In the realm of electric vehicle (EV) charging, charge controllers play a vital role in managing and optimizing charging operations. This blog post explores the significance of charge controllers and their direct relation to EcoG’s core business. It will explain the functionalities of charge controllers and examine how they serve as a vehicle for EcoG’s software integration, enhancing our smart charging solutions
Charge controllers act as communication interfaces within EV charging stations. They establish connections between the electric vehicle, the Charging Station Management System, power electronics, and other peripherals. These versatile controllers support multiple charging points, making them suitable for various charging setups, including public high-power chargers, single charge outlets, and wallboxes.
With high-performance processors ensuring stability and reliability, charge controllers facilitate automation tasks and provide essential functionalities for efficient charging. They enable the control of charging parameters, such as voltage and data points, ensuring safety precautions like emergency termination of charging. Charge controllers also gather charging data, such as available power and maximum power capacity, via interfaces like Modbus.
The EcoG Charge Controller is a pivotal component of EcoG’s core business, serving as an enabler for its software integration. Compliant with industry standards like DIN70121 and ISO 15118, EcoG’s charge controller supports CCS, CHAdeMO, and AC charging protocols, making it versatile and compatible with a wide range of electric vehicles
EcoG OS leverages the charge controller’s integrated automation control to simplify the system architecture. This eliminates the need for a separate Power Line Communication and, as a consequence, reduces costs. The charge controller hosts the EcoG OS software, the hardware-agnostic nature of which allows for compatibility with various charging systems without requiring hardware adaptations. This enhances its flexibility and ease of integration.
By utilizing the EcoG OS and software capabilities, the charge controller enables the collection and processing of charging data. Through integrated engineering tools like the Local Web Interface, monitoring and device management can be accessed easily and in a more data-pragmatic way. These insights help to reduce engineering and development time, and therefore time to market, tremendously.
The charge controller’s interaction with the Application Board (AB) also contributes to its software integration. The AB provides a REST-interface to facilitate the charger status monitoring, measurements on main wires, connection to the customer network, and gives access to functionalities like Charge Overview, Circuit Control, and EV emulation. Charging data can be accessed in real-time and stored, for example, in an AWS cloud server. This integration allows EcoG to deliver regular OTA updates to the charge controller, ensuring ongoing compatibility with current and future EV models.
Additionally, when combined with other EcoG solutions like the CPPP2300 state monitor and the LifeC: lifecycle management platform, the capabilities of the charge controller can be expanded. These integrations enable redundant safe switching off, session monitoring, error logging, and performance insights, all with the goal to further enhance the reliability, safety, and management of EcoG’s charging infrastructure.
The SECC Charge Control Units, exemplified by the EcoG Charge Controller, serve as a vital link between EV charging stations, software applications, and peripherals. By integrating software solutions with the charge controller, EcoG is able to ensure efficient and intelligent charging operations, seamless data management, and enhanced user experiences. This software-driven approach aligns with EcoG’s ambition to provide smart charging solutions and facilitates the transition to sustainable transportation.
EcoG is a global IP and tech company working on the rapid expansion of sustainable charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. With its charge controllers, reference designs and software, it enables companies to get products & services to market quickly and scale profitably.
EcoG is already the market leader in Europe with more than 15% market share and a strong footprint in the Indian and North American markets. Overall, EcoG grew four times faster than the market last year. Industrial giants such as Siemens or one of the world’s largest service station equipment suppliers are among its customers. The company continues to grow in 2024 and as a next step invests 14,4M$ in its North American HQ in the USA.