide the battery in and out horizontally, it has more room for the
interface, and it
can be easily used also for swapping batteries for example on the side of the
road by
a swap unit that approaches the car from behind, as explained also elsewhere
in this
application), so that in either of these variations preferably the battery can
be
replaced without for example having to lift the car or for example having to
access it
from a hole below. This has also the further advantage that for example the
same
kind of configuration and for example autonomous robotic or human controlled
vehicle can be used also for example by lowering it from a service truck if
for
example the battery needs to be replaced on the side of a road, as explained
also
elsewhere in this application. If such robotic preferably low vehicles are
used they
preferably have for example 3 or 4 or more small wheels which can preferably
all
rotate preferably in any direction. On the other hand, if for example the
battery has
to be swapped from below the car in a way that cannot be handled by simply
crawling below the car (which is much less preferable), preferably in the swap
station the cars approach for example service positions for example in a
format
similar to fueling positions, except that preferably there are markings and/or
mechanical guides which guide the car to a certain position, and preferably
this is
designed on a floating floor or a floor that has one or more chambers below
it, and
preferably for example some light changes for example from red to green or
other
color only if the car is aligned properly (and/or for example other visual
and/or
auditory indications are used for this), and preferably there is hole in the
floor below
the car which is preferably surrounded by a vertical border so that preferably
the
car's wheels cannot accidentally fall into the hole while moving in or out of
the
swap post, and/or for example only if the car is aligned properly for example
a door
opens below the car, and preferably for example one of these robotic vehicles
handles the battery swap from below, and/or for example before the hole opens
for
example some mechanical guides come up automatically and lock the car in
position
and for example when the swap is finished they are for example automatically
lowered so that the car can move out even if for example there are other cars
in front
of it. In this case for example after the robot's arms are located below the
battery
compartment for example a sliding door opens and the battery remains caught in
position for example by horizontal metal strips or for example hooks for
example
from the sides and these strips or hooks can preferably be released for
example
automatically after the robot arms are attached to the battery. In this case
preferably
for example when a battery swap is needed for example when giving service for
example at the side of the road, preferably the service truck carries also for
example
a mobile ramp which is for example in the shape of two metal slopes which the
car
can be rolled on, so that the robotic low vehicle can preferably enter below
the car
from the higher side of the slope. Preferably these low robotic vehicles can
also
work similarly for example if the swap is done for example in an installation
similar
to a car wash position, in which the car is moved forward automatically (and
then,
again, for example the robotic vehicles can for example access the battery for
example from behind the car (or for example from the right or left side) or
for
example from below and can preferably automatically locate the exact position
of
the battery cell as explained above), but the above variations are more
preferable
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since they are cheaper (especially for example if the battery can be pulled or
slid in
or out for example from the back or side of the car), allow putting more
swapping
positions in the same area, and enable cars to move in and out more freely at
the
same time instead of having to wait in line for the previous cars to finish.
In
addition, if the battery has to be removed from below the necessary opening at
the
bottom of the car might weaken chassis, so preferably if the battery is
removed from
below then preferably when the battery compartment door is closed preferably
the
door preferably automatically becomes interlocked preferably with the chassis,
for
example by locking it automatically also for example with knits to the
chassis,
and/or for example the frame of the hole that needs to exist in the chassis
for
example below (or for example on the side of the car or for example on the
back of
the car if the battery is swapped from there) is preferably especially
reinforced for
example preferably especially around the edges, for example by making the lips
or
frame of the hole for example considerably thicker than the rest of the
chassis (for
example by bending the metal for example in 90 degrees and/or for example in
180
degrees so that for example the entrance to the hole is like a rectangular
tunnel for
example a few centimeters long) and/or for example adding for example various
reinforcement strips for example next to the hole or the tunnel or near it or
around it.
However, even if the battery is removed from below the car, preferably it can
still be
removed by a swap unit which is standing at the side of the car, for example
by
lowering automatically a drawer below the car, as explained below. Another
possible variation is that for example the user can or for example has to for
example
press from within the car a button that preferably wo'rks only while in
parking (and
preferably for example only after an appropriate code or identification has
been
entered, and/or for example after the car communicate digitally with the
service
station or with the battery swap unit, as explained also elsewhere in this
application), in order to allow opening the battery cell and replacing the
battery,
and/or for example the cell that contains the battery contains for example on
its
bottom for example internal rollers or other mechanical moving parts that can
help
slide the battery in or out and are for example passive and/or for example can
be
actively moved by the car's computer (preferably by taking power for this from
the
small front battery) and thus for example can help the battery swap units,
however if
such arrangements are used preferably the battery swap service can also
overcome it
and switch the battery even without them for example in case the front battery
is
also empty or for example in case of malfunction. Preferably at least the
front cover
or door of the battery compartment is removed automatically by the car (for
example if the battery is slid out horizontally for example through one of the
sides
of the car or for example through the back or the front of the car, and if the
car also
automatically pushes the battery out for example at least partially,
preferably it
pushes it so that for example a quarter of the battery (or another reasonable
ratio)
sticks out of the car and preferably there are for example protrusions or
automatic
brakes that stop it from sliding out any further so that preferably it cannot
slide and
fall even if the car is standing for example on tilted ground, and then after
the swap
device attaches itself to the battery for example from below and/or from the
sides,
the brakes or protrusions are preferably released so that the battery can be
further
extracted and swapped with the more charged battery, and/or for example the
battery is automatically extracted by the car for example to full or almost
full extent
for example on a drawer, except that preferably at least part of the front
wall of the
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drawer (i.e. the wall that comes out first as the drawer is opened) is missing
so that
for example the battery is held at the front only at the corners and/or for
example
held by parts of the front wall which are preferably lower than the other
walls (for
example just 2-3 cm in height and for example sway from the positions in which
the
arms have to enter) and the battery is preferably thus accessible for example
from
where the front wall would normally be in a drawer, so that for example the
swap
unit's arms can be moved from the missing parts of the front wall preferably
to a
position under the battery. As explained also elsewhere in this application,
preferably the autonomous and/or human controlled battery swap unit is
preferably
based on or similar to a fork lift, so that its arms (preferably for example
at least 2 or
3 arms) can preferably reach below the battery, and preferably the battery has
for
example at least 3 or 3 hollow canals at its bottom which preferably continue
all the
way below it so that preferably the fork arms can enter below these canals and
can
preferably reach till the end of the battery and then can preferably pick it
up.
Preferably the canals are bigger in height and preferably also in width than
the
thickness of the fork arms and are for example square or for example
rectangular
shaped (and/or for example the canals are wider at the lower edge that is more
away
from the battery, for example with a cross section for example like an
inverted V,
and preferably in that case the fork arms preferably have a matching
triangular
shape), so that preferably while the fork arms are being inserted or removed
in the
canals the fork arms can preferably be moved in or out in the air in the
canals
height-wise and/or width-wise so that preferably there is no friction or at
least they
only partially touch the canal walls and/or the bottom of the compartment
until they
reach their destination (in order to reduce mechanical wear), and preferably
when
the fork arms are lifted preferably they fit exactly into the canals.
Preferably the
ends of the fork arms have hooks that go up so that when the arms are lifted
after
they have been inserted from below till the end of the battery these hooks
preferably
hold the battery also at the end, thus preventing it from falling off at the
end of the
fork arms preferably even if the car and/or the swap unit are standing for
example
on somewhat tilted ground. Another possible variation is. that for example
these
canals are also closed from below for example like pipes that go for example
below
the battery or for example through it. Another possible variation is that for
example
these hooks are for example folded within the fork arms while the arms are
being
inserted or removed and the hooks are preferably raised automatically when
they
reach the end of the battery (i.e. the part of the battery that is most away
from the
battery swap unit), and/or for example there are hooks for example at the base
of the
arms and for example rings or other shapes at the front part of the battery
(i.e. the
part that is closest the battery swap unit), so that for example when the arms
are
fully inserted the hooks also hold the battery for example through the front
rings. If
the battery is for example on a drawer that has been extracted by the car,
preferably
the fork arms simply pick the battery up and remove it and the for example
insert
the new battery from above, and/or for example the front wall of the drawer
can
then be further opened and the battery removed horizontally and the preferably
the
new battery is inserted in a similar way, and then the arms are preferably
removed
and the drawer enters the car again. Preferably such a drawer or for example
bended
arms or for example similar device can also be used for example if the battery
is
removed from below the car, so that for example the car automatically lowers
the
battery for example on a drawer with a missing or partial front wall and
preferably
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stoppers that prevent the battery from sliding out - for example by or low
front wall
of for example only 1-3 centimeters or other reasonable height and for example
with
gaps where the arms have to enter, so that for example after the arms are
fully
inserted for example below the battery they can for example lift the battery
above
the low front wall and thus pull the battery out sideway and preferably insert
the
charged battery preferably through the same process in reverse, and/or for
example
the battery has preferably appropriate protrusions and/or for example holes or
grooves for example on the sides so that the robotic arms can for example
easily
pick up the battery from the sides or for example pick up the battery first
from the
sides for example by one or a few centimeters and then insert for example one
or
more additional arms also below the battery. This has the advantage that in
this case
for example if the drawer or similar device moves sufficiently below the car
(for
example a few centimeters or less above the ground or for example completely
down to the ground, which can also increase stability) so that for example
there are
at least a few centimeters or more between the top of the battery and the
bottom of
the car, this can enable the robot to remove and replace the battery for
example even
without exact precision of movement compared to the car and/or without the
need to
attach itself also to the car as explained below. In addition preferably the
battery
swap process is done in a way that protects the battery from and/or
compensates for
example for movements of the car up or down and/or tilting for example due to
the
weight change and/or change in the center of weights while pulling the battery
out
or pushing the new battery in, which can be done for example by any of the
methods
described below. For example if the battery is still in a compartment in the
car at
least partially when the arms are preferably fully inserted below it, then
preferably
the compartment's top wall is preferably a height of for example 1 or 2
centimeters
(or other reasonable distance above the top edge of the battery, so that
preferably the
anns lift the battery for example about half of the available height (so that
for
example the battery is in the air within the compartment preferably with the
same
gap between the battery and the top of the compartment and between the battery
and
the bottom of the compartment, so that preferably while the battery is removed
it
does not touch the bottom or the top and/or for example there is also a
similar gap
sideways, and/or for example as explained already elsewhere in this
application
preferably there are for example rollers for example on the bottom (and/or for
example also on the sides) of the compartment so that the battery can
preferably be
easily rolled on these rollers in or out. However, preferably after the
battery is
inserted into the compartment and the compartment door is closed preferably
there
are for example springs or other elements that for example come down from the
top
(and/or for example also similarly from the sides) and lock the battery in
position to
prevent for example jumps relative to the compartment while driving, and/or
for
example the top of the compartment itself is moved down towards the batteries
preferably when the battery is locked in and for example moves up again during
the
swapping. In addition preferably the battery is covered for example with a
flexible
protective envelope, such as for example a preferably smooth surface and/or
low
friction surface which preferably contains inside for example a sponge and/or
for
example shock absorbing gel and/or other flexible and/or soft material.
Another
possible variation is that, preferably in addition, for example before
removing or
inserting a battery preferably the swap device attaches itself to the relevant
side of
the car (for example if the battery is removed or inserted from the side or
for
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example to the back of the car if the battery is removed from the back),
preferably
for example by hooking itself firmly to appropriate protrusions ands/or canals
and/or
other structures for example in the relevant wall of the car, for example by
using
knits (i.e. preferably connectors which enter a hole or protrusion or tube and
then
expand for example by moving an additional element such as for example a hinge
into them) and/or for example screws (but knits are more preferable since the
connection can be closed and opened much faster and with less wear over time),
and
preferably these connections are made for example both sideways and up and
down
with preferably sufficient distance between the connection points to achieve
stability, so that for example there is at least one connection to the right,
one to the
left one at the top and one at the bottom, for example with a distance of at
least 1
meter between the side connections and preferably for example at least 1 meter
between the top and bottom connections (or other reasonable distance) so that
for
example if the car or the relevant side of the car for example goes up or does
or tilts
due for example to weight changes and/or center of gravity shifts while
removing or
inserting batteries preferably the battery swap unit keeps the car stable
and/or keeps
the same relative orientation and/or height of the battery for example
relative to the
battery compartment and/or the car, since otherwise for example if the car
tilts the
battery might be scratched or bent, and preferably the swap unit has for
example at
least one back leg at further distance from the car (for example 1 meter or
more or
other reasonable distance) in order to increase stability even further. In
addition,
preferably the relevant parts of the chassis or walls of the car are for
example
especially reinforced for example at and/or between the positions of these
knits
and/or screws so that there is less possibility of the wall or chassis bending
in these
areas. Preferably the battery swap unit finds the positions of the for example
knits or
screw interfaces for example based on special mechanical and/or for example
electronic and/or for example electromagnetic and/or for example optical
markers
and/or other markers which preferably mark their position, and/or for example
based
on a database and for example digital identification of the specific car type
and/or
model, as explained above, and/or for example by aid of one or more video
cameras.
Preferably for example the robot for example first calculates the approximate
positions of the for example knit and/or screw interfaces for example based on
the
database according to the car type and model and for example relative to the
position of the battery compartments, and then preferably tries to find exact
positions for example the through one or more video cameras that can for
example
identify the relevant protrusions and/or for example relevant colors and
preferably
these interfaces or protrusions are for example colored in a special colors
which are
preferably sufficiently different from the normal surface color of the car. In
addition, preferably during the battery swap preferably the car computer
automatically locks the car's brakes so that it does not accidentally move or
slides
during the swap, and/or preferably also automatically locks the car's shock
absorption and/or suspension system in the same position in order to increase
stability even more, and preferably also automatically does not allow the
battery
compartment to open before the engine is stopped and preferably the also does
not
allow the user to start or to try to start the engine again until the battery
swap is
complete and the battery compartment is closed again. Another possible
variation is
that for example during the battery swap preferably the car is for example
automatically lifted for example by a platform below it for example by lifting
the
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lower part of the chassis for example even a small height of for example 5 or
10 or
more centimeters so that for example the suspension system or for example the
state
of air in the wheels no longer creates movement up or down or tilting in the
car for
example due to weight changes and/or changes in the car's center of gravity
(and/or
for example in order to assist the lifting preferably there are for example
special
markings on the car for finding the best places in which to hold the chassis
so that
preferably there are for example moving vertical elements which can for
example
automatically move to these location before starting to lift the car) (and/or
for
example there is a device that comes down from above and presses the car
downwards during the battery swap 'but that is much less preferable), and/or
for
example the car is stabilized during the battery swap by other means and/or
for
example the swap units attaches itself preferably firmly to the car during the
battery
swap by other means. (Preferably the attaching to the car for example with
knits is
preferably used at least in mobile swap units, for example when swapping
batteries
on the side of the road or for example in small or temporary swap stations for
example in small settlements). Another possible variation is that preferably
the car
computer also displays for example on its monitor for example the progress of
the
battery swap and/or the expected time to finish, for example based on sensing
and/or
participating in various stages along the way, such as for example
disconnecting the
battery connectors, opening the compartment door, sensing that the battery has
been
removed, sensing the new battery is being inserted, connecting the new
battery, etc.,
and preferably the computer also displays the exact charge difference between
the
depleted battery and the new battery, as explained elsewhere in this
application.
Another possible variation is that for example the battery swap unit includes
also a
shock absorption and/or suspension system of its own for example in order to
move
more easily together with the movement up or down and/or tilting of the car,
but
that is less preferable since a more stable unit can also help more to
stabilize the car,
especially for example if the car's shock absorption and/or suspension system
is
automatically locked during the battery swap, as explained above. Another
possible
variation is that for example the fork arms have for example sensors that can
sense
their distance from the bottom and/or top and/or for example sides of the
battery
compartment so that the swap unit can balance the forks even better for
example in
the middle of the free space and/or for example in the same orientation of the
compartment, for example by using mechanical switches and/or for example force-
sensitive resistors (for example over the length of the arms or for example
preferably at least at the top and bottom of the arms for example at various
preferably small intervals of for example a few centimeters apart), and/or for
example infrared and/or other sensors (since if the arms are below the battery
the
distance from the roof of the battery compartment is preferably sensed more
remotely), or for example by inserting for example also for example a
preferably
thin strip for example with additional sensors for example also above the
battery, so
that for example the swap unit's computer automatically adjusts the height
and/or
sideways movement and/or orientation of the arms based also on these sensors.
Since, as explained above there might for example be different types of
batteries
and/or battery compartment types with different parameters such as for example
different number or size of the canals or for example a different distance
between
them, preferably the fork arms can for example move for example not only up
and
down but for example also sideways for example together and/or relative to
each
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other and/or can for example also be extracted or contracted for example
compared
to the min body of the unit and/or the unit itself can move relative to the
car as
explained above, and/or for example the robot or human controlled swap unit
contains for example a number of swap-able front end interfaces which can be
preferably automatically changed for example according to the interface
needed,
and/or for example there are at least one or more different swap units or
stations for
example at least for some types of batteries or cars that for example require
substantially different methods than for example most other cars or batteries.
In
addition, at least if the swap unit is not manually controlled by a human
operator
(i.e. the unit is more autonomic), preferably the unit has various pressure
sensors
and/or for example video cameras and/or for example ultrasound sensors and/or
other sensors that can preferably detect for example moving objects for
example
between the swap units or its arms and the car, so that for example if a kid
or an
animal moves and/or position itself between the car and the swap unit
preferably the
unit can automatically for example stop until the object moves away.
Preferably the
battery has one or more sockets for example on the wall that is most far from
the
battery swap unit or for example on one of the sides or for example on the
bottom,
so that for example after it is secured in its position in the battery
compartment,
preferably a plug automatically comes into position for example through a
preferably small hole in the wall or in the bottom of the battery compartment
(which
is preferably just a little bigger than the width of the plug). The socket can
be also
for example on the top part of the battery but that is less preferable since
that could
be a problem for example if it is raining while swapping the battery and for
example
rain enters the battery's socket from above. Another possible variation is
that the
socket is for example on the front side of the battery (i.e., the side that is
most close
to the battery swap unit) and for example the plug comes in from the front
wall of
the compartment when it is closed. Another possible variation is that for
example
the envelope of the battery preferably contains a preferably water-tight door
which
can be for example electronically opened or closed, or for example is opened
mechanically automatically when the battery is fully inserted. In addition,
preferably
the battery compartment is preferably automatically ventilated in a way that
draws
away humidity, in order to reduce the chance for corrosion of the battery
and/or for
example there are humidity sensors for example in the space of the compartment
which for example report to the car computer the level of humidity in the
compartment. Another possible variation is that for example the swap unit has
humidity sensors that can sense if it is raining or if the battery becomes wet
can for
example automatically wipe the water from the new battery for example with a
special sponge before or while inserting it into the car, and/or for example
the swap
unit includes also a canopy that protects against the rain for example like a
large
umbrella, and/or for example at least in normal or stationary swap stations
preferably the swap locations are preferably always for example below a
preferably
stationary canopy or roof so that preferably no rain can fall on the batteries
during
the swapping, but preferably the roof or canopy is transparent in order to
give users
a more familiar feeling more similar to the felling in a typical gas station
and not for
example like in an underground parking place where there is a roof above the
car.
Preferably the battery swap units takes with it in advance the needed type of
replacement battery and for example keeps it in a basket or open compartment
on
itself and after removing the depleted battery from the car the battery swap
unit
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preferably moves the removed battery for example on to a conveyor belt and for
example takes the new battery from the basket or other storing place and
inserts in
the car, preferably while reversing the steps that were used for removing the
battery,
and/or for example the robot contains one or more conveyor belts on itself for
example for moving the removed battery for example to one side and putting on
the
fork anns the charged battery for example from the other side, and/or as
explained
already elsewhere in this application preferably at least two conveyor belts
pass
preferably near each battery swap unit - for example one for the depleted
batteries
that are removed for the car and one for the ready charged batteries.
Preferably if for
example the battery is for example later improved and becomes smaller,
preferably
it is made available for example also with an envelope that gives it a similar
size
and/or interface as the previous type of battery, so that for example older
cars with
the original larger compartment can still use it the same way and for example
newer
cars can be built with a smaller battery compartment that fits the new battery
size.
Another possible variation is that for example the battery contains for
example its
own wheels or for example rollers, preferably in an intermitted way with gaps
between them or for example the rollers at the bottom of the battery
compartment
are preferably intermittent or with gaps, so that preferably instead of
through canals
at the bottom of the battery and/or for example in addition to the canals,
preferably
the fork arms for example enter under the battery till the edge of the battery
and then
the arms are preferably moved up preferably with hooks at their edges, and
thus
preferably without having to pick up the battery it is preferably simply
rolled by the
arms outside while also resting on the arms, and the new battery is preferably
again
inserted the same way in reverse. This way preferably less precision is needed
since
the fork arms do not have to pick up the battery within the battery
compartment, but
preferably the robot still also attaches itself to the car and/or the car is
preferably
lifted up for example 10 centimeters by the chassis for added stability as
explained
above (Another possible variation is that for example after the battery
compartment
door is opened on one side of the car the charged battery is pushed in from
that side
and for example this causes the depleted battery to automatically come out on
the
other side of the car but, this is less preferable, since it means for example
wasting
more space for enabling these movements and/or for example having to use
another
swap unit also on the other side of the car). Another possible variation is
that for
example the battery compartment can for example be automatically moved by the
car's computer for example forward or backward for example within a certain
space
(for example half a meter forwards or back again to the center, or other
reasonable
distance) - so that this can be used for example in order 'to help balance the
car
better if the user for example loads too much wait in the baggage at the back
(preferably the weight is automatically measured for example by sensors that
measure for example the average level of stress on the suspension system - for
example mainly on the part that handles the back of the car. Another possible
variation is that the car computer can for example automatically warn the
driver for
example not to exceed a certain speed (and/or for example limit the speed
automatically) for example based on the load in the baggage and a database
that
shows the amount of danger of losing road grip for example in the front wheels
as a
function of speed and overload on the baggage, so that for example the
computer
recommends or temporarily limits the user for example to the maximum speed
that
can still be used safely with the excess weight in the baggage, and/or for
example
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the computer's warning is based on sensing automatically for example the hold
that
the front wheels have on the road for example when making turns. Another
possible
variation is that for example the car computer preferably automatically keeps
logs of
for example the number of turns or sharp turns which the user made with the
car for
example within the last minute and/or for example the last few minutes of
driving
and/or other reasonable time period preferably together with a speeds log for
the
same period or periods and can preferably automatically warn the user for
example
if the user is driving too fast for the number and/or sharpness of the turns -
for
example by comparing it with various relevant rules or database and/or for
example
also based for example on sensing also various parameters of the stability of
the car
on the road (such as for example the number of time the driver had to press
the
brakes sharply or for example the number of times the ABS has been
activated)(preferably in this case the car computer says specifically to the
user for
example through synthesized speed or prerecorded messages for example that
he/she is driving too fast for the number and/or sharpness of the curves and
preferably also recommends the maximum speed for these conditions) and/or for
example the computer can also warn the user similarly for example about other
dangerous driving patterns and/or behaviors that are for example incompatible
with
the current speed. Preferably the battery swap units are for example also
powered by
electric batteries (for example at least the mobile units) or for example
receive the
electric power for example from a cable that comes from above, and for example
in
order to reach the correct side of the car preferably the unit can
automatically for
example travel around the car for example with a certain radius, for example
freely
on it own wheels (or for example on a round or elliptical track, in which case
there
is preferably also a straight track which for example moves together with the
robot
for example on the round track and then the straight track allows the robot to
approach the car more closely from the round track and can preferably for
example
also rotate at a certain range of degrees and/or for example become longer or
shorter
as needed), and/or for example the car is for example on a rotate-able
rectangle or
circle, but the free wheels solution is more cheap and flexible. Another
possible
variation is that if the swap station for example temporarily does not have
sufficient
recharged batteries for example of a certain type then preferably the swap
station
can for example automatically reroute for example at least some of the
batteries of
that type for example to one of the fast rechargers in the station in order to
have for
example at least a certain reserve set of charged batteries of that type
preferably as
soon as possible. In addition, preferably the robotic swap units preferably
have
various protections against stealing them from the service station, so that
for
example they have a GPS or similar unit and are programmed to work only in the
area of the service station and/or for example they receive wirelessly a short
range
special code for example every few minutes (or other reasonable period) for
example from the service station's computer or for example from fixed devices
near
the battery swap post which is preferably encrypted and changing (so that it
cannot
be for example recorded and then repeated by the thief) and are preferably for
example programmed for example to broadcast for example wirelessly their
coordinates and/or shut themselves off automatically for example if they have
not
received the signal for example after a certain period, and this behavior is
preferably
embedded in their hardware. Another possible variation is that for example
even
with cars that don't come initially with swappable batteries preferably at
least some
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of them at least comply with some basic standards that enable for example at
least
replacing the battery for example after a few years for example with a more
advanced battery - preferably for example at a car service garage which can
preferably replace the battery preferably for example within for example 15 or
30
minutes or less for example on a lift preferably without having to remove too
many
parts in order to reach it, or for example without the need to remove almost
any
parts since for example a faulty or leaking battery might for example require
change
anyway, so in fact it does not make sense at all to make it hard to replace
the battery
even due to this consideration. Another possible variation is that for example
at least
some for example electric cars that do not come initially with swappable
batteries
(i.e. for example the appropriate interface for enabling fast swapping at
normal
battery swap stations) preferably at least are designed in advance for example
with
an appropriate opening in the chassis for example below or on the side or at
the back
so that for example a proper battery chamber and/or unit and/or interface
which
enables battery swapping (for example of any of the types or variations
described
elsewhere in this application) can preferably be for example modularly added
later
(such cars can for example be called cars with preparation for battery swap),
and/or
for example in some such cars or for example in gasoline cars that were
converted to
become electric preferably the battery can be put for example in the baggage
so that
it occupies for example part of it, preferably together with an interface that
makes it
easier for the battery to be swapped for example by robotic arms when the
baggage
is open, so that for example the battery can be automatically connected or
disconnected and preferably can be easily picked up for example from its
sides,
and/or for example at least in some types of cars for example a relatively
flatter
battery can be for example added preferably with swappable interface for
example
by welding and/or integrating a special additional compartment for example
below
the car so that for example the battery can be removed for example from the
side or
back of the new compartment (this can preferably be done for example when
batteries with double power density become available, so that for example a
100 or
120 mile range battery for example weighs for example only 75 or 80 Kilograms
and/or for example occupies only half the space of a 150 Kilogram battery).
But
preferably all or for example most electric cars preferably come in advance
with the
appropriate interface that allows fast swapping in standard battery swap
stations
since with the proper chassis design the cost for adding the replacement
interface is
relatively low and since otherwise the user has a much more limited range and
since
otherwise it is harder or more expensive to replace for example a faulty
battery, and
since according to Shai Agassi batteries typically now double in capacity
approximately every 5 years, so few people will want to be stuck with the same
battery if a much improved model is for example expected within a few years.
Preferably if for example the car comes in advance with swappable batteries
and the
user is on a subscription plan in which the service provider owns the battery,
and for
example an improved or much improved and/or cheaper battery becomes available,
preferably the service provider for example gradually replaces the batteries
to the
new type for example without extra costs to users for example by retiring the
old
batteries earlier for example for uses in homes and/or offices for example for
enabling the users to pay cheaper rates at night and use the batteries at east
partially
during the day and/or for B2G services, as explained elsewhere in this
application,
and/or for example without even having to retire batteries earlier since
normal
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expansion of more and more electric cars being sold will preferably need also
the
new batteries anyway. So typically there will probably be for example after
the first
2-3 years for example a constant situation where different generations or
levels of
batteries are circulating for example through the battery swap stations, and
so
preferably users can for example preferably get the more advanced batteries
for
example again based on their priorities and/or special needs at the moment, as
explained already elsewhere in this application for example based on battery
capacity, and/or for example at least for a certain intermediary period for
example
users that want to receive the more advanced batteries for example pay extra a
certain amount for example in their subscription fees and/or for example users
that
don't need the new higher capacity batteries for example due to their typical
daily
mileage and/or agree to use the older batteries preferably get for example
special
discount and/or credit points and/or for example other bonuses. Of course,
like other
features of this invention various combinations of the above and/or other
variations
can also be used.
Another possible variation is that there are for example in at least some
cities
public private electric vehicles - which are for example electric cars which
are for
example owned for example by the service provider and/or by the state and/or
by
the city hall and/or for example by the electric company, so that the user can
for
example insert a smart card or similar device which includes for example
his/her ID
and payment and/or credit and/or subscription data and can then drive for
example
to a destination within the city or even for example in another city, and then
after the
drive the user can leave the public car for example in one of the allowed
parking
places and preferably connect it to one of the rechargers or recharge posts so
that it
can be automatically recharged and/or so that another user can use it, thus
reducing
also the parking space problem (preferably the user is required to connect the
public
car to a recharger or recharge post when parking it and is for example
reminded by
auditory message if he/she forgets and/or for example cannot release his/her
card
until connecting the car to a recharger or recharge post and/or for example
can be
fined if he/she does not connect it). Preferably the smart card or similar
device also
automatically instructs the car computer for example to perform various
adjustments, for example in the seats and/or in the mirrors and/or for example
in the
chosen sound simulations and/or volumes for example for various stages
according
to the user's individual profile (which can similarly be used for example
similarly
also for adjusting private cars for example for different family members, or
for
example in private cars the users can for example press one of a few buttons
for
example for using the values of the relevant family members, so that for
example
the buttons are programmed and used for example like station choosing buttons
for
example in a car radio). For setting the seats position preferably the car
contains for
example electrically moveable elements which can for example move the position
of
the car seats or can for example at least change the position of for example
stops
that limit the movement of the seat for example forwards or backwards at the
desired position, so that for example the user simply has to push the seat for
example back or forth so that it stops and snaps automatically into the
desired
position when it reaches the stop. Another possible variation is that the user
can for
example use a lever or similar control also for example for lowering the seat
or for
moving it higher (for example at least for the driver seat and/or for example
also the
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other front seat), and/or for example this can also be controlled for example
by an
electric motor which can move the control so that for example by choosing a
certain
profile or entering for example a smart card or other device the car can for
example
automatically move the seats up or down according to the desired user
parameters
(for example either of the two fronts seats or at least the driver's seat).
Another
possible variation is that for example the drive wheel and/or for example the
position of the drive lever and/or for example the stop lever can also be
moved for
example higher or lower or nearer or farther from the driver for example
through a
manual control and/or automatically for example with an electric motor (so
that it
can also preferably be remembered and automatically adjusted per driver).
Preferably when the user ends the drive he/she can for example release the car
if
he/she needs to park for a few hours, or for example can decide to keep it
reserved
for example for a few minutes or for example even an hour or more (for example
'if
he/she needs to carry equipment to or from the car or get back to the car
shortly), in
which case preferably the user has to pay extra for example by money or credit
points. In addition, the user can preferably also for example pay a special
rate and
hire the car also for example for a day or more, at the end again returning it
to one
of the allowed parking places. Preferably these public cars contain also for
example
one or more internal cameras which automatically photograph the state of the
car for
example internally and/or externally for example when the user takes the car
and
when she/she returns it so that for example damages can be identified
automatically
and attributed to the identified user, and/or for example these cameras can
also be
used for example to warn the user automatically for example by visual and/or
auditory signal and/or for example by a message to his/her cell phone for
example if
he/she forgot something in the car for example on one of the seats or between
the
seats or for example in one of the compartments (for example based on
computerized visual analysis of the images and/or for example automatic weight
sensing). In addition, preferably these public cars contain a display of the
state of
the battery which is preferably clearly visible from the outside and/or also
on an
external display, and/or for example this is displayed clearly on the
recharger or
recharge post, so that users can preferably see instantly which such public
cars are
currently sufficiently recharged for their current needs. The public cars are
preferably also automatically recharged according to the above explained
parameters, so that for example while the car is reserved for the user it is
preferably
recharged according to the profile communicated by his/her card, like in
normal
electric private cars, and when such cards are returned to the public
available pool
preferably they are recharged for example according to global statistics or
general
statistics of the area (so that for example if approximately 70% of the people
in
general or in that area typically need only 40% battery power or more to go
home
for example from a working place, and for example 20% need 60% or more and for
example 10% need a full or almost full battery, then the public electric cars
at that
place are preferably recharged automatically preferably based on the above
statistics
so that the system preferably tries first of all to create the needed
distribution of
available charge states and then preferably automatically tries to avoid
recharging
too much in the daytime or peak hours except for a certain preferably reserve
safety
margin). Another possible variation is that the system can also gather for
example
statistics according to the individual cards of the users which came with
those cars,
so that for example assuming that in a work place or shopping center or for
example
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movie center the same users will later leave with such cars, this can generate
more
accurate statistics for that more specific area and/or for that specific day
or hours.
Another possible variation is that for example the above statistics and/or
parameters, and/or for example data about public cars which have just been
released
by the user, can also be used for example for predicting in advance
approximately
when parking lots or recharge posts are about to become available even for
example
in congested areas where for example at certain times it is hard to find an
available
spot, so that preferably the system can for example transmit this information
to
drivers, who are searching for a parking lot and/or a recharge post, for
example
through a GPS device or cellular network.
