DESC:METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ELECTRIC BATTERY LENDING

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention is related to electric vehicles, in particularly to peer-to-peer electric battery lending for an electric vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The following description of related art is intended to provide background information pertaining to the field of the present disclosure. This section may include certain aspects of the art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure. However, it should be appreciated that this section be used only to enhance the understanding of the reader with respect to the present disclosure, and therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.

[0003] At present, developments are increasingly made towards electric vehicles associated with low energy consumption and low emissions. An electric vehicle can operate by driving motors using electricity charged in an electric battery. One of the most common problems faced by users of the existing electric vehicle is finding a charging station to charge the electric battery of the electric vehicle. It may require considerable amount of time and cost for setting up charging stations throughout a country.

[0004] However, there can be instances where some of the users may not be using the charged electric battery(ies) of the electric vehicle. In such instances, the users may lend the charged electric batteries to the other users who are in need of the charged electric battery(ies). However, conventional approaches do not involve any mechanisms for facilitating lending of the electric battery(ies) for the electric vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In view of the foregoing, an embodiment herein provides a method performed by a first electronic device for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. The method comprises receiving, from at least one second electronic device, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In response to the received lending request, the method comprises transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. The method comprises enabling lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device in response to the transmitted information.

[0006] Thus, resulting in peer-to-peer electric battery lending for the electric vehicle, which further reduces dependency on charging stations for charging the electric battery of the electric vehicle. In addition, unused fully charged electric batteries may be utilized.

[0007] In an embodiment, the lending request comprises one or more of: a requirement of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, and a geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery.

[0008] In yet another embodiment, transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device, the information comprises obtaining, from the at least one second electronic device, one or more identification inputs identifying the at least one second electronic device, and obtaining one or more identification inputs registered by the at least one second electronic device. The method comprises authenticating the at least one second electronic device by comparing the obtained one or more identification inputs from the at least one second electronic device with the registered one or more identification inputs. Upon successful authentication of the at least one second electronic device, the method comprises transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device. Thus, the information may be transmitted only after successful authentication of the at least one second electronic device. As a result, misuse of the information may be reduced.

[0009] In yet another embodiment, transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device, the information comprises identifying, from the lending request received from the at least one second electronic device, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery. The method comprises determining whether the identified geographical location is within a lending location range of the first electronic device. When it has been determined that the identified geographical location is within the lending location range of the first electronic device, the method comprises transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device. Thus, the at least one electric battery may be lent to near-by geographical locations without any delay.

[0010] In yet another embodiment, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending comprises one or more of: an availability status of the at least one electric battery; a health status of the at least one electric battery, a battery number of the at least one electric battery, a location associated with the at least one electric battery, a warranty associated with the at least one electric battery, and a date of manufacturer of the at least one electric battery.

[0011] In yet another embodiment, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery comprises one or more of: a lending fee to be paid for the at least one electric battery, a date and time to return the at least one electric battery, and instructions to pay the lending fee for the at least one electric battery.

[0012] In yet another embodiment, the lending accept message comprises one or more of: confirmation for the at least one electric battery to be lent; and/or a receipt of successfully paid lending fee for the at least one electric battery to be lent.

[0013] In yet another embodiment, in response to the received lending request, the method further comprises publishing, over at least one external entity, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery, and the lending location range.

[0014] Embodiments herein also provide a method performed by a second electronic device for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. The method comprises transmitting, to a first electronic device, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In response to the transmitted lending request, the method comprises receiving, from the first electronic device, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. The method comprises transmitting, to the first electronic device, a lending accept message for the at least one electric battery to be lent, on deciding to accept lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information.

[0015] Embodiments herein also provide a first electronic device for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. The first electronic device is configured for receiving, from at least one second electronic device, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In response to the received lending request, the first electronic device is configured for transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. The first electronic device is configured for enabling lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device in response to the transmitted information.

