Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (EV) and their components can use standards to ensure they reach expected quality, safety and efficiency levels - regardless of their position on the supply chain.
There are many standards that manufacturers can use to inform EV design and aid legislative compliance. For example, ISO 6469 is a wide-ranging standard, over three parts, which provides:
- Safety specifications for rechargeable energy storage systems for EVs.
- Functional and operational safety means.
- Specific protection against electrical hazards.
It's vital that systems and components involved in EV charging are safe and efficient. BS EN IEC 61851-1 outlines general requirements for EV conductive charging systems. The standard covers characteristics, specifications and safety