Another possible variation is that for example (with normal cars or with
electrical
cars) in smart systems where parking meters automatically sense if they are
vacant
(for example by infrared or for example ultrasound or similar technologies or
for
example by using one or more metal wires for example underground or for
example
in a grove in the parking spot which carries for example an AC current and can
detect for example by induction if there is a large metal mass near or above
it) or
occupied and can transfer this information automatically to drivers looking
for
parking and in which for example typically the driver can also extend the time
in the
meters from away for example through the cell phone (or for example even if
there
is no remote extension for example at least is some of the meters), preferably
the
system can also use the information about the remaining time in the meter
and/or
whether the driver has extended it to predict even more precisely when
approximately it is about to become available and transmit this information to
drivers who are looking for parking. Another possible variation is that for
example
once a nearby parking and/or for example recharging place becomes available
and
the driver gets an automatic notification that it is available preferably the
driver can
also order it in advance for example through the cell phone and start paying
from
that moment (preferably this is possible only if there is no car in the
process of
trying to enter the parking place before the order is fmished, as determined
preferably by the local sensor), and then preferably the parking place is
automatically marked as occupied or reserved, for example by a flashing for
example red light or other preferably conspicuous visual indicator (such as
for
example an "occupied" or "reserved" or "do not park" sign which appears for
example in the park meter's display, so that other drivers can see and
understand it
and so that for example if someone else enters and parks there after the order
was
made preferably a parking supervisor can easily see this and for example fine
him/her) and preferably the parking place is preferably immediately
automatically
removed from the list of available parking places which is transmitted to
drivers,
and preferably the parking meter becomes automatically physically locked (for
example mechanically and/or electronically) so that other drivers cannot enter
money into it by mistake without noticing that it is reserved (and/or
similarly for
example if a recharging post is reserved, the recharger or recharge post
preferably
becomes automatically physically locked so that other drivers cannot connect
to it or
insert a card in it without noticing that it is reserved), and preferably when
making
the order and paying for it the driver gets a code and when that driver
arrives at the
parking place preferably he/she enters the code for example directly in the
parking
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meter or recharge post or for example through the cell phone or other gadget
or
device, and then the flashing light or other indicator preferably immediately
stops
and the driver can park there, and/or for example when the driver is within
for
example 10 meters from the parking place the system identifies automatically
for
example through his/her cell phone that he arrived and for example
automatically
calls him/her for example through his/her cell phone and lets him/her reply if
to
deactivate the flashing light or other indicator. However, preferably if
someone for
example orders a parking place and/or recharging place but does not arrive
there for
example within a certain time limit (such as for example 5 or 10 or 20 or 30
minutes
or other reasonable time frame), preferably the parking place and/or
recharging
place becomes automatically available again and the driver who ordered it pays
only
until then and loses the reservation. Similarly, preferably if the driver can
receive
also for example a list of parking places and/or recharging that are not
available yet
but about to become available, then preferably he/she can also order for
example a
parking and/or recharging place which is not available yet, and then
preferably as
soon as it becomes available he/she preferably receives an automatic
notification for
example by an automatic call or for example SMS to his/her cell phone and then
can
for example complete the order. Another possible variation is that for example
at
least some parking meters and rechargers are united into the same device, so
that for
example the same pole (i.e. recharge posts with or without the actual
recharging
circuitry) is used for both of them, which can be done for example by
including the
electronics for both devices in the same device (for example when installing
new
parking meters or new rechargers), or for example by a deal between the
recharge
service provider and for example the city municipality, so that for example
the
recharge post or for example the service provider or the electric company (for
example through direct cellular or other wireless communication between
communication between the car's computer and their main computers) simply can
charge the user also for the parking time for example at the same time as
recharging
and/or also while being parked there for example during the recharging and/or
for
example after the recharging has ended, and sharing the amount with the
municipality (i.e. preferably transferring to the municipality the part from
the total
paid amount that covers the parking fee, for example with or without some
commission to the service provider for providing the charging service for the
parking part)(which means that preferably, for example as long as the
municipality
agrees, preferably every recharge post can function preferably by default also
as a
parking meter even without adding any additional hardware to it), preferably
with at
least some parking fee discount for electric cars in general and/or at least
while
recharging (even in the variations in which the car is recharged with an
internal
recharger this is no problem because as explained above even in these cases
preferably both the car and the exact recharge post are preferably identified
when
the user connects the car to it for example by a digital link in the cable
and/or for
example by passing the smart card and/or credit card and/or other device
and/or
typing a password or secret code in the interface of the recharge post),
and/or for
example the car's computer can also communicate for this directly for example
with
the main computers of the municipality, while providing the location for
example
through GPS and/or for example cellular cells triangulation and/or for example
through the communication with the recharge post which as explained elsewhere
in
this 'application preferably knows its exact location. The transfer of money
to the
_ _ ,
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municipality can be done for example at the time that the user connects or
disconnects the cable or when he/she enters or leaves the parking place, or
for
example based on a monthly (or other period) report and/or balancing for
example
between the service provider and the municipality. However, in order to
prevent
inefficiency by parking near a recharger while not recharging and thus
preventing
another car that needs recharge from using it, preferably the recharge cable
can be
pulled for a distance of at least 2 cars or more so that one or more
additional cars
can use the recharger even when not directly near it, and/or for example there
is a
surcharge so that parking near a recharger while not recharging at least for
example
at rush hours or for example after a certain amount of minutes preferably
costs more
than parking at a normal parking place. Preferably for example as long as the
cable
is still connected during the recharge or for example even after the recharge
has
ended, preferably the recharger or recharge post or service provider
automatically
continues to calculate the parking time for example based on sensing that the
cable
is still connected, and for example if the user disconnects the cable or for
example
does not connect it at all but remains in the parking place then preferably
the user
has to pay by normal means, for example by entering coins in the combined
device
if the combined device contains such an option, or for example more preferably
by
passing for example the smart card or credit card or other device and/or
typing the
password or secret code in the user interface, and/or for example the service
provider or recharge post can still charge the user also for the parking for
example
through wireless communication between the car and the recharge post or by
using
automatic sensors that can determine if the same car is still in the same
parking
place (for example by the same means that can determine if a parking lot is
vacant
or not, as explained above, so that preferably in this case the system also
checks for
example if the large metal mass has remained there all the time for example
after
disconnecting the cable or for example there has been a discontinuity which
indicates that the car has moved out and than a car has moved in a again),
and/or for
example the car's computer for example through the cellular or other wireless
direct
communication (preferably digitally signed and encrypted) for example
automatically notifies the service provider's main computers when the user has
left
the parking place (for example when the user starts to drive away for example
for a
distance of for example more than a few meters), and preferably the car's
computer
continues to send this message until receiving an acknowledgement from the
service
provider's main computers in order to prevent for example a situation in which
the
message has not been received for example due to bad communications and the
service provider continues to charge the car for parking eventhough the car
has
already left the place, and/or for example the service provider's main
computers for
example automatically query the car's computer for example every few minutes
or
other reasonable time for example before extending the parking payments (for
example if the recharge cable is no longer connected) (and/or preferably the
service
provider's main computers can also use for example sensors at least in sample
places and/or for example the communications from the recharge post for
example
to find out if the car's automatic report does not fit the other data, for
example if
some hacker managed to temper with it for example despite the hardware
encryption). However in order to indicate for example to parking inspectors
and/or
to the user that the parking is still being paid for and/or for example to
prevent
unauthorized cars for example from merely plugging a cable into the socket
even if
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they are for example not allowed to recharge or for example if the user has
not
entered the identification means for example at the user interface, preferably
the
recharge post or combined device automatically indicates for example by a
different
colored light and/or by other visual indication if the parking is being paid
for (such
as for example green light or other color if the parking is being paid for and
for
example red light if the parking is not being paid for, so that for example
even if the
cable has been inserted but the user has not identified himself/herself or the
car or
for example the car is not authorized to use that recharge post then
preferably the
light for example remains red). Preferably recharge posts that enable
automatically
paying also for the parking preferably have clear visual indicators that the
recharge
post serves also as a parking meter and/or takes care automatically also of
the
parking fee (such as for example by a special sign on the recharger and/or for
example the special parking status lights, for example if some posts do not
enable
this), so that the user can know if he/she needs to worry about paying for the
parking
separately or not, and preferably the recharge post also has clear
instructions about
how to pay if the user for example is not connecting the cable or for example
has
disconnected it and remains in the parking spot (for example if there is no
automatic
sensing if the same car has remained in the parking spot) and/or for example
warnings for example about special charges for example if a user occupies a
recharge post but does not recharge the car or for example parks a non-
electric car in
that parking place (unless for example this is automatically prevented, as
explained
elsewhere in this application), and these messages are preferably displayed
for
example on signs or for example on the display screen, if the user interface
contains
a display screen. Preferably the recharge post (or for example the car
computer or
for example the service provider's main computers directly for example through
the
car's computer or through the recharge post) for example reminds the user
preferably automatically for example according the local database of the
recharge
post or through communication with the service provider's database (for
example
with the car directly or through the recharge post, for example based on the
time of
day and/or the location and/or special rights of the car or the driver) if
payment for
parking is needed (preferably after asking the user approximately how long
he/she
intends to stay in that parking spot, which is equivalent to asking for
example when
the user intends to drive away with the car) and/or preferably asks the user
explicitly
(for example through its own user interface or through the user interface of
the car's
computer) if he/she wants to pay also for the parking automatically or wants
for
example to pay the municipality separately for example through other means, or
for
example has free parking rights for example in the area for example due to
being a
resident of the neighborhood, i.e. preferably even when charging the user
automatically for parking preferably the recharge post (or for example the
service
provider's main computers directly) preferably reminds the user about having
to pay
for parking (for example at least if it is during hours in which parking has
to be paid
for) and preferably requests his/her authorization for paying also for
parking.
Another possible variation is that for example free parking rights for example
to
neighborhood residents are automatically identified electronically, for
example
through the unique Id of the car, so that preferably for example the
municipality
automatically updates the service provider about free parking zones for
specific cars
for example based on car Id's (for example after the user makes the
appropriate
arrangement with the municipality), or for example through a smart card or
other
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physical device which the user can for example insert in some interface or
reader in
the car which is for example automatically read by the car's computer and can
for
example be automatically transferred to the recharge post or directly to the
service
provider for example with a preferably signed and encrypted digital
certificate, or
for example through the same smart card or other physical device which the
user
preferably passes in the recharge post (or for example in a reader in the car
for
example if the recharge cable contains also a data link, as explained
elsewhere in
this application) preferably when connecting to the recharge post, so that
preferably
at that time for example the recharge post also reads automatically from the
smart
card for example if the user has free parking rights and in which areas and
knows
automatically from its own coordinates if in is in a relevant area, and/or for
example
the service provider's main computers automatically transfer the unique car Id
and
preferably the parking times and the parking area for example to the main
computers
of the municipality (or for example to third party which manages collecting
parking
fees for them) and for example the main computers of the municipality
automatically know according to their own Database for example if that car has
free
parking rights for example in that area and/or time period and for example
automatically tell the service provider's main computers if and/or how much to
charge the user and/or for example the municipality's computers can charge the
user
automatically directly for example through the credit card associated with the
Id.
Anyway, the main advantage is that as explained above if the user agrees to
pay for
the parking through the service provider preferably for example the recharge
post or
the service provider (for example through direct communication between the
recharge post and the municipality's main computer or for example through the
main computers of the service provider or for example by simply automatically
making the payment or the payment commitment and thus indicating for example
through light on the recharge post that the payment has been made or is being
taken
care of) can preferably automatically extend the parking payment as needed,
which
means that preferably the user is for example automatically protected for
example
from having to plan in advance how much parking to pay for or from getting a
report if he/she stays a longer time and forgets to extend the parking payment
or for
example from having to pay in advance in certain increments of for example a
few
minutes or more such as for example in units of a few minutes or for example
15 or
20 minutes or more or for example one hour or more in advance, etc., since
preferably the service provider preferably enables automatically paying only
for the
exact time needed, and in addition preferably at least in some places and/or
some
time periods the service provider can make a deal with the municipality for
lower
parking rates for the end users for example based on the large scale
operations of the
service provider and/or its services for taking care of the parking payments
and/or
for example since as explained above the service provider preferably gets some
commission from the municipality for taking care of the parking payments,
preferably the service provider can share part of the commission with the
user, thus
offering lower parking rates than when paying directly to the municipality,
and
similarly for example taking care also for the parking means that preferably
when
the user reserves a recharge post preferably this enables for example the
service
provider's main computers also much more easily for example to reserve
preferably
automatically also the relevant parking spot and preferably indicate for
example by
appropriate flashing lights or for example other visual and/or for example
auditory
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indicator that the recharge spot and parking spot are currently reserved.
Another
possible variation is that even if the user for example for some reason
prefers to pay
directly to the municipality not through the service provider, preferably the
service
provide can still protect the user for example in case the normal parking
payment
has ended and the user's car is for example still connected to the recharge
post or for
example is still parking in the same parking spot. This is preferably done for
example by the user agreeing in advance for such "parking insurance" service
(and/or for example by the service provider's main computers for example
sending
an automatic SMS or other communication for example to the user's cell phone
or
other phone for example reminding him/her that the parking payment is about to
end
or has ended and needs to be renewed and offering the service even if the user
has
for example not agreed to it yet in advance), so that for example if the user
pays
directly to the municipality preferably this is done through the car's
computer or at
least the user updates the car computer about the time until which parking is
paid
for, so that for example the car computer can automatically notify the service
provider's main computer until which time the parking has been paid for, so
that for
example the service provider can automatically take care of extending the
parking
time if the paid-for parking time has passed, and/or for example if the
covered
parking time has passed and the user has not paid for an extension preferably
for
example the municipality's main computers for example automatically send for
example a query to the service provider's main computers for example whether
the
car is still parked there and/or if the service provider wishes to
automatically extend
the payment for the parking - and then preferably if for example the user's
car is
still connected to the recharge post or for example by any of the other means
described above the service provider's main computers determine that the
user's car
is still parked there, then preferably the service computer can automatically
take
over the parking payments (and/or for example the main computers of the
service
provider similarly for example automatically query the municipality's
computers for
example every few minutes or other reasonable time for example if the user's
direct
payment for the parking has been extended or not, but this variation is less
preferable since it is less efficient), and/or for example if the car computer
itself has
been informed about the end time of the parking payment, for example the car
computer can automatically contact for example the service provider's main
computer and/or for example contact the user directly for example through
cellular
communication and for example remind him/her that the paid-for parking time is
about to end and request instructions and/or for example if needed the main
computers can for example contact the user for example through SMS or other
cellular communication or for example email or IM or message on the web site,
and/or for example the user can inquire about the remaining parking time_ for
example through his/her cell phone and/or Internet communication and/or for
example change parking related instructions this way. Another possible
variation is
that for example similar services (such as for example the automatic extension
of
parking time as needed) can also be offered for example by the municipality's
main
computers for example if the user for example chooses to pay directly to them,
and
in this case for example the sensing if the user's car is still in the parking
place can
be similarly done for example by sensors and/or for example by direct cellular
communication between the car's computer and for example the municipality's
main computers, or for example this is still done for example through the
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communication with the service provider's main computers, and/or for example
the
service provider's main computers are at least used for example at least for
checking
if the user's car is still connected to the recharge post. Preferably if for
example the
free parking hours have arrived for example in the evening then preferably the
automatic handling of checking and/or extending the parking time is
automatically
renewed for example only the next morning or the next time when paying for
parking becomes relevant again. Another possible variation is that for example
similar arrangements or deals exits for example also at least in some private
parking
lots for example between the service provider and the owner of the parking
lot, for
example in malls or hospitals in which the user has for example free parking
for
example only for one hour or for other limited time, or for example in private
parking lots in which the parking is not free. In this case preferably for
example if
the parking requires payment but for unlimited time, preferably the user can
for
example pass his/her smart card or other physical device (for example the same
device which the user preferably passes for example when connecting to the
recharge post) for example through, a post at the entry to the parking place,
so that
the post preferably indicates visually and/or for example through lifting a
block for
example that the parking payment has been authorized and preferably can also
print
automatically for example a receipt for the user, and then preferably for
example the
service provider preferably charges the user automatically and transfers the
payment
to the parking lot owner, and if for example the payment is according to
parking
time then preferably the user can similarly for example pass his/her smart
card or
other device for example through a relevant post when entering the parking
place
and for example has to pass it again before exiting for example in a similar
post for
example in order to release an automatic block, and so when passing the card
or
other device again (or for example by similarly using for example an RFID
device
for example at some distance) preferably the parking time is automatically
calculated and if any amount is due for the parking time the user can be
charged the
proper amount by the service provider, and preferably these posts are located
at the
side of the car in a way that the user can access it without having to get out
of the
car, and preferably the user can also enter a password or secret code for
example
when passing the card or other device for example the first time or the second
time
or both, and/or for example the service provider preferably anyway
automatically
prevents payment for example if the for example smart card or for example the
car
has been reported (and preferably verified) as stolen and so can for example
tell the
post for example not to open the block in such case (preferably the post which
is
used for example when entering and/or when exiting the parking lot can be for
example a normal recharge post which is preferably stripped of sockets and
thus is
used for example only for the user interface and the communication with the
service
provider's main computers). Another possible variation is that for example the
car's
license number is automatically photographed for example preferably when
entering
and preferably also when exiting the parking lot and then the number can be
for
example automatically interpreted for example by OCR, so that the parking time
is
preferably automatically calculated and the user is preferably charged for
example
directly by credit card or for example through the service provider, and/or
for
example the car's number is for example kept in a database for example in case
of
later complaints or disputes. Another possible variation is that for example
the car
has also for example a preferably two dimensional bar code or other easily
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automatically readable optical mark which is preferably pasted for example
from the
inside of the front and/or back window. Another possible variation is that for
example the user gets a paper or card for example with a time stamp for
example
from a guard when entering the parking lot, as usual in the prior art, and for
example
when going out for example passes his/her smart card for example through a
relevant post or for example a guard keys-in for example the car's license
number
for example in a computer terminal in his/her post and so the guard is for
example
informed automatically if and how much the user has been charged for parking
already for example by the service provider for example while recharging in
the
parking place, and so the guard can know if the user has paid in full or for
example
has to still pay a residual fee for the parking, but this is less preferable
since the
above variations of automatic payments or similar variations can be much more
efficient and exact and require less human labor. Another possible variation
is that
for example the payment for example in such private parking lots can be
similarly
done for example by normal credit card or for example similar smart card or
similar
device which are unrelated to the service provider, so that the user for
example
simply passes his/her credit card or smart card or similar device for example
through
a similar post for example when entering the parking lot and preferably again
when
exiting, and preferably has to also key-in for example his/her secret code for
example the first time or the second time or both, and then the user is for
example
charged automatically this way. In places where there are pre-existing parking
meters, preferably the recharge posts, which preferably enable at least two
cars to
recharge from them at the same time, like parking meters, as explained
elsewhere in
this application, can be for example inserted for example between each two
parking
meters, or for example inserted next to the existing parking meter, in which
case for
example the user can pay for example either through the service provider or
for
example by using the old parking meter. Preferably if the recharge posts
enable two
cars to recharge at the same time, if parking is for example allowed on both
sides of
the street, preferably the positions of the recharge posts are preferably more
or less
parallel or substantially parallel on both sides of the street - since if for
example
there are actually two cars connected to every recharge post for example in a
certain
area of the street and if due to the cables people might be able to cross
easily only
between cars in the middle between the recharge posts and not between the cars
near
the recharge posts, preferably this way at least the same crossing point
exists also
more or less at the same position on the other side of the street. Preferably
in such
recharge posts preferably addition, preferably the parking spots are
preferably for
example marked on the street for example with rectangles so that for example
the
two adjacent for example rectangles or marked spaces are closer at the
position of
the recharge post and wider apart at the middle between the recharge posts
and/or
for example the distance between the recharge posts is designed so that it is
sufficiently larger than the average or typical or maximum typical length of
two
preferably normal cars so that for example by naturally wanting to park as
close as
possible to the recharge posts the cars will usually be at a larger distance
between
them in the middle between the recharge posts. (This is also the advantage of
for
example the variations discussed elsewhere in this application where the
cables for
example come down from a higher pole or poles above recharge post for example
into a socket in the car, since in such variations preferably pedestrians can
also cross
easily between cars near the recharge posts, however such variations have
other
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problems such as for example users who might bump into dangling spiral cables
for
example at night, so the cables in such variation preferably have to hang
above the
height of human heads - for example above two meters). Another possible
variation
is that for example at least in some places which have pre-existing parking
meters,
the service provider can for example have an agreement with the municipality
so
that for example the recharge post can be installed instead of the parking
meter (so
that for example the municipality can resell it or its pole for example for
metal
recycling or for example even sell the pole to the service provider), and then
the
service provider preferably must for example enable also any cars (i.e.
preferably
also non-electric cars) to use it as a parking meter, for example by accepting
credit
card payments also from non-electric cars, or for example the service provider
is
allowed to cut off the head of the parking meter and weld it for example to
the top
of the recharge post, thus using the recharge post's pole also for the old
parking
meter, so that this way preferably the rechargers do not occupy more space in
places
that already had preexisting parking meters. Another possible variation is
that for
example in places where there are pre-existing parking meters the recharge
post can
for example be added on to a pre-existing parking meter, for example by adding
to it
an additional layer - for example on top of it, and/or for example by using a
vertical
extension to the existing pole for containing the wires. Another advantage is
that
preferably the payment for parking through the service provider is
automatically
extended preferably while the user is still parking there for example as long
as the
free parking hours have not been reached yet, thus protecting the user from
having
to pay a fine to the municipality for example due to insufficient parking
payment,
and preferably the user does not have to pay for example in units of for
example 10
minutes or similar units as in prior art parking meters, since the service
provider can
preferably charge him/her for the exact number of minutes. Another possible
variation is that preferably each recharge post preferably contains for
example at
least one preferably physical fuse which can automatically break the circuit
for
example in case of a short circuit (for example due to being deformed for
example
by a truck or for example due to some other malfunction), so that preferably
such an
event does not affect the functioning of its neighboring rechargers.
Another possible variation is that for example the car's computer can report
to
the user for example through the direct communication with the service
provider's
main computers or for example through a recharge post for example also general
information such as for example what percent and/or what absolute number of
recharge posts and/or parking places are currently available for example in
specific
areas, for example based on queries in which the user requests to find the
areas with
most available recharge posts and/or parking places and/or based on queries
about
specific areas which the user wants to check in advance (preferably based on
automatic updates for example according to the sensors that can sense if a
parking
spot is available or not and/or for example based the automatic updates about
the
state of the recharge posts - for example by the recharge post itself or
through cars
that are recharging from them, and/or for example based on automatic
communication for example between the service provider and parking areas where
there is for example automatic counting of entering and exiting cars), and
preferably
for example the service provider's main computers can also for example
automatically recommend to the user (preferably through the cellular or other
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wireless communication with the car's computer) if for example due to the
above
situation it is recommended for example to reserve for example a recharge spot
and/or a parking place in advance (preferably while taking into account the
above
data about the percent and/or absolute number of available parking spots
and/or
recharge posts in the relevant area and/or for example other statistics about
the
typical behavior in that area for example based on the time of day and/or for
example which day it is in the week, etc.) and then the system can for example
offer
the user automa.tically to make the reservation and ask his/her confirmation.
Similarly, if for example a certain time has passed and the user has still not
arrived
at the relevant area and/or for example there is now more need for those
places
and/or for example the user has taken a turn in a different direction
indicating for
example that the user has apparently changed his/her mind, preferably for
example
the service provider's main computers can for example automatically tell the
user
that the preferably limited time reservation is about to expire and/or for
example ask
the user if indeed he/she has changed his/her mind and the reservation should
be
cancelled and/or for example automatically recommend to switch to an
alternative
reservation elsewhere. Another possible variation is that the car's computer
can
similarly for example report to the user automatically for example about
traffic
congestions and/or for example about where roads are most empty or in which
the
traffic is moving for example most smoothly - for example based on automatic
updates by the car computers to the service provider for example about their
current
locations (for example based on GPS and/or on automatic triangulation by the
near
cellular cells) and/or their current speeds and/or current directions, and/or
for
example the user can request specific reports about the current traffic
conditions for
example in specific roads, and/or for example the user can similarly for
example
ask the main computers for example through the cars' computer for example how.
much time approximately it will take to reach a certain destination, for which
the
main computers preferably take into account the available routes and the
current
traffic conditions, for example assuming that the user will take a typical
route to the
destination or for example based on an automatically accumulated historic
database
of average time for getting there from the current position in general,
preferably
with appropriate adjustments according to the current traffic conditions or
for
example after the user has chosen a route for example through a GPS guidance
module, so that for example the guidance module can also similarly answer such
questions, or for example the car computer can automatically broadcast this
data to
the service provider's main computers, or for example the car computer can get
the
relevant traffic data from the main computers and can then use it to answer
the user.
Another possible variation is that can for example the car's computer can
display to
the user (for example on a display and/or for example through synthesized
speech)
for example reports for example about the nature of specific problems, such as
for
example an accident in the road ahead - so that for example after one or more
users
report about a specific problem for example the service provider can send
automatic
updates at least for example to the relevant cars which are now in the
relevant road
for example up to a certain distance and headed in he relevant direction.
Another
possible variation is that for example at least in the immediate area of the
problem
that is causing the road block - such as for example an accident or for
example a
stuck car or for example some other obstacle for example in at least one lane,
preferably cars can for example automatically communicate between themselves
for
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example directly or for example through the service provider for example in
order to
automatically increase the efficiency and/or coordination between cars for
example
when passing the problematic spot, so that for example cars that have to
change
their lane at the problem spot merge with the traffic of other lanes more
efficiently.
By doing this for example at the problem location the traffic in that location
can
preferably automatically start to move faster and thus affect for example the
entire
traffic jam without a need for additional such automatically improved
coordination
for example between cars further along the way, or for example the service
provider's computers can also for example send a message at the same time to
multiple cars in the line for example that they can now start moving faster,
thus
helping the effect of easing up the problem propagate faster. Another possible
variation is that for example similar automatic reports are available for
example to
the car's computer for example through the service provider also for example
about
the current state of for example nearby battery swap stations, so that for
example the
user can know in advance for example how congested or free a certain battery
swap
station currently is and/or for example what is currently the average wait
time for
swapping the batteries in that station - so that for example the user can
request and
receive for example the current state of congestion in one or more specific
battery
swap stations and/or for example request information about the location and/or
current state of nearby swap stations in which the wait time is currently most
short,
and/or for example information about the distance to swap stations with a
certain
wait time or below, and/or for example information about the number of
currently
available recharged batteries of the user's specific type for example at
various
nearby swap stations, and/or for example request the service provider's
computers
to automatically recommend for example the best choice based on taking into
account automatically for example any of the above data, such as for example
both
the distance from the user's car current position and the current wait time in
these
swap stations, and/or preferably also based for example on automatic report by
the
car's computer about the current direction in which the user is driving and/or
for
example the current state of the car's batteries (since for example even if a
certain
swap station is for example closer but the user is for example driving on a
highway
in the opposite direction and for example has sufficient energy to reach a
farther
swap station which is in the current direction then going to the swap station
which is
in the correct direction is more preferable)(and/or also based also for
example on
various statistics or other relevant parameters about the car and/or the
driver and/or
for example on the driver reporting his/her specific destination) and/or for
example
automatic reports by the battery swap stations about their current states of
congestion (for example based on automatically counting the number of entering
and exiting cars and/or for example based on automatically calculating the
current
average waiting time for example by the computers in the swap station and
automatically reporting such data for example through cellular communication
for
example to the service provider's main computers), and/or preferably for
example
the service provider's main computers can similarly use this data to decide
for
example if to automatically recommend for example saving in advance a place in
the battery swap station, as explained above for parking places and/or
recharge posts
and/or for example to recommend to reserve and/or reserve for the user the
specific
type of battery that he/she needs. Another possible variation is that if there
is for
example a lack of sufficient batteries of a certain type in a certain swap
station for
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example due to an increase in the number of cars of a certain type that visit
the
station, preferably for example the station's computers can for example
automatically order additional batteries of that type for example through
their
communication with the service provider's main computers. Preferably at least
some
or most of the automatic messages are for example by synthesized speech
(and/or
accompanied by appropriate visual display), and preferably the user's
responses for
example at least in case of Yes/No questions or for example in case of
choosing an
option in a menu represented as a numerical choice can be for example through
automatic speech recognition (since at least differentiation between yes and
no or
between digits is already relatively easy an reliable technology), and/or for
example
the user can reply for example through one or more buttons for example on the
steering wheel or nearby, so that for example a button on the right represents
Yes
and a button on the left represents No or vice versa, or for example at least
some
buttons can be moved in multiple directions or positions or states
representing
different functions or answers, and/or for example there are one or more track
balls
for example on the steering wheel or for example nearby so that for example
turning
the ball in different ways is like moving a mouse or for example like a
multifunction
button. Another possible variation is that for example at least some visual
indications or displays can be for example presented to the driver for example
by a
projector which for example sits on the dashboard and for example includes
automatic distortion correction for example pre-calculated to correct the
distortion
due to its angle so that for example it displays on the front glass for
example text
and/or images that are for example partially reflected back from the glass
since the
glass is not 100% transparent and/or for example the front glass is for
example
coated by a special layer that causes light from that angle for example to be
even
more reflected back, and preferably the image is also planned in advance for
example to appear for example with a far away focus so that for example the
driver
can see it with the same focus used for viewing for example at least a few
meters
ahead on the road. Another possible variation is that for example data about
the
current position and/or speed and/or direction of traveling which are
automatically
reported for example by the cars' computers for example to the service
provider's
main computers can also be used for example for identifying the length of
lines
and/or waiting time for example in junctions and so can be used for example
for real
time updates for example from the service provider's computer for example to
the
computers of the authority that controls traffic lights, so that for example
the traffic
light can respond automatically at least to a certain extent according to this
information, so that for example if the line of waiting car's and/or the
waiting time
for example from one direction is temporarily considerably longer than usual
and/or
for example the line of cars from another direction and/or the waiting time is
for
example considerably shorter then usual then for example the relevant traffic
light
or lights can preferably automatically adjust their priorities and/or cycles
accordingly for example temporarily until the situation changes and/or for
example
till a certain time limit and/or for example until receiving remotely a
different
instruction, and/or for example this is done through various sensors on the
road
(such as for example based on infrared, ultrasound, induction, automatic
visual
analysis of images for example from one or more video cameras and/or similar
sensing techniques), so that for example the sensors can report automatically
for
example to the main computers of the service provider or for example directly
for
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example to the computers of the relevant traffic light or lights for example
through
underground data wires and/or for example cellular or other wireless
communication or for example to the computer or computers of the relevant
traffic
light authority and for example the traffic light computers can decide for
example
about such changes locally and/or can for example communicate automatically
with
the main computers of the relevant authority and request authorization for
making
changes. Of course similar infonnation and automatic updates can preferably be
used also for example in normal gasoline or hybrid cars or other types of cars
which
are equipped for example with a smart user interface on the car's computer
and/or
GPS and/or cellular communication capabilities of the car's computer, and
similar
congestion information can preferably be automatically reported similarly for
example about congestion and/or distance and/or location of near gas stations.
Another possible variation is that for example at least some private parking
places
preferably contain for example also one or more battery swap stations, such as
for
example in some malls or shopping centers or for example large trade fairs or
for
example some large work areas, and preferably at least some such places also
enable
the user to have the batteries replaced for example without having to waste
time
about it personally. This can be done for example by enabling the user to park
the
car for example on an automatically moving conveyor belt or similar automatic
movement device, so that for example the cars on the belt or similar device
are
preferably moved automatically for example one after the other to the battery
swap
spot and after replacing their batteries are preferably for example dropped
automatically from the belt or similar device for example when reaching a free
parking place, and then preferably the car's final parking position can
preferably be
reported to the user automatically for example to his cell phone for example
by any
of the methods described elsewhere in this application for finding the
location of a
parked car, and/or for example by automatic triangulation through the cellular
cells.
Another possible variation is that there are for example one or more workers
of the
place or for example of the service provider to which the user can give for
example
a special key or other device which preferably enables them for example to
move
the car for example only up to a certain distance and/or for example for a
limited
time and/or for example up to a certain speed, for example measured from the
last
location and/or time where the user for example removed the normal key and/or
for
example smart card or other device and/or for example parked or left the car,
so that
for example this key and/or other device cannot be used to steal the car and
drive
sway with it but preferably enables the worker to move the car to the nearby
battery
swap position and to enable accessing the batteries for swapping them and then
moving the car to a final parking place, and then the worker can for example
send
the user a message through cellular communication about the final parking
location
of the car and/or the car can preferably be located for example by any of the
automatic methods as explained above, and/or for example the worker writes the
final parking location for example on a note which is placed together with the
key
and/or other physical device for example at a booth or counter where the user
later
comes to pick them up, and/or for example the workers send this information
for
example wirelessly to a one or more main computers (for example local or for
example the service provider's main computers), so that it is available to the
user for
example when picking the key and/or other physical device. These variations
can be
especially useful for example if the user prefers or needs a battery swap
instead of
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normal recharging and plans to stay for a while in the area and for example
there are
some waiting lines for the battery swap. Another possible variation is that
for
example similar special keys or smart cards or for example other physical
devices
can be used for example to limit the speed and/or distance and/or length of
time
and/or times (for example in terms of range of allowed or forbidden hours) in
which
for example teenagers and/or for example employees or other users can use a
car, so
that for example parents or for example company car fleet managers or for
example
other owners or policy managers can give their kids or employees for example a
special key and/or smart card and/or other device which for example sets
different
parameters for that user of the car than for example the normal use for
example by
the parent or for example the normal factory default (so that for example
company
management can decide that company cars should be limited in speed for example
to 120Kph instead of the normal limit of for example 150Kph or for example
that
the recommended cruising speed is 90 and higher speed are allowed for example
for
only a certain percent of the time, and/or other values or parameters, for
example if
the workplace is paying for the energy, so that for example if the user
exceeds the
recommended speed to a certain extent and/or beyond a certain percent of the
time
preferably the car computer can for example warn him/her that continued use at
such speeds will for example cause him/her to be charged extra, or for example
a
parent can program the smart card or other device so that for example the
youth
cannot exceed a certain speed at all and/or for example similarly issue
automatic
real time warnings and/or for example later reports for excessive or un-
recommended speed, and/or for example in case of speeding beyond a certain
limit
for example the car computer can send the parent for example an automatic SMS
or
other for example cellular communication for example in real time so that for
example he/she can phone the youth for example immediately and scold him/her),
and preferably the parent or owner can for example change these values or
parameters for example through connecting for example the smart card (for
example
through USB or other interface) for example to the car's computer or for
example to
a normal PC, for example together with using for example a special password
and/or
for example connecting also his/her master key or smart card or other device,
and so
for example the parent can preferably for example program the smart card or
key or
other device of the kids so that for example when that device is used for
driving the
car preferably the car's computer can for example enforce a certain speed
limit
(such as for example 90 Kph) and/or for example limit the distance that can be
traveled for example without entering a special extension code, and/or for
example
limit the time so that for example the youth will not be able to drive the car
for
example during certain hours in the night, and/or preferably if there is for
example a
time limit and/or distance limit (and preferably taking into account also for
example
the speed limit if it is relevant) preferably the car computer can also for
example
warn the driver for example in advance that for example continuing to drive
beyond
a certain distance or for example a certain time will not leave him/her
sufficient time
and/or distance to return, and/or for example in case of problems preferably
the
youth can for example phone the parent and get for example a special code then
enables for example to continue driving beyond the distance or time limit for
example in case the youth for example cannot not go back otherwise. Similarly,
preferably the car computer can preferably for example automatically warn the
user
for example if there is insufficient energy to reach the user's destination,
as
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explained elsewhere in this application. Another possible variation is that
since the
car's computer can preferably for example keep and/or report for example
automatically for example a log of automatic statistics for example about the
typical
speeds for example at least for a certain period, since this is preferably
used also by
the service provider for example to discourage wasteful driving, as explained
elsewhere in this application, and/or for example these reports can be used
for
example by parents to check the driving behavior of their children and/or
preferably
the car computer can for example automatically draw their attention for
example to
dangerous or significant deviations for example through automatic cellular
communication for example in real time or for example when viewing the reports
afterwards, and/or for example a company that owns a fleet of cars can for
example
get for example from the service provider these statistics also for example
for a
group of cars, such as for example average speed statistics or reports for
example
across cars, and/or can for example automatically get for example a sorted
list of
most wasteful cars, and/or can for example request specific data about a
specific car
or sub-list of cars.
