What Is an Electric Vehicle Charger?
An electric vehicle charger is a device designed to recharge electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid EVs. With the growing popularity of electric vehicles, chargers are increasingly installed in various locations, including homes, commercial facilities, highways, and gas stations. There are two primary types of chargers: wired and wireless.
Currently, wired charging is the mainstream method due to its shorter charging time compared to wireless charging. However, the convenience of wireless charging is expected to lead to its increased use alongside wired methods in the future. Wired systems are further categorized into standard chargers and quick chargers.
Uses of Electric Vehicle Chargers
Electric vehicle chargers serve to charge the batteries of electric and hybrid vehicles. They come in two types.
1. Standard Charger
Standard chargers are commonly installed at homes and public places like business parking lots, hotels, and hospitals. They typically take 8 to 10 hours for a full charge and are used overnight or during extended stays at a location.
2. Rapid Charger
Rapid chargers, found on highways and gas stations, can charge a vehicle in about 30 minutes. They are ideal for quick recharging during travel.
Principle of Electric Vehicle Chargers
Standard chargers operate on 100V or 200V AC power. They supply electricity directly to the vehicle, where an onboard rectifier circuit converts it to DC to charge the EV battery. In contrast, quick chargers use three-phase 200V AC to produce high-voltage, high-output DC current for rapid charging.
Quick chargers follow different protocols, including CHAdeMO, Combined Charging System (CCS), and Tesla Supercharger.
Other Information on Electric Vehicle Chargers
1. Contactless Charging Systems
Contactless charging is being developed to provide convenient, safe wireless power transfer. It employs either electromagnetic induction or magnetic field resonance, with the latter offering better power transmission over longer distances and higher efficiency.
2. CHAdeMO
The CHAdeMO protocol ensures compatibility among various manufacturers’ chargers and vehicles, using CAN communication for data exchange. Safety features include an independent control power supply and an isolation transformer to protect against power supply abnormalities.
3. Combined Charging System
CCS allows for both AC and DC charging using a single vehicle inlet. It follows different connector standards in North America and Europe and utilizes PWM signal communication during the charging process.