Vehicle-to-grid scheme based on inductive power transfer for advanced distribution automation

The latest technological advances in battery and converter technology, along with government mandates on energy independence and resilience, are expected to pave the way for higher deployment of plug-in electric vehicles (PEV) in the transportation fleet. These vehicles, when equipped with bidirectional energy transfer capabilities, can function as mobile energy resources and can be utilized in a Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) scheme in order to temporarily inject energy back into the power grid, thereby functioning as energy storage systems. The forecasted increase in the number of these dispersed vehicles can potentially turn them into a significant energy resource that can be used by the utilities for ancillary services or even for long-term integration with the power system. The notion of energy injection through V2G schemes has been conceptually investigated in the literature for charging stations or single residential charging devices. In all these case studies, the vehicle needs to be parked, and a connection be established by the driver, for the duration of the battery charge or discharge. This paper looks into V2G through the employment of contactless means for energy transfer, namely inductive power transfer (IPT). IPT adds flexibility to V2G schemes by allowing energy exchange with vehicles in motion or when the driver is not physically present to establish a connection. The performance of IPT for bidirectional power flow has been shown through simulation as well as experimental results. Also, statistical analysis are provided that demonstrate the large scale integration of these vehicles into the grid.