Another possible variation is that for example the car's computer can for
example automatically change the position and/or orientation for example of
the
side mirrors for example based on the situation, so that for example when
parking
the mirrors can become automatically folded (i.e. for example the car computer
does
it automatically for example by default unless the user for example disables
it, for
example as soon as the user has moved the gear or drive control to the parking
position or for example a few seconds or more afterwards or for example when
the
user turns off the car key or for example when the user removes the car key or
for
example when the user exits the car, and preferably the car computer similarly
automatically restores the mirrors to the normal position before the driver
starts to
drive again - for example when the user moves the gear or drive control out of
the
parking position) (or for example the user can do it by pressing a button that
does it
from inside the car, but preferably even it this case preferably the mirrors
are
automatically returned to normal position for example when the user moves the
gear
or drive control out of the parking position as explained above) and/or for
example
when driving in reverse for example the car's computer can for example
automatically change the position and/or orientation of the side mirrors so
that they
show for example a view closer and/or lower (such as for example near the area
of
the back wheels) for example in comparison to the farther view when driving
forward, and preferably the user can for example adjust the desired
orientation
and/or position of the side mirrors for example manually for example for
various
situations and can then for example press a button that causes the car's
computer to
memorize this and choose for example in what situation to apply it (the
movement
itself it preferably accomplished for example by electrically movable hinges
and/or
arms which are moved for example by a small electric motor). Another possible
variation is that for example if the user does not turn off the car headlights
when
turning of the car key for example instead of beeping and/or simply turning
off the
light automatically, preferably the car computer (for example at least in one
of the
available modes which the user can preferably choose) for example instead
moves
automatically for example into lower lights (which preferably use for example
only
50% or 25% or less than the normal headlight power), and then for example the
car
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computer can preferably for example gradually fade out for example turn off
the
lights for example within the next minute or other reasonable period
afterwards or
for example after the user leaves the car. Another possible variation is that
for
example the car has lights sensors (such as for example by automatic computer
analysis of the view from one or more video cameras) and/or for example
ultrasound
sensors and/or other sensors that can sense for example the shape of the
terrain
ahead and/or for example sense the range and/or shape and/or for example
distance
of the area covered by the front lights of the car or can for example sense if
the car's
lights appear for example substantially below or above their normal height in
the
field of view, so that for example if the car is on a certain plane but for
example the
road a few meters ahead for example starts going downhill or uphill preferably
for
example the car's computer can automatically for example tilt the front lights
for
example up or down (and/or for example sideways when needed) so as the
compensate for example for a road ahead which starts to go up or down for
example
in front of the car and/or for example for other distortions and preferably
keep the
light on the ground at the normal distance from the car, so that for example
if the
road ahead starts to go uphill the lights preferably automatically move up and
for
example if the road ahead starts to go downhill preferably the lights
automatically
move down (and preferably of course the user can also disable such automatic
adjustments), and/or for example the driver can preferably at least move the
lights
up or down manually for example by rotating or moving for example up or down
for
example a lever for example on the wheel or for example nearby for example on
the
dashboard (the movement of the lights is preferably accomplished for example
by
appropriate hinges which are preferably moved for example by an electric
motor).
Another possible variation is that for example various keys and/or for example
a
trackball for communicating with the car's computer are located for example on
the
wheel. Another possible variation is that for example the automatic updates
about
the car's position and/or for example direction and/or for example speed of
driving
and/or for example destination can also be used for example for finding
friends
which are for example on a contactee list of the user, so that for example the
car
computer can notify the user automatically for example that a friend of
his/her is
nearby and/or for example is driving in the same direction, etc. Preferably
like other
features regarding the car at least some of these features can also be
implemented
for example also in normal gasoline or hybrid cars or other types of cars, for
example if they have a similar advanced car computer and/or for example built-
in
internal cellular communication.
Another possible variation is that there are for example also multi-recharge
posts
so that for example the same recharge post preferably with the same computer
and/or same user interface preferably has for example more than one preferably
extendable cable (for example 2-5 or other convenient number, and/or for
example
each cable has more than one socket or connector or for example side branch,
for
example every few meters, so that more than one car can connect to the same
cable
at the same time) (for example based on a wheel which each cable or the cables
are
rolled around so that the wheel rotates when the user pulls the cable and
preferably
the cable returns when released for example based on a spring or springs or on
automatic back rotation of a motor or motors which can rotate back the wheel
or
wheels), so that for example more than one car can recharge from the same
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recharger or recharge post at the same time. This wheel or wheels are
preferably on
the outside of the recharger or recharge post, for example on horizontal
hinges
which are attached to it, since this way it is also for example easier to
maintain
them. However pulling the cables this way might be problematic since for
example
if the in-between car moves away in the mean time while the further car is
recharging, for example people passing by might not notice the wire and trip
over it,
especially for example in dark hours. Therefore, preferably the cables are
coated for
example by an auto luminescent layer (such. as for example phosphor under a
transparent coating or for example the same or similar material as those that
exist in
fireflies which glow for example in the air currents) and/or light reflector
layer (for
example of the same types or materials used in bicycles or in coats that
reflect light
in the night) and/or for example shiny or glowing colors and/or for example
have
flashing LEDs for example along the wire or for example every few cm or other
reasonable interval which preferably for example get their power from the
recharger
or recharge post (preferably through a low current low voltage transformer or
power
supply in the recharge post) or for example from small induction currents
around the
wire (which is less preferable), so that preferably by walkers can also see
them in
the dark, and/or for example also small elements which rattle in the wind,
such as
for example thin for example plastic plates or rings, and/or for example
proximity
sensors which for example emit a sound for example if a person comes too close
to
the cable, and/or for example the cable is automatically lit at least at night
or
darkness hours for example by one or more horizontal lights that come out of
the
recharge post (which is preferably activated only at darkness or at the right
hours
and only if a cable is connected), and/or for example the recharge post is
also itself
for example lit for example by one or more lights or LEDs for example on the
top
and/or the sides at least at darkness hours (for example by pre-set times
and/or by
receiving instructions for example from the main computers of the service
provider
or of the electric company and/or for example by light sensors) and/or for
example
contains strips or elements of light reflecting materials and/or elements that
glow in
the night and/or shiny or glowing colors as explained above for example at
least in
places where there are insufficient lights at night - so that preferably
people also
don't bump into the recharge post itself for example in the night (This is
important
since unlike parking meters which are typically in central town areas where
there are
typically also street lights, the recharge posts might be located also on
small streets
where for example there might not be street lights)(If the cable for example
comes
out of the recharge post then preferably the cables have preferably the same
right
reflecting and/or glowing features as the cables that come out of the cars
preferably
have, for example in general or for example especially in places where there
are
insufficient lights at night). Preferably the recharge post can also
automatically
report for example to the service provider's main computers for example if
there is a
malfunction in the lights or LEDs (For example its own light or LEDS or for
example light or LEDs on the cable, for example through the light sensor
and/or for
example through a current sensor or other electric circuit that can detect it)
and
preferably there are sufficient preferably small preferably low power lights
so that
the chance is very small for example that all of them will be for example
burned at
the same time. Another possible variation is that preferably users can for
example
pick or order the color of the cable (preferably from the same place or
business that
sell or leases them the car) for example like picking the color of the car
preferably
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independently from the color of the car (such as for example a red or white
car with
a bright green cable), and preferably for example if for example there is
currently no
car in stock which in the requested color which also has a cable of the
desired color,
preferably the cable or cables (for example if there are at least two cables
in the car
as explained elsewhere in this application) can preferably be switched
preferably for
example within a few minutes for example by opening a modular connection
and/or
for example replacing the compartment that houses the cable in the car,
preferably
in a modular fashion, preferably for example by opening some control within
the car
that enables then to replace it for example from the outside or for example
opening
some larger for or compartment in the car that enables accessing it. However
in this
case preferably the sets of allowed cable colors are preferably limited to
only
authorized colors, which are preferably bright colors and/or preferably also
glow
and/or reflect lights as explained above, so that by-walkers don't trip over
them in
the night.
Another possible variation is that for example the recharger or recharge post
has for
example one or more diagonal or vertical or for example upside-down-L-shape
rotating arms or similar arms for example like fishing hooks, so that for
example
one or more such arms for example go upwards in the air from the recharger or
recharge post and when rotated into the desired position another arm or for
example
the cable comes down to the car from above, thus avoiding the problem of
people
possibly tripping over a horizontal cable between the car and the racharger.
Another
possible variation is that for example at least some rechargers or recharge
posts are
connected between each other for example with a horizontal bar for example at
a
height of for example 2.5 or 3 meters or other reasonable height and for
example
multiple cables which are for example wrapped around wheels (preferably with
springs) on the horizontal bar can be for example pulled from above as needed
(and/or for example the recharger or recharge post can for example
automatically
pull them down or up for example by rotating the wheels), and/or for example
these
cables are for example shaped like a spiral phone cord and can thus be
flexibly
stretched in the direction needed. In these solutions for example the
preferable
recharging at higher voltages has the advantage that the cable can be thinner
and
thus less heavy and easier to handle. Another possible variation is that for
example
at least some rechargers or recharge posts, for example at least in parking
lots, have
at least two short cables of for example up to 1.5 meters or for example 2.5
meters
or other reasonable length, and for example at least two cars can park next to
them,
for example with their backs next to the recharger or recharge post, or for
example
when used in the street for example two such cars can park near the recharger
or
recharge post for example back to back from each other or for example the
normal
way by any of the solutions described below, so that for example each
recharger or
recharge post serves two cars, for example one behind it and one in front of
it, like
for example typical parking meters (and this is even more convenient if for
example
the rechargers or recharge posts serve also as parking meters, as explained
elsewhere in this application). Another possible variation is that for example
the
electric car's socket is on the side more or less in the middle lengthwise, so
that the
more or less same length cable can come either from in front of the car or
from the
back of the car. Another possible variation is that the car has for example at
least
two useable sockets and/or cables, for example one in front and one at the
back
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(which are preferably both wired to the same place internally in the
car)(which
means that they can be for example on the side of the car near the front and
near the
back of the car or for example on the actual front and back or for example at
the
relevant corners, or any combinations of these), and the driver plugs the
cable to the,
nearest one based on the car's position relative to the recharger or recharge
post
(which is also much more useful for example if the same recharger or recharge
post
can support two cars, as explained above). Preferably if the cables and/or
sockets are
for example at the actual back and/or front part of the car or for example at
the
corners, preferably they are positioned sufficiently higher than the bumpers,.
and
preferably the small door and chamber that contains each cable or socket
and/or for
example is preferably for example at least 1 mm or a few mm indented into the
car
and/or for example the frame that surrounds it is preferably especially
reinforced,
for example by a double fold in the chassis for example at 180 degrees or for
example at 90 degrees, thus for example surrounding the chamber, in order to
reduce the chance that the cable or socket compartment or it's small door
might be
damaged for example if the car gets a bump for example at the front or at the
rear
for example while parking. On the other hand if for example the cable is
pulled out
of the car and plugged into the recharger or recharge post (in which case the
cable is
preferably for example in some hollow preferably small compartment on the side
of
the car and is preferably accessed through a door that opens and closes), then
preferably at least some rechargers or recharge posts have for example at
least two
sockets, and for example similar configurations can be used, so that for
example the
plug-in cable comes out from the side of the car preferably more or less in
the
middle lengthwise, and so the driver can for example plug the same length of
cable
for example into a recharger or recharge post in front of the car or into a
recharger
or recharge post at the back of the car, and/or for example the car has for
example
one cable near the front of the car and one near the back and the user can use
either
of them. Another possible variation is that for example the socket or the
cable can
be located for example on the side of the car within a certain range of
possible
positions, and the cable is preferably just a little shorter than the typical
length of a
car (for example up to 4 meters or other reasonable length), preferably in
order to
allow sufficient length but preferably prevent users from pulling a cable over
the
length of the next car to reach the recharger or recharge post, since as
explained
elsewhere in this application that could be dangerous since if the other car
in the
meantime pulls away someone might for example trip over the cable. However,
the
option of more than one socket or cable in the car is actually a more
preferable
variation since it is more difficult to position the cable or socket in the
middle of the
car lengthwise, and in addition, if the cable or socket is in the middle or
for example
if the socket or cable is in the back but in some situations the cable must be
pulled to
the front of the car (for example if there are rechargers or recharge posts
for 2 or
more cars at the same time or for example if the parking is perpendicular to
the
street and the recharger or recharge post is on the sidewalk and the user
prefers to
enter the parking place by driving forward instead of in reverse), this means
that at
least one door can become blocked by the cable, which can be inconvenient for
example if the user prefers to first plug-in the cable and then for example
take some
things out of the car, or for example if the user remembers that he/she has to
take
something out of the car after he/she has already plugged the cable (although
using
for example cables in the shape of spiral phone cords as explained elsewhere
in this
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application can also help, this can still be a problem when the cable passes
near the
door, since even if the door can still be opened due to such cable's
flexibility the
user might for example trip on the cable). Another possible variation is that
if there
are for example at least two sockets or two cables in the car, the user can
for
example at least in some cases connect both of them at the same time for
example to
two separate rechargers or recharge post or for example to two separate
sockets or
two separate cables in the same recharger, thus for example enabling increased
or
double recharge speed (which means that preferably in this case the recharger
or
rechargers can automatically identify for example through the data link that
this is a
double connection and/or for example the car computer updates them
accordingly,
and then preferably they start issuing coordinated commands for example at the
same time, or for example one recharger takes control of both connections,
thus
treating them for example as if it was a single higher power connection, or if
the
recharger is in the car then preferably the recharger can identify that the
two cables
are connected to sockets at the same time and thus draw more power, or for
example
the double connection automatically enables larger current, but preferably the
recharger knows about this since this means for example that when getting
instructions for example from the main computers of the service provider
and/or the
electric company it can preferably for example use double the amount which is
allocated for example in the instructions to a single socket), but preferably
this is
allowed for example only if there is a sufficient number of unused other
rechargers
or recharge posts in the area at the time and/or if the car has sufficient
priority or
justified urgency, and/or for example the user is charged extra for example in
money
or in credit points for occupying two rechargers or two recharge connections
at the
same time. Another possible variation is that there are for example various
hooks or
supports for example above the doors or below them so that for example the
user
can put the cable over them so that it does not disturb opening the relevant
door or
doors while the cable is connected to the recharger or recharge post. If the
cable or
socket is for example at or near the middle of the car, preferably it is at
the side near
or at the top of the column that separates between the two doors, so that for
example
the cable comes out through a small side door at the top of the hollow column,
and
preferably the car doors have an appropriate inlet or socket in that area so
that they
do not cover the small side door and/or for example the doors have sufficient
distance between their edges (and in this case preferably there are also for
example
hooks or for example a guideway above the doors so that the cable can stay
above
the relevant door for example when connecting to a recharger or recharge post
in
front of the car or behind the car). Another possible variation is that the
socket or
cable is for example on the roof of the car, for example in a small
compartment
which is coupled to the inner side on the roof and with a small door that
opens
above the roof, but that is less preferable since there might be for example
problems
of rain entering the compartment from above, so if such a solution is used
then
preferably the socket or cable for example comes out with a bend of for
example 90
degrees or similar bend so that it is preferably more or less parallel to the
roof or for
example even bent by more then 90 degrees (for example by coming down from an
elevation, so that for example the socket faces st least slightly downwards
for
example at an angle). Another possible variation is for example one or more
sideways hooks which can hold the cable for example sideways away from the car
doors, but this is also less preferable and someone might for example trip on
the
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hook or on the cable this way. In the variations in which the cable comes out
of the
car preferably the cable is on a wheel or reel for example inside the
compartment or
for example below it and the cable is preferably pulled back automatically
when the
user returns it, for example based on a spring like in a vaccum cleaner, or
for
example based on automatic electric movement of the wheel or reel or for
example
the compartment is large enough so that the user can simply fold the cable in
it
whichever way he/she likes before closing the preferably small door.
Preferably for
example in parking lots similar rechargers or recharge posts can similarly
support
also for example 4 cars at the same time with 4 cables or 4 sockets, since if
for
example the recharger or recharge post is in the middle surrounded by 4 marked
parking spots, it can recharge this way for example 4 cars that surround it.
Anyway,
preferably the cable length or for example the arrangement of two or more
available
sockets or cables is sufficient so that preferably the user can recharge both
if the cars
park parallel to the road or for example at 90 degrees to the road or for
example
other in-between angle, and so that preferably the user can recharge both is
he/she
enters the parking place by driving forward or by reverse. Of course the side
on
which the socket or the cable is located on the car is preferably determined
according to the side of driving in that country, so that for example in
normal
countries the socket or cable is preferably on the right side of the car, and
for
example in countries like England where people drive on the left side of the
road the
socket or cable is preferably on the left side of the car, however since as
explained
above the user might park in reverse, and/or for example since in one way
streets
there might be for example rechargers or recharge posts and parking places on
both
sides or the street, preferably the cable is long enough to reach the
recharger or
recharge post on the other side of the car (which should be no problem if the
cable is
for example 2.5 or 3 meters long, or for example each of the front and back
cables
are for example at least for example 2 or 2.5 meters long or similar length).
Another
possible variation is that for example at least some cars have a socket and/or
cable
on both sides of the car, for example if in some situations it is more
convenient for
the driver to enter the parking place in reverse. Since various combinations
of the
above variations can also be used, this means of course that the car can also
have for
example one or more sockets or cables on one side and one or more on the other
side, and/or for example at each location or some of the locations for example
both a
socket and a cable etc.. The advantage of having for example both a socket and
a
cable for example both at the front and at the rear of the car is that if the
recharge
cable or cables come out of the car, the cost for adding a socket near the
cable if
there is already a cable at that position is very cheap (since the internal
circuitry has
to exist already for the cable) and then for example the car can carry a
normal cable
which can be used for example for recharging at a speed of for example 3-4
hours or
lower speed for full recharge (or other reasonable threshold which can
preferably
keep the cable thin enough), instead of heaving to carry a thick and heavy and
less
flexible cable that can be used also for high speed recharging, and then for
example
when connecting to normal wall sockets or to normal recharge posts the user
preferably connects the car's cable to the normal socket or to a socket on the
recharge post, and for example when connecting to a fast recharger, for
example the
heavier and thicker cable for fast recharge preferably comes for example from
the
high speed public recharger, and in that case the user for example uses
preferably
the nearest socket of the car, and preferably the high speed public recharger
works
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by disconnecting or overriding the car's internal recharger, as explained
already
elsewhere in this application. This also means that preferably if such a
socket is used-
for example only for high speed recharging, preferably it is by default
connected
directly to the batteries for example without even going through the car's
internal
recharger circuitry. Another possible variation is that for example even when
connecting to a high speed recharge post the car can for example still use its
own
recharger and for example the high speed recharge post provides also an
improved
heat dissipation system, so that for example the car's internal recharger has
for
example an external heat exchange interface, which can be connected for
example to
a larger radiator and/or for example liquid cooling system in the high speed
recharge
post or, however this is less preferable since a high speed recharger in the
car would
need also considerably more expensive electronics. On the other hand, if the
batteries are recharged at considerably higher voltages, for example by more
serial
routing at least during high speed high voltage recharging, and/or by using
higher
voltages also during operation, such as for example 500 volts or more or for
example 750 volts or more or for example 1000 Volts or more or other
reasonable
high voltage, then the cable might be thin enough so that preferably a more or
less
normal thickness cable can also be used for high speed recharging and/or for
example the high speed recharger circuitry is also cheaper since it does not
have to
deal with high current, as explained already elsewhere in this application.
Another
possible variation is that for example one of the two cables (or sockets) in
the car
comes out of the actual front side of the car (for example between the
headlights
and/or above or below them) and one from the actual back side of the car
preferably
for example near the sideways middle of these sides, thus maintaining even
more
easily also the symmetry between the two sides of the car. Another possible
variation is that for example if at least some cars have a socket and for
example the
rechargers or recharge post network is based on rechargers or recharge posts
with
sockets instead of cables, or for example most rechargers or recharge posts
have a
cable but there are some rechragers that only have a socket, preferably the
user can
buy a male-male cable which preferably comes with the same standard plug
interface and can thus connect between the two sockets, and is preferably for
example normally located in the baggage and can be taken out and used when
needed (and in such case preferably both plugs are preferably automatically
locked
and/or can be automatically released for example by the car and/or by the
recharge
post and/or can preferably also be released for example by a command from the
service provider's main computers and/or cannot be released by an unauthorized
person and/or can only be released by the car's user, for example unless the
lock has
been released automatically, preferably in the same way as a single plug, as
explained elsewhere in this application). Another possible variation is that
for
example at least some electric cars have for example both a socket and a cable
at
least in some of the positions for example if they need to work in different
areas
with different standards, however that is less preferable and preferably the
authorities enforce a single standard in each country (i.e. for example only
the car
has sockets and the rechargers or recharge posts have the cables, or vice
versa). In
addition, preferably in the recharge areas and/or for example in periodic
messages
for example by the government and/or for example by the service provider users
are
warned not to connect cables in a way that might block another car or jump
over
another car for example in a way that for example if the other car moves
someone
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might for example trip on the cable, and preferably city hall inspectors fine
drivers if
they discover a cable connected in such an irresponsible way. Another possible
variation is that for example also in normal gasoline or Diesel cars or for
example in
Hybrid cars or plug-in hybrid cars preferably also the fuel tank can be
accessed from
both sides of the car (preferably left and right), for example by leaving the
full
container on one side and a adding an additional small fuel-loading door and
interface also on the other side of the car preferably with an internal pipe
that leads
to the fuel container, and/or for example by using a container which is
elongated and
thus reaches both sides, and/or for example by putting the container more or
less in
the middle sideways, so that a short pipe can lead to it from each side. This
has the
advantage that for example when standing in line in normal oil refilling
stations the
user can for example choose between left-side pups and right-side pumps,
instead of
the prior art of having to stand in line only for the available side that fits
the side of
the fuel-insertion interface his car, even if the other line is shorter or
empty (which
can be important for example on peak days and hours when many people come to
refuel their cars at the same time) - for example on Friday mornings in
Israel. In this
case, preferably the user has in the car for example a separate switch for
unlocking
from inside the car the right fuel insertion door or the left fuel insertion
door as
needed (or for example the same switch can be turned left or right
accordingly) but
preferably for example a single action can automatically lock both of them.
Another
possible variation is that for example like with the electric recharge cable,
preferably
the car's computer preferably warns the user and/or prevents the user for
example if
the user tries to start driving for example if the refuel hose has not been
removed or
the fuel-door has not been closed.
Another possible variation is that there are for example at least some
rechargers
or recharge posts in which there are for example multiple cables (for example
preferably at least 2-5 such cables from each recharger) that come out from
one
recharger and are connected for example through underground tubes to various
for
example smaller posts or outlets which come out for example near adjacent
parking
places near the recharger or recharge post, so that for example one or more
additional parking places for example at each side can be hooked directly to
the
same recharger or recharge post through one of these cables without extending
the
cable in a way that people can trip over it between the car and the recharger
or
recharge post. (In these subsidiary posts preferably the cable that comes out
of the
preferably hollow underground tube is preferably secured firmly for example to
the
concrete or to the bottom of the pole and from there preferably goes up with
some
free slack, so that for example the this free part of the cable preferably has
for
example a length of 1.5 meters or other reasonable length, so that for example
the
plug an the end of the cable normally rests for example on some hook at the
top of
the pole, and for connecting it to the car the user preferably merely removes
the plug
from the hook and connects it to the car socket, and for example before or
after this
the user has to for example pass his/her smart card for example through the
control
panel at the main post, or for example there is a separate slot for passing
for
example the smart card also at the subsidiary post but for example the main
logic
and control is run by the main post that controls said subsidiary posts),
and/or for
example if a cable that contains also a data link is used and/or for example
if the
car's computer communicates directly with the service provider's main
computers
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preferably the user can for example pass the smart card and/or enter a
password or
code for example through the car's computer and/or use the car computer's
monitor
also as the user interface for talking with the recharge post. In addition,
preferably if
the car's recharger or computer can communicate directly for example through
cellular or other wireless communication for example with the main computers
of
the service provider and/or of the electric company, preferably for example
when
connecting for example with a cable that contains a data-link for example with
a
recharger or recharge post or outlet that has its own direct communication
with the
main computers preferably for example the main computers or the recharger or
recharge post or outlet can instruct for example the car's computer or the
car's
recharger to stop the direct communication with the main computers and accept
the
instructions directly from the recharger or recharge post or outlet, or for
example the
main computers can tell the recharger or recharge post or outlet for example
to
temporarily stop sending instructions to the car's computer or recharger and
let them
-receive direct instructions from the main computers, and preferably the car's
computer or recharger and/or the external recharger or recharge post or outlet
are
able to act according to such instructions. On the other hand if for example
the cable
comes out of the car and is connected into a socket on the recharger or
recharge
post, then for example if such subsidiary posts are used, this means that for
example
the subsidiary posts, for example like the main post, each have for example
one or
more sockets, but for example the user interface and/or main controllers are
for
example on the main recharger or recharge post (in case of passive recharge
posts
these controllers in the main post can be for example one or more processors,
sensors, communication unit, backup battery, etc.). Another advantage of using
subsidiary posts is that preferably for example only the main recharger has to
take
care of heat dissipation. Another possible variation is that for example when
starting
to put rechargers or recharge posts for example at various intervals for
example in
the street or parking lot, preferably at least some rechargers or recharge
posts are
designed in advance in a modular and/or redundant way that enables for example
adding additional rechargers or recharge posts for example by connecting
underground to the existing rechargers or recharge post or to existing
underground
interface for example instead of having to connect for example to a central
source in
the area (for example for the power and/or data connections). This is
preferably
done for example by creating for example at least in some places stubs or
stems or
interfaces preferably underground in advance in places where future rechargers
or
recharge posts can be added, so that for example the underground interface
contains
for example an electrical interface (for example socket or for example closed
cables
to which a socket can be added), preferably a data interface (for example
socket)
and preferably also a' heat exchange for example in the shape of a radiator
(for
example if there is a fluid underground cooling system for example where there
are
high speed rechargeres), and is preferably for example in a pre-dug preferably
vertical hole and covered for example with a lead, or for example the
underground
hole is covered for example with the normal pavement and hidden but the
service
provider has detailed maps which allow it to locate the exact spot and/or uses
hidden
marks, so that when needed it can later open the exact location, and
preferably with
adequate protections so that criminals cannot piratically interface with it -
for
example by containing an embedded underground digital identifier, so that the
network preferably does not supply any electric power and/or actual data
access to
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nodes that are not yet officially activated (for example through underground
switch)
and/or for example as explained elsewhere in this application anyway
preferably
only a valid recharger or recharge post with the proper id and encryption can
communicate with the network. This way preferably when the service provider or
for example the electric company installs the recharges and has to dig
underground
anyway even if installing only a few interspersed rechargers or recharge posts
at the
beginning (thus saving costs initially), preferably the underground work is
already
ready also for adding the additional rechargers or recharge posts later, so as
electric
cars start to be sold and the infrastructure service provider starts to have
an income
it can gradually add additional rechargers or recharge posts as needed with
almost
no installation costs, since there is preferably no need to dig again
horizontally for
example under the pavement or install again the underground network or the
interface. In this case preferably the recharger also has the matching heat
exchange
interface at its bottom which goes underground and preferably the electronic
circuits
and chips that control the recharging are also there near the heat exchange,
so that
for example the part that protrudes above the ground is preferably for example
just a
pole with one or more sockets (or cables) and/or for example a display and the
user
interface. Such a modular interface has the further advantage that for example
if a
recharger or recharge post is malfunctioning or needs service preferably for
example
the technician can for example remove it preferably easily and quickly from
the
modular interface, insert another proper recharger or recharge post in its
place, and
take the malfunctioning recharger or recharge post for testing and/or service
at the
service provider's facilities. Another possible variation is that such
underground
modular interface is also used for preferably almost instant temporary
insertion and
removal of rechargers or recharge posts instead of using mobile rechargers or
recharge posts for example in tourist towns where there are for example large
fluctuation in the number of people during the year, as explained elsewhere in
this
application. On the other hand, another possible variation is that for example
after
inserting a recharger or recharge post into the underground interface it is
preferably
welded into position, so that preferably it becomes even harder physically to
steal,
preferably in addition the electronic and network defenses as explained
elsewhere in
this application for preventing theft of mobile rechargers or recharge posts.
Of
course if the heat dispersion is above ground for example through a radiator
and
fans in the air or for example it is a recharge post which does not contains
its own
recharge circuitry (i.e. for example an electric power interface for cars that
use their
own internal recharger for recharging) then the underground heat exchange is
not
needed, but if for example some of the recharge posts contain their recharge
circuitry and use the underground heat exchange and some not then preferably
the
underground interface contains the heat exchange anyway, and for example if a
certain recharge post does not contain the recharger circuitry or for example
uses
only its own above ground heat dispersion, then that post might come for
example
without a matching heat exchange, or for example such a post comes with a mock-
up element that fits mechanically into the underground heat exchange for
example
for additional mechanical stability eventhough it does not actually function
as a heat
exchange. Another possible variation is that since, as explained elsewhere in
this
application, preferably most recharge posts are passive and the heat exchange
with a
cooling underground system is preferably used for example only when needed for
example for high speed rechargers, preferably for example an underground heat
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exchange is only added with the post when needed without a pre-existing lower
part
heat exchange at the bottom. Anyway, preferably the underground modular
interface
can preferably also be used for dynamically changing for example the
dispersion of
various types of rechargers or recharge posts, so that for example the service
provider might start for example with more power transfer posts without their
own
recharger circuitry and a few normal external rechargers, and after some time
for
example preferably easily replace some of the types for example with pother
types -
for example with normal external rechargers, or for example replace them or
normal
external rechargers for example with high speed rechargers, or other similar
switches as needed. (Of course for example some high speed rechargers might
for
example used both the underground heat exchange and an additional heat
dispersion
unit above ground).
Another possible variation is that since high speed rechargers (which can for
example charge a car to full or almost full capacity for example within a few
minutes or for example one hour or less) might be for example more expensive
since they need higher power and/or for example better cooling, preferably the
service provider for example spreads for example in various places such as for
example the street or parking lot for example a certain desired mix of for
example
high speed and normal speed recharges (and/or for example also additional
levels),
so that preferably the percentages are based on need statistics, so that for
example if
really high speed rechargers are needed for example only 20% or less of the
time or
for example are usually needed by only 20% or less of the electric cars,
preferably
for example 80% of the rechargers or recharge posts are normal and 20% are
high
speed rechargers (or other reasonable division), and preferably there is a
clear
preferably visually conspicuous indication near the recharger or recharge post
about
its type, and preferably cars can also be for example automatically directed
for
example to normal or high speed rechargers based on their needs (for example
by
cellular or wireless Internet communication between the car's computer and the
central computer and/or for example the rechargers), and preferably for
example if a
user connects to a high speed recharger despite being directed to a normal
speed
recharger or recharge post, there can be for example extra charge or debit
points
involved. In addition, preferably when connecting to high speed rechargers
which
can for example fully recharge a car with fast batteries for example within an
hour
or half hour or similar short time or even shorter time, preferably the user
is required
to remove his/her car away from the high speed recharger for example after a
certain
reasonable time (for example within an hour or for example within 10-30
minutes of
the end of the recharge or other reasonable time after the end of the
recharge, or for
example quicker if he/she for example remains in the car during the recharge,
and
preferably this is in terms of time from the end of the recharge, since for
example
various load distribution considerations might cause the recharger to work
only part
of the time for example at its full capacity, thus taking longer to recharge
for
example compared to its optimum ability), otherwise for example he/she
preferably
has to pay extra for example by money or by debit or credit points for not
allowing
someone else to use the fast recharger, at least for example if there is a
shortage of
rechargers or recharge posts or of high speed rechargers for example at that
time
and/or area. Another possible variation is that preferably the rechargers or
recharge
posts are designed in a modular way so that for example a normal recharger or
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recharge post can be easily upgraded to a high speed recharger for example by
adding to it for example the appropriate circuitry and/or one or more
additional
power supply lines (preferably for example by adding a connection to
additional
power cables which for example already pass by below it for example next to
the
original power cable and/or for example be logically routing additional power
to it)
and/or for example by adding to it a stronger heat dissipation element.