[0016] Embodiments herein also provide a second electronic device for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. The second electronic device is configured for transmitting, to a first electronic device, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In response to the transmitted lending request, the second electronic device is configured for receiving, from the first electronic device, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. The second electronic device is configured for transmitting, to the first electronic device, a lending accept message for the at least one electric battery to be lent, on deciding to accept lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information.

[0017] Embodiments herein also provide an electric battery lending system comprising a first electronic device and at least one second electronic device communicatively coupled to the first electronic device. The at least one second electronic device is configured for transmitting, to the first electronic device, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. The first electronic device is configured for transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. The first electronic device is configured for lending the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device in response to the transmitted information.

[0018] These and other aspects of the embodiments herein will be better appreciated and understood when considered in conjunction with the following description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that the following descriptions, while indicating preferred embodiments and numerous specific details thereof, are given by way of illustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the embodiments herein without departing from the spirit thereof, and the embodiments herein include all such modifications.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
[0019] The invention will now be described in relation to the accompanying drawings in which

[0020] Figure 1 discloses an example electric battery lending system in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0021] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating method steps of a method performed for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0022] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating method steps of a method performed for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0023] Figure 4 is an example block diagram illustrating components of a first electronic device in an electric battery lending system in accordance with an embodiment herein; and

[0024] Figure 5 is an example block diagram illustrating components of a second electronic device in an electric battery lending system in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0025] Figure 6 discloses an example illustration of providing options for lending at least one electric battery, barrowing the at least one electric battery, accessing saved information related to the at least one electric battery and lending in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0026] Figures 7A, 7B, and 7C disclose exemplary saved information related to the at least one electric battery and lending in accordance with an embodiment herein;

[0027] Figures 8A, and 8B disclose an example illustration for registering information related to at least one electric battery for lending in accordance with an embodiment herein; and

[0028] Figures 9A, 9B, 9C and 9D disclose exemplary information, which may be evaluated for accepting lending of at least one electric battery in accordance with an embodiment herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0029] The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.

[0030] The present invention enables peer-to-peer lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. Thereby, reducing dependency on charging stations for charging the electric batteries.

[0031] Figure 1 discloses an example electric battery lending system 100 in accordance with an embodiment herein. The electric battery lending system 100 referred herein may be configured to facilitate lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles. An electric vehicle referred herein may correspond to an electric battery based operating vehicle, having an electric motor. In some examples, the electric vehicle 100 may include, but are not limited to, a two-wheeler, a three-wheeler, a four-wheeler, and so on. For instance, the electric vehicle 100 may include, an electric bike, an electric car, or the like. The electric battery referred herein may be a rechargeable electric battery.

[0032] As depicted in Fig. 1, the electric battery lending system 100 comprises a first electronic device 102, and one or more second electronic devices 104. The first electronic device 102 and the second electronic devices 104 may communicate with each other through a communication network 106. In some examples, the communication network 106 may include, but are not limited to, a wired network, a cellular network, a wireless Local Area Network (LAN), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy, Zigbee, Wi-Fi direct (WFD), Ultra-wideband (UWB), infrared data association (IrDA), near field communication (NFC), and so on.

[0033] The first electronic device 102 referred herein may comprise at least one of, a computing device, a server, a multi-processor system, a microprocessor-based or programmable electronic device, a network computing device, a minicomputer, or a combination thereof. Examples of the computing device may include, but are not limited to, a cellular phone, a handheld device, a personal digital assistant, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, and so on.

[0034] In some examples, the first electronic device 102 may be operated by an individual user, who is having the charged at least one electric battery and ready to lend the at least one electric battery for at least one electric vehicle.

[0035] In some examples, the first electronic device 102 may be implemented by an entity for lending the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle. In such a scenario, the first electronic device 102 may store information about the lenders, who are having the charged at least one electric battery and ready to lend the at least one electric battery for at least one electric vehicle. An authenticated user of the entity may operate the first electronic device 102. The individual user/entity, who operates the first electronic device 102 may be referred hereinafter as a lender.

