Jim Wallace technical standards and applications specialist at Seaward explains the importance of new test technology for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations
The electric vehicle sector is growing rapidly in response to the need for low carbon transportation solutions.
The drive to reduce CO2 emissions to overcome climate change concerns and the need to reduce the harmful pollution effects from traditional hydrocarbon burning engines have together provided the stimulus for a global EV revolution that is gathering speed at a considerable rate.
Nevertheless, one of the major barriers to the faster take up of EVs has been driver fear that a vehicle would have insufficient battery power to reach its destination. This has seen considerable growth in the installation of roadside charging points and in public car parks, as well as at workplaces for the benefit of staff.
However, as more EVs take to the road, pressures on the charging network are growing, placing even greater importance on the supply infrastructure continuing to be available and fit for purpose.
As well as rectifying any faults quickly, this can only be achieved by carrying out regular maintenance and periodic testing so that electric vehicle charging and supply equipment (EVSE) installers can verify that the equipment is both safe and operating in line with the same specification as when it was installed.
Although different modes or levels of EV charging stations have different definitions around the world, the operation and functionality of EVSE is controlled by official product standards. For example, in the UK the international standard IEC 61851 defines the requirements for charging equipment and also covers aspects such as the protocol used for communication between the vehicle and charging point.
In general terms, the standard describes the characteristics and operational conditions of the charging station and its connection to the EV, the electrical safety of operators and third parties, and the characteristics to be complied with by the vehicle with respect to the power supplied when the vehicle is earthed.
For users of EVSEs, recharging the vehicle should be as simple as connecting a normal appliance to the electricity supply. However, to ensure that this operation takes place in complete safety, the charging station must perform several system safety checks.
To do this, direct communication between the vehicle and the station is established when the plug-in connection is made. However, it follows that operational performance and fault diagnosis on any charging point cannot be determined unless an EV is connected and signal communication is established between the two parts of the system.
This can often prove problematic, meaning, for example, that when an EVSE technician arrives on site, effective fault diagnosis and repairs may be extremely difficult and in some cases impossible without extended ‘out of service’ periods.
This problem has been overcome with the introduction of specialist new test technology that simulates the presence of an EV and verifies the correct response from the EVSE, so that safety and normal operating features can be confirmed – or any faults identified.
EV100 test technology establishes direct communication with the EVSE via a standard charging cable or through direct connection to the EVSE output terminal. This enables the instrument to act like a connected vehicle to control the EVSE and sequence through a number of test conditions so that all appropriate electrical tests to be carried out.
As well as carrying out basic field tests to check performance, more detailed data from the charge point is retained in the tester and can be transferred to a special smartphone app. This powerful EVSEMobile app enables more advanced and detailed test data to be collected for e mailing back to a central office or maintenance records database.
This allows, for example a technician working in a car park or roadside location to send comprehensive technical test data to a specialist diagnostic engineer in the office for proper assessment, allowing the remote identification of faults to be carried out and with remedial instructions being passed back for on-site remediation.
In this way the new EV100 test and diagnostic technology can form the basis of both planned preventative maintenance programmes as well as responsive service and repair routines to ensure that any charging point problems can be resolved quickly and effectively.
With developments in new EVSE test technology, operators of charging points now have the opportunity to overcome their maintenance challenges, reassuring drivers that charging points will be working when they need them – keeping the EV revolution moving forward.