Another
possible variation is that for example preferably while installing the
rechargers or
recharge posts or for example at least high speed rechargers, which preferably
have
the power cables laid underground, preferably the service provider installs
also a
preferably underground liquid cooling system so that for example oil or water
(preferably with an antifreeze element in cold areas) or for example another
liquid
moves through pipes (for example durable plastic pipes of the same type that
are
used for conducting drinking water in the city) which preferably for example
interact with a heat sink or heat exchange for example underground at the
bottom of
the recharger, and these pipes preferably carry the heat for example to a
nearby heat
dissipation unit (which can be for example with a preferably large heat think,
fans,
and/or preferably air conditioning system, and can be for example on a large
pole or
for example in a room for example in a parking lot), so that preferably
multiple
rechargers (such as for example 10 or 20 or other reasonable number) are
served
preferably by the same pipes and preferably the same heat dissipation unit.
This can
have the advantage that heat can be dissipated more efficiently without unduly
increasing the size of individual rechargers, and the further advantage that
for
example high speed rechargers can preferably more easily be deployed
dynamically
for example in full power or partial power, so that for example if not all of
the
rechargers in the group are currently connected to cars or for example if some
of
them are currently recharging at low speed, the rechargers that are connected
or
some of them can for example work closer to their maximum capacity since the
aggregate heat of the group is still below maximum. In addition preferably the
heat
dissipation unit and/or for example rechargres that have their own heat
dissipation
unit preferably also have for example automatic sensors that can sense for
example
if the heat dissipation or for example air flow for example is no longer
efficient, for
example due to accumulation of dust or other problems, and can then preferably
for
example use automatic brushes or for example automatic air or water cleaning
and/or for example send an automatic alert for example to the service
provider's
computer requesting for example service by a company's technician. Similarly,
if
underground liquid cooling is used, preferably the system can also
automatically
issue warnings for example to the service provider's main computers, for
example if
leaks in the cooling liquid are detected, for example by using sensors that
can
determine the height of the liquid in the tubes. Of course if all or most of
the public
rechargers or recharge posts are passive, i.e. without the actual recharger
circuitry,
and/or for example there are only a few fast recharge posts which contain fast
rechargers then installing an underground liquid cooling system might be a
waste of
money.
Another possible variation is that for example at least some rechargers or at
least
some high speed rechargers are based for example on using the natural cycles
of the
electric network in order to transmit pulses into the battery (or for example
super
capacitor), thus preferably saving on the circuitry and preferably reaching
higher
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recharge efficiency, which can be for example even 95% or more or even 99%
instead of for example 90% with normal on-off switching, which means less
waste
of energy and also less problems of heat dispersion and for example cheaper
and/or
smaller heat sinks, so that preferably the recharger of course still decides
what
power and when to transfer to the battery in general according to the
battery's
characteristics and/or behavior and preferably according to the various
statistics
and/or parameters and priorities and/or various changes in the network and/or
in
nearby rechargers and/or instructions from the main computers of the service
provider or the electric company, as explained above, but preferably the
normal
sequence of fast pulses is done or replaced through using the natural cycles
(instead
of for example changing the pulse width when creating the DC in normal
rechargers). This is preferably done for example by using coils with a
stepdown
controller and/or a synchronized rectifier and/or similar elements, so that
for
example a certain amount of current is accumulated each time and then
discharged
automatically into the battery before reaching the coil's maximum capacity.
However such recharging is preferably enabled only when using sufficiently
fast
batteries which can handle the spikes in current that can be created this way,
so that
for example such rechargers have a special socket (or plug) and only users of
compatible batteries are provided with appropriate cables (or sockets) (or for
example if the recharger is in the car then for example only compatible types
of
batteries can be physically inserted, or for example the recharger can also
handle
slower batteries for example by reducing the current or for example by
emulating
the behavior of normal rechargers), and/or for example the batteries
preferably
transmit digitally also their type (which includes preferably for example the
manufacturer, preferably the exact model, and/or various other parameters,
such as
for example year of manufacture and/or for example the maximum current and/or
voltage and/or peaks that can be handled during recharge, as explained also
above)
so that the recharger knows according to these parameters if they are
compatible,
and/or also for example the recharger checks their behaviors for example all
the
time or at short intervals and preferably stops preferably immediately or for
example
uses a different recharge method if the behavior indicates that the batteries
are not
responding properly to this recharge method. Another possible variation is
that
preferably the recharger can also use for example different slices of the wave
form
for recharging more efficiently for example different elements at different
voltages,
so that for example the recharger can access separately for example separate
elements or groups of elements in the battery, so that for example some groups
contain more elements and some groups contain less elements in a way that
creates
for example a sequence of groups, for example at various levels of voltage
until for
example 380 volts (or for example other convenient voltage that can be
supplied by
the electric company), so that preferably each slice of the wave cycle is
routed for
recharging for example the element or the elements that have closer voltage or
for
example the closest voltage to the voltage of that slice, thus creating a
smaller
voltage gap and creating more stability in the pulses and/or even further
optimization and efficiency. Preferably similar methods can be used also for
example when recharging multiple batteries or groups of batteries for example
in the
battery swap stations (i.e. for example by using different group sizes and
fitting the
slices of the wave forms according to the group size, preferably by similar
multiplexers), preferably with higher voltages and preferably together with
serial
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recharge of preferably more or less homogenous groups of batteries, as
explained
above. Another possible variation is that for example instead of using fast
pulses in
order to reduce the size of the magnetic core in the transformer and/or in
order to
control the current by changing the pulse-width of the DC wave form,
preferably at
least some rechargers use instead for example a considerably larger core which
preferably works at the natural cycle of the electric company and preferably
contains for example a slot or a hole or for example some other cavity and
preferably a moving element which can be automatically moved in or out of the
slot
or hole or other hollow space to the desired degree as needed (for example by
a
small electric engine controlled by the recharger's processor), thus
controlling for
example the voltage and/or the current in a way that reduces or increases the
efficiency of the core and thus can change the current as needed preferably
without
wasting the energy, for example in a way similar to the way in which such a
type of
core is used for example in at least some welders. This means that such a
recharger
can be for example 20-30% larger than a normal recharger of the same capacity
and
can weight for example 80 or 90 Kilograms instead of for example 10 Kilograms
due to the heavier core but can reach much higher efficiency, such as for
example
around 99% instead of for example around 90%, and in addition the price of the
recharger can be significantly lower due to less and/or cheaper components
needed.
So even when used for the internal car recharger this can be beneficial
despite the
increased weight due to the much higher possible recharge efficiency, and/or
for
example if used at least for high speed rechargers, which are typically
outside of
cars, the benefits can be even bigger because then weight and size are a less
important consideration and the higher efficiency and cheaper components are
much
more important, since otherwise high speed rechargers which can for example
fully
recharge the car batteries for example in 30 or 60 minutes can cost for
example 10
times more than a normal recharger which can for example fully recharge the
car
batteries for example in 4 or 6 hours, and otherwise such a high speed
recharger
would need a large and expensive heat dispersion unit, as explained elsewhere
in
this application. Similarly, this can be even more beneficial for example in
battery
swap stations, for example if larger rechargers of this type are used for
example to
serially recharge groups of batteries at higher voltages, as explained
elsewhere in
this application, since again in such stations size and weight are much less a
consideration than for a recharger inside a car, and reaching a much higher
recharge
efficiency is much more important, thus both saving energy and reducing the
need
for large and expensive heat dispersion or cooling systems. As explained also
elsewhere in the application preferably these serial rechargers can for
example
recharge serially three 380 volt car batteries for example at around 1140 volt
or for
example 26 such batteries for example at around 10,000 volt or for example an
intermediary number - and preferably at least some of them are designed to
work at
the same high voltage of the electric company's high power lines, thus
avoiding also
energy losses due to voltage conversion, and similarly preferahly at least
some of
them can offer for example B2G services also directly at such high voltages,
as
explained elsewhere in this application. Preferably battery swap station which
use
serial rechargers preferably have various spreads of serial recharges which
are pre-
designed or optimized to work for example with a different group size of
batteries
and/or for example at least some rechargers which can handle for example a
variable
group-size of batteries preferably together of course with changing the
voltage
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accordingly. Of course, like the other features of this invention, various
combinations of the above and/or other variations can also be used.
Another possible variation is that preferably at least in the beginning at
least in
some areas preferably the service provider deploys at least partially mobile
rechargers or recharge posts which can be easily moved from place to place, so
that
for example in remote areas that for example have a small population and have
for
example a large number of tourists for example only a few months a year (such
as
for example Eilat in Israel), the service provider can for example increase
the
number of rechargers or recharge posts during the rush season and then for
example
transfer them temporarily to other places for a few months. This is preferably
done
for example by creating high power outlets for example in various centers to
which
multiple rechargers or recharge posts can be hooked up or for example by
enabling
hooking such mobile rechargers or recharge posts for example to the main
electricity room for example in apartment buildings or hotels. In addition,
preferably
rechargers or recharge posts are also controlled for example by a special code
which
they have to receive and respond to from the main computers for example every
hour or every day or other reasonable period, so that if a recharger or
recharge post
for example is stolen or relocated without permission preferably the main
computers
can discover this within this period, and preferably the recharger or recharge
post
itself is programmed to shut itself down and/or refuse to work if for example
a
certain time has passed and it did not get the proper periodic authorization
code
from the main computers, and this behavior is preferably embedded in its
hardware,
and/or for example the recharger or recharge post has a GPS or similar unit
and for
example can receive from the main computers a command that allows them to work
only for example within certain coordinates.
Another possible variation is that the user can similarly also for example
request
to reserve a public car in advance, preferably in a way similar to the way
described
above for reserving parking places, for example through cell phone or for
example
through a normal phone call or through the Internet or similar network, and
preferably the user can for example get to his/her cell phone or for example
through
the web site for example indicators about where the nearest public cars are
which
currently have a certain amount of charge energy or above (for example by
requesting cars with 60% battery charge or more or for example cars which are
90%
or more fully recharged, or for example cars with sufficient energy to drive a
certain
desired distance), and preferably the reserved car preferably becomes
temporarily
locked (for example for up to 15 minutes or other reasonable period) and with
a
preferably conspicuous visual indicator that it is currently reserved, and
preferably if
the reserving user does not come to take the car within the allowed time limit
preferably he/she looses the reservation and/or for example is charged a fine
for
reserving the car without coming on time. Preferably the parking and/or
recharger or
recharge post reservation system and the public car reservation systems are
connected, since for example reserving a public car indicates that at the same
time
its parking place and/or recharge post will become available to other users -
typically for example within a few minutes.
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Another possible variation is that if for example a driver gets stuck in the
middle
of the road with an empty battery (for example on a highway between towns),
preferably he/she can call for example through the cell phone for example a
battery
service, which preferably sends one or more trucks which are preferably
related to
the nearest service station and/or for example are part of the for example
service
provider network to which preferably most drivers have a monthly subscription
(or
for example are subcontractors of the service provider or for example are
otherwise
related to the service provider or authorized by the service provider), so
that
preferably each truck can carry for example 10 or more complete sets of
replacement batteries (i.e. for example for 10 or more cars), and preferably
the truck
includes also the mechanical device for replacing the car batteries, so that
preferably
it can reach the car within a reasonable short time and can preferably replace
its
battery or batteries for example within a few minutes at the side of the road
or for
example recharge its battery or batteries for example at least temporarily
with
sufficient energy to reach the nearest service station and/or for example the
truck
contains for example high power capacitors (or other quick recharge energy
sources
as explained above) which can be used to recharge the car's batteries in a
short time,
for example if the car has M 1 batteries or similar or other fast charge
batteries or
other fast recharge devices such as for example one or more super capacitors
such as
for example EEStor, as explained above, and/or for example the truck can use
one
or more or a set of Ml batteries or similar or other fast charge batteries or
other fast
recharge devices such as for example one or more super capacitors such as for
example EEStor which it carries also for fast recharging of the car's
batteries or for
example super capacitor, if the car also has such batteries or super
capacitors or
other fast recharge devices, so that for example within a few minutes the
car's
batteries can be recharged for example to 80% or similar capacity or most of
its
capacity, as explained above (or for example to full capacity with 12-15
minutes, or
for example the recharge is still less for example due to less than optimal
conditions,
but still preferably a recharge of preferably a few minutes is preferably
sufficient
preferably to drive for at least another 20-30 niinutes or other reasonable
time or
distance so that for example the driver can reach the nearest battery swap
station),
and preferably when recharging, preferably both the car's batteries and the
batteries
on the truck are preferably automatically switched to a more serial connection
so
that the recharge is done at higher voltage, as explained above. (So
preferably fast
recharging of the car's batteries is the preferred choice, and replacing is
preferably
done for example if the car has normal non-fast batteries or for example there
is
some malfunction in the car's batteries, and preferably the same batteries or
for
example super capacitors which the truck carries can be used either for fast
recharging or for replacing the car's batteries or for example super
capacitor). (Like
in the other types of rechrging, preferably the recharge for example from the
fast
batteries or for example super capacitor can be done for example by using the
car's
internal recharger if the car has an internal recharger, or for example by
using a high
speed recharger which is on the truck or for example similarly in service
stations
that enable such fast recharge for example from other batteries or super-
capacitors
or similar storage devices, but using a special recharger located on the truck
is more
preferable since such a rechrager preferably uses directly the DC energy from
the
batteries or for example super capacitor of the truck to create the DC pulses
for
recharghing directly the car's batteries, which is preferably done by
initiating a
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command which disconnects the car's internal recharger and allows the external
recharger to access directly the car's batteries, as explained also elsewhere
in this
application, whereas using the car's recharger would normally mean having to
convert the DC to AC and then to DC again. Another possible variation is that
for
example the car's internal recharger can be switched into a mode in which it
circumvents the AC input and can take DC input for example directly into the
units
which in the normal mode get the DC after conversion, however this is still
less
preferable since it would mean either slower recharge time or that the car's
recharger would have to be a high speed recharger, which can be considerably
more
expensive than a normal recharger). Preferably if the user is a member of the
service
for example based on some monthly subscription the service of the service
truck is
done for free or for example for only some partial or symbolic fee. Preferably
the
service truck is sufficiently narrow and contains sufficiently long connecting
cables
(and/or for example sufficiently long robotic arms for replacing batteries,
and/or for
example the mechanical battery replacement system is a modular separate unit
which is for example lowered from the track and moved closer. to the car), so
that it
can preferably park on the side margin of the road for example in front of or
behind
the car, so that while recharging or swapping batteries it does not disturb
the normal
traffic. Since this mobile unit is preferably human-controlled as explained
also
elsewhere in this application and/or can be for example shaped like or based
for
example on a preferably small fork-lift vehicle (especially if the battery is
for
example moves horizontally for example through the back of the car), unlike
the
preferably automated or more automatic robotic units which can each for
example
swap the batteries of cars in swap stations for example automatically in about
3
minutes, it can be for example much cheaper a s much simpler than the
automated
robotic units at the swap station. However, this human controlled mobile
battery
swap unit can for example still have at least some automatic elements when
interacting with the battery, so that for example after the human controller
for
example points the arms for example at the direction of the batteries or for
example
inserts them below the batteries and/or for example issues a command which
activates for example horizontal rollers inside the car that for example help
push the
battery in or out, preferably the mobile unit can for example handle more
automatically the extraction of the batteries from that stage and/or similarly
the
insertion of the new batteries afterwards. Another possible variation is for
example
at least some service trucks both carry batteries and/or the battery
replacement
device and preferably can also carry or tow the car itself like a normal tow
service if
needed, so that for example, if it turns out that the malfunction is in the
car itself and
not in the batteries, the same service truck can also carry or tow the car for
example
to the nearest service station or to an appropriate electric car garage
without having
to send a separate truck for that, and/or for example the arm that can pick up
the car
for towing it can also be used for example for lifting the car at least
partially while
replacing the battery or batteries so that for example the robotic arm that
replaces
the batteries can for example have an easier access. Another possible
variation is
that preferably the battery replacement and/or recharge service stations or at
least
some of them or at least for example most of the big ones preferably contain
also a
service garage for electrical cars so that it can also solve for example other
mechanical and/or electrical problems which the car might have. Another
possible
variation is that the car has also for example an internal connector which
enables
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plugging-in for example a temporary emergency battery (or batteries) which is
preferably smaller and lighter than the normal electrical car batteries but
preferably
is sufficient for example for traveling for example for at least 20 or 30
minutes or
other reasonable time or distance, so that the car can for example reach the
nearest
service station (i.e. for example battery swap station or for example fast
recharge
post) or for example a near recharge post or for example the user's home, and
then
preferably the car temporarily takes its energy from this temporary battery
instead of
the normal batteries. Preferably the service truck can also for example supply
the car
with such a temporary smaller battery (for example if the user does not have
at least
one emergency battery or for example if the user has also used up the
emergency
battery or batteries, in which case this is preferably done as a battery swap,
which is
especially useful for example if the emergency battery or batteries are also
preferably typically owned by the service provider), and/or for example the
car
preferably carries one for example in the baggage for example in a special
compartment within it or for example below it, for example like carrying a~
spare
wheel (but preferably even if it is below the baggage it is preferably in a
locked
compartment and is preferably also protected by a special digital Id and/or
password
against stealing) and/or for example such emergency batteries are for example
on a
compartment for example on the front side of the car for example below the
engine
and thus can be for example moved in and out for example horizontally for
example
from the front or from the side for example in a way similar to the way that
the main
power battery is preferably moved, and/or for example the service truck can
also
charge for example the car's emergency battery if it is empty, which is
preferably
also for example an Ml or similar or other fast charge battery or other fast
recharge
devices such as for example one or more super capacitors such as for example
EEStor. Preferably the smaller emergency battery or batteries are considered
standard equipment and preferably the car computer also warns the user for
example
if he/she is traveling without at least one emergency battery or for example
if there
is a problem that prevents normal recharge of the emergency battery or
batteries or
for example if an emergency battery is leaking charge or for example has other
problems. In addition, preferably the user can also for example swap the
emergency
battery or batteries or for example at least one of them for example also
manually
for example in various places which are authorized by the service provider,
such as
for example post office branches, various shops, etc., and preferably such
swapping
also involves testing the swapped batteries for current charge so that the
difference
between the user's emergency battery's current charge and the new battery is
calculated and preferably automatically broadcast to the main computers of the
service provider, and/or for example such emergency or reserve batteries can
preferably for example swapped by mobile robotic devices which are preferably
much smaller and cheaper then the robotics at the swap stations. The small
emergency battery (or batteries) can preferably be connected for example
through
the baggage itself or for example by putting it for example on the back seat
or for
example on the floor between the front and back seats, but preferably it is
normally
connected all the time, so that it is preferably also charged automatically
for
example when the normal main battery or batteries are being recharged - for
example directly by the same recharger or for example through the normal
batteries
(for example through the same preferable power supply which can also for
example
recharge the small front battery which preferably powers for example the car's
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computer and/or displays as explained elsewhere in this application). Of
course, if
as explained elsewhere is this application, the main power batteries are also
composed for example of two or more separate modules or elements which can be
swapped separately, this can also make it easier for the service track to swap
for
example at least one of the modules without the need for heavy robotics like
for
example in the swap station. Another possible variation is that for example
the user
can request help from passing by drivers and preferably the driver that helps
him/her
canfor example tell his/her car's computer for example exactly how much power
to
transfer to the other car and then the recharge preferably stops automatically
when
the amount is reached, and preferably at least if the drivers are members of
the same
monthly subscription service or network, the helping driver can preferably get
automatically credit points from the service provider for example by
authorizing the
transfer and credit in advance or confirming the transfer afterwards for
example
through cellular phone, so that for example he/she is entitled for extra
credit since
his help saves the need to send a service truck, and/or for example the
recharging
car's computer can also display automatically the estimated cost of the energy
so
that if for example the helping driver charges the user's batteries with 25%
of a full
recharge (so that he/she can for example travel another 50 Km or other
reasonable
distance), and then the driver that received the help can for example pay
him/her.
Preferably the above described truck service is part of the general service
received
automatically by subscribers of the network of service stations.
Another possible variation is that preferably the display in front of the
driver in
the car preferably includes also information about how full the battery is
(preferably
in percentages) and/or how much capacity the battery still has (since for
example
batteries that are a few years old might gradually lose for example up to 10%
of
their capacity) and/or preferably for example how much time it would take to
recharge it for example to full state for example with an average normal
public
recharger or recharge post and/or with the recharger or recharge post at home,
and/or for example how much distance approximately can still be traveled for
example until the battery has to be recharged or replaced (preferably while
taking
into account also the average speed of the car for example in the last N
minutes or
seconds or other period or for example the exact current speed, which is
preferably
computed automatically by the car's computer which preferably also keeps an
automatic log of the speed in the desired time window, and/or for example the
inclination of the road, i.e. if the car is climbing or going downhill or
moving in a
more or less horizontal plane, and/or for example by automatically sensing the
current weight in the car, for example because of carrying more passenger or
load,
for example by an automatic digital scale at the bottom of the chassis),
and/or for
example how far and/or where is the next closest battery replacement service,
and/or
for example how far and/or where are the closest rechargers or recharge posts
or fast
rechargers (preferably based on automatic information for example through a
cellular network or GPS), and/or for example the driver can request for
example to
see separately the location of faster than normal rechargers, and/or for
example
additional parameters of the battery, such as for example its condition, age,
number
of recharges it had already gone through, and/or other parameters which are
preferably available automatically preferably as digital information from the
battery's computer, as explained above. Similarly, when recharging at a
specific
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recharger or recharge post preferably the recharger or recharge post
communicates
digitally with the car's computer so that the computer preferably displays to
the
driver automatically for example according to the car's statistics and/or
parameters
and/or according to the load at that time in the area and/or according to the
voltage
or power of the recharger and/or based on the state of the battery -
preferably an
automatic estimate of the predicted recharge time, which preferably is more
specific
and accurate than the general estimate which is not based on a particular
recharger
or recharge post. In addition, preferably while the car is recharging the user
can for
example send queries for example through his/her cell phone for example to the
central computers (i.e. for example the service provider's main computers)
which
are preferably in contact with the rechargers or recharge posts for example
through
transferring data through the electricity lines as explained above or for
example
through a cellular network or for example wimax or similar network or for
example
other preferably Internet connection (This is preferably done for example by
logging
in to the service provider's web site for example with the car's Id and/or
registration
number and/or the user's Id or login and preferably also password and/or for
example by being identified through his/her cell phone number for example when
connecting with the cell phone or for example when using the cell phone number
for
the login, as explained also elsewhere is this application, and/or for example
through
SMS or other communication for example when connecting through the cell phone,
as explained also elsewhere in this application, and/or for example the user
can for
example from his/her celiphone or for example from a regular phone for example
get the information from an automatic voice menu from the service provider's
main
computers, for example by keying-in the car's license number and/or for
example
unique id and preferably also a secret code) (and/or for example send the
queries
directly to the recharger or recharge post for example if it contains for
example a
cell phone and/or for example similar communication for example directly to
his/her
car, i.e. remotely, or of course locally for example if the user is in the
car) and can
preferably query for example how full the battery already is and/or for
example how
much average traveling distance is now available and/or for example if the
charge is
now enough for example to reach a certain destination for example with a
certain
safety margin (for answering this preferably for example the main computers
take
into account the current location of the car and also for example
approximately how
much of the trip would be downhill or uphill) and/or for example how much time
is
needed to complete the recharge (i.e. for example till full recharge or till
the
recharge plan is complete - i.e. the intended amount of current recharge, as
explained also elsewhere in this application), and/or for example the user can
be
notified automatically for example through SMS or other communication for
example to his cell phone and/or for example by email or Instant message when
the
recharge is complete (i.e. for example if the battery is full or for example
if the
current recharge plan is complete) or for example at various stages, such as
for
example when a certain percent of recharge is complete (such as for example
75%
or 80%) or for example when the recharge has become sufficient for example for
driving to a certain destination, or for example when some other requested
condition
has been met, or for example when other events happen. Similarly preferably
the
user is preferably warned in a similar way automatically (for example by SMS
or
instant message or automatic phone call for example from the service
provider's
main computers and/or for example directly from the car's computer) if for
example
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somehow the cable has become disconnected and/or for example especially for
example if according to the car's computer the car is being moved by someone
(for
example at least if the user is logged in at the service provider's web site
at the time
for example through another location or for example the location of his/her
cell
phone for example according to automatic cell triangulation is away from the
car
when this happens, which can mean that the car is being stolen) (eventhough as
explained elsewhere in this application the cable is supposed to be locked
automatically at least while the recharge or recharge plan has not completed)
and/or
for example if there is some other problem with the recharging or for example
some
other important problem that requires attention. Similarly preferably the user
can for
example see on the service provider's web site for example also for example
the
general state of recharging of electric cars for example in general for
example in the
country or for example in the same general area or for example in the same
street or
parking lot - for example in order to see the status of his/her car for
example in
comparison to other cars, including for example his/her priority scores for
example
compared to the other cars in the area or other cars in general. Another
possible
variation is that for example at least some recharge posts contain for example
also a
webcam or similar device so that the user can for example see through the web
site
for example upon request also a real time video feed of his/her car for
example
while connected to the recharge post (in such case, in order to save
bandwidth,
preferably images are only sent for example at certain intervals and
preferably for
example only upon request so that for example the main computers instruct the
recharge post to send the images to the main computers only if the user has
requested it). In addition, if the user for example feels that his/her car's
priorities in
general are for example too low or unjustified preferably the user can for
example
file a request for correction for example through the web site and/or through
the
phone preferably together with the reasons (this is preferably in addition for
example for special requests based for example on specific upcoming needs, as
explained elsewhere in this application, in which the user can preferably for
example request for example immediate temporal maximum priority for example if
something has come up that requires now as much recharge as possible as soon
as
possible). In addition preferably the user can for example see for example
through
the internet and/or cell phone and/or for example on the car's computer
monitor for
example maps of areas where there are recharge posts or concentrations of
recharge
posts, for example in general or for example in specific areas, and/or for
example by
clicking on concentrations and/or for example by saying or typing-in specific
areas
such as for example cities and/or neighborhoods and/or street names and/or
numbers
the user can preferably for example zoom in and see additional details.
Another
possible variation is that for example the driver can type-in a desired
destination for
example in the GPS device and then preferably it can communicate also with the
car's computer or for example directly with the battery (for example through
wire or
bluetooth or UWB), and/or for example the user can type it in the car's
computer or
for example choose it for example from a pre-exiting menu for example through
voice commands, and so for example the GPS device or the car's computer can
preferably tell the driver automatically for example if he/she has sufficient
battery
power to reach the destination (preferably while taking into account both the
distance and how much of the trip is for example downhill or uphill, as
explained
also elsewhere in this application) and/or for example can automatically
recommend
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to the driver for example not to exceed a certain speed (such as for example
60 or 70
or 80 Km/H or other calculated speed for example in which the air resistance
is
lower) in order to conserve sufficient energy to get there without need for
recharge
or battery swap on the way (preferably the car computer recommends to the user
automatically for example also for example regularly even when there is enough
charge in the battery for example not to exceed normally the recommended speed
of
for example 80 or 90 Km/h - which is preferably for example the recommended
speed for not reaching too high air resistance and preferably the speed of
optimal
efficiency for the engine as explained also elsewhere in this application),
and/or for
example if there is insufficient energy to reach the destination or for
example it is a
borderline case or for example unclear if the energy will be sufficient,
preferably the
car computer can for example automatically recommend to the user for example
to
go to the near battery swap station preferably while choosing the swap station
which
is preferably in the current driving direction and is preferably still within
reach of
current charge of the battery, as explained also elsewhere in this
application, or for
example if even that is too far for example to go to a nearby fast recharger
or to a
nearby normal recharger preferably while also pointing out preferably the
exact
place of the swap station or recharge post for example on a map as explained
also
elsewhere in this application. Similarly preferably even if the user has not
explicitly
entered a destination, preferably the car computer (and/or for example the
service
provider's main computers) can for example automatically guess the user's
destination for example based on his/her usual destinations and/or other drive
patterns and/or current position (for example based on GPS and/or cell-phone
cell
triangulation) and/or direction (and/or can for example preferably ask the
user to
confirm the assumed destination or for example to choose it from an
automatically
displayed menu which is preferably automatically generated by the car's
computer
for example based on the typical usual destinations of the car and/or the
driver, so
that for example the user can pick the option number through voice
communication
or can for example even say the name of the destination so that the automatic
speech
recognition can for example choose the most similar sounding destination
and/or
preferably ask for example a yes or no to confirm), and/or for example if the
user is
currently on a highway for example based on finding (for example through
interfacing with the user's GPS navigation system) for example that there are
for
example no normal exits for example from the current highway for example for
the
next N miles, and/or for example based on finding that after the near battery
swap
station for example there are no additional swap stations and/or for example
no
recharge posts or fast recharge posts for example for a distance which is
insufficient
to reach with the current state of charge (preferably based on the computer's
database of available battery swap stations and recharge posts, which is
preferably
automatically updated preferably regularly from the service provider's main
computers and/or for example is also automatically updated for example with
additional details, such as for example about the available local recharge
posts
and/or fast rechargers for example when entering or nearing a for example a
specific
general area, and preferably based also on taking into account for example the
percent of the way which is uphill or downhill, as explained also elsewhere in
this
application), so that for example if there is insufficient charge for example
to reach
the nearest guessed destination or for example the nearest highway exit or for
example the nearest other swap station (or for example other recharge option)
for
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example after the near upcoming swap station, preferably the car computer
(and/or
for example the service provider's main computers preferably through the car
computer) can for example automatically bring to the user's attention that
he/she
will probably or for example certainly or for example almost certainly need to
stop
at the near battery swap station on the way and can preferably alert the user
for
example as soon as the computer realizes the problem and/or for example at
least a
few minutes in advance before reaching the near battery swap station that
he/she
should prepare to go to the station to swap the battery or batteries,
preferably with
additional automatic reminders as the user is nearing the battery swap
station, for
example unless the user indicates clearly that he/she does not want to go to
the swap
station for example in reply to a question by the computer (for example if the
user is
on a hurry and for example has a spare emergency smaller battery for example
in the
baggage or for example in a special compartment for this, which can be used
for a
certain additional distance for example through simply plugging it for example
with
a cable inside the car for example even without having to remove it from its
position). Preferably the car computer (and/or for example the service
provider's
main computers) warns the user for example about the need to go to the nearest
swap station preferably while disregarding the additional extra mileage which
is
available from the smaller emergency battery or batteries, since the emergency
battery is preferably used only as a last resort for example in case of error.
Another
possible variation is that the for example car computer (and/or for example
the
service provider's main computers) takes into account at least in some cases
also the
extra mileage available from the emergency battery or batteries and can for
example
recommend to the driver to use it - but preferably only for example if it is
need just
for a short missing distance - for example if using also the emergency battery
will
allow the user for example to reach a far swap station which is a little more
far than
the nearest swap station but is more in the user's exact direction than for
example
the nearest swap station. These alerts are preferably done for example by
automatic
synthesized speech and/or for example by flashing a for example red light
which
indicates danger of running out of energy and/or for example other visual
and/or
auditory indicators. As explained also elsewhere in this application, since at
least
some of these types of information are needed also for other features
described in
this application, for this preferably the car's computer and/or for example
the GPS
or similar guidance system preferably for example contain in advance
preferably in
a database at least the locations of the available battery swap stations
and/or
recharge posts and/or fast rechargers, and/or for example the GPS unit or the
cars'
computer can be automatically updated about this for example when entering or
nearing the relevant general area and/or for example through periodical global
updates for example for the entire country for example through the automatic
cellular or other wireless communication with the service provider's main
computers. Another possible variation is that preferably the car's computer
for
example at least or in addition can also automatically sound a special warning
for
example when the energy level of the batteries is below a certain minimum
level for
example based on various statistics of the typical minimum and/or maximum
distances to the next battery swap stations or for example based on a default
minimum value, and/or for example preferably the user can also set for example
as
general defaults for example one or more energy level warning points in which
the
car computer will preferably automatically issue a reminder to the user for
example
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that the energy level is low. Another possible variation is that similar
features can be
used also for example in normal for example gasoline powered cars, for example
by
adding a similar interface between the car's computer and the GPS guidance
system,
and/or preferably the GPS or similar guidance system and/or for example the
cars'
computer preferably for example contain in advance also the locations of the
available gas stations and/or for example the GPS unit or the car's computer
are
updated about this for example automatically for example when entering or
nearing
the relevant general area or for example through periodical global updates for
example for the entire country for example through automatic cellular
communication with some service provider like for example is preferably done
with
the electric car's service provider. Another possible variation is that
preferably the
car computer can also indicate to the driver preferably automatically for
example
how much energy the car battery is currently consuming for example at the
exact
moment or for example on average over a certain time window (such as for
example
the last 5 or 10 minutes or other reasonable period) and/or for example
indicate
automatically when the battery is actually getting back energy for example due
to
regeinerative breaking or automatic regenerative recharge for example during
slowing down or going downhill as explained elsewhere in this application (for
example by showing it through a virtual or real dial or bar which for example
is in
the middle when the battery is at rest and for example goes to one direction,
for
example to a red edge, as more energy is consumed and for example goes to the
other direction, for example to a green edge as more energy is being
regenerated),
and/or for example the car computer can automatically display to the user the
current energy efficiency for example in terms of the equivalent MPG (miles
per
gallon) or for example Kilometers per liter or for example directly for
example in
electric energy terms such as for example watts or kilowatts per mile,
preferably
also based on for example on the exact moment or more preferably for example
over
a certain period such as for example the last 5 minutes or more, such as for
example
minutes or 30 niinutes or one hour or other reasonable period (preferably by
calculating automatically the average energy consumption on that period and
converting it through the relevant conversion formula to the equivalent oil
consumption, and/or can preferably also for example display this to the user
for
example in terms of cents per miles or for example per kilometer (or for
example
other coins or currencies which preferably the user can define for example
directly
preferably in advance and/or for example the defaults are preferably
automatically
selected by the computer for example according to the country in which the car
is
but preferably the user can also change them for example to. other coins such
as for
example cents or dollars even for example in countries other than the US),
preferably based on automatic regular updates for example from the service
provider's main computers about the current price per energy or for example on
the
last price which the user paid, and can preferably display this information to
the user
for example as the price of energy alone and/or for example also as the price
including the payment for the battery, and/or the user can for example view
this
data for example also over larger periods (such as for example day or days or
week
or month or more) for example through the service provider's web site, which
preferably keeps such logs automatically, and/or view also for example on the
web
site also similar data and/or statistics for example for other cars for
example in
general or for example according to type or brand (preferably based on average
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automatic logs of other users ), as explained also elsewhere in this
application.
