TI reference design adds Wi-Fi capability to electric vehicle charging stations
30 August 2016
Texas Instruments (TI) introduced the first reference design that adds Wi-Fi connectivity to an electric vehicle (EV) charging station. Electric vehicle owners will now be able to remotely monitor and control the charging of their vehicles from just about anywhere with Wi-Fi, presenting dozens of potential use cases from home automation to checking the availability of nearby public charge points.
The new reference design uses TI’s SimpleLink Wi-Fi wireless microcontroller (MCU) technology that allows design engineers to create stations that intelligently charge at non-peak times or detect and communicate when a charging station is available.
The reference design supports Level 1 charging, which is compatible with household outlets, as well as Level 2 EV charging, which helps vehicle owners tap into higher current (15A to 30A and higher) connections available in commercial office buildings.
Later this year TI plans to introduce a Level 3 EV direct-current charger reference design scalable to 600V and 400A that cuts charging time down to only 20-30 minutes—enough time to stop at a Wi-Fi enabled restaurant that has a charging station and charge the vehicle during lunch.
Benefits of the EV Charging Station with Wi-Fi reference design:
- Level 1 and Level 2 charge operation.
- Wi-Fi connectivity support from any smartphone, tablet, computer or smartTV.
- Power delivery up to 30 A, but expandable by using larger relays.
- Expandable to support other applications such as payment, authentication and home automation design innovation.
Comments