[0036] For operating the first electronic device 102, the lender may register identification inputs for identification. In some examples, the identification inputs may include personal information, such as, but are not limited to, name, address, locality, username, password, or the like. Upon registration, whenever the lender wants to operate the first electronic device 102, the lender may enter the identification inputs such as, the username and the password on a user interface provided on the first electronic device 102. The first electronic device 102 authenticates the lender/user by comparing the entered identification inputs with the registered inputs. Upon successful authentication (i.e., when the entered identification inputs match with the registered input of the lender/user), the lender may operate the first electronic device 102.

[0037] In embodiments disclosed herein, terms such as “first electronic device” and “lender device” may be used interchangeably through the document.

[0038] The second electronic device 102 referred herein may comprise at least one of, a smart phone, a mobile phone, a cell phone, a wireless local loop phone, a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant, PDA, a wireless camera, a wearable terminal device, a tablet, a laptop, a laptop-embedded equipment, LEE, a vehicle- mounted wireless terminal device, a server, and so on.

[0039] In some examples, the second electronic device 102 may be operated by a user/entity (referred hereinafter as lendee or barrower), who requires the charged at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle (i.e., who wants to barrow the at least one electric battery).

[0040] In embodiments disclosed herein, terms such as “second electronic device” and “lendee device” may be used interchangeably through the document.

[0041] In the electric battery lending system 100, the second electronic device 104 is configured to transmit a lending request to the first electronic device 102 for the at least one electric battery to be lent for the at least one electric vehicle. In some examples, the at least one electric battery is a charged electric battery. In some examples, the lending request may comprise one or more of: a requirement of one or more electric batteries, and a geographical location to which the at least one electric battery has to be delivered/lent.

[0042] The first device 102 is configured to enable lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based on the received lending request.

[0043] For enabling lending of the at least one electric battery, the first electronic device 102 initially authenticates the second electronic device 104. For authenticating the second device 104, the first device 102 may obtain, from the second electronic device 104, one or more identification inputs identifying the second electronic device 104. The obtained one or more identification inputs may include a username of the lendee and a password. The first electronic device 102 may also obtain one or more identification inputs registered by the second electronic device 104. The registered identification inputs may include, name, address, locality, username, password, or the like, of the lendee. Thereafter, the first electronic device 102 compares the obtained one or more identification inputs from the second electronic device 104 with the registered one or more identification inputs. When the obtained one or more identification inputs from the second electronic device 104 match with the registered one or more identification inputs, the first electronic device 102 may determine successful authentication of the second electronic device 104.

[0044] Upon successful authentication of the second electronic device 104, the first electronic device 102 transmits, to the second electronic device 104, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the information related to the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: an availability status of the at least one electric battery, a health status of the at least one electric battery, a battery number of the at least one electric battery, a location associated with the at least one electric battery, a warranty associated with the at least one electric battery, and a date of manufacturer of the at least one electric battery. The availability status may indicate whether the requested number of electric batteries are available or not. In some examples, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: a lending fee to be paid for the at least one electric battery, a date and time to return the barrowed at least one electric battery, and instructions to pay the lending fee for the at least one electric battery. The instructions may indicate how to pay the lending fee to the lender. In some examples, a quick response code (QR code) may be provided to pay the lending fee. In some examples, along with the above described information, the transmitted information may also comprise a name, an address, a contact number, or the like, of a lendee, who wants to lend the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle.

[0045] In some embodiments, for transmitting the information, the first electronic device 102 may identify the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery, from the received lending request. The first electronic device 102 may determine whether the identified geographical location is within a lending location range of the first electronic device 102. The lending location range may be a maximum location range in which the at least one electric battery may be lent. When it has been determined that the identified geographical location is within the lending location range, the first electronic device 102 may transmit the information to the second electronic device 104. Thus, the first electronic device 102 may transmit the information to only the near-by device 104, which helps in faster delivery/lending of the at least one electric battery.

[0046] In response to receiving the information from the first electronic device 102, the second electronic device 104 evaluates the received information and decides whether to accept lending of the at least one electric battery. For example, the second electronic device 104 may accept lending of the at least one electric battery only when the at least one electric battery is healthy and the lending fee is reasonable/not expensive.