Another possible variation is that for example the car computer can also
calculate
(for example based on regular updates about gasoline and electricity prices
for
example from the service provider's main computers) for example also the
approximate saving for example on the energy cost (preferably including the
payment for the battery) for example on a certain trip or for example over a
certain
period or for example over a certain distance, so that for example the car
computer
can tell the user for example at the end of a trip for example how much money
he/she saved on that trip compared to what it would have cost him/her if
he/she had
to pay for gasoline on the trip or period or distance- for example from the
time the
user left the last parking spot for example until the user requests this
infonnation or
for example until the next time the user enters into parking (so that for
example the
user can request this info actively for example for a specific period or
distance
which the user an preferably defme or for example the computer reports this
automatically at least in some situations for example unless the user disables
such
automatic reports), and/or similarly preferably for example the service
provider's
main computers include this information for example in the monthly statement
sent
to the users - for example how much they saved on energy costs for example
during
the last month (or other period) for example compared to driving the same
distance
with a similar gasoline car.
Since typically a normal town will have at least a few battery swap stations
and
for example on highways between towns there will be a battery swap station for
example every 40 Kilometers or for example every 25 or 30 Kilometers or for
example other reasonable number, if someone for example lives in Jerusalem and
for example works in Tel Aviv each day and for example typically comes back
from
work with for example only with energy left for example only for an additional
20
Kilometers in the battery (since typically he/she does not need recharge
during
daytime or for example his/her battery is automatically only recharged
partially
during the day - for example adding 20% of charge or other reasonable amount
or
for example adding a certain amount of Kilometers for example as an additional
safety margin) as long as his/her daily commute does not near the range of the
full
charge of the battery which is for example 160 Kilometers), and normally
his/her
battery will then be recharged fully during the night and the user would
typically on
a normal day have no need for example to enter a battery swap station on the
way
home, and if for example the user later that evening for example after coming
back
from work decides unexpectedly to go for example to a movie or a mall which
stretches the remaining energy (if it is planned in advance the user will
typically
enter a swap station already on the way home or for example request higher
recharge priority for that day in advance), he/she can easily enter a battery
swap
stations in his town before driving to the new destination for example in the
evening. The main problem is for example in smaller urban or rural settlements
(such as for. example Moshav Bekoa in Israel) if for example the user
similarly
works for example at a place at a distance of for example 60 Kilometers or
similar
distance from home but there is typically no swap station within the
settlement and
the user might for example need or decide unexpectedly for example to travel
that
evening to visit his family in Jerusalem, and for example the nearest swap
station or
for example the nearest swap station which is in the right direction is for
example
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only 30 Kilometers sway from the settlement and the user's battery for example
has
only enough charge for 20 Kilometers. According to the variations described
already elsewhere in this application, in order to solve this preferably the
user can
for example charge his/her car for example in one of the fast rechargers in
his/her
areas (since as explained elsewhere in this application preferably there is a
normal
speared of a certain percent of fast rechargers between normal recharge posts,
so
that for example on average for example at least 5% or 10% of the recharge
posts
are fast rechargers or for example other reasonable number), so normally such
a fast
recharger will be at a distance of for example up to 20 recharge posts away
from the
user's home, and if for example it takes 30 minutes to reach full recharge on
a fast
recharger, then for example the user can leave the car for example the entire
30
minutes for example if he/she wants to eat first and/or prepare or finish a
few things
anyway before leaving (and preferably the fast recharger is automatically
designed
for immediate recharge as soon as the user connects to it and/or the user can
for
example request it) and/or for example if the user is in a hurry he/she can
for
example spend only for example 5-10 minutes at the fast recharger for example
till
his energy is boosted enough to reach for example the nearest battery swap
station
which is preferably also in the correct direction and/or for example some
other
destination, and/or preferably the car computer can automatically recommend to
the
user for example the desired minimum amount or time of recharge in order to be
able to reach that swap station or for example other destination, preferably
including
a reasonable safety margin and/or can for example automatically indicate to
the user
when the charge has become sufficient, and/or for example users in such
settlements
(in which for example there is no internal and/or sufficiently nearby battery
swap
stations) and which typically travel back and forth each day for example a
distance
which would normally leave them with too little energy to reach the nearest
swap
stations without further recharge for example at evening if such unexpected
needs
arise as in the above example, preferably automatically receive higher
recharge
priority anyway, since they are the ones who need it much more than people who
for
example live in a large town (which typically has a quite sufficient number of
battery swap stations) and/or who typically travel a smaller distance each
day, so
preferably for example the priority considerations preferably strive as much
as
possible to make sure that for example cars of users in such settlements in
which for
example there is no internal and/or sufficiently nearby battery swap stations
are
preferably automatically recharged for example during the work day to a
sufficient
extent so that when they return home they preferably still have enough energy
to
reach at least the nearest swap stations plus a preferably sufficient safety
margin
(preferably by taking into account for example the information about where the
user
lives - i.e. for example where he/she typically recharges at night, the
typical
distance he/she travels each day, the database of information about the
relevant
available swap stations and/or recharge posts and/or fast rechargers at or
near
his/her area, etc., as explained also elsewhere in this application), and/or
for
example once it happens that the user for example suddenly needs such a trip
for
example in the evening and for example does not have sufficient charge to
reach the
nearest swap stations for example without recharging first, preferably his/her
priorities are automatically further increased (since this is part of
the.drive patterns,
as explained elsewhere in this application) and/or for example the car's
computer
and/or the service provider's main computers for example automatically ask the
user
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for example if and/or when he/she expects this to happen again, and/or for
example
preferably as a general rule the car's computer and/or the service provider's
main
computers preferably ask the user automatically for example at least once each
day
or for example at least under certain situations, for example when first going
into the
car in the morning or for example when entering a parking spot that has a
recharge
post or when connecting to the recharge post and/or for example a sufficient
time
before approaching or reaching for example the last battery swap station for
example on the way home from work - for example if the user (or for example
anybody else in the family) has any plans to go out again with the car on that
day or
for example if the user intends to drive or use the car (for example himself
or for
example by some other family member) for example today for example more than
the usual mileage or for example more then N miles or Kilometers or for
example
more than N miles or Kilometers above the usual (i.e. for example above the
user's
car's average or usual daily commute)(preferably the car computer and/or the
service provider's main computers compute N automatically for example based on
the current state of charge of the car's battery or batteries and the typical
energy use
of the user for example on average or on the average of the relevant week day,
so
that N is the remaining spare mileage which should normally be available on
that
day, preferably including a certain minimal safety margin), and for example if
the
user answer yes (for example through voice command or for example by key
control
for example on the wheel, as explained elsewhere in this application) then
preferably the computer asks the user also for example approximately how many
additional miles or kilometers (for example in total or for example the part
beyond
N, for example in terms of distance or for example in terms of estimated
travel time)
he/she thinks he/she will need and/or for example asks the user to indicate
the
destination of the out-of-ordinary trip (for example through the computer
interface
or through a GPS guidance system) or for example the car computer asks this in
one
step (i.e. for example how many miles or kilometers beyond the user's normal
daily
usage or normal usage on that week day the user intends to drive today, for
example
with 0 for example indicating none), and/or for example the computer can ask
the
user for example when entering the car in the morning or for example when
reaching the parking place for example at work for example approximately how
many Kilometers (or for example miles or other measure) the user thinks he
and/or
for example other family members will need to drive in the car today, and/or
similar
variations, and preferably based on this answer for example the service
provider's
main computers can for example automatically increase the user's priority for
example for daytime recharge at least for that day and/or for example based on
this
answer for example the car computer or the service provider's main computers
(through the car's computer terminal) preferably if need automatically remind
the
user or recommend to him/her for example when leaving the parking lot to go
through a battery swap station, preferably while also automatically
recommending
for example the optimal swap station that will least divert the driver off the
way, as
explained also elsewhere in this application. In addition, if the car computer
(or for
example the service provider's main computers for example through the car
computer) for example asks the user for example when parking the car in a
parking
spot (i.e. for example when the user puts the gear or drive control in parking
mode -
for example as soon as the user has finished moving the gear or drive
controller into
the parking position and/or for example a certain amount of seconds
afterwards,
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which preferably the user can also adjust for example as one of the defaults,
or for
example after the user also turns off the engine and/or turns off the car key
and/or
for example removes the key, i.e. for example as soon as the user does these
activities or for example within a short time interval afterwards such as for
example
a few seconds or more (or for example a minute or a few minutes or other
reasonable interval) which preferably the user can also adjust for example as
one of
the defaults, as explained also elsewhere in this application) for example how
long
he/she intends to stay in that parking place or when he/she intends to use the
car
again or leave the parking spot (and preferably the car computer communicates
the
reply automatically for example to the recharge post and/or to the service
provider's
main computers, as explained elsewhere in this application), preferably the
car
computer (and/or for example the service provider's main computers through the
car
computer) preferably asks this for example only if the user pays for the
parking
through the service provider or if it is a parking spot with a recharge post
(as can be
determined for example by special optical and/or electromagnetic markings on
such
parking spots and/or for example on the recharge post which the car computer
can
preferably identify automatically for example through small video cameras for
example below the car and/or for example on the front and/or sides (for
example the
same video cameras that can preferably be used also for other purposes, such
as for
example automatic retroactive recording of accidents for example through a
constant buffer as explained elsewhere in this application or for example
warning
the user about wandering off the lane or for example being to close to the
margin of
the road or for example to a safety fence) and/or for example automatic
Bluetooth or
UWB or other wireless communication or for example infrared communication with
the recharge post that is coupled to that parking place (since preferably the
car
contains an internal cellar communication unit, preferably coupled to the car
computer, and since almost all cellular phones today come with a bluetooth
chip and
will soon come with UWB, the cost for using this variation should be
negligible,
and preferably the UWB or Bluetooth works for example for a distance of up to
only
meters or less, but more preferably for example only 5 meters or other
reasonable
distance in order to reduce the chance that the car computer might be confused
for
example between 2 nearby recharge posts, and preferably in this communication
the
recharge post also tells the car for example its serial number and/or for
example its
position such as for example as defined by GPS coordinates or other
coordinates
and/or for example by street name and house number and preferably informs the
car
computer for example if each of its socket is available or connected to a car
now,
and preferably this way and/or for example also based on its own GPS the car
computer can for example remember automatically the various locations for
example for logging the relevant user patterns, such as for example that for
example
near the grocery store the user typically stays only a few minutes), and/or
for
example if the user for example goes into a mall or movie for example in the
evening and has enough energy to go home anyway, preferably the computer
avoids
asking him/her for exaniple about departure time since anyway almost certainly
the
car will also not be used for V2G services at such time anyway, since
otherwise the
question could be annoying or irrelevant. Another possible variation is that
there are
for example at least two parking states in which the user can for example put
the
gear or drive control - for example normal parking and temporary parking
(which is
preferably for example between the position of the normal parking and the
other
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possible positions of the control), so that for example the temporary parking
position
preferably locks the car gear and/or brakes exactly the same as the normal
parking
position and/or preferably does preferably all the same things as the normal
parking
position but preferably indicates to the computer for example that the user
intends
this to be a short stop of for example u-p to 5 or 10 or 15 minutes or less or
for
example other reasonable period (which preferably the user can also change for
example through the car computer interface for example within a certain
choosable
range), so that for example when the user puts the gear or drive control in
temporary
parking the car computer preferably for example automatically avoids asking
the
user for example how long he/she intends to stay on that parking place or when
he/she thinks he/she will come back and/or preferably avoids reminding him/her
for
example about plugging the recharge cable even if there is for example a
recharge
post coupled to that parking spot. Preferably such automatic questions and/or
reminders are preferably enabled by default, but preferably users can for
example
disable these features or for example one or more specific questions or
reminders for
example if they consider the question or reminder for example annoying and/or
for
example can define for example more specific rules br for example conditions
such
as for example when to ask specific questions or use specific reminders or for
example rues that affect all or multiple reminders and/or questions, for
example that
the computer should ask a question or make a certain automatic reminder only
when
they go to work or park the car at work in the morning or for example when
they
come back at night at or park the car at home but not for example when they
travel
anywhere else during the day or for example in specific types of places,
and/or for
example the user can for example disable or enable only specific kinds of
questions
or for example specific types of reminders (and/or for example the user can
choose
if he/she prefers to be asked about the expected departure time for example in
terms
of how long he intends to leave the car the parking place or for example in
terms of
entering the expected time of return), for example through entering a summary
table
of allowed questions and/or other rules, and this disabling or enabling or
setting
rules can preferably be done for example on the car's computer monitor, or for
example through the user's cell phone and/or for example through accessing the
service provider's web site (since preferably either way the changes or rules
are
preferably communicated automatically from the car computer to the service
provider's main computers and/or vice versa as needed). In addition,
preferably in
order to speed this questioning process up and avoid annoying the user,
preferably
the car computer first preferably automatically displays the preferably
automatically
estimated departure time (or for example estimated length of staying in the
parking
place), preferably based as explained already elsewhere in this application
for
example on the user's typical drive patterns and/or week days and/or his/her
typical
past behavior for example in general or for example in the same place (for
example
work, or for example a specific mall, and/or for example typically when the
user
goes to malls in general for example based on his/her past behavior) and
preferably
asks the user to confirm for example by saying yes or for example to correct
or
adjust the time, for example by moving the dials on a real or virtual watch or
saying
the correct time or keying in the numbers. (As explained also elsewhere in
this
application another possible variation is that for example the recharge post
for
example asks the user about the time directly so that the user for example has
to
key-in the reply for example with a keyboard and monitor on the recharge post,
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which is less preferable, or for example after the car computer senses that
the cable
has been plugged in it can for example ask the user about the time for example
through wireless communication with his/her remote control, and then for
example
the user keys the reply for example on his/her remote control, but the above
variations of preferably the car computer asking the user while he/she is in
the car
are more preferable and more convenient). The expected departure time (based
on
the normal user's patterns and/or a different time indicated by the user) is
preferably
used as explained also elsewhere in this application for example by the
service
provider's main computers for example for parking payment management and/or
for
taking this into account in the recharge priorities and/or for the V2G
services, so that
for example when applying the V2G preferably the main computers of the service
provider or of the electric company preferably try to use mainly cars in which
the
expected departure time is later or latest and/or for example cars in which
the
normal energy needs are such that even if the car's battery happens to be
depleted
by the maximum allowed V2G amount or percent at the time the user leaves (for
example 20% or other reasonable limit), it will still for example normally or
typically allow him/her to continue driving that day without the need for
further
recharge and preferably with a sufficient safety margin), and/or for example
the
computer preferably avoids asking the user about the departure time for
example if
the user's typical daily energy needs are such that normally he/she does not
need
any daytime recharge and for example typically has sufficient or more or
sufficiently more spare energy for his typical daily needs so that even if the
car's
battery happens to be depleted by the maximum allowed V2G amount or percent at
the time the user leaves it will for example typically or normally still allow
him/her
to continue driving that day without the need for further recharge and
preferably
with a sufficient safety margin (for example unless that user has a special
trip
planned for that day, which preferably the user indicates if needed), since in
this
case (and/or if the user also does not pay for the parking through the service
provider or this is not needed for managing the parking payment, since as
explained
elsewhere in this application preferably the service provider can extend the
parking
time automatically and does not need to know the expected departure time for
this)
there is no need to ask this question (for example a user who travels on
average only
a maximum of 60 or 80 Kilometers daily or for example rarely travels beyond
that,
so the remaining for example 80 or 100 kilometers does not require normally
any
daytime recharge and has enough safety range for example for even maximum
depletion due to V2G, and preferably in such cars the maximum amount or
percent
of depletion due to V2G can preferably also be increase automatically or for
example by asking the user for permission in general, preferably together with
extra
payments and/or reductions and/or credits and/or other bonuses, such as for
example
also free parking or reduction in parking). Preferably in this case,
preferably the
computer will ask about the departure time only if the user indicates his/her
intention of traveling beyond the normal distance on that day, as explained
above. In
addition, if the user for example was in a hurry and did not reply to the
computer
before leaving the car or for example forgot to reply or for example changes
his/her
plans later, preferably the user can preferably instantly update the expected
departare time for example through his/her cell phone, for example by direct
communication with the service provider's main computers or with the car's
computer and/or for example through the service provider's web site, so that
the
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user preferably can see the current estimated or entered or modified departure
time
and can for example move it backwards or forwards and/or for example enter
directly another time, and/or for example the car computer or the service
provider
can for example send the user an automatic reminder for example through SMS or
email or Instant message or for example through an automatic message for
example
when the user enters the service provider's web site to indicate for example
if the
user intends to go out earlier or needs to travel a longer distance than usual
(preferably this is done only if the computer determines that the question is
relevant,
as explained above) and/or for example only if the user's car is actually
needed for
V2G at that time and the service provider is for example not sure if it should
be used
(for example if the car would not have enough charge for example to reach home
or
for example if the user need the car unexpectedly in the middle of the V2G) or
for
example if the user's typical patterns have large statistical variations,
and/or
preferably the service provider or electric company's main computer preferably
automatically also prefer to actually use for the V2G for example users who
have
lower statistical deviations than for example other users, i.e. for example
users who
for example rarely leave work for example at a significantly earlier hour than
usual,
and/or for example V2G services are mainly used when the user's car is in a
place
with more predictable or low deviation departure times, so that for example if
a
certain user for example typically rarely leaves work before time but for
example
when going to am mall or to a movie or for example to the center of town
his/her
length of stay has much more deviation, preferably the service provider or the
electric company preferably automatically disable for example V2G services for
example for such user when they are parked and connected to recharge post in
such
places, and anyway such user might not even desire to park near a recharge
post for
this reason if they don't need the recharge at that time and if they most
likely will
not be used there for V2G anyway, and especially for example if going to the
mall
or movies for example in the evening, when the need for V2G is much lower. In
addition, preferably if the user for example goes out in the evening for
example to a
mall or to a movie and has sufficient energy to return home without any
recharge
(preferably with sufficient safety margin) preferably the computer can
automatically
recommend to the user for example not to connect to a recharge post since
he/she
does not need it and also there is little or no chance that he/she will be
used for V2G
at such a time (preferably at least or especially for example if there is a
shortage of
recharging posts at the mall or they are crowded), and/or for example the
computer
only reminds or recommends to users to connect to a recharge post in such
places
only if they really need it for energy. Preferably when paying for the V2G
services
preferably the electric company pays the service provider and/or users both
for the
general availability for example of the car batteries of the users who agree
to
participate and preferably also for actual usage, and preferably users can
also
request preferably explicitly for example to increase or reduce the frequency
or
amount of their participation for example in the V2G services for example in
terms
of priority for being used and/or for example in terms of allowed depth of
recharge
(for example if these users drive a short daily distance which give them
sufficient
spare mileage even if used to the maximum extent without recharge by the end
of
the day, and/or for example if these users typically return late anyway almost
everyday, and/or for example if these users simply want an especially boosted
revenue or credit or monthly subscription fees reduction and for example don't
mind
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even going to the swap station for example at least if they have to leave
earlier
unexpectedly and for example forget to inform the service provider or the
electric
company a sufficient time before that) (preferably usually this will happen
only or
mainly for example if the user has to leave unexpectedly early or if the user
for
example typically leaves early, such as for example at 2 or 3PM, since for
example
in case of users who typically leave for example at 6 PM there should be
sufficient
time after the peek time to return sufficient energy to their battery so that
they don't
have to go to the swap stations - at least for users who need that and
otherwise
would have to go to the swap station for example on the way home). So for
example
some users for example even if they return from work typically for example at
3 PM
might for example agree for extended V2G services for example even if in means
every day or every few days having to go to the battery swap station for
example on
the way home if it pays well enough. However for example the electric company
might not need many people like this if for example there are sufficient cars
which
can be used for V2G automatically with high reliability almost without any
need for
going more to swap stations, and/or similarly as explained elsewhere in this
application preferably other users can preferably also for example request to
block
for example completely or partially the V2G services, so that they preferably
give
up all or most of the extra credit or reduction or revenue for the V2G
services, for
example for the knowledge that they will need the swap station even less. In
addition, preferably like in the case of trying to cheat the system by
requesting
unjustified high priorities, preferably the service provider for example uses
for
example suctions such as for example fines and/or extra charge (i.e. for
example
paying higher rates preferably together with a fine) and/or for example
ignoring at
least some of these requests - for example if the user for example
systematically
enters departure times which are for example substantially sooner than the
real
actual departure time and/or for example systematically indicates for example
again
and again for example that he/she needs to go on a long trip today and then
does not
really make such a trip (preferably by automatically logging this data), since
if for
example many people start doing this and/or make bogus requests for higher
priority
without sanctions against this it could seriously defeat the efficiency and/or
proper
functioning of the automatic priority system. Since most people live in large
towns
and/or travel a smaller distance per day, such as for example less than 40
Miles
round trip per day, the effects of these priorities on the amount of daytime
charging
is not too big for the service provider. Another possible variation is that,
as
explained above, preferably for example in such a configuration for example
the car
computer will automatically remind the user for example each time to go for
example to the near swap station on the way for example back from work to his
home settlement for example in the evening or afternoon - for example if
otherwise
he/she will not have sufficient energy to reach the next nearest swap station
after
entering his/her home settlement or and/for example insufficient energy for
example
to return back to this same swap station for example from his/her home
settlement,
however this might still be insufficient since for example on normal days the
user
might typically ignore this warning since he/she normally does not need to
travel
such distance again at the same day and can rely of the night's typical full
recharge,
and/or for example the computer can be more specific and remind the user for
example in such cases that he/she should enter the swap station for example if
he/she thinks that he/she might want or need to go out again for example this
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evening, and/or for example the computer reminds the user more or especially
for
example on week days in which based on previous patterns there is a bigger
chance
that the user will later want to go out again, such as for example near the
end of the
week, when the user for example more often goes shopping or for example to a
movie. In addition, as explained also elsewhere in this application,
preferably for
these automatic reminders or recommendations the car computer preferably
automatically takes into account also for example temporary congestions for
example on the roads and/or in specific swap stations (of which it is
preferably
automatically updated by the service provider's main computers - for example
globally or for example the updates are automatically more detailed about the
current area and/or the near areas or near areas in the car's current
direction) if
relevant (i.e. for example if the different in congestion is worth choosing
another
swap station) and preferably chooses or tries to choose a near swap station
which is
on the same direction or route as the user is traveling and preferably also
avoids or
tries to avoid unnecessary driving around, so that for example the computer
might
choose a swap station which is for example a bit earlier on the road for
example on
the way home but is preferably on the same road or highway and/or at least
does not
require sidestepping or lengthening the route or for example no lengthening of
for
example more than a few minutes or other reasonable threshold (for example
compared to choosing the next swap station which might be for example nearer
to
the user's settlement but requires for example non-negligible extra-driving
for
example sideways and back in order to reach it) and/or for example by taking
into
account for example the difference in any extra time or mileage needed to
reach for
example each of the relevant chooseable swap stations and for example the
resulting
difference in charge when the user reaches home, for example due to going to
an
earlier swap station which is on the same road instead of to a swap station
that is
closer to the user's home settlement but requires wasteful extra driving, but
since
after reaching home the user will rarely need to go on full range trips again
that day,
so for example if the user reaches home with a battery that is for example 80
or 90
% full this should usually make no difference. However in such automatic
recommendation for example on the way home and/or for example when traveling
to other places the computer preferably takes into account also if the user
has for
example indicated specifically that he/she intends for example a long trip for
example to a specified location for example later that day, and/or preferably
for
example at least in case of having to choose between closely valued
alternatives (for
example when choosing between swap stations) preferably the car computer
(and/or
for example the service provider's main computers) can for example present to
the
user for example two or more choices for example together with their
attractiveness
scores and/or the relevant considerations and/or tradeoffs and let the user to
choose,
and preferably the computer (and/or for example the service provider's main
computers) also learns automatically from the driver's previous choices and/or
preferences (preferably also for example choices that the user has made for
example
by himself/herself for example not in the context of choices or
recommendations
offered by the computer), so that for example if the user shows clear
preference for
example to one of the solutions or choices for example after a one or few
times or
for example the user has already chosen in the past for example one or more
times
for example a specific swap station for example in general or for example
under
similar circumstances (such as for example driving in the same direction),
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preferably the car computer (and/or for example the service provider's main
computers) for example can preferably automatically remind the driver for
example
to enter a swap station for example based also on the driver's previous
choices
and/or preferences. Preferably the same or similar solutions are used for
example
also if the user lives for example in a large town but lives for example in
the suburbs
and is for example located beyond a certain distance to the nearest swap
station or
stations. Another possible solution is that since the car preferably typically
has in
addition to the main power battery or batteries preferably at least one or
more
smaller and lighter emergency batteries which can preferably be also hand
carried
and/or for example can be easily swapped by mobile battery swap units, and for
example swapped for example in various post office stations or shops or other
places authorized by the service provider (and/or for example the main power
batteries or batteries are composed of a number of units which can also be
swapped
separately), as explained elsewhere in this application, so that there are for
example
2-3 emergency batteries, each weighing for example 5-10 Kilograms and for
example each capable of for example an additional 5-10 kilometers drive when
fully
charged, the emergency batteries might be for example sufficient for the extra
energy needed to reach the nearest swap station, and/or for example if they
have
also been partially used for example during the day or for example are still
insufficient or marginally sufficient, the user can for example swap at least
one of
these emergency or reserve small batteries (of course as batteries get
improved
capacity per weight this will be even more efficient, since for example new
Lithium
Ion batteries with nano-porous or nano-wire Silicon structures for example
instead
of the graphite cathode can typically have for example 8 or 10 times increased
capacity compared to normal Lithium Ion batteries and are also typically fast
batteries, so that for example the same size and weight main power car battery
can
go for a much further distance on a full recharge and/or for example the main
power
battery can be for example half size and weight and still go for example 500
or more
Kilometers on a full charge, and/or for example the reserve or emergency
battery
can be even smaller and lighter, such as for example 5-7 Kilograms or less and
still
be sufficient for example for a 50 or more kilometers ride). This means that
preferably for example at least in such small settlements which do not have
their
own swap stations or do not have sufficiently near other swap stations
preferably
there is at least one authorized place for swapping the small batteries which
is
preferably open 24 hours a day or for example at least until late at night and
is
preferably located for example at or near the center of the settlement or for
example
at or near its entrance or main entrance. Preferably at least some of the
authorized
swap places which enable swapping for example the small emergency batteries
for
example have matching rechargers which can for example recharge such reserve
batteries for example over night for example individually or for example can
recharge a few or more batteries together serially for example like with the
normal
power batteries in swap stations, and/or for example at least some of them
rely on
service trucks or cars of the service provider which for example pick up the
depleted
small batteries for example in the evening and for example recharge them over
night
for example at the nearest normal swap station and for example return
preferably
fully recharged small batteries for example in the morning. This can even be
done
preferably for example by the same service trucks which service stranded
vehicles
during the day, since typically for example they get much less calls for
example late
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in the evening or for example early in the morning since there are much more
people
on the roads during daytime. Another possible variation is that preferably for
example the government preferably forces the service provider (and/or for
example
at least or especially if he/she has officially and/or on in practice a
monopoly for
example in the country or in the area, and/or for example the service provider
does
this voluntarily for example in order to improve the service) to provide
sufficient
swap stations for example at least in or near settlements or settlement areas
in which
there is for example at least a certain amount of people, so that preferably
for
example the average or for example maximum distance for these people to reach
for
example the nearest swap stations is preferably for example smaller or
substantially
smaller than for example the normal distance between swap stations for example
on
the highway, so that for example even if the service provider for example
normally
provides for example swap stations on highways for example typically at
distance of
for example 40 Kilometers from each other, preferably the service provider is
for
example required to put for example at least one such station for example at a
distance of no more than for example 10 or 15 kilometers (or other reasonable
distance, for example based on various statistics) for example from such
settlements
or group of settlements and/or for example.is at least required to put for
example a
larger or considerably larger percentage of fast rechargers for example in
such small
settlements (or for example in even smaller settlements that still do not get
the swap
station close enough) for example in comparison to the percent of fast
rechargers in
a large city that has for example a sufficient number of swap stations for
example
even within the city and/or for example is required to increase the relevant
recharge
priorities for people in such areas for example as explained above for example
at
least until sufficient battery swap stations are installed in these areas,
and/or for
example is required to put for example in such small settlements for example
at least
a temporary swap station with at least one mobile battery swap unit, such as
for
example the units that can preferably be used by service trucks to swap
batteries in
stranded vehicles on the road, and/or for example preferably the service
provider
can use for example a computerized map of the covered areas which preferably
shows for example at least the main highways and preferably at least the
settlements
and cities of the relevant minimum size and above and preferably a visual
indication
of their size and preferably by feeding in the relevant rules and/or
parameters
preferably for example the service provider's main computers can preferably
automatically suggest for example an optimal arrangement of swap stations so
as to
preferably comply with preferably all the relevant requirements while
preferably
using an efficient spread of swap stations preferably without unnecessary
waste -
for example by automatically generating the suggested locations of the swap
stations
and/or their recommended sizes for example on the map. (This is preferably
required also since for example otherwise it would be unfair for example to
reduce
taxes on electric cars and for example increase taxes on gasoline cars at the
same
time for example while not offering a fair solution to people who live in the
periphery). Another possible variation is that for example until the proper
infrastructure is installed various areas for example in small settlements
and/or in
the preferably, people who live there are for example exempt from increased
taxes
on gasoline cars, but that is less preferable, since it would delay the
entrance of
electric cars). And since, as explained elsewhere in this application,
preferably the
service provider can easily swap for example by using a modular underground
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interface for example between fast rechargers and normal typically passive
recharge
posts and/or for example by using mobile rechargers which can for example be
even
more easily moved, the service provider can for example use more fast
rechargers
for example in such small settlements for example until adding sufficient
battery
swap stations in the are, and can then for example later move for example some
of
the fast rechargers to other places for example after the swap station has
been added
and the fast recharger are less needed there or for example are more needed in
other
places. Another possible variation is that at least if for example the mobile
battery
swap units used by service trucks can for example also swap the main power
batteries of cars for example on the side of the road when needed, as
explained
elsewhere in this application, preferably such mobile battery swap units can
also be
used for example in the same places in the small settlement where for example
the
small emergency or reserve batteries can be swapped or for example the same
mobile swap units can be used to swap both types of batteries, so that for
example at
least in some such small settlements preferably at least one authorized small
battery
swap place preferably includes at least one such mobile battery swap unit and
so can
also swap main power batteries, and/or there are small or temporary battery
swap
stations that use one or more such mobile battery swap units for swapping the
main
power batteries of cars, and then these batteries are for example recharged
locally
preferably at night or for example are automatically carried away for example
in the
evening and returned for example in the morning for example by the same
service
tuck that picks up the small reserve/emergency batteries for recharging for
example
at the nearest normal battery swap station (However this is less preferable
since for
example such a service truck might typically be able to carry for example only
up to
ten or twenty for example 150 Kilogram Power batteries), and/or for example in
such small settlements or group of small settlements the service provider
preferably
installs for example at least one smaller swap station which for example has
the
normal equipment as a normal large battery swap station for example in a large
city
or on the highway but for example has a considerably smaller number of actual
swap spots and/or a smaller number of rechargers and thus can be for example
considerably cheaper than a normal battery swap station. Another possible
variation
is that for example users are offered by the service provider for example
extra credit
and/or for example other benefits for example for agreeing to rely more on
battery
swap stations than on daytime recharge even if they for example automatically
deserve higher priorities for example due to living in such small settlements
and
traveling a large distance daily as explained above, so that for example such
users
who agree for example to use the swap station for example on the way home
(preferably while traveling on the highway on an inter-city road, thus
typically being
able to visit the swap station without wasting time on unnecessary additional
driving
to and from the battery swap station) for example each day for example instead
of
being recharged in daytime or for example when they think they might need the
extra energy for example in the evening and/or for example agree to have lower
recharge priorities during daytime can for example receive preferably
considerable
reductions for example in their normal monthly payments and/or for example
other
bonuses, and/or this is done preferably for example at least or especially for
example in hot summer days when the peak demand in midday can be for example
considerably larger than for example in times when the weather is more
temperate
(since otherwise it might be for example quite wasteful if for example all
those
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people for example from small settlements which travel a sufficiently large
distance
daily as in the above example for example receive also daytime recharge every
day
just in case they might need it unexpectedly even if for example they actually
need
the extra energy only on rare occasions, and this is also another reason why a
certain
percent of fast rechargers is a good idea, or for example at least or
especially for
example in residential areas, especially if they are used for example mainly
in the
evening for example when needed unexpectedly, since typically the recharge
costs
at the evening can already be considerably cheaper than during midday peak
time).
Another possible variation is that for example on special events in remote
places,
such as for example some concerts or ceremonies or for example army events,
preferably the service provider can for example provide in advance for example
a
certain number of service trucks for example with mobile battery swap units,
so as
to augment for example the normal number of battery swap stations in the area.
Of course various combinations of the above and/or other variations can also
be
used.
Another possible variation is that preferably the car has also an alann in the
battery area for example in case someone tries to steal the battery. Another
possible
variation is that the car is for example designed in a way that the battery
container
can be opened only by entering a special code or codes (which for example can
belong to the car and/or to the battery), so that for example without the code
a thief
would have to work very hard in order to be able to penetrate the battery area
and/or
similarly for example the battery or batteries can only be recharged after
entering
the code (so that for example the code is needed preferably for any type of
recharging - such as for example at the service station, from a street
recharger or
recharge post, or from another car, and of course preferably also for enabling
for
example recharging another car's battery, so that for example for helping
another
driver by recharge his/her car preferably both the helping driver and the
helped
driver have to enter their respective codes). In addition, preferably the
battery
chamber in the car is designed so that the battery or batteries can be removed
only
with special mechanical equipment. Preferably if the code is lost it can be
restored
for example by accessing for example a central computer for example through a
cellular phone, for example with appropriate identification of the owner.
