To accomplish this, the vehicle will be programmed to share its location, battery level, and charging status with a central server, to generate a map indicating current power availability or outages on a street map. Based on this information and a power grid overlay on the street map, the server can predict where downstream power outages are likely to occur.
When the system determines that a grid power failure is likely, it will instruct the vehicle’s charging control unit to increase its charge level in anticipation of a power outage. Not only will this ensure that the EV has a usable charge if it needs to travel, but it will also make extra energy available to power its home base until the battery charge level drops to a preset minimum allowable level.
Additionally, the charged EV will be able to share some battery power with another EV, provided it features similar bidirectional energy transfer capabilities. This will be determined by the central server and depend on the availability and operability of nearby charging stations.