Charging Station standards

[Kevin Harney]

It mentions that if the plug is kicked out (or pulled out intentionally) that the machine pages you or texts you. Which is good. My question is does it turn the machine OFF so that people trying to steal your power will get nothing until you return and put you key back in .... seems likely but would liek to confirm that. I think this is GREAT !!! LOVE it !!! I work for an electric company and I think it would be a great public service to install these at all our offices to promote green cars !!! Looking forward to making the proposal when the product is available ....

 

[graham]

It mentions that if the plug is kicked out (or pulled out intentionally) that the machine pages you or texts you.

That is cool, but I wonder if it can text you when you car has finished charging...

Actually, I would love that feature from the Tesla itself. Email me or text me when you have reached 80% charge while I go get dinner, car...

 

[Kevin Harney]

I think I remember it saying that you would be notified when it got turned off - either from having the plug pulled or the charge was completed. Perhaps I misread though ...

 

[graham]

Nice! It would be nice if the Tesla did that on its own as well. I so want to hack that stupid USB port and put some sort of computer monitor in place for such things.

 

[Cobos]

Think's Mindbox supposedly does all these things, so if Tesla wants to implement this quickly I guess Think might want to share (for a price of course). It makes a lot of sense at least for the Model S for it do these kind of things...

Cobos

 

[shark2k]

It mentions that if the plug is kicked out (or pulled out intentionally) that the machine pages you or texts you. Which is good. My question is does it turn the machine OFF so that people trying to steal your power will get nothing until you return and put you key back in .... seems likely but would liek to confirm that. I think this is GREAT !!! LOVE it !!! I work for an electric company and I think it would be a great public service to install these at all our offices to promote green cars !!! Looking forward to making the proposal when the product is available ....

I'm assuming you are referring to the link in post #37. From the article:

First, the system notes that a connection has been made. If this connection is stopped before the owner returns with their card (either by an accident or vandalism), a text message or email is sent to the owner notifying them of the disruption. This will prevent someone else from coming up and stealing your juice by putting the cord into their own car.

To me that basically is a round about way of saying the system turns off because of the last sentence in the quote.

-Shark2k

 

[hailstorm]

Better Place Plug:

 

[graham]

The Electric Car's Perfect Plug - Choosing the Plug for Electric Cars - Popular Mechanics

Californians first experimented with all-electric vehicles 10 years ago. As a young technology, the system was riddled with quirks. Among Richard Lowenthal's frustrations: He didn't know whether a charge station could connect to his Toyota Rav-4 EV until he looked at its cord. Imagine a gas-station pump suited for a Chevy but not a Honda. "There were four different [cord] standards," Lowenthal recalls. "It was a complete mess."

Toyota's first plug-in hybrid-electric Prius will be unveiled next month, and electric vehicles are poised to spread across the country. To avoid the mistakes of the past, the Society of Automotive Engineers will release standards for charger cords next year that should ensure all automakers and charge stations offer compatible devices. This will by no means be a simple extension cord. The plug is getting a fresh look.

Sleeker

The vehicle cord of the future, now being developed by Yazaki, is about one-fourth the size of previous models. About 45 millimeters in diameter, it will handle 80 amps of energy. Although earlier, direct-current (DC) models handled more than twice the energy—600 volts DC, 400 amps—the modern, alternating-current (AC) cords should still provide enough juice for even luxury electronic vehicles such as the Tesla Roadster.

 

[vfx]

Can't help but wonder if this Society is talking with PBP, Tesla and the others mentioned in this thread. Or will everyone be surprised?

 

[Joseph]

Hmm...I was told the SAE has already decided charging standards for plug-in hybrids. The article kind of sounded like it was aiming towards PHEVs and EVs, but they maybe they meant EVs only.

 

[SByer]

80 amps doesn't seem like it's planning for the future. I get that there are tradeoffs with handling larger current, but this seems like it's wiring in a pretty harsh limitation.

 

[WarpedOne]

80 Amps could be very little or it could be a lot, it depends on voltage.
80 Amps at 500Volts is 40kW, more than twice the Roadster's max charging power.

 

[malcolm]

SAE standardise EV plugs?

SAE to launch program to create standard plug for EVs - AutoblogGreen

The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) is expected to release a new set of standards that plug-makers will need to adhere to so that their prospective units are, as Popular Mechanics points out, sleek, safe and smart.

The Electric Car's Perfect Plug - Choosing the Plug for Electric Cars - Popular Mechanics

The vehicle cord of the future, now being developed by Yazaki, is about one-fourth the size of previous models. About 45 millimeters in diameter, it will handle 80 amps of energy. Although earlier, direct-current (DC) models handled more than twice the energy—600 volts DC, 400 amps—the modern, alternating-current (AC) cords should still provide enough juice for even luxury electronic vehicles such as the Tesla Roadster.

The traditional three-prong plug will be replaced with a five-prong plug, so current electric vehicles will need a converter or owners will have to replace their car's socket entirely. The two additional prongs allow charging stations and vehicles to communicate with each other—a capability that common electronics now lack. "The devices on both sides of the connector are not just dumb things like a light bulb," EPRI's Alexander says. "Both sides have intelligence."

If they aren't already, Tesla need to be in on the ground floor with this one.

 

[vfx]

Elektrobay Charging Station

 

[dpeilow]

The Elektrobay stations use standard UK domestic type 13A sockets.

At the Greenfleet event (where Damon Hill drove the Roadster), I asked one of their engineers why they were not offering 32A or higher connections - pointing out the 16 hour charge time for the Roadster on their current offering - and I was told that they would love to do this, but it was regulatory problems that were holding them up. Apparently the powers that be do not trust the public with more than 13A on the street, yet.

 

[malcolm]

Apparently the powers that be do not trust the public with more than 13A on the street, yet.

Since these devices will become just pieces of street furniture, there's the issue of vandalism to consider.

Are any of these systems chav-proof?

 

[TEG]

Better Place Plug:

Notice the similarity to the cable from the Tesla motor that connects to the Tesla PEM:

 

[graham]

I wonder if this means there will be a simple way to plug a Roadster into a Better Place charger? Possibly you normally have some sort of adapter as part of the mobile charger - but in a pinch you could pop the trunk and plug straight into the PEM?

 

[TEG]

...but in a pinch you could pop the trunk and plug straight into the PEM?

No, I just said they are similar looking connectors. Electrically there would probably be no point in trying to join them.

 

[doug]

Power: Double-Ended Male Adapters Are Illegal, Dangerous and "Possible Immoral"