Another
possible variation is that preferably this code can also be used as further
protection
against theft of the electric car, so that for example if the owner reports
the car as
stolen, the recharge and/or battery replace code is preferably canceled for
example
at the central computer or database, so that the thief cannot recharge the car
or
remove the battery for example without having to take the car apart. Another
possible variation is that preferably the battery itself and preferably also
additional
parts in the car preferably have a unique digital id which preferably cannot
changed
or at least cannot be easily changed, so that for example when the car comes
to a
service station preferably the service station's computer automatically
communicates digitally also with the battery (which has to be done anyway for
example if the automatic sorting of batteries for recharging is used, as
explained
above) and/or with additional parts in the car and can preferably check in one
or
more central databases and can preferably automatically issue an alert for
example if
the id indicates for example that the battery or for example one or more other
car
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parts is stolen (This means that preferably for example when the battery is
replaced
the service station's computer preferably reports automatically for example to
one or
more central databases the Id of the car together with the Id of the recharged
battery
or batteries that were supplied to the car, so that for example if the battery
is later
stolen from the car, the id will not fit the id of other car if the thief for
example
comes later to the service station with the stolen battery), and/or for
example such a
check can also be done automatically for example by street recharging posts,
and/or
for example if the car was reported and preferably verified as stolen then the
recharger or recharge post for example directly or through a command from the
service provider (and/or for example the service provider for example through
the
cellular network) can for example transmit a certain code which causes the
car's
computer to become locked so that the thief cannot move the car (preferably
together with automatically sounding a loud and visible alarm) and/or for
example
the recharger or recharge post can automatically notify for example the
service
provider of the exact location of the car (or for example the user
himself/herself can
for example remotely transmit a certain code or sequence of codes for example
directly through his/her cell phone that can cause the car remotely to become
locked
and stop functioning and preferably automatically sound a loud and visible
alarm,
and preferably the car computer automatically transmits its location
repeatedly for
example by GPS and/or for example by cellular network triangulation of nearby
cells, preferably through the cellular network), or for example the service
provider's
computer can automatically locate the car through the preferably unique ID of
the
recharger or recharge post. Preferably for example if a stolen car is
automatically
locked off for example by remote signal for example through the cellular
network
preferably the user or for example the service provider has to send preferably
one or
more preferably long sequences of code so that for example hackers cannot
remotely lock cars in an unauthorized way, and preferably the locking
mechanism
and the cellular communication unit are embedded by hardware into the car's
computer and/or into other hardware of the car so that preferably it cannot be
overridden or disabled without taking the car apart, and preferably the
computer
automatically notifies the thief for example that the car is locking itself
off and that
he/she for example has 30 seconds (or other reasonable time) till the car will
stop
moving, and/or preferably the car computer preferably automatically slows down
gradually so that the thief for example has a chance to move the car to the
side of
the road before it stops, and/or for example the lock down is activated
automatically
for example the first time that the car goes below a certain speed or for
example
stops (for example in a red light), and preferably if the car was locked by
mistake or
for example after the owner finds it preferably the user can also for example
phone
the service provider and after proper identification for example with a
password
and/or other questions preferably for example the service provider can also
for
example remotely enable it for example with another code. (Of course these
variations of automatic remote disabling of stolen cars can also be used for
example
with hybrid cars or with non electric powered cars). Preferably the rechargers
or
recharge posts are updated automatically for example by sending information
through the electrical grid or for example through a cellular network or for
example
WiMax interface to the internet, as explained above, preferably with digital
signature and encryption. Another possible variation is that for example other
cars'
computers are updated automatically for example with information about stolen
cars
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and/or batteries and/or other updates, for example when recharging or when
entering
service stations or for example by the direct cellular or other wireless
communication for example with the main computers of the service provider, and
preferably automatically further transfer this information on similarly, so
that for
example if a recharger or recharge post is temporarily disconnected from the
main
computers, or for example if for example in order to save costs for example at
least
some passive recharge posts do not contain cellular or other network
communication, they are preferably updated automatically when a car that was
previously in contact with a connected recharger or that was updated by direct
cellular or other wireless communication for example with the service
provider's
main computers connects to it. So this way, preferably even disconnected
recharge
posts can preferably for example refuse to offer service for cars or batteries
reported
as stolen or for example to cars that no longer have a subscription. (However,
as
explained elsewhere in this application, recharge posts which contain the
actual
recharger are preferably always connected to the main computers for example by
cellular communication) since otherwise they cannot receive directly the real
time
instructions). Another possible variation is that for example at least some
recharge
posts are preferably programmed automatically for example by instructions from
the
service provider or for example by entering special secret codes which enable
programming them for example through the user interface, so that for example
only
a certain list of cars (as identified for example by their unique Ids) are
allowed to
connect to them, such as for example recharge posts that are for example in
private
parking places of buildings, so that for example only cars with a listed Id or
for
example only people who live in the building or for example who have or are
given
a special password or secret code by people in the building can for example
recharge through them, and/or for example users who have special smart cards
or
other physical devices which are required by these recharge post, so that for
example the special physical device is needed, or for example either the
special
device or the secret code is needed. Another possible variation is that for
example
electric cars are programmed to identify themselves automatically for example
with
an RFID or other type of automatic broadcast for example when entering a toll
road,
so that for example the toll road system can also identify and issue an alert
automatically for example when a car reported as stolen enters them or for
example
if the car has been hacked with so that it does not identify itself, or for
example an
alert can be issued automatically if for example the thief copies a valid code
of
another car and then for example the same car is supposedly identified at the
same
time or at a too close time proximity in two sufficiently distant places,
which is
preferably done for example by one or more central computers finding such
discrepancies, so that the alert can be issued preferably in real time, or for
example
at least later. Another possible variation is that preferably for example the
car's
computer can check for example through encrypted communication if a recharger
is
legitimate, so that preferably for example only a legitimate recharger can
supply a
valid response, and for example if the car's computer finds that the recharger
is not
legitimate it can for example warn the driver or for example block
automatically
recharging through it. Of course various combinations of the above and/or
other
variations can also be used.
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Another problem is that typically for achieving different speeds in electric
cars
the car's system typically uses different frequencies and/or voltages with the
electric
engine (which is typically AC) and there is no changeable gear, but the engine
does
not have the same efficiency at different speeds. So preferably the engine is
designed to have the best efficiency at a speed that is fast enough for most
purposes
while still good enough from considerations of air resistance (for example
near 80 or
90 Km/H), and/or preferably the engine contains multiple coils and/or other
multiple
parts or elements (and/or for example there is more than one engine), which
can be
for example automatically switched for example by multiplexers for example
mechanically and/or electronically, so that for example for each range of
speeds or
for different ranges of speed the system also switches to a more optimal or to
the
most optimal coil or element or engine for that range of speeds, and/or for
example
the electric car includes also at least a partial, preferably automatic, gear,
which
preferably works in combination with using the different frequencies and/or
switching to different coils or elements, so that preferably for example the
gear is
only used in some cases or for example with automatic combinations with the
frequency and/or with the coil or other element switching, so that for example
the
gear shifting is done as a combination of electrical and/or mechanical
shifting and/or
for example at different ranges of speed changes in speed are done by
different
combinations or by only part of them, so that preferably the engine's
efficiency is
improved to be close to optimal in many speeds or most speeds or for example
any
speed. I-lowever, having too many different types of coils near the engine's
rotor can
cause for example induction problems between them, and for example at higher
speeds less coils are needed, so another possible variation is that preferably
when
switching preferably automatically between different coils or elements
preferably
the system can also preferably automatically move physically for example at
least
some of them closer or farther from the rotor or rotors (for example by
pulling them
up or down or moving them sideways) and/or for example rotate them. Another
possible variation is that the user can for example define for example through
the
car's computer the preferred speeds and/or the system can for example identify
them
automatically according to automatic statistical analysis of the driver's or
the car's
behavior over time, so that for example if the driver drives mainly for
example at
speeds between 50 to 90 Km/Hour, preferably the car's computer can for example
automatically move into position a certain set of coils so that for example
less
physical changes are done during the drive itself or for example switching
between
less states during the actual drive can be efficiently implemented.
Another problem with electric car batteries is that if the car is left for
example in
the sunlight for a long time during hot hours the car batteries might easily
become
too warm, which can significantly shorten the life of the battery.- So
preferably the
batteries (for example the batteries themselves or for example a frame that
contains
them or for example the car's battery container) are improved to contain for
example a heat exchange sink or radiator so that this heat sink/radiator can
be
cooled for example externally and/or preferably the electrolyte in the battery
can
preferably also be circulated internally within the battery into the area of
the heat
sink and/or also with the help of air conditioning, so that preferably the
electrolyte
can be directly cooled more efficiently, and/or preferably the car's computer
(or for
example the recharger's computer or for example a microchip in the batteries)
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preferably constantly or for example at reasonable intervals preferably
monitors the
state of the batteries (including for example temperature and/or additional
parameters) and can preferably for example activate for example automatically
for
example once in a while for example air and/or liquid cooling of the
batteries' heat
sinks and/or for example can cool the batteries at least part of the time for
example
through a channel from the car's main air conditioner, and/or similarly
preferably
the batteries can be automatically also heated when needed (preferably only
when
the driver is in the car), for example if the temperatures become too cold,
since for
example in sub-0 temperatures the batteries' efficiency can go down for
example
even by 20%. Another possible variation is that for example when the user
turns on
the heater in the car for, for example through the air conditioner, example
when
driving in the winter preferably the car's system can automatically use for
example
the heat which is normally generated from the batteries as at least part of
the source
for the heating. In addition, preferably the car's computer is connected for
example
to various sensors for example in the batteries themselves and/or in the
battery
container which can for example alert the user automatically for example if
one or
more batteries (or for example super capacitors or other preferably fast
recharge
device) for example exceed a certain heat threshold and/or for example become
unstable or start behaving erratically and/or for example change their voltage
(for
example to higher levels that indicate overcharging or for example to lower
levels
that indicate undercharging) and/or for example if one or more batteries start
to leak
chemically (for example based on humidity sensors and/or for example sensors
of
the electric resistance on the external side of the battery and/or similar
sensors)
and/or for example if one or more batteries start to become dry (for example
by
viscosity and/or acidity sensors inside the battery) and/or for example if one
or more
battery or super capacitor starts to discharge or leak energy by itself.
Preferably for
example at least in case of an indication of a serious malfunction or danger
in the
batteries preferably for example the car computer preferably issues a more
conspicuous warning and/or for example even at least temporarily disconnects
for
example at least the problematic battery and/or for example instructs the user
for
example if any urgent action is recommended. Another possible variation is
that for
example the batteries and/or for example the recharger and/or for example
other
sensors and/or elements in the car and/or for example the car's computer can
preferably keep for example an automatic log for example about relevant
problems
encountered for example including for example the time and/or for example the
unique Id of the car, and preferably this can be for example automatically
reported
to the main computers of the service provider for example when connecting to a
recharge post or for example when the batteries are swapped and/or more
preferably
for example the car computer automatically updates the main computers of the
service provider about such problems (for example through direct cellular or
other
wireless communication or for example when connecting the a recharge post), so
that for example the car's computer and/or the main computers can discover in
advance for example if there is some problem for example in the batteries or
in the
car or for example in the car's recharger or for example some other part which
for
example endangers the car or for example endangers the batteries, and
preferably in
such or for example at least in severe cases preferably for example the car's
computer and/or for example the service provider's main computers can
preferably
for example automatically issue for example an immediate warning to the user
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and/or for example can automatically slow down or for example gradually bring
the
car to a stop if needed (as explained also elsewhere in this application),
and/or for
example the service provider's main computers keep such logs in their database
for
example also so that for example if the batteries are later found to be
damaged for
example after swapping them to another car the service provider can for
example
use these logs for example in order to determine for example if such damage is
the
result of for example one or more faulty devices in one of the previous cars
in which
they were installed or for example some other occurrence in a previous car
(preferably the data in such logs and for example the unique car Ids and/or
for
example the unique battery Ids is based also for example on hardware
encryption
keys, so that it is much harder for example to forge such data). Another
possible
variation is that preferably there are for example electric switches or other
sensors
for example at the top edges or at the covers of various containers which have
to be
normally closed, or for example in the container itself, for example under the
hood
of the car, so that for example if someone opens the radiator to check the
amount of
water and forgets to close the cover, preferably for example the car computer
and/or
for example some automatic visual indicator such as for example light (and/or
for
example auditory alert) can preferably immediately alert the user about it for
example if the user tries to start driving while the cover is still open (this
is very
important since forgetting to close a cover can cause severe damage after some
time
for example if the fluid spills or evaporates), and/or for example there are
temperature sensors also for other components in the car such as for example
the
engine or other critical components, so that for example the car's computer
and/or
for example a light indicator (and/or other visual indicator) and/or for
example
auditory indicator can warn the user also for example if the heat of the
engine or for
example some other component or critical component (such as for example the
inverter) for example exceeds a certain temperature, and/or for example the
car
computer can for example can also start warning the user in stages, for
example if
the engine heat or other component heat starts to go substantially up below
the
normal behavior, for example even before it approaches any critical threshold.
Preferably these warnings can also be based on deviations from expected
behaviors
and/or on comparison for example with the outside temperature (for example by
using also at least one temperature sensor on the outside of the car), so that
for
example the car computer can warn the user if the engine's heat and/or for
example
the battery's heat and/or for example the inverter's heat is for example too
low or
too high for example compared to the expected for example based on the outside
temperature and/or for example based on the present current and voltage being
consumed, and preferably such warnings are displayed or sounded for example if
the deviation from the expected (preferably based on these parameters and/or
taking
into account also the outside temperature) are for example beyond a certain
threshold. Another possible variation is that for example the car computer can
automatically warn the user for example if the pressure in one or more of the
wheels
goes down below a certain threshold, for example by using a pressure sensor
for
example in the pressure valve which is nonnally used for filling the wheel
(for
example by replacing the normal valve with a special unit), such as for
example by
using a small capacitor or other sensor, and preferably each of these units
has for
example also an RFTD with a different identifier, and for example one central
communication unit for example in the middle of the bottom of the car sends
energy
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to these RFIDs and communicates with them for example once every few minutes
or
for example once every hour or other reasonable time and can for example
report to
the car's computer for example if the pressure in one or more of the wheels
goes
down below a certain threshold, or for example the pressure valve or the wheel
itself
contains for example a coil which changes its shape according to the pressure
(or
some other electric element which changes its shape based on pressure in a way
that
alters an electromagnetic behavior) and for example a magnet and for example
two
other coils for example on the wing near each wheel (for example with the
magnet
on one side and the two small coils on the other side) can act as sensors for
example
when the coil passes near them and can transfer this information for example
through a wire to the car's computer so that for example the computer itself
decides
if the data warrants any special attention (both of these solutions can be for
example
considerably cheaper than the existing solution of using four RFIDs which each
communicates with its own special communicator), and/or for example by using a
video camera which transmits the shape of the wheels to the car computer for
automatic analysis. Another possible variation is that for example the car
computer
can preferably automatically remind the user for example when it is required
or
recommended to check or give treatment or replace certain elements in the car,
for
example based on the time since the car was manufactured and/or for example
based
on the mileage and/or for example based on the average temperatures and/or for
example humidity in which the car was placed for example most of the time
and/or
other parameters (for example by automatically logging for example average
external temperatures and/or other parameters over time with appropriate
sensors),
and/or other parameters, and/or for example based on automatic sensing of the
condition of at least some of these parts, since for example many times if a
certain
part actually starts to malfunction it can damage additional elements, so this
precautionary checking and/or treatment can actually save the user money.
Preferably for these reminders the car computer compares the relevant
measurements or parameters against an internal database and/or for example the
database can also be automatically updated also for example when connecting to
the
recharger or recharge post, for example if the manufacturer finds out that for
example one or more elements needs special attention or for example need to be
replaced at authorized service stations, so that for example users can be
warned
automatically through automatic messages for example when connecting to the
recharger or recharge post, and/or for example automatic software or firmware
updates can be done when connecting to the recharger or recharge post,
explained
also elsewhere in this application. Another possible variation is that there
are for
example various sensors for example in electric cars and/or for example in
hybrid
cars and/or for example in gasoline powered or diesel powered cars (and/or for
example especially in trucks) which can detect for example leakage of oil (for
example from a gear) or for example leakage of diesel, since for example
spilled
diesel for example from trucks can be very dangerous and can cause serious
accidents due to cars sliding. Another possible variation is that for example
a special
color is added do diesel or other types of oil which might spill from cars,
such as for
example fluorescent colors which for example glow when exposed to light or
air, so
that for example if there is a diesel or oil spill preferably drivers can see
it from
sufficient distance and thus slow down in time and/or try to avoid going into
it.
Another possible variation is that for example the electric car (or for
example
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normal or other type of car) preferably has for example one or more video
cameras
which for example automatically record what happens for example at least in
front
of the car and preferably also sideways and/or backwards, for example by
automatically recording into a circular buffer of for example at least a few
seconds
or more preferably at least a few minutes or for example even a few hours or
other
convenient period, so that for example in case of an accident or near-accident
the
driver can for example press a button which causes for example the recordings
of
the last few minutes (or other time period which the driver can preferably
chose) to
be saved for example in a special file or files on the car's computer, so that
the
driver can use it for example to prove later what happened or can for example
use it
to find out for example the number of a car that previously for example causes
damage to the car for example while parking, if it happened for example within
the
time frame of the circular buffer, and/or for example in case of damage to the
car
preferably the computer senses it automatically and can preferably
automatically
save the relevant video or videos of for example at least 30 second before the
accident until for example a few minutes after it (or other reasonable time
range
before and/or after the moment of impact) for example automatically in one or
more
separate files even if the user is for example not around or for example
forgets to
press the save button. Another possible variation is that preferably for
example the
car's front and/or back bumpers preferably contains also for example a shock
absorbing gel which is preferably sufficiently viscous and can convert for
example
at least some of the impact to heat and/or for example mechanical energy,
preferably
in a way that does not damage the bumpers when the impact speed is
sufficiently
low and preferably the bumpers this way preferably both protect better for
example
a person in case the car bumps in to him/her while preferably also preventing
or
reducing damage to the bumper itself for example while hitting a hard object
or for
example another car. Another possible variation is that for example the car's
computer can automatically sense for example if the driver is beginning to
fall
asleep during driving or for example is fainting or for example has become
otherwise incapacitated (for example based on automatic monitoring for example
with a video camera for example of the orientation of the user's head and/or
for
example of the back and/or shoulders and/or for example based on automatically
sensing for example the galvanic skin response for example through sensors on
the
driving wheel and/or for example based on remote sensing of for example
brainwaves and/or for example heartbeat) and can for example automatically
warn
the user and/or try to wake him/her up, and for example if this still does not
work
then preferably for example the car's computer can automatically start slowing
down and for example gradually moving into a stop for example on the margin of
the road (while preferably taking into account for example the speed of the
cars in
front of it and/or behind it and preferably for example sensing automatically
the lane
markings).
Another possible variation is to use for example one or two or more preferably
small wind turbines or other devices which can extract wind energy and/or
especially for example energy from wind turbulence on the car itself
(preferably
multiple small turbines of for example 20 centimeters height) for example
along the
rims of the car's top and/or for example at the back of the car and/or
preferably in
the area or areas where most of the wind turbulence created by the car's
motion is
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concentrated, so that at least some of the air turbulences that are created
anyway
while traveling, specially when at high speeds of for example 80 Km/h or more,
are
preferably used also for example to help recharge the car's batteries along
the way.
These turbines are preferably shaped in an aerodynamic way so that preferably
only
the blades that have to be moved by the wind create some resistance, since the
intention is to take advantage of air turbulences that exist anyway when
traveling at
fast speed while trying to avoid as much as possible adding to the air
friction -
which creates a clear benefit as long as the energy input from these turbines
is
sufficiently larger than the added air resistance which is created by their
presence
(preferably for example at the back of the car this can be done most
efficiently since
much of the air turbulence is concentrated there and adding a turbine there
especially if the external shape of its frame is for example like a cone-end
shape can
have a really minimal effect of adding air resistance). In addition,
preferably this
wind-energy or air-turbulence energy extraction unit preferably adjusts itself
automatically or is for example automatically adjusted for example by the car
computer for example according to the car's speed or for example the wind
speed -
so that for example it can protrude for example more or less for example at
the back
of the car and/or can for example change its shape and/or orientation and/or
position
for example in a way that optimizes or improves its energy extraction
efficiency for
example based on the car speed and/or wind speed or for example optimizes or
reduces the additional drag which it creates itself for example in a way best
fit for
the current car speed or wind speed. Another possible variation is that there
are for
example at the back or the car for example air conduits which preferably
concentrate
the wind created by the car's motion preferably more optimally on the turbines
or
other wind energy extraction unit and/or help convert the turbulences into a
more
regular flow of air. Another possible variation is for example using for
example at
the back and/or top and/or sides and/or back of the car for example devices
that can
convert at least some of the noise energy created by the car's motion
(preferably
mainly the noise created by the air resistance) back to energy for additional
recharging of the car's batteries along the way. Another possible variation is
that
since the electric car's engine can be considerably smaller than in a normal
gasoline
powered car, preferably the front part of the car is shaped or designed
aerodynamically for example like the front part of a water drop or a similar
shape -
for example by making also the width of the car's front part round and
substantially
thinner then the width of the car at the area of the passenger seats. Another
possible
variation is that for example the aerodynamic shape of the car is also
improved by
adding for example a vertical front column with a arched shape (for example
from
glass or perspex or transparent plastic) for example in the front of the car
at the front
side of each of the front windows (so that for example a few centimeters in
front of
the front windows are protected from direct wind by this column) so that even
if
driving with open windows for example on the highway the air drag caused by
open
front windows is reduced. Another possible variation is that preferably the
car uses
for example preferably printed preferably transparent thin film solar cells
which for
example cover at least some of the windows of the car and/or for example at
least
some of its metal surfaces for example on the top and/or on the sides for
additional
automatic recharging of the battery preferably whenever possible. Another
possible
variation is that for example the aerodynamic shape of the car is further
improved
by giving the back of the car a shape like the sharp end of a cone or for
example
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similar aerodynamic shape, however in order not to consume for example too
much
parking space, preferably the cone-end shape at the back of the car is
preferably
made for example from a flexible or bendable or collpseable material or for
example
from plates on hinges (for example made of metal or plastic or for example
flexible
plastic or other materials) that are preferably controlled automatically by
the car's
computer, so that for example when the car parks preferably the cone-end or
similar
shape can be automatically collapsed or compressed to occupy less space and
when
the cars travels or for example exceeds a certain speed preferably the cone-
end
shape is automatically restored, and for example if the car enables for
example
automatic switch to neutral or similar state when going down hill, in which
case
preferably the car's speed is automatically controlled for example by
automatically
using the speed to recharge the battery and/or for example by automatically
increasing the air friction as needed, as explained below, in this case for
example
preferably the shape and/or orientation for example of these same plates (or
at least
for example the top plate) can preferably be reversed for example into a
vertical
wall or concave shape.
Another possible variation is that for example the car's firmware is improved
(for
example in electric cars and/or in gasoline driven cars and/or in other types
of cars)
so that preferably for example the user can enable or disable a mode in which
for
example when the driver takes his/her foot off the gas lever (or drive or
power lever
for example in case of an electric car) and/or for example as soon as the
driver
touches the brakes lever (for example even before starting to press it),
preferably the
car's gear automatically shifts to neutral (or similar mode in an electric car
even if it
does not have a gear - which is preferably implemented for example by
decoupling
the electrical motor from the wheels or for example by allowing the electrical
motor
to rotate freely together with them) and/or even the engine is automatically
turned
off for example partially or in full and/or for example at least if the car is
moving in
at least a certain speed (for example 20 or 40 or 50 Km/H or other reasonable
threshold) and/or for example at least if the car is moving in a downward
slope
(which can be measured automatically for example by the inertia behavior of
the car
and/or for example by an automatic horizontal inclination sensor, which
preferably
takes into account also the weight on the various seats, for example if there
are
passengers in the back seat) or for example if the steepness or the slope is
above a
certain threshold minimal angle and/or for example below a maximum angle,
and/or
for example until the car reaches a certain speed (so that for example if
while in this
mode the car starts exceeding a certain speed limit, such as for example 100
Km/H
or other desired threshold which preferably the user can change, preferably
the gear
and/or engine for example preferably automatically returns to normal operation
for
example until the speed again reaches below another threshold, such as for
example
90 or 80 Km/H or other reasonable threshold), and preferably the gear and/or
engine
automatically returns to normal operation for example when the user presses
again
the fuel or power or drive lever with his/her foot and/or for example on the
brakes
and/or for example a special lever or button which is designed to preferably
instantly return the car to normal drive mode when needed. This can save a lot
of
energy especially when going down in a slope. Another possible variation is
that for
example if the car starts moving too fast in this state for example because of
it
having a good aerodynamic shape and/or the slope being too steep, preferably
the
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driver (and/or for example the car's computer automatically) can preferably
activate
an automatic speed reducing element based for example on increasing the air
friction, for example by opening a plate like or concave dish-like friction
elements
or other shapes or devices with similar function, for example on both sides or
the
rear end of the car's roof or at other convenient locations, so that
preferably for
example changing the angle and/or for example the amount of protrusion of
these
dishes or plate or other protrusions or devices can be used in order to
control more
finely the desired speed without having to corrode the brakes, and/or for
example
the gear and/or engine automatically temporarily returns to normal operation
for
example until the speed again reaches below another threshold, as explained
above,
and preferably the user can in this mode set for example the maximum desired
speed
and/or for example a preferable cruising speed so that the car can
automatically use
it as the maximum speed threshold and/or can also set for example the minimum
speed thresholds (for example the initial speed threshold for entering neutral
mode
and/or for example the later minimum threshold for reactivating neutral after
neutral
has been temporarily deactivated due to reaching the maximum threshold) and/or
additional parameters (however preferably the car can of course exceed the
upper
speed threshold for example if the user presses again the drive lever).
Another
possible variation is that for example while driving down a slope and/or at
least
when driving in the automatic neutral or similar mode or engine-off mode as
explained above, preferably the car's speed is also used automatically to
recharge
the batteries, thus preferably also adding to the slowing down and automatic
speed
control. Preferably this recharging is also dynamic so that for example the
amount
of downspeed energy used for recharging the batteries can preferably be
automatically increased or reduced according to the current speed and the
desired
speed, and preferably in this neutral or similar mode preferably for example
pressing
slightly on the brakes for example below a certain limit preferably
automatically
activates other braking mechanisms before activating the actual brakes - for
example by automatically increasing the air friction as explained above and/or
the
amount of energy drawn for recharging the car. So preferably the car's
computer
can sense for example through a potentiometer the level of pressing on the
brakes
and can for example automatically decide for example if to increase the
braking
power for example by increasing the air friction and/or for example increasing
the
amount of energy used for the recharging of the batteries as explained above
(and/or
for example using the energy directly for example for providing directly
energy for
example if the air conditioner or headlight are own and/or for example using
it for
heat dissipation) and/or for example using the engine like an alternator and
drawing
current from the engine in order to reduce the speed, and/or for example
activating
the normal brakes, and/or the car's computer can preferably for example in
this state
similarly automatically decide how to increase the car's speed for example
when the
user releases the brakes or for example starts pressing on the drive pedal (so
that for
example the computer first reduces the air friction and/or reduces the amount
of
energy drawn for the recharge). So this way, as explained above, for example
when
going downhill in this state the user can preferably for example set a desired
cruise
speed which is preferably maintained automatically by the car's computer, but
preferably fro example pressing the drive pedal or the brakes pedal preferably
increases or decreases the speed in ways that preferably at least initially
preferably
don't need to activate the electric drive or to press the brakes. And for
example
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when driving in a plane this means that for example if the driver takes of
his/her leg
from the drive pedal and does not press the brakes (for example when nearing a
red
light) preferably the car's computer for example automatically disengages the
power
from the engine, so that the engine preferably automatically simply rotates
along
with the wheels, thus allowing the car to gradually slow down but without
wasting
energy, unlike a normal gasoline car in which such driving still causes the
engine do
automatically draw gasoline even while slowing down (and as explained above
this
can preferably be done for example also in normal gasoline for example by
automatically activating neutral mode - as explained above)(however this is
preferably not done for example when the user is going up a slope, so that the
car
does not start unexpectedly to fall backwards, and/or for example the computer
allows the slowdown like this eve for example when going downhill by
preferably
automatically for example engages the brakes or engages the engine gain if the
car
starts falling backwards).
Another problem is that for example people who had previously driven an
automatic gasoline car expect that after removing their leg from the brakes
from a
stopping position for example after the traffic light changes from red to
green, the
car automatically starts moving slightly forward, whereas normal electric
vehicles
do not behave this way (however for example a person who's starts driving on
an
electric vehicle as his/her first car would not expect such a behavior until
pressing
the drive pedal). So preferably this is improved so that the user can for
example
enable or disable this behavior for example by selecting the desired mode
and/or for
example can also determine the speed or amount of effect in this mode, and if
this is
enabled the car's computer preferably automatically activates the power to the
engine with the desired initial speed after the user removes his/her leg from
the
brakes. Anther possible variation is that even without this mode preferably if
the
driver is for example uphill and wants to start moving and removes his/her leg
from
the brakes, preferably the car's computer automatically keeps the brakes
really on
and/or for example otherwise temporarily locks the wheels and/or the engine
until
the user presses the drive pedal and the engine starts moving forward, thus
automatically preventing the car from sliding backwards (this is preferably
done
only for example when in driver mode, so that for example in Neutral or
similar
mode the car can slide backwards in this case as expected). Another problem is
that
people who are used to starting a car by turning a key can find it very
unusual and
confusing to start the car for example by pressing a button instead of turning
a key,
and also have normally no auditory feedback that the engine has been started,
and
also a car in which no key is needed for starting the engine is less safe
against
thieves since they only need to get passed the doors. So preferably this is
improved
so that the user needs to turn a key like in a normal car in order to activate
the
engine, and preferably this is also accompanied for example by default or as
one of
the options by a simulation of an ignition sound and/or preferably also a
simulation
of at least some engine humming sound, which is preferably correlated
automatically for example by the car's computer with the actual results, so
that for
example if there is for example some problem or delay preferably the ignition
sound
and following preferably humming sound are preferably delayed until the car is
indeed in the equivalent condition (for example through internal and/or
external
speakers), which preferably the user can also choose for example from a set of
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available sounds and can preferably also for example adjust its volume, for
example
like choosing the other possible simulated sounds, as explained elsewhere in
this
patent application. In addition, eventhough a normal electric car typically
has no
mechanism to disengage the engine from the wheels, preferably the car has a
drive
stick with at least 4 states: Park, Drive, Neutral and reverse, like in a
normal
gasoline automatic car, and when engaged in neutral preferably the engine
simply
rolls along with the. wheels and/or the car enters the simulated neutral mode
as
explained above, and/or for example in neutral mode the engine can also be
really
mechanically disengaged from the wheels. Another problem is that for example
if
the car had an accident or for example there is a serious malfunction of the
computer
or of the electrical system and the car needs to be towed, if for example at
least 2
wheels in the electric car are always be engaged mechanically to the engine,
towing
the car might generate currents which might further damage the electric
systems. So
preferably this is improved so that the user can for example manually
disengage
some of the electric connections for example before towing the car, or for
example
the electric car has a special mode in which the engine can be mechanically
disengaged from all the wheels.
Another possible variation is that for example if the car already has slope
sensors
(and/or for example in normal cars), preferably these can be also used for
example
for sensing if the car is parked in a place with a slope beyond a certain
threshold, so
that for example in places with such a slope or bigger (and/or for example in
smaller
slopes or even for example when there is no slope) preferably the car's
computer
can preferably for example automatically engage the handbrake (or for example
a
similar internal electrically controlled braking device and/or for example the
normal
brakes and/or for example another wheel and/or engine locking mechanism) for
example when the user parks or turns off the engine, and preferably the car's
computer automatically lowers or releases the handbrake or other device and/or
locking mechanism again for example when the user starts to drive again.