[0047] When it is decided to accept lending of the at least one electric battery, the second electronic device 104 may pay the lending fee. After paying the lending fee, the second electronic device 104 transmits a lending accept message to the first electronic device 102 for the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the lending accept message may comprise one or more of: confirmation for the at least one electric battery to be lent and a receipt of successfully paid lending fee for the at least one electric battery to be lent.

[0048] In response to receiving the lending accept message from the second electronic device 104, the first electronic device 102 enables lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle.

[0049] Thus, the proposed lending system 100 may perform a unique identification and authentication of each electronic device with status of request, acceptance, approval and publishing options for peer-to-peer battery lending within the lending location range (i.e., given geographical range).

[0050] In some embodiments, the first electronic device 102 may also communicate with at least one external entity (not shown). In some examples, the at least one external entity may be implemented by a regulating entity or a monitoring entity. The at least one external entity may include a server (a standalone server or a server residing in a cloud), another electronic device, or the like. The first electronic device 102 may also be configured to publish, over the at least one external entity, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery, and the lending location range. Thus, receiving, optimizing and publishing the information over the at least one external entity.

[0051] Working of Invention: The first electronic device 102 (operated by the lender) receives the lending request, from one or more second electronic devices 104 (operated by the lendee), for the at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In response to the received lending request, the first electronic device 102 transmits the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery to the near-by second electronic devices 104. The one or more second electronic devices may accept the lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information and transmit the lending accept message to the first electronic device 102. Upon receiving the lending accept message, the first electronic device 102 enables the lender to lend the at least one electric battery to the lendee for the at least one electric vehicle.

[0052] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating method steps of a method 200 performed for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles in accordance with an embodiment herein. The method 200 is performed by the first electronic device 102.

[0053] At step 202, the method 200 comprises receiving, from at least one second electronic device 104, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In some examples, the lending request may comprise one or more of: a requirement of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, and a geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery.

[0054] In response to the received lending request, at step 204, the method 200 comprises transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device 104, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the information related to the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: an availability status of the at least one electric battery, a health status of the at least one electric battery, a battery number of the at least one electric battery, a location associated with the at least one electric battery, a warranty associated with the at least one electric battery, and a date of manufacturer of the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: a lending fee to be paid for the at least one electric battery, a date and time to return the barrowed at least one electric battery, and instructions to pay the lending fee for the at least one electric battery.

[0055] In some embodiments, the step 204 may comprise obtaining, from the at least one second electronic device 104, one or more identification inputs identifying the at least one second electronic device 104. The method may comprise obtaining one or more identification inputs registered by the at least one second electronic device 104. The method may comprise authenticating the at least one second electronic device 104 by comparing the obtained one or more identification inputs from the at least one second electronic device 104 with the registered one or more identification inputs. Upon successful authentication of the at least one second electronic device 104, the method may comprise transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device 104.

[0056] In some embodiments, the step 204 may comprise identifying, from the lending request received from the at least one second electronic device 104, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery. The method may comprise determining whether the identified geographical location is within a lending location range of the first electronic device 102. The lending location range may be defined by the lender. The lending location range may be a maximum location range in which the at least one electric battery can be lent/delivered. When it has been determined that the identified geographical location is within the lending location range of the first electronic device 102, the method may comprise transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device 104.

[0057] At step 206, the method 200 comprises enabling lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device 104 in response to the transmitted information. In some examples, the lending accept message may comprises one or more of: confirmation for the at least one electric battery to be lent and a receipt of successfully paid lending fee for the at least one electric battery to be lent.

[0058] In some embodiments, the method 200 may also comprise publishing, over the at least one external entity, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery, and the lending location range.

[0059] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating method steps of a method 300 performed for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles in accordance with an embodiment herein. The method 300 is performed by the second electronic device 104.

[0060] At step 302, the method 300 comprises transmitting, to the first electronic device 102, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. In some examples, the lending request may comprise one or more of: a requirement of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, and a geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery.