Another
possible variation is that preferably the brake or other locking mechanism is
automatically locked mechanically when the user does what he/she has to do to
stop
the car and turn off the engine even for example if the car's computer or
battery is
for example empty or not working and even if the car has no gear, and when
starting
to drive it is preferably opened automatically by whatever the driver has to
do to
start the car and/or automatically by electric control. This is important
since for
example in electric cars without a gear, the car would be otherwise
considerably less
stable in parking than a normal gasoline powered car. Another possible
variation is
that preferably the car has sensors that can sense or make sure for example if
the
recharge cable is still connected (this is preferably a separate for example
electrical
and/or mechanical sensor apart from the communication with the recharger or
recharge post, since there might be for example a communication block, but
basing
the sensing for example on checking if there is still for example power on the
cable
is less preferable since for example the recharge plan might have already
ended but
the cable might still be connected, so preferably the sensing is mainly
mechanical as
explain below), so that preferably if the user for example tries to start the
engine or
for example if he/she tries to start to drive while the cable is still
connected,
preferably the car's computer automatically issues a warning and/or preferably
locks
the car so that the user preferably cannot start driving while the cable is
still
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connected and/or for example the preferably small door of the cable or socket
compartment is still open, and/or for example the if the cable is inserted
from the
recharger or recharge post into the car, for example the car computer is able
to
automatically disconnect the cable, which then preferably automatically
retracts for
example when the recharger or recharge post senses that the cable is no longer
connected. So for example if the cable is inserted from the recharger or
recharge
post into the car preferably for example the car computer can sense for
example if
the cable is still plugged in for example in full or partially or for example
some
preferably small door has to be opened in order to insert the cable into the
car's
socket and the computer can for example sense if the door has been closed and
can
for example warn the user and/or refuse to move the car until this door is
closed and
for example the door can be closed only after the recharger's cable has been
removed, and on the other hand for example if the cable is inserted from the
car into
the recharger or recharge post then preferably the car computer can sense for
example if the cable has not been rolled back, or for example the cable comes
out of
a chamber with a door that has to be opened and for example the car computer
can
sense if the door has been closed and warn the user and/or refuse to move the
car for
example if this door has not been closed, and preferably the door can be
closed only
after the cable has been fully pulled back into its chamber. (Another possible
variation is that for example the warning can also be issued for example by
the
recharge post, for example by auditory warning, but that is less preferably
since t
means that the recharge post would have to sense if the car has started to
move). On
the other hand if for example the preferably small door of the cable or socket
compartment becomes open for example by mistake or due to malfunction while
driving, which means that for example if the small chamber contains a cable
the
cable might dangle outside, preferably the car computer warns the user but
without
automatically stropping the car, since automatically stopping the car while
already
driving might be dangerous, but this is not supposed to happen at all since
preferably for example the car computer and/or for example some mechanical
mechanism and/or for example some other electronic mechanism, preferably
automatically locks the preferably small door of the cable or socket
compartment
while driving so that for example even if the user presses by mistake the
lever that is
supposed to open it, preferably it remains locked if the car is in the middle
of
driving or for example is moving beyond a certain threshold speed. Another
possible
variation is that for example even after opening the lever that opens the
preferably
small door of the cable or socket compartment, preferably the user still has
to go out
and move some additional mechanical or electric lock on the outside before the
small door can actually open. Another possible variation is to add similar
safeguards
for example also in ordinary fuel car, for example when trying to start to
drive while
the fuel pipe is still connected to the car or if the user for example presses
by
mistake the lever that opens the gas tank door. Another possible variation is
that for
example the plug has for example at least one pin or some pins of different
lengths
(and/or for example similarly the inner metal connector in the socket is
shorter in
that hole or holes), so that when pushing the plug in or pulling it out the
connection
is created or terminated in a certain sequence, so that for example no high
voltage
can go through if the cable is not fully plugged in (so that for example when
pushing
the plug in first of all for example the power lines are connected but for
example
some control line or for example the data line, which preferably have a
shorter pin
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and/or for example enter into a whole with a shorter connection on the side of
the
socket, preferably become connected for example only after the high power pins
are
in place and the recharger or recharge post preferably does not do anything
until for
example the control line or the data line is in place and/or for example the
high
power is used only after the recharger or recharge post has verified that all
the pins
are connected and/or for example has sensed mechanically that the plug is
fully in
place, and for example when disconnecting the cable the control line or the
data line
are similarly the first to be disconnected, and for example when it is
disconnected it
automatically causes the recharger or recharge post to stop sending power on
the
power lines even if for example the plug was somehow pulled out before time by
mistake, which means also that preferably only a compatible plug can be used
(as
explained also elsewhere in this application this is preferably done for
example by
an appropriate automatically controlled internal power switch and/or
microcontroller for example within the pole of the recharge post)). Another
possible
variation is that there is for example an automatic switch for example at the
surface
of the socket for example between the holes or for example at the edge of the
plug
which for example operates with a spring and is closed only when pressed, for
example like in a keyboard, so that for example the switch is turned on only
when
the plug-in has been pushed in the socket till the end, and so even after for
example
all the pins already touch the connection the recharger or recharge post for
example
won't do anything or at least won't send high power until the switch is
closed, and
similarly for example when pulling the cable out first of all the switch is
opened (but
this is less preferable since such a switch can be less reliable than a
shorter pin or
shorter connection). Another possible variation is that for example after
inserting the
plug the user for example has to rotate the plug together with part of the
socket in
order to lock it, but that is less preferable since users might forget to
rotate it or for
example use too much power or for example rotate too little, and since anyway
the
plug can be locked in the socket for example by one or more pins or other
elements
that automatically enter for example from the sides of the socket for example
into
side holes in the plug (i.e. preferably in an area that is within the socket)
or for
example pins or other elements that cover it after it has been inserted (This
covering
can be done for example externally or for example the plug is preferably wider
at its
end or for example has one or more slits for example around it and for example
after
it is inserted for example one or more pins or hooks or for example semi-
circles or
other protrusions automatically lock it in position preferably from within the
socket), and such a lock can be used anyway, regardless of if the user needs
to turn
the plug or not. Another possible variation is that the lock can still be
opened
anyway and/or the plug can be removed anyway and preferably in a way that does
not cause damage for example to the cable or to the socket or to the plug or
to the
lock - preferably for example by using excessive force of for example 10
Kilograms
or more or other reasonable threshold - so that for example if someone bumps
into
the cable (for example while running) and/or otherwise creates a strong pull
on it or
for example if someone tries to pull it out by force, preferably the lock can
still be
opened and/or the plug can be removed instead of causing damage for example to
the cable or to the plug or to the socket or to the lock. Preferably this is
done for
example by using for example flexible for example metal semicircles or other
preferably flexible protrusions or shapes or elements for example inside the
socket,
or for example if the plug is locked in place for example by hooks or similar
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elements that close on it for example from the sides on the outside preferably
these
elements are flexible enough so that for example by using sufficient force
preferably
the locking elements can be forced to bend or retreat preferably flexibly thus
allowing the plug to be released, and/or for example there are sensors in the
plug
that can determine the strength of pulling (for example based on piezo-
electrics or
for example based on a switch that gets for example pressed or for example
unpressed for example after the flexible elements become sufficiently bent or
for
example by infrared or other sensors of the amount of movement) and can thus
for
example trigger an emergency release of the lock for example if the force
exceeds
the preferably pre-defined threshold, and/or for example at least after the
plug is
removed preferably the recharge post senses that the cable has been removed
and
preferably automatically releases the lock (therefore either way preferably if
the
cable is forcible removed preferably the lock is automatically released during
the
removal or afterwards, otherwise it might be very difficult for example to
insert
again the same plug or for example another plug), and/or preferably for
example
there are also for example sensors for example for pressure for example
sideways
and/or for example the socket walls are sufficiently flexible, so that for
example the
plug can be also pulled out for example if sufficient force is used for
example to the
side or for example diagonally and for example not only if the force is
applied for
pulling the cable straight out. In addition, preferably the cable is
internally
strengthened for example by one or more steel wires which preferably go
through
the entire length of the cable and preferably hook strongly into the plug, so
that for
example even pulling by force does not damage the cable and does not for
example
pull the cable out of the plug. However preferably if the cable is forcibly
removed
for example this way (for example by design or for example even if it happens
without specially designing for this), preferably for example the recharge
post starts
to flash for example with for example red light and/or for example makes
auditory
warnings such as for example strong beeps or for example alarm sound or for
example synthesized or pre-recorded speech which for example warns against
this -
preferably for example while the force is being applied even before the plug
actually
disconnects and/or preferably also after the plug is disconnected, and/or for
example
the recharge post also notifies the car computer for example about the attempt
to
unplug the cable by force (and/or for example the car computer senses the
attempt
and/or the release directly and/or for example is involved in allowing for
example
the emergency release for example if the cable comes from the recharge post
into a
socket in the car since in that case the mechanism that locks and releases the
plug is
preferably in the car, as explained also elsewhere in this application) so
that the car
computer can for example automatically sound the car's alarm and/or for
example
the car computer similarly sounds the alarm for example if it senses that the
cable
has been illegally disconnected - i.e. for example without an authorized
command
to release the lock (for example at least for 30 seconds or 1 minute or other
reasonable time). On the other hand, if the cable is flexible and/or
extendible
enough, such as for example by using a spiral cable (for example like a phone
cord
but preferably with a larger diameter of the spiral - such as for example a
few
centimeters or more, as explained also elsewhere in this application) and/or
for
example using a cable which is for example flexibly extended for example from
a
wheel or reel or roller for example in the car and preferably controlled for
example
by the car computer (if the cable comes out of the car) or for example in the
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recharge post and preferably controlled for example by a microprocessor in the
recharge past (if the cable comes out of he recharge post)(wherein the roller
or reel
or wheel is preferably controlled for example by a spring or for example by an
electric motor, as explained also elsewhere in this application), it might be
unnecessary to allow forceful removal for example if the flexibility of the
spiral
and/or of the roller is sufficient for example to deal with pulls caused for
example
by accidentally bumping into the cable, but preferably both the flexibility
and the
forceful removal ability are used for example as a failsafe safety mechanism.
Preferably if such a roller or reel or wheel is used for example in the car
(if the cable
comes out of the car) or in the rechalrge post (if the cable comes out of the
recharge
post), preferably it is controlled by an electric motor preferably together
with
sensors that can sense for example the amount of pull on the cable for example
by a
similar mechanism as in electronic weights and/or for example by amount-of-
twist
sensors (such as for example by connecting the motor to the reel or wheel for
example through a rubber tube or for example through a metal spring or similar
devices), so that preferably for example the electric motor automatically
preferably
becomes locked for example mechanically at a certain position after the cable
is
plugged-in but the lock is preferably with a low force (for example slightly
above
the force needed to hold the cable's weight sufficiently above ground) and/or
for
example based on a flexible elements (such as for example one or more.
preferably
flexible blades for example of thin rubber) so that for example a force above
the
resistance threshold automatically releases the mechanical lock, and/or for
example
when there is a pull on the reel or wheel or roller preferably the motor can
preferably instantly release the reel or wheel at a speed that preferably
matches the
amount of the pull so as to keep the resistance preferably constant or for
example
with gradually increasing resistance for example in a way that for example
simulates
a spring, and/or for example the reel or wheel itself preferably has a
sufficient
amount of friction to release the cable gradually. Another possible variation
is that
for example after the cable is plugged-in preferably the computer for example
takes
into account the cable's weight and/or for example the known height of the
cable
compartment's door and of the socket and/or for example other known parameters
and preferably pulls the cable back automatically a little with sufficient
force so that
there is sufficient slack in the cable but preferably the cable is
sufficiently above
ground, and preferably according to the amount of pull on the cable after
plugging-it
and the length of cable out, preferably the computer can also calculate for
example
also the distance for example between the cable compartment door and the
socket,
and thus can preferably even better control for example the speed and/or
amount of
resistance when releasing the cable for example if it is suddenly pulled (for
example
if someone bumps into the cable) while preferably also preventing for example
the
cable from touching the ground (preferably in order to avoid for example
getting the
cable for example dirty with mud). As explained also elsewhere in this
application,
preferably if the cable is spiral but for example with a relatively small
diameter of
the spiral (such as for example only up to a few centimeters or less in
diameter)
preferably it also is for example rolled on such a reel or roller or wheel,
for example
like a non-spiral cable, for example in the car or in the recharge post.
Preferably in
addition preferably if the cable is released without receiving the normal
command to
release the lock, preferably the car computer and/or for example the recharge
post
preferably automatically also notify the service provider, and/or for example
the car
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computer or the service provider's main computers preferably for example send
the
user an automatic warning that the cable has been disconnected, for example by
SMS or instant phone call and/or for example Instant Message or for example
email
or other remoter means, as explained also elsewhere in this application.
Another
possible variation is that for example the plug is not locked but for example
removing it without authorization for example causes the car alarm to go off
and/or
the automatic messages to the user as explained above, but that is less
preferable.
Another possible variation is that for example the ability to release the plug
with a
certain amount of force can preferably be remotely enabled or disabled for
example
through software control that responds for example to a remote command for
example from the service provider's main computers and/or for example the
definition of the threshold amount of force needed can also be similarly
remotely
changed, so that for example in some neighborhoods for example this feature is
for
example enabled or disabled or for example set to a different force threshold
for
example based on the type of the neighborhood - for example if it is a good
quiet
neighborhood or for example a neighborhood in which for example kids tend to
pull
cables out or for example a rough neighborhood where there have been cases of
vandalism - i.e. for example pulling the cable or the plug in a way that tries
to
damage it.
In addition, as explained also elsewhere in this application, preferably while
recharging the plug becomes physically locked, for example by an automatically
controlled mechanical part which closes in on it for example from the side
(which
has safety advantages and preferably prevents other users from removing the
plug
without authorization). Another possible variation is that for example when
the user
starts to drive and/or for example while driving, the car computer can for
example
sense for example by external light sensors for example if at the current
level of
darkness outside the car for example it is recommended or required to light
the
lights and can preferably for example remind the user to turn on the light for
example by visual and/or auditory indication (for example by sounding a pre-
recorded message or synthesized speech), and/or for example can turn on the
lights
automatically and preferably the user can choose (for example through some
switch
or through the computer interface) if in such situations the car will just
remind
he/her or automatically turn on the lights and/or for example the user can
also
disable this feature. Another possible variation is that for example the
normal car
lights (preferably in addition to the high lights) can preferably be operated
in more
than one level, so that for example the user or the car computer can for
example
decide if to use for example one of 2 or 3 levels or for example the power or
voltage
to the lights can be changed in a continuous way. Another possible variation
is that
for example similarly in airplanes (preferably especially in passenger
airplanes)
preferably for example the airplane's computer preferably senses for example
if the
plane is about to land but the pilot for example forgot to lower the wheels
(for
example by altitude sensors and/or sensors that can determine the proximity to
the
ground surface, such as for example by laser, ultrasound, and/or other known
means), so that for example if the distance to the ground is below a certain
safety
threshold that leaves sufficient time to respond manually the computer can for
example issue an automatic warning to the pilots and/or automatically lower
the
wheels, and/or for example first one or more warnings are automatically
activated
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and for example if no response is made for example within a certain time limit
and/or for example the distance to the ground reaches for example a second
threshold, the wheels are preferably lowered automatically. Another possible
variation is that for example if there is a malfunction and the wheels cannot
be
lowered, preferably the airplane has for example additional emergency wheels
or
rollers, which can be for example smaller or even for one-time use but can
preferably be lowered or exposed preferably automatically in case of
emergency.
Another possible variation is that preferably if the place has already landed
and the
wheels have touched the ground preferably an automatic system which is
preferably
for example run by the plane's computer and/or for example by other electrical
and/or mechanical means preferably automatically locks the wheels in their
current
state extended state so that if a pilot for example tries to fold the wheels
again by
mistake preferably for example the computer and/or for example some other
electronic or mechanical system preferably automatically prevents it for
example as
long as the plane is not again above ground.
Preferably one of the main renewable energy sources for electric cars will be
based for example on Sharav Sluices (Arubot Sharav) for example of the type
suggested by Professor Dan Zaslavsky from the Israeli Technion (which is based
on
improvements and expansion of the original idea by Dr. Phillip Carlson), which
are
downdraft energy towers which are preferably located in hot dry areas near the
sea,
in which electrical energy is created by spraying sea water at the top of a
tall hollow
cylinder (which according to Prof. Zaslavsky is preferably around 1000 meters
high
and with about 300 meters diameter), thus cooling hot air and causing it to
move
down in the tower, so that it pushes multiple wind turbines around the bottom
area,
which according to Professor Zaslavsky can become one of the most efficient
sources of renewable energy. However, preferably these towers are further
improved, so that for example the tower becomes at least internally thinner as
the air
goes down, thus forcing increase in the air's speed, and/or for example air
ducts that
lead to the turbines at the bottom preferably become thinner as they approach
the
turbines. Another possible, variation is that preferably the system can for
example
automatically or through manual control for example close or for example
gradually
decrease or increase the air passage to one or more of the turbines and/or can
for
example change the shape of preferably flexible air shafts for example by
moving
mechanical arms or for example changing the shape of rings that surround them,
thus enabling changing the configuration, for example based on temperature,
wind
speed, and/or other relevant parameters. Another possible variation is that
preferably
for example at least some of the turbines are optimized for example for higher
wind
speeds and some for lower, and the system preferably takes this into account
for
creating preferably automatically a preferably optimal combination of for
example
which and how many turbines to deploy each time for example based on the
current
downward wind speed and/or for example temperature and/or other relevant
parameters. Another possible variation is that preferably instead of or in
addition to
using some of the generated energy for desalination of part of the sea water
that is
used in the system (as suggested by Prof. Zaslavsky), preferably the system is
improved so that it can use the spraying of water droplets that cools the air
at the top
of the tower also for example for creating direct desalination of at least
some of
these water droplets - for example by using at least some water droplets of
the right
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size and speed at least over part of the area so that they evaporate briefly
and
immediately re-condense in a way that enables separating the water and the
salt in
the air, for example in a way similar to this type of desalination process as
explained
in other patents by the present inventors. Preferably water droplets that have
been
directly desalinated this way while cooling the air at the top of the tower
are
preferably captured separately from falling salt or other salt water and are
preferably
conducted separately down to a container of desalinated water, and/or for
example if
at least some water droplets only recondense lower down the tower (for example
due to high humidity conditions in the air at the top of the tower),
preferably the
different spread of water particles and salt particles in the air (for example
due to
their different weights and/or sizes and/or shapes) is taken into the count
for
example for positioning various collector elements, so that preferably at
least some
of the recondensed water droplets can be collected separately from the salt
particles.
This has the further advantage that preferably different energy considerations
can be
taken into account than in systems that only desalinate water droplets this
way, since
the water droplets are needed anyway for cooling the air, and thus what might
be a
waste of energy in a stand alone desalination system can be used as part of
the
normal procedure in the Sharav Sluices. Another possible variation is that
preferably
there are also for example at least some wind turbines also for example at or
near
the top of the tower or for example at the external sides of the tower for
example at
various heights and/or directions (for example hooked on sideways extending
poles
that come out of the tower sideways in various directions, and these poles can
preferably also rotate for example sideways as needed) - for example in order
to
capture also energy from sideways winds that pass by.
Another possible variation is that for example on various building roofs
energy is
collected for example both from solar panels and from wind turbines, and
preferably
for example at least some of the turbines and/or at least some of the solar
panels are
connected to automatic tracking systems that can automatically change their
tilt so
that preferably both the position of the sun and the direction of the wind are
taken
into account and preferably also the interaction, so that for example either
the pole
on which the turbine is located and/or the solar panels can change their tilt
in a way
that the turbines don't cast shadows over the solar panel or at least reduce
the
amount of shadows.
Another problem is that for example in mechanical parking duplicators, which
enable 2 or more cars to park on the same area on top of each other, there is
a
danger of killing for example a child or an animal if while moving the
platform
down they suddenly move into the area where the frame is moving down and there
is a danger of the driver and passengers of the lower car becoming locked up
by
mistake underground if for example while moving the car into the lower
platform
someone else activates the down movement of the platform. So preferably this
is
improved so that for example if someone gets trapped by mistake underground
he/she can move the platform up again from the underground position for
example
by pressing a button in the underground position which activates the up-
movement
(so that preferably there is at least one such button preferably at each
underground
car position, or for example one such button if the same platform lift is used
for
moving for example 2 or more bottom cars and 2 or more upper cars), and/or for
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example the driver' has also a remote control which can preferably by
electromagnetic signal give the command to uplift the platform, and/or for
example
there is at least one underground alarm button preferably per each underground
space, which preferably sounds an alarm in the building and/or an automatic
phone
call to a service station, which can be used for example if there is a
malfunction
which does not enable the platform to move up (so preferably there is both a
move-
up button and an alarm button in the underground position). In addition,
preferably
the platform contains automatic sensors that can automatically preferably
instantly
stop its downward movement when there are obstacles in its path - for example
based on ultrasound and/or laser and/or infra red and/or electromagnetic
and/or
electric field induction and/or for example mechanical sensors which are for
example pressed based on contact. Preferably this can be done of course for
example both with electric cars and with normal cars.
As explained also in the Glossary section, various combinations of the above
and/or other variations can also be used, which means also possible sub-
combinations and/or separations of elements in them.
Brief description of the drawings
Figs. la-b are an illustration of an example of rerouting of the batteries in
the
electric car during the recharge in order to enable serial recharge with
higher voltage
and lower currents.
Fig. 2 is an illustration of an array of serial recharges which can each
recharge
serially a preferably more or less homogenous group of batteries.
Fig. 3 is an illustration of a flowchart of an example of the efficient
processing and
recharging of replaced batteries in service stations.
Fig. 4 is an illustration of a flowchart of an example of a preferable
recharging
process for example at a public recharger or recharge post.
Important Clarification and Llossarv:
All the drawings are just exemplary diagrams. They should not be interpreted
as literal positioning, shapes, angles, or sizes of the various elements.
Throughout the patent whenever variations or various solutions are mentioned,
it is also possible to use combinations of these variations or of elements in
them,
and when combinations are used, it is also possible to use at least some
elements
in them separately or in other combinations. These variations are preferably
in
different embodiments. In other words: certain features of the invention,
which
are described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in
combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the
invention, which are described in the context of a single embodiment, may also
be provided separately or in any suitable subcombination. The above rules of
course also mean for example that throughout the specification, including the
claims, the words "all" or "each", such as for example "each computer" or for
example "each apartment" or "each end node" or "each recharger" or "each
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car", or other word combinations that contain the word "each" or similar
words, do not mean necessarily all the items but can mean simply individual
items in general or some of them, i.e. it can be for example a general rule,
but
not necessarily without exceptions. Through the patent, including the claims,
where fast batteries are described it can be also for example super capacitors
or other fast recharge devices. Through the patent, including the claims, the
words "main computers" mean for example computers or central computers or
servers which serve multiple clients, and can mean plural or singular.
Similarly
the words "car computer" can mean plural or singular, since typically the
car's
actually contains a bunch of multiple computers of various types. Similarly
for
example the words battery or batteries can mean for example plural or
singular. As explained also elsewhere in this application, the service
provider
can also be for example at least in some areas the electric company itself, so
throughout the specification, including the claims, whenever the service
provider is mentioned it can be also the electric company. Throughout the
specification, including the claims, unless indicated clearly otherwise, the
word
recharger in general can mean for example the car's own recharger, the
recharge post, or an actual recharger circuitry in the recharge post. The
words
passive recharger or passive recharge post mean a recharge post which does
not contain an actual recharger circuitry. As is made clear in the
specification,
throughout the specification including the claims, the words "fast recharger"
typically mean a recharger which is typically at least a few times faster than
normal rechargers, so that for example if a normal recharger can fully
recharge the car battery or batteries for example within 4-8 hours, a fast
recharger can preferably recharge the car battery or batteries for example
fully or almost fully or for example 80% or more, for example in 1 hour or
less
or for example in 30 minutes or less. Throughout the specification, including
the claims, the word mileage refers to distance in general, and of course not
necessarily in miles.
Detailed descriution of the preferred embodiments
All of the descriptions in this and other sections are intended to be
illustrative
examples and not limiting.
Referring to Figs. la-b, we show an illustration of an example of rerouting of
the
batteries in the electric car during the recharge in order to enable serial
recharge
with higher voltage and lower currents. As explained in the patent summary,
preferably in order to enable faster recharge time of the cars, especially if
for
example the cars use Ml or similar fast charging batteries or other fast
recharge
devices such as for example one or more super capacitors such as for example
EEStor, so that preferably a car can be recharged at the service station for
example
on the fly preferably in a few minutes, and preferably in order to solve
problems
such a huge current would create (such as needed very thick wires, and
reducing
huge amounts of heat from even 1% lost energy during the transfer), preferably
the
recharging can preferably be done at much higher voltages than the normal
operating voltage of the electric car batteries, which are typically around 50
volts.
This is preferably done by electrical and/or mechanical switches and/or
multiplexers
in the car andJor in the array of the for example batteries used by the
service station
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to charge the car, so that preferably during recharge, the batteries
(preferably both
the car batteries that are being recharged and the for example batteries that
are
recharging them) are preferably automatically preferably reconnected serially
instead of in parallel, so that for example if there are 20 50-volt batteries
or battery
modules in the car, preferably during recharge at the service station or for
example
at home these batteries and/or elements (for example internal cells) in them
and/or at
least some of them are preferably connected serially, so that they can be
recharged
at preferably for example 1000 volts or even more (or other convenient high
voltages), which means much less current, less need for ultra thick wires even
at
high speed recharges (preferably both in the car and in the external
recharging
interface), and much less problems of heat from the typical 1% loss of energy
during
the recharge. Similarly, preferably while the station is recharging their
batteries
outside of cars (for example their own batteries and/or accumulators and/or
superconductors that are preferably charged for example mainly at night hours
to be
used for later recharging car batteries during the day) and/or while
recharging car
batteries which are replaced for the recharge, preferably this recharging at
the night
time is preferably also done in serial batches of preferably a least 1000
volts (or
other convenient high voltages), for similar reasons (preferably by connecting
serially batteries of multiple cars for recharging together at the same time).
Similarly, if for example cars with Ml batteries or similar fast recharge
batteries or
other batteries or other fast recharge devices such as for example one or more
super
capacitors such as for example EEStor are recharged also for example at the
homes,
preferably mainly during the night hours (and/or for example in offices where
the
car is typically parked during the working hours), preferably the same or
similar
electrical and/or mechanical switching and/or multiplexing mechanism can be
used
for example for creating preferably the most optimal voltage conditions for
the
relevant power supply, so that for example in areas like Israel where there is
a
power supply of 220 volts in normal connections and around 400 volts if a 3-
phase
connection is available, preferably the batteries can be for example
preferably
automatically switched in a position of for example part parallel and part
serial (for
example some batteries are connected in parallel in some serially and/or for
example
other concurrent types of combinations are used) and/or connected serially
with a
proper voltage adjustment and/or other electronic compensation and/or
conversion
(preferably the rerouting to serial or part serial connections enables using
the
available voltage without a need for transformers, which would increase wastes
and
make the recharger more expensive), so that preferably they can be recharged
most
efficiently at the home for example with for example 220 volts in 1-phase
systems
or for example around 400 volts in 3-phase systems, and for example in the US
where the typical electric outlet voltage is half of that, preferably the
batteries can be
again preferably rewired accordingly during the recharge, preferably
automatically,
and similarly if the recharging in the service station can be done for example
with
1000 Volts or more, then the serial routing is changed accordingly for that,
preferably automatically, as explained above. This rewiring is preferably done
through computerized control so that preferably the user can enter for example
on an
LCD console for example the available voltage value and/or the duration of
time
available or desired for the recharge and/or for example the maximum amperage
desired or available during the recharge, and/or for example more preferably
the
recharger senses the available voltage automatically, which is also safer in
case the
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user might give the wrong voltage parameter by mistake (for example by
analogue
means and/or by digital communication with the recharger), and then preferably
the
computer that runs this in the car recharger preferably first moves the
switches
and/or multiplexers and/or other electrical controls to the appropriate
configuration
and preferably only then makes the connection and/or allows the recharging
current
to start flowing, and preferably controls the rate of the recharge for example
through
PWM or other known means. If for example the car contains only a single large
and/or powerful battery (or for example only few more powerful batteries than
the
typical preferably about 20 batteries, such as for example 5 or less), then
preferably
the battery itself (which would typically contain multiple cells of smaller
voltage
internally) preferably contains appropriate mechanical and/or electrical
switches
and/or multiplexers (and/or for example chemical means) internally in order to
enable this switching internally so that preferably internal elements within
the
battery can be switched to become connected more serially during the recharge
of
the car batteries (compared to during normal operation), and if multiple
batteries
are used then preferably these mechanical and/or electrical switches and/or
multiplexers are included in the housing of the batteries in the car. As
explained
above, the appropriate serial rerouting for recharging and/or the rerouting
back to
for example parallel or partly parallel connections after the recharging are
preferably
done automatically for example after the recharge connector unit senses the
voltage
(for example 3 phase or normal, as explained above), and preferably the car
computer or the recharger's processor automatically preferably issues the
command
for rerouting accordingly before allowing the circuit to close and the
recharge to
begin. So for example if the electric car has 2 sets of battery stacks (11 a &
11b) (in
this example the batteries in the first stack are marked as 1.1 and the
batteries in the
second stack are marked as 1.) in which for example during normal operation
each
stack is composed of a number of serially connected batteries or cells which
produce
for example 250 or 300 or 350 volts, so that for example these stacks work
together
in parallel with each other in order to boost the current (or for example one
or more
stacks are activated only when the car is accelerating), so when recharging
the
stacks serially if there are for example 2 stacks then the recharging voltage
can be
for example 600 or 700 volt and if there are for example 3 stacks then the
recharging of all the 3 stacks can be done for example at 900 or 1050 volt
(which
can be done for example at the service station or preferably for example also
at
special street recharges), and for example if recharged at home the stacks in
this
example can remain parallel.
Referring to Fig. 2, we show an illustration of an array (20a) of serial
recharges (1-
42 in this example) which can each recharge serially a preferably more or less
homogenous group of batteries, wherein the multiple serial rechargers are
preferably
stacked together for example in parallel preferably both sideways next to each
other
and to the height - one above the other, to allow better use of the available
space.
Eventhough the drawing does not show it, preferably there are certain spaces
between the serial recharges vertically and/or horizontally and preferably
there are
automatic conveyor belts which control the arrival and removal of the
batteries and
their positioning in the serial rechargers, so that preferably these spaces
enable heat
dissipation, spaces for conveyor belts, and/or room for maintenance work when
needed.
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Referring to Figs. 3, we show an illustration of a flowchart of an example of
the
efficient processing and recharging of replaced batteries in service stations.
As
explained in the patent summary, preferably while recharging the batteries
serially
preferably the recharger takes into account various measurements and/or
various
relevant parameters of the individual batteries or elements which are being
recharged serially, such as for example their temperature and/or age and/or
voltage
and/or their behavior during the recharging, and preferably adjusts the
recharging
parameters (such as for example the voltage, current, pulses and/or duration
of the
recharge) preferably according to the weakest battery or element in the
series.
Preferably each battery or relevant element contains a microchip which
automatically determines or measures the relevant parameters, preferably
including
also for example how much current went in and out of the battery during its
lifetime
and/or for example how many times it has been already recharged, and
preferably
these microchips can communicate the information about the relevant parameters
preferably digitally to the recharger. As is also shown in steps 3.1-3.8, when
such
electric car batteries are replaced and recharged at the service station,
preferably the
batteries or relevant modular elements are preferably automatically sorted by
the
relevant parameters (preferably by one or more computers which read the
parameters automatically directly from the relevant microchips and sort them
for
example by automatically dropping the batteries over different conveyor
lines), so
that preferably they are grouped automatically into preferably more or less
homogenous groups, so that batteries or elements which are in a similar state
or
have similar relevant parameters are preferably grouped together, and then
preferably each group is recharged separately (preferably in a separate serial
row for
each group and preferably the recharging in each group is for example
optimized
according the average parameters of the group or for example according to the
weakest batteries in the group) in order to improve the efficiency of the
recharging
of the batteries in that group. So for example if an average service station
services
for example on average around 1,000 cars per day and if for example each car
contains for example around 20 batteries, this means that for example the
service
station preferably has for example at least 200 parallel productions lines
which can
each for example recharge for example up to 100 batteries serially (or for
example
100 production lines that can each for example recharge for example up to 200
batteries serially, or for example 400 production lines that can each for
example
recharge for example up to 50 batteries serially, or other reasonable
combinations),
so that preferably for example the entire 20,000 batteries can be recharged
together
at the same time, preferably during night hours, and so preferably for example
if
each battery has for example a voltage of 12 volts, this means that each group
of for
example around 100 batteries is preferably recharged for example at around
1200
volts or for example each group of for example around 150 batteries is
preferably
recharged for example at around 1800 volts or for example if each battery has
for
example a voltage of 12 volts, this means that each group of for example
around 100
batteries is preferably recharged for example at around 1200 volts, or for
example if
each battery has for example a voltage of 50 volts, this means that each group
of for
example around 40 batteries is preferably recharged for example at around 2000
volts. This way there is the advantage that preferably a much smaller number
of
rechargers is needed compared to when recharging each individual battery or
cell or
unit separately, and there can be much less current and heating and losses
problems,
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and yet each homogenous group can preferably be recharged almost optimally.
The
multiple parallel series production lines are preferably stacked preferably
both
sideways next to each other and to the height - one above the other, to allow
better
use of the available space. After the recharging preferably the batteries are
automatically collected preferably in a way that preferably mixes together
batteries
of the different groups in order to improve the statistical behavior of the
batteries in
the car, so that for example when the recharged batteries are inserted back
into cars
that come for service for example the next day preferably there is a good
mixture of
batteries from various groups, for example by random mixing or for example by
automatically collecting for example each time one battery from each group for
example while choosing automatically an order that creates a good mixing,
which is
preferably done for example by another computer or computers or for example by
the same computer or computers that also sort incoming batteries into groups
when
they arrive for recharging. Of course, if the car for example uses only one
main
large battery of for example 380 volts then there in no such heterogenic
mixing, and
preferably cars get batteries which are more or less fully recharged and/or
with
higher or lower capacity preferably based on their priorities, as explained
elsewhere
in this application.
Referring to Fig. 4, we show an illustration of a flowchart of an example of a
preferable recharging process for example at a public recharger or recharge
post. As
can be seen from the drawing, preferably the Electric Car arrives at the
recharging
post for example after locating a vacant recharging post or for example after
getting
automatic directions to it and/or reserving it in advance for example a few
minutes
before arriving at it (4.1). The car and/or the user is preferably identified
automatically for example through a preferably encrypted digital ID of the car
(and
preferably also a similar ID of the battery) which is for example communicated
automatically when connecting to the recharge post and/or for example the user
inserts or passes a smart card or other card or other device through the
recharge post
and/or for example can use his/her cell phone (preferably by using short range
direct
communication with the recharger for example through Bluetooth or UWB), and/or
has to enter for example a password or secret code, and/or the car is for
example
identified through direct preferably encrypted wireless communication with the
service provider's main computers (4.2). (Similarly, preferably the recharger
or
recharge post also has a unique digital ID which is preferably automatically
communicated to the car and is preferably used by the system to identify it
for
example also in its communications with the main computers). The recharge post
preferably gets the relevant car-specific and/or user-specific (so that for
example
two or more different users of the same car can have different profiles) data
or
history and/or statistics and/or special current needs and/or specific
requests and/or
other parameters for example through the car's computer and/or for example
through the smart card and/or through the communication with the Service
Provider
main computers, and/or communicates the above data to the main computers
and/or
the car communicates it directly to the main computers. (Preferably the smart
card
can communicate or for example synchronize data with the car's computer for
example automatically, for example through bluetooh or UWB for example when
the user is in the car, and/or for example by plugging the smartcard
physically in the
car at least once in a while). The recharge post or a recharger which is for
example
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in the recharge post or in the car preferably also receives from the central
computers
for example when the car connects to the recharge post or for example when the
smart card is inserted or passed through the recharger or upon request to the
main
computers - for example the most recent update on the current state of
rechargers
for example globally and/or at the relevant location, and/or for example uses
information which it already has from regular updates which occur for example
automatically for example every few minutes or other reasonable interval. The
recharger or recharge post preferably also gets for example the user's and/or
the
car's current credit status and/or service plan for example through the smart
card
and/or through the main computers and/or for example through its own local
database, which is preferably periodically updated also about this, and
preferably
also checks for example in its own database or for example with the main
computers
for example if the car or the battery has been reported as stolen or for
example if
there is any other problem or important information about this car or user
(4.3).
Preferably the recharger's CPU (i.e. of the recharge post or a recharger in it
or an
internal recharger in the car) and/or the main computers decide for example
based
on the current global load and/or the current load in the area and/or the
current time
and electricity rates and/or the car's priority compared to the priorities of
other cars
recharging at the same time and/or location and/or the specific user's current
needs
or requests and/or the number of available rechargers or recharge posts at the
area -
what is the most recommended recharge option or options, and then preferably
decide automatically, or for example offer the user a choice of more than one
recommended recharge option (defined for example in terms of recharge time,
amount of energy, percent of filling of the battery, and/or for example
available
travel distance, preferably with some safety margin), and/or for example
recommends that the user go instead to a nearby battery swap station (for
example if
the user needs to travel now to a far away town and these are peak hours),
preferably
together with associated costs or credit or debit points and/or for example
the
percentages or other measures of quotas used up for that month or other period
(so
that for example the driver can see what amount of free recharge for example
at
peak hours he/she still has for example for this month), and/or for example
the
display preferably also shows the driver the assumed departure time of the car
and/or the assumed length of time that the car is expected to stay in the
parking spot
(preferably based on the normal statistics and/or patterns of the driver
and/or of the
car, and/or on week days programming and/or on special requests that have been
entered as explained above) and then the driver preferably has to choose or
confirm
the preferred choice (and/or for example the estimated departure time or
expected
length of parking time) and/or for example can make various adjustments or for
example goes to the recommended swap station or for example decides to decline
or
come back later (4.4). In addition, for example at this stage preferably the
recharger
or recharge post can for example also communicate to the user (preferably by
sending messages which are displayed on the car's computer and/or for example
on
its own display) for example automatic messages which have been for example
previously received for example from the main computers and/or for example are
received automatically when the user's car ID or car type or for example
battery
type data is sent to the main computers - so that for example this way the
service
provider can for example communicate important news or for example special
local
or temporary deals (such as for example offering a special deal or reduction
for
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example in one or more local shops or restaurants or entertainment centers -
for
example if the user has parked in the parking lot of a shopping mall), or for
example
warnings to users or for example send specific messages which are relevant for
example for specific users or cars or locations. Similarly, the rechrager or
recharge
post preferably also gets automatic updates for example if various or nearby
swap
stations are for example temporarily out of charged replacement batteries or
are for
example temporarily overloaded with cars waiting in line, etc., and can for
example
take this into account if recommending a nearby swap station. The recharger or
recharge post then preferably updates the main computers about the driver's
decision and the recharger starts recharging the car accordingly (4.5).
Preferably
when the recharge is finished (i.e. the decided amount of recharge has been
reached
or for example the battery is full), the recharger preferably updates the main
computers about its status and preferably for example the main computers
and/or the
car's computer and/or the recharger can for example notify the driver
automatically
for example through SMS to his/her cell phone or for example automatic voice
message or for example email or Instant Message and/or through other means
that
the chosen recharge is finished. Preferably at least if for example there is
shortage of
recharge places or other drivers have requested the system to locate for them
a free
recharging spot in the area, the system can request the user for example to
move
his/her car to a nearby free parking spot (for example through SMS or
automatic
voice message or instant message or email), thus freeing the recharge place,
preferably for extra credit or for avoiding debit points or extra charges for
continuing to occupy the place after the recharge has completed and/or for
example
receiving a reduction for moving the car, and/or for example the recharger
cable
disconnects automatically, so that for example if the cable comes out of the
recharge
post it can disconnect from the car and can be connected to other nearby cars,
and if
the cable come out of the car it can disconnect from the socket, thus freeing
the
socket. Another possible variation is that for example the cable can be
extended to
nearby parking places and/or for example multiple cars can be recharged from
the
same recharger or recharge post at the same time, as explained in the patent
summary. On the other hand, since as explained above in the patent summary
preferably the system automatically tries to balance the rechrage loads,
preferably if
the car for example remains near the recharge post after the recharge is
complete,
which can be OK especially for example if there are more than enough recharge
posts for example in the street or parking place, preferably the system can
automatically for example decide to add for example later extra recharge even
beyond the chosen recharge plan, for example if there is less load at a later
time or
for example if the car owner for example stays late and picks up his/her car
later
than planned, and/or for example a cheap recharge time has been reached or a
cheap
recharge opportunity has become available. In addition, preferably for example
the
rechargers or recharge posts and/or for example the service provider's main
computers can preferably take into consideration for example also various
fluctuations in the availability and/or in the offered price of electricity
for example
during daytime and/or for example even during night hours and/or can
preferably
for example preferably automatically negotiate various deals on the fly with
the
electric company based on these conditions, so that for example if due to
fluctuations in the demand for electricity for example during various daytime
hours
the electric company has spare excess power that it cannot utilize efficiently
but
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these fluctuations are for example too small and/or too fast to enable for
example
temporarily closing down and/or powering up or down one or more generators or
other power sources, and/or for example if a significant percent of the energy
comes
from renewable sources such as for example wind or solar power and there are
various uncontrollable fluctuations in this power (for example due to changes
in the
wind that affect the wind turbines or for example changes in the amount of
solar
power for example due to the movement of clouds in the sky), preferably the
electric
company (and/or for example the energy provider for example if there is a
third
company involved that produces the renewable energy) can for example offer
extra
available energy to the service provider for example during daytime at a
preferably
sufficiently better price than the normal daytime rates or the normal rates
for that
hour or other time unit. However, in order to make this sufficiently
attractive to the
service provider so that for example the service provider will agree to use
the extra
energy for example during daytime even if the service provider for example
already
recharged more or less all or most of the electrical cars with the amount of
daytime
recharge which they needed (for example if the extra energy becomes available
for
example in the afternoon, for example around 4PM or, later, after the
rechargers had
for example sufficient opportunity for example to finish recharging even all
or most
of the low priority cars), preferably the offer can go as low as the night
time rates,
and then for example the service provider can preferably automatically decide
for
example to instruct the rechargers or the recharge posts to offer extra
recharge to
cars that are still connected to the recharge post, for example in the work
area, for
example at least for users that are regular subscribers for example on a
monthly
plan, thus reducing the amount of night recharge that will be needed for these
cars at
night, or for example if the offer of extra renewable energy is made at night
preferably it can come even for example at lower than normal night time rates.
On
the other hand if for example the offer becomes available earlier in the day,
while
the service provider still needs to recharge high priority cars or low
priority cars, the
reduction might be for example considerably less or for example the electric
company or third party producer of renewable energy might not offer a
reduction at
all. Another possible variation is that for example the service provider has
global
deals for example with the electric company and/or for example with one or
more
third party renewable energy providers, so that for example various such
statistics
are taken into account and/or are for example automatically updated
periodically for
example based on the last month or other reasonable period, so that for
example the
service provider agrees in advance to cooperate and help balance such
fluctuations,
for example in return for global cuts in the rates for example during daytime
and/or
during night time, so that preferably the service provider typically gets
lower rates
than normal users, and thus can offer its subscribers for example additional
added
value for recharging through its services. These arrangements preferably
enable the
service provider for example to use for example the statistics about car
priorities for
example together with statistics about typical daily demand fluctuations for
example
in various hours, in order to plan more efficiently the recharging times of
various
cars for example according to their priorities and/or expected departure hours
and/or
other patterns and/or parameters and/or needs as explained above, and/or for
example to adjust the recharge plan and/or recharge instructions and/or
recharge
strategy on the fly according to the real time conditions, and/or for example
dynamic less predictable changes, such as for example changes in wind or
clouds
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(and/or for example even predicted changes), are preferably used dynamically
preferably while taking into account the relative car priorities and/or other
parameters, so that for example fluctuations of increases in power are
preferably
automatically routed for example first or mainly or fully to the rechragers
which are
currently connected to cars that currently have high recharge priority (for
example
by instructing the relevant recharges or at least some of them to start
recharging
these cars at a faster rate or higher capacity or power or for example to
allow these
cars more recharge than planned)(and preferably this power can be routed also
to
low priority cars for example if the high priority cars are already being
recharged at
the full capacity or full possible speed of the rechargers (or of the
batteries) and
there is still extra power and/or for example they have reached their planned
recharge), and/or for example fluctuations that cause reduction in the
available
power are preferably dealt with for example by first instructing rechargers
that are
currently recharging lower priority cars for example to temporarily reduce the
amount of power or rate of recharge for example to at least some of these cars
or for
example temporarily stop their recharge for example for a certain predefined
amount
of time or for example until receiving a new instruction (and similarly
preferably for
example if there is still need for reducing power consumption and the
recharging of
low priority cars has already been reduced to minimum, preferably the service
provider can temporarily also start reducing the recharge speed of higher
priory
cars). Another possible variation is that preferably the main computers for
example
also update the rechargers or the relevant rechargers for example once in a
while
(for example very few seconds or every few minutes or other reasonable period)
about the relevant availability and/or price fluctuations, so that for example
at least
in some cases rechargers are allowed to make their own decisions based on the
change in conditions, but more preferably such decisions are made by the main
computers and are sent to the rechargers as instructions, as explained above.
This
also means that preferably the rechargers are capable of working in a
preferably
wide variety of recharge speeds, but preferably it has to be this way anyway
since
for example these same rechargers can preferably be used for example in peak
hours
at considerably lower recharge speed than for example when recharging in
cheaper
hours for example in the afternoon or at night. (As explained already
elsewhere in
this application these features can preferably work either way - regardless of
if the
recharger is inside the car or in the recharge post, and in case the recharger
is inside
the car it can for example receive these instructions for example directly
from the
main computers of the service provider and/or of the electric company, for
example
through cellular or other wireless communication, and/or through a data link
with
the recharge post, which can be for example a passive recharge post or for
example
a recharge post which contains also a recharger circuitry and contains for
example
both passive sockets and sockets for connecting cars without an internal
recharger).
Another possible variation is that for example users can buy smart home
rechargers
or recharge interfaces which can preferably for example make similar automatic
adjustments and/or deals with the electric company on the fly according to
such
fluctuations and/or based on a global deal with the electric company, thus
preferably
receiving for example also lower rates than the normal rates for at least some
hours
(for example compared to the normal rates at the relevant hours). Another
possible
variation is that for example when the user parks the car (for example when
moving
the gear into park position, for example as soon as the user has finished
moving the
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gear or drive controller into the parking position and/or for example a
certain
amount of seconds afterwards, which preferably the user can also adjust for
example
as one of the defaults, or for example after the user also turns off the
engine and/or
turns off the car key and/or for example removes the car key as explained also
below) preferably the car computer can automatically remind the user (for
example
by voice, preferably for example by pre-recorded message or synthesized
speech)
and/or by visual indicator, for example to plug the cable for recharging the
car - for
example at least if the computer determines for example based on the usual
drive
patterns of the user and/or of the car and/or the time of the day (for example
based
on light sensors and/or for example based on the internal clock of the car,
which can
preferably also be automatically synchronized for example each time when the
user
connects to the recharge post or for example through direct cellular or other
wireless
communication with the main computers) and/or the location (for example based
on
GPS) and/or the state of the battery and/or other parameters that a recharge
is
recommended or required (but preferably, as explained elsewhere in this
application, at least if there are sufficient recharge posts in the area,
preferably users
are encouraged to plug-in the car to an available outlet anyway even if they
don't
need recharge at that time for example in order to enable also the automatic
V2G
services when needed), and/or for example at least if the computer determines
for
example through automatic short range wireless communication with the recharge
post or for example through automatic optical identification of for example
some
standard visual marks on the street or parking spots and/or for example on the
recharge post and/or for example short range Bluetooth or UWB or other short
range
wireless communication of for example 10 meters or a few meters distance or
less
or other reasonable distance or for example similar infrared communication
that this
is a parking place with a recharge post next to it (and/or preferably also
based on the
car's computer's database about the locations of swap stations and/or recharge
posts, which is preferably updated automatically from the service provider's
main
computers for example on a regular basis and/or for example with additional
detail
when entering or nearing specific areas, as explained elsewhere in this
application),
and/or for example the car computer or the recharge post and/or for example
the
service provider's main computers can automatically remind the user to plug-in
the
cable for example by visual and/or auditory indicator and/or for example by an
SMS
message to his/her cell phone or for example by wireless communication for
.example to the user's remote lock (so that preferably the remote lock has
also a
receiver and can preferably sound for example an auditory and/or visual alert)
for
example if the user has parked the car near the recharge post but has not
connected
the plug-in cable for example after a certain time (for example within a
certain
amount of seconds or a minute or a few minutes or other reasonable time - for
example from the time of putting the gear or drive control into parking or for
example from turning off the car key or from example from removing the car key
or
for example from exiting the car or for example from locking the car for
example
with the remote control, and preferably the user can also change for example
the
relevant event and/or the time from it and/or for example the conditions for
making
the reminder for example as explained also below and/or for example the means
for
reminding him/her) and/or for example if the user starts to walk away for
example
beyond a certain distance (which can indicate for example that the user forgot
to
plug the car in), and/or for example if the user has not responded and for
example
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certain additional time has passed in which the car is for example near
available
recharge posts but has not been plugged in then for example the car's computer
and/or for example the service provider's main computers (for example through
the
car computer or through the recharge post) and/or for example the recharge
post can
remind the user for example even after some time to plug-in the car, and/or
for
example as explained above the car computer preferably reminds the user to
plug-in
the cable (preferably through voice communication) preferably in advance when
he/she parks the car preferably before he/she even exits the car (even though
this
might be annoying to some users), or for example when the user starts to show
signs
that he/she is about to exit such as for example starting to open the car
door. This
has the advantage that if for example the user has to open the preferably
small
outside door of the cable or socket compartment for example by pushing a
button or
handle or lever within the car, if for example the user did not push the
relevant
button or handle and starts to open the car door (or for example starts to get
out of
the car - but using the event of starting to open the car door is better
because it
might be more annoying to the user if the car computer starts to talk to him
for
example after he/she already has one leg out and because it can be more easily
detected by the car computer for example by the same switch that typically
detects
that the door is even partially open for example for opening the internal
lights), this
means that it is almost certain that the user indeed forgot that he/she should
plug-in
the cable, so for example reminding the user at this stage has a very high
chance of
being done only if the user really apparently forgot. Another possible
variation is
that for example instead of such a lever or handle or button for example the
user
opens the preferably small doors of the cable or socket compartment or
compartments for example by turning the car key in the other direction for
example
beyond the psition where the key can be removed (i.e. for example to the left)
before
removing it, but this is less preferable since many users for example are used
to turn
the key back all the way in order to fully turn off the car and remove the key
so this
might be confusing and contrary to habits from driving normal cars. Another
possible variation is that for example for one or a few minutes after the user
comes
out of the car or other reasonable period (for example after he/she has closed
the car
door and is outside, which can preferably be determined by the car computer
for
example by finding the distance between itself and the user's remote control,
for
example by exchanging automatic wireless pulses between them, or for example
by
weight sensors on the seats which can determine for example if there are
passengers
in the car or not) or for example for a few minutes or other reasonable period
since
the user opens the car door or doors preferably the car computer for example
causes
for example a preferably transparent or semitransparent frame that surrounds
the
preferably small door of the cable or socket compartments (and for example
contains light bulbs or LEDs) for example to flash automatically with a light
that
can serve for example both for reminding the user to plug-in the car and/or to
help
him/her see the location of the preferably small door for example also in the
dark).
Preferably for example the internal switch or lever in the car (or for example
the
car's remote control or other device that can open the door of the cable or
socket
compartment) preferably opens the preferably small door of the cable or socket
compartment for example only partially so that for example the cable cannot
fall out
or start to come out by itself so that for example when the user comes out of
the car
preferably the he/she has to further open the car with his hand and for
example pull
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out the cable, or for example it is opened more fully but the user for example
still
has to press something for example on the outside to release the cable, and/or
for
example the cable is held inside anyway for example by a roller for example
with a
spring and/or electric motor so that the cable comes out for example only if
the user
pulls it, as explained also elsewhere in this applictaion, and preferably for
example
if a few minutes (or other reasonable period) has passed and the user still
has not
plugged-in the cable or at least pulled it out, preferably the car computer
for
example automatically closes the preferably small door again (for example with
or
without first trying to remind the user again for example through his/her
remote
control, as explained above). Another possible variation is that preferably
the user
can also open or close the preferably small door of the cable or socket
compartment
for example through a button on his/her remote control (preferably for example
in
addition to being able to open it for example through a button or handle or
lever
within the car as explained above), for example by a separate button which can
for
example open or close the doors of the cable or socket compartments or for
example
when locking the car with the remote for example the compartment door
automatically opens (and preferably automatically closes again for example
after a
few minutes if the user has not pulled out the cable, or for example plugged
in a
cable from the recharge post if for example it is a socket) (however this has
the
disadvantage unlike the above variation of having to open the preferably small
door
of the cable or socket compartment from inside the car the car computer does
not
know this way before the user gets out of the car if he apparently forgot to
plug in
the cable). Another possible variation is that for example when the user for
example
locks or unlocks the car for example with the remote control, preferably
instead of
beeping the remote control for example says the words "opening car" or
"closing
car" or similar wording for example before acting or for example "car closed"
or for
example "car open" for example afterwards (for example based on prerecorded
messages) and/or for example says "cable door is now open" or for example
"cable
doors are now open" or for example similar wording, which can also serve for
example to remind the user about plugging in the cable, and/or for example the
user
can click for example on a separate button on the remote control which for
example
closes all the cable or socket doors preferably immediately instead of waiting
for
automatic re-closing (preferably this can be for example the same button that
can
also be used for example for telling the car computer to instruct the recharge
post for
example through the data link or for example a separate button). (As explained
elsewhere in this application the data link can also be for example
communication of
data on top of the power wires but more preferably it is a separate physical
link, for
example based on optic fibers or on one or more additional wires in the cable
which
are used for the data transfer). As explained elsewhere in this application,
if the car
has for example at least two or more recharge cables and/or sockets,
preferably at
least if there are for example just two preferably there is for example a
separate
switch or handle for each or for example the same handle can be used
differently to
choose which of them to open or for example the same switch or handle or for
example the remote control preferably opens all of these small doors
preferably, at
the same time and for example after 1 minute or few minutes or other
reasonable
time as explained above preferably for example the car computer automatically
closes again all the small doors from which a cable has not been pulled out or
for
example has not been plugged in (if it is a socket) which means that for
example if
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the computer senses that for example one of the small doors cannot be closed
(for
example due to the cable) preferably it stops trying to close the small door.
Preferably the user can for example disable such automatic reminders or can
for
example disable the in-advance reminder and leave only the reminder if the
user's
apparently forgot or for example vice versa - so that the user for example
prefers a
reminder in advance but no nudging afterwards if the user has not plugged the
cable
(and/or for example the default is that if for example the computer reminds
the user
in advance the reminder is not repeated afterwards for example if the user
starts to
walk away as explained above), or for example the computer can remind the user
for
example to plug the cable for example in advance even without identifying if
there
is a recharge post next to the parking place, for example by reminding the
user to
connect in a conditional manner (for example "Please remember to plug-in the
recharge cable if there is a recharge post here" or similar meaning phrases),
but this
less preferable since it can be even more annoying for example if there is no
recharge post there and thus the message is irrelevant. If for example when
the user
parks the car the computer also asks the user for example how long he/she
intends to
stay in the parking place or for example when he/she intends to return,
preferably
there is a certain default order of questions and/or reminders, so that for
example the
computer preferably first asks the user about his/her intensions (preferably
only if
the question is needed in this case, as explained elsewhere in this
application) and
preferably afterwards reminds him/her about plugging-in the cable (since for
example the decision if to remind the user to plug-in the cable can also be
change
based on his/her reply about the timing - since if the user for example
intends to
come back in few minutes there is no point in plugging the car, and for
example
since it makes sense to remind the user about plugging-in later since it's
typically
the last thing or one of the last things that the user has to do after exiting
the car).
Preferably the user can also change these default orders if desired for
example
through a menu which for example shows each type of possible questions and/or
reminders - for example in general or for example based on categories (such as
for
example questions and/or reminders when parking, questions and/or reminders
when starting to drive, questions and/or reminders during driving, etc), so
that for
example the user can enable or disable questions and/or reminders, and/or for
example change their order within the same category if relevant, and/or for
example
change the timing and/or various conditions related to the question or
reminder (so
that for example if the users leaves the reminder to plug-in the cable
enabled,
preferably the user can also choose for example if the reminder will be
sounded for
example after putting the gear or drive control in the parking position or
after
turning off the engine or turning off the car key partially (for example pert
of the
way) or for example fully, or for example location and/or time based - for
example
remind the user only when coming home in the evening but not when parking at
work or in the morning, or for example remind the user at work or in the
morning
only if the user actually forgot to plug-in the cable but remind the user at
home in
the evening both in advance and for example again in case the user actually
forgot,
since plugging in at night is the most important time, and/or other rules).
Since at
least in some of these variations the car computer can for example remind the
user
to plug-in the cable for example even after the user has left the car as
explained
above or can for example send/him her other automatic messages and/or for
example respond to various queries or receive for example regular updates for
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example from the service provider's main computers, as explained elsewhere in
this
application, or for example display various important messages while the user
is in
the car but the user might for example turn off the car key for example as
soon as
he/she put the gear or drive control in parking, this means that preferably at
least
some types of messages (such as for example the reminder to plug-in the cable
and/or for example alerts for example about problems in the cable of in the
connection even though the user usually remains out of the car after plugging-
in the
cable, as explained elsewhere in this application) or for example as a general
rule,
preferably the car computer remains active or preferably at least for example
in
stand-by or other energy saving mode preferably even after the user turns off
the car
and preferably even after the user locks the car and walks away, and/or can
for
example turn itself off or into standby mode but can preferably be awakened
automatically for example by events received for example through the cellular
communication or for example generated by the recharger. Preferably the car
computer for example automatically avoids reminding the user about plugging-in
the cable for example if the user goes to a place in which the user (based on
his/her
previous patterns) for example typically stays only a few minutes or for
example
less than 20 or 30 minutes or other threshold period, such as for example when
going to the supermarket or for example grocery store - even if the car is for
example parking near a recharge post. (Another possible variation is that for
example the car computer also learns automatically for example the user's
typical
sequence or order of actions for example when parking and preparing to plug-in
the
cable, so that for example if the user does not do the usual things the
computer can
for example increase the likelihood of the estimate that the user is probably
not
going to plug-in the cable and for example needs a reminder, but that can be
less
reliable and/or can be more annoying and is less preferable). (Another
possible
variation is that preferably for example cellular phones can also for example
remind
the user automatically to recharge the phone for example by synthesized speech
or
pre-recorded messages, for example when the battery energy is below a certain
level
and/or for example when the phone senses that the user has come home (for
example based on cellular triangulation) and/or for example at a certain hour
in the
evening, and/or for example if the phone senses that the recharger is nearby
for
example by automatic short range bluetooth or UWB communication between the
phone and the recharger - such as for example 10 meters or less or other
similar
short range wireless communication or for example similar infrared
communication,
preferably with the same chip that the phone should have anyway for
communication with such wireless headsets - which means preferably only having
to add the appropriate abilities also to the recharger and some addition to
the
firmware). Preferably the sensing that the user has started to walk away can
be done
for example by automatic wireless communication for example with the user's
smart
card if a smart card which has also wireless communication is used with the
recharge post, and/or for example if the user has some RFID device for this,
and/or
for example through automatic short wireless communication with the user's
cellphone, for example through Bluetooth or UWB, and/or for example through
wireless communication with the user's remote lock so that the car can also
send
wireless messages to the remote and not only receive them from the remote.
Another possible variation is that preferably similar warnings and/or
reminders can
be issued automatically for example by the car computer or for example by the
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remote control for example also if for example a certain time (such as for
example
10-30 seconds or more or a minute or more or other reasonable time) has passed
for
example from the time the user exited the car and the user has not yet locked
the car
for example with the remote control and/or for example the user for example
started
to walk way for example more than a certain distance (i.e. for example the car
computer or the remote control can warn the user or remind him/her to lock the
car),
and preferably this warning can be issued for example without checking if
there are
still passengers in the car but more preferably this is combined for example
with
automatic sensing by the car computer for example if there are still
passengers in the
car - for example by weight sensors on the seats and/or for example C02
sensors
and/or for example volume sensors which can sense movement in the car and/or
for
example internal video camera or for example other optical sensors which can
for
example sense the shape or height of objects that are above the seats, so that
preferably the computer issues the warning preferably only if it senses that
there are
no passenger left in the car, and preferably if the computer is not sure if
there are
still passengers in the car then preferably the car computer issues the
warning
anyway if the user has not yet locked the car as explained above. Another
possible
variation is that for example when the car receives the signal to lock itself
or to open
itself preferably it also sends an automatic acknowledgement back to the
remote
control and/or for example when the user plugs-in the cable (or for example
when
removing it) preferably the car computer for example sends an acknowledgement
about this to the remote control and preferably the remote control remembers
the
last states so that for example the user can check again for example a few
minutes
later for example also through the state indicated on the remote for example
if
he/she is sure for example if according to the remote he/she indeed locked the
car
and/or if he/she for example plugged the cable.
In addition, preferably after the user has plugged in the car, since typically
the
recharge will usually not actually start at the same time but wait for a
command
from the main computers of the service provider and/or of the electric
company, as
explained elsewhere in this application, preferably the user gets an automatic
indication which indicates for example that the car has been properly
identified
and/or authorized for recharge and/or for example that the connection has been
made properly - for example by auditory cue (which can be for example a
certain
tone and/or synthesized speech) and/or for example by visual indicator (such
as for
example some green or other light on the recharge post and/or for example by
an
appropriate textual message displayed for example on a display screen for
example
on the recharge post and/or on the display of the car's computer). Another
possible
variation is that preferably similarly the car computer can also for example
alert the
user in a similar way for example if the user has parked the car and starts to
walk
away for example beyond a certain distance for example without locking the
doors
or windows and/or for example after a certain time - at least for example if
the
computer senses for example based on seat-weight and/or internal visual
detectors
that no additional person is still in the car, and/or for example also the
opposite - if
the user has locked the doors and windows for example by remote but the car
senses
that there is still someone (for example a baby or child or dog) on one of the
seats,
however this is preferably based for example also on smart automatic analysis
of
automatic internal video images that can detect for example movement or the
shape
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of humans or animals, and/or for example based on volume detectors which
detect
for example movement for example in the same way that this is used for alarms,
and/or for example by internal C02 detectors on the inside of the car that can
for
example detect increase in C02 levels inside the car after the user has left
the car.
Another possible variation is that the car computer can for example similarly
warn
the user for example if he/she has left for example some other electric
systems on
and parked and walked away, such as for example the radio, for example when no
other user is sensed in the car. Of course, like in other variations in this
application,
various combinations of the above variations and/or other variations can also
be
used.
Another possible variation is that if there is for example at least in the
beginning
for example a recharge post only in one of each few parking places, preferably
there
are for example sideways belts or for example small rollers which can for
example
be used to move the car for example to the next nearby parking spot if it is
free, so
that for example if a car near a recharge post has finished recharging and its
connection with the recharge post has been preferably automatically removed,
when
a new user arrives he/she can for example press a button which causes the car
to be
moved to the near free parking place, or for example the system can sense that
the
neighboring parking spot is empty and move the car there automatically.
Another
possible variation is that for example at least some parking places which are
near a
recharge post have for example a physical lock (such as for example pronged
poles
or for example one or more horizontal or vertical poles which can be for
example
automatically moved for example up or down), which preferably opens only for
example when an electric car connects to the recharge post or for example when
its
computer sends the recharge post (or for example directly to the service
provider's
main computers) a special wireless code (for example through Wimax or
Bluetooth
or UWB) which preferably only electric cars can send (or for example sends it
wirelessly the car's unique ID, preferably in an encrypted way which
preferably
changes each time) or for example when the user inserts or for example passes
his/her smart card through the recharge post, so that for example a non-
electric car
cannot physically enter that parking place, and/or for example at least some
such
parking places are marked as allowed only for electric cars so that if for
example a
normal car is parked in them the driver can be fined for example by city
traffic
inspectors.
As explained above also in the patent summary, the communication between the
rechargers or recharge posts and the central computers of the service provider
(and/or for example of the electric company) is preferably for example through
transferring data through the electricity lines or for example through a
cellular
network or for example wimax or similar network (which preferably acts for
example as a bridge to the Internet) or for example other connection
preferably
through the Internet or similar network, and/or preferably at least nearby
rechargers
or recharge posts can also similarly communicate directly between themselves.
This
means that the recharger or recharge post preferably contains for example a
wireless
and/or cellular communications chip or card or unit, which can preferably
connect
for example through the cellular network and/or through The Internet. Another
possible variation is that for example at least in some places the rechargers
or
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recharge posts are preferably connected for example to the Internet for
example
through for example ADSL or Coax cable or other electric cable or for example
optic fiber which for example connects them to a nearby street switchboard
(for
example by adding them to existing phone company street switchboards - for
example the same ones which connect to houses for example through ADSL and for
example connect to the phone company's server through optic fibers) or for
example
adding special street switchboards for example very few hundred meters or for
example in one or more places in the parking lot, so that preferably multiple
nearby
rechargers or recharge posts are physically connected through the same
switchboard
preferably through underground cable or optic fiber or for example communicate
with it wirelessly. However, the car's computer wireless communication with
the
system is preferably limited to sending minimum digital data communications
(or
for example it preferably receives much more information than it sends), and
it
preferably uses an external antenna, which can be for example the same
cellular
antenna that can be used by the cellular speaker in the car or a separate
antenna, but
preferably the antenna (or antennas) is installed preferably as far way as
possible
from the driver and the passengers or for example at least away from their
heads, for
example at the front edge or back edge of the car (for example at or near the
position
of the exhaust pipe of normal cars is located), so that the users are not
exposed to
unnecessary radiation. Preferably this is done also for example with normal
for
example gasoline cars, for example by putting the cellular antenna for example
at
the back end of the car for example at the other side of where the exhaust
tail pipe is
so that preferably there is for example a distance of at least half a meter or
one meter
or other reasonable distance between the cellular antenna and the exhaust pipe
in
such cars. But in electric cars in which the car computer for example
communicates
regularly for example through cellular or cellular Internet or for example wi-
fi or
wi-max or other wireless communication for example with the service provider's
main computer this is even more important since otherwise the users might be
exposed automatically to more cellular radiation than for example in normal
cars.
Another possible variation is that for example the same internal cellular
wireless
communication unit which the car computer uses for example to communicate for
example through cellular Internet and/or for example through the SMS system
with
the service provider's main computers can also be used for example as a car
phone
for the user - preferably for example through time sharing with the SMS system
at
the same time or for example through VOIP through the same cellular Internet
connection. Another possible variation is that if the car for example uses a
cellular
speaker system in which for example one cellular phone is constantly on the
speaker
in the car and the user has a separate cellular phone which he/she takes with
him and
for example the user has to remember to disable the phone that is in the car
when
leaving the car since it is the same number (as is done for example sometimes
by the
Pelephon company in Israel), preferably this is improved so that for example
the
two phones that share the same number can also communicate with each other for
example through VOIP and/or for example they can both ring at the same time or
both be used without disabling the other, so that for example whichever phone
the
user opens first becomes for example temporarily the active phone until the
user
closes it and opens the other phone, and/or for example if the user forgets to
disable
the phone that is in the car while leaving the car preferably for example the
phone
that he/is taking with him for example reminds him/her automatically for
example
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through visual and/or auditory alert to do it (for example by sensing the
phone is
now a certain distance or more away from the other phone), and/or for example
the
user can also transfer the control to the phone that he/she carries with
him/her
through that phone and then preferably the cellular system automatically sends
the
appropriate control command to the other phone.
In addition, preferably the recharger or recharge post has for example
internal
sensors that can automatically diagnose for example various problems including
for
example if one or more elements in it starts to act erratically or is
malfunctioning or
for example if one of its cables has become damaged or exposed and can
preferably
automatically report this to the main computers and/or even for example at
least in
some cases automatically lock itself off and preferably for example
automatically
display a malfunction warning or sign, and/or for example depending on the
problem and/or for example if it stops communication with the main computers
for
example for longer than a certain time period, preferably technicians are
alerted
automatically to its condition and location, which is preferably automatically
identified based on its ID. In addition, preferably even if a cable becomes
for
example broken or exposed preferably there is no danger of getting electrified
because the recharger or recharge post won't send any high voltage or current
through it unless it has been verified as connected properly to a car, and
preferably
even if it is connected and currently recharging and for example the cable's
isolation
is wounded and someone for example bumps into it, the recharger or recharge
post
preferably automatically stops the current immediately for example by sensing
the
change in the cable's condition preferably as soon as it happens or for
example if it
senses unexpected grounding.
While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of
embodiments, it will be appreciated that many variations, modifications,
expansions and other applications of the invention may be made which are
included within the scope of the present invention, as would be obvious to
those
skilled in the art.