[0061] In response to the transmitted lending request, at step 304, the method 300 comprises receiving, from the first electronic device 102, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the information related to the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: an availability status of the at least one electric battery, a health status of the at least one electric battery, a battery number of the at least one electric battery, a location associated with the at least one electric battery, a warranty associated with the at least one electric battery, and a date of manufacturer of the at least one electric battery. In some examples, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery may comprise one or more of: a lending fee to be paid for the at least one electric battery, a date and time to return the barrowed at least one electric battery, and instructions to pay the lending fee for the at least one electric battery.

[0062] At step 306, the method 300 comprises transmitting, to the first electronic device 102, a lending accept message for the at least one electric battery, on deciding to accept lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information. In some examples, the lending accept message may comprises one or more of: confirmation for the at least one electric battery to be lent and a receipt of successfully paid lending fee for the at least one electric battery to be lent.

[0063] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating components of the first electronic device 102 in accordance with an embodiment herein. The first electronic device 102 is capable of enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles and may be configured to cause performance of the method 200 for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles.

[0064] According to at least some embodiments of the present invention, the first electronic device 102 in Figure 4 comprises one or more modules. These modules may e.g. be a memory 402, a processor 404, a controlling circuitry 406, a transceiver 408, an information transmission module 410, and a lending module 412. The controlling circuitry 406, may in some embodiments be adapted to control the above-mentioned modules.

[0065] The memory 402, the processor 404, the transceiver 408, the information transmission module 410, and the lending module 412 as well as the controlling circuitry 406, may be operatively connected to each other.

[0066] The controlling circuitry 406 may be adapted to enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, as described above in conjunction with the method 200 and Figure 2.

[0067] The transceiver 408 may be configured to receive, from the at least one second electronic device 104, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle.

[0068] The information transmission module 410 may be configured to retrieve, from the memory 402, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, for the received lending request. The information transmission module 410 may be configured to enable the transceiver 408 to transmit the retrieved information to the at least one second electronic device 104.

[0069] The lending module 412 may be configured to enable lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device 104 in response to the transmitted information.

[0070] The processor 404 may be configured to authenticate the at least one second electronic device 104.

[0071] The memory 402 may store one or more of: the lending request, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the lending accept message, and so on.

[0072] Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating components of the second electronic device 104 in accordance with an embodiment herein. The second electronic device 104 is capable of accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles and may be configured to cause performance of the method 300 for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles.

[0073] According to at least some embodiments of the present invention, the second electronic device 104 in Figure 5 comprises one or more modules. These modules may e.g. be a memory 502, a processor 504, a controlling circuitry 506, a transceiver 508, a deciding module 510, and a lending accept module 512. The controlling circuitry 506, may in some embodiments be adapted to control the above-mentioned modules.

[0074] The memory 502, the processor 504, the transceiver 508, the deciding module 510, and the lending accept module 512 as well as the controlling circuitry 506, may be operatively connected to each other.

[0075] The controlling circuitry 506 may be adapted to accept lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, as described above in conjunction with the method 300 and Figure 3.

[0076] The transceiver 508 may be configured to transmit, to the first electronic device 102, a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle. The transceiver 508 may also be configured to receive, from the first electronic device 102, information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery.

[0077] The deciding module 510 may be configured to evaluate the received information and accordingly to decide whether the lending of the at least one electric battery can be acceptable or not.

[0078] The lending accept module 512 may be configured to prepare a lending accept message, when it is decided to accept the lending of the at least one electric battery and to enable the transceiver 508 to transmit the lending accept message to the first electronic device 102.

[0079] The processor 504 may be configured to register one or more identification inputs with the first electronic device 102 for identification/authentication of the second electronic device 104.

[0080] The memory 502 may store one or more of: the lending request, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the lending accept message, and so on.

[0081] Embodiments herein provide the electric battery lending system 100. The electric battery lending system 100 comprises the first electronic device 102 to enable lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles and the second electronic device 104 to accept lending of the electric batteries for the electric vehicles (i.e., to accept barrowing of the electric batteries).

[0082] The first electronic device/lender device 102 may be operated by the lender, who lends the electric batteries. The second electronic device/lendee device 104 may be operated by the lendee, who barrows/accepts the lending of the electric batteries.

[0083] In some examples, the first electronic device 102 may collect and store details from one or more lenders, who have the electric batteries available for lending and ready to lend the available electric batteries. The electric batteries referred herein may be the charged electric batteries.

[0084] The first electronic device 102 may receive a request. In some examples, the request may be received from a computing device being used by the lender for providing details related to the available electric batteries. In some examples, the request may be a lending request received from one or more second electronic devices 104 for barrowing one or more electric batteries for one or more electric vehicles. Upon receiving the request, the first electronic device 102 provides options such as, “Lend Battery”, “Barrow Battery”, and “Saved Details”, as depicted in Figure 6.

[0085] The option “Saved Details” may be used to retrieve stored information in the memory 402 of the first electronic device 102 such as, but are not limited to, the information related to the available electric batteries, the one or more lenders registered for lending the electric batteries, the one or more lendees registered for barrowing the electric batteries, a lending history, a barrowing history, and so on. For example, the information related to the available electric batteries, which can be lent for the electric vehicles is depicted in Figure 7A, wherein the information indicates a battery number of the electric battery, a location and a contact number of the lender lending the electric battery, or the like. An example lending history is depicted in Figure 7B. The lending history may include previous lendings of the electric batteries identifying a lending date, a lending time, lent to, a return date, a return time, or the like. An example barrowing history is depicted in Figure 7C. The barrowing history may include previous barrowings of the electric batteries identifying a barrow date, a barrow time, barrowed by, a return date, a return time, or the like.

[0086] The option “Lend Battery” may be used to provide information related to the available electric batteries (which can be lent) to the first electronic device 102. Upon selecting the option “Lending Battery”, the first electronic device 102 requests the computing device being used by the lender to provide information related to the one or more electric batteries, which can be lent for the electric vehicles, as depicted in Figure 8A. For example, the information may indicate a battery number, a contact of a lender, a location, a date/time to receive the lent electric batteries, a health status of the electric batteries, a warranty associated with the electric batteries, a date of manufacture of the electric batteries, and so on. After collecting the information related to the one or more electric batteries from the computing device of the lender, the first electronic device 102 communicates a successful message to the computing device, as depicted in Figure 8B. The successful message may indicate that the lender is being added for battery lending.

[0087] The option “Barrow Battery” may be used for barrowing the one or more electric batteries for the one or more electric vehicles (i.e., for the one or more electric batteries to be lent for the one or more electric vehicles). Upon selecting the option “Barrow Battery”, the first electronic device 102 transmits the information related to the available electric batteries to the near-by second electronic device 104 being used by the lendee. In some examples, as depicted in Figure 9A, the information related to the available electric batteries may indicate a battery number, a contact of a lender, a location, a health status of the electric batteries, a warranty associated with the electric batteries, a date of manufacture of the electric batteries, a barrow history, and so on. In some examples, the information related to the available electric batteries may indicate nearest available electric batteries on a map, as depicted in Figure 9B. In some examples, as depicted in Figure 9C, the information related to the available electric batteries may indicate a date on a calendar and a time on a clock to return the lent electric batteries. Thus, from such a presentation of the information, the information related to the available electric batteries may be easily determined/understood.

[0088] When it is decided to accept lending of the electric batteries (i.e., when it is decided to barrow the electric batteries) based on the provided information, the first electronic device 102 may enable the second electronic device 104 to pay a lending fee for the electric batteries using an QR code, as depicted in Figure 9D. Thus, resulting in hassle free payment of the lending fee for barrowing the electric batteries. Once the lending fee is paid, the first electronic device 102 enables the lender associated with the accepted information to lend the electric batteries for the electric vehicles of the lendee.

[0089] Various embodiments of the electric battery lending system 100 and methods disclosed herein provide technical advantage over charging of the electric batteries at charging stations. As the claimed invention enables peer-to-peer lending of the charged electric batteries for the electric vehicles, dependency on the charging stations for charging of the electric batteries may be reduced.

[0090] The present invention includes a unique identification and authentication process for each user on the application with status of request, acceptance, approval and publishing options for peer-to-peer battery lending within a given geographical range.

[0091] The present invention also includes receiving, optimizing and publishing the information related to lender-lendee location, battery health, and range availability information over the cloud.

[0092] Although the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments and examples thereof, other embodiments and equivalents are possible. Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with functional and procedural details, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in terms of the procedural steps within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms. Thus, various modifications are possible of the presently disclosed system and process without deviating from the intended scope of the present invention.
,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM:

1. A method (200) performed by a first electronic device (102) for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, the method (200) comprising:
receiving (202), from at least one second electronic device (104), a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle;
in response to the received lending request, transmitting (204), to the at least one second electronic device (104), information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery; and
enabling (206) lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device (104) in response to the transmitted information.

2. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein the lending request comprises one or more of: a requirement of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, and a geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery.

3. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device (104), the information comprises:
obtaining, from the at least one second electronic device (104), one or more identification inputs identifying the at least one second electronic device (104);
obtaining one or more identification inputs registered by the at least one second electronic device (104);
authenticating the at least one second electronic device (104) by comparing the obtained one or more identification inputs from the at least one second electronic device (104) with the registered one or more identification inputs; and
upon successful authentication of the at least one second electronic device (104), transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device (104).

4. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device (104), the information comprises:
identifying, from the lending request received from the at least one second electronic device (104), the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery;
determining whether the identified geographical location is within a lending location range of the first electronic device (102); and
when it has been determined that the identified geographical location is within the lending location range of the first electronic device (102), transmitting the information to the at least one second electronic device (104).

5. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending comprises one or more of:
an availability status of the at least one electric battery;
a health status of the at least one electric battery;
a battery number of the at least one electric battery;
a location associated with the at least one electric battery;
a warranty associated with the at least one electric battery; and
a date of manufacturer of the at least one electric battery.

6. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery comprises one or more of:
a lending fee to be paid for the at least one electric battery;
a date and time to return the at least one electric battery; and
instructions to pay the lending fee for the at least one electric battery.

7. The method (200) according to claim 1, wherein the lending accept message comprises one or more of:
confirmation for the at least one electric battery to be lent; and/or
a receipt of successfully paid lending fee for the at least one electric battery to be lent.

8. The method (200) according to claim 1, further comprising:
in response to the received lending request, publishing, over at least one external entity, the information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending, the information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, the geographical location for lending the at least one electric battery, and the lending location range.

9. A method (300) performed by a second electronic device (104) for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, the method (300) comprising:
transmitting (302), to a first electronic device (102), a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle;
in response to the transmitted lending request, receiving (304), from the first electronic device (102), information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery; and
transmitting (306), to the first electronic device (102), a lending accept message for the at least one electric battery to be lent, on deciding to accept lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information.

10. A first electronic device (102) for enabling lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, the first electronic device (102) is configured for:
receiving, from at least one second electronic device (104), a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle;
in response to the received lending request, transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device (104), information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery; and
lending the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device (104) in response to the transmitted information.

11. A second electronic device (104) for accepting lending of electric batteries for electric vehicles, the second electronic device (104) is configured for:
transmitting, to a first electronic device (102), a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle;
in response to the transmitted lending request, receiving, from the first electronic device (102), information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery; and
transmitting, to the first electronic device (102), a lending accept message for the at least one electric battery to be lent, on deciding to accept lending of the at least one electric battery based on the received information.

12. An electric battery lending system (100) comprising:
a first electronic device (102); and
at least one second electronic device (104) communicatively coupled to the first electronic device (102) configured for:
transmitting, to the first electronic device (102), a lending request for at least one electric battery to be lent for at least one electric vehicle;
wherein the first electronic device (102) is configured for:
transmitting, to the at least one second electronic device (104), information related to the at least one electric battery available for lending and information related to lending of the at least one electric battery, upon receiving the lending request; and
enabling lending of the at least one electric battery for the at least one electric vehicle, based upon receiving a lending accept message from the at least one second electronic device (104) in response to the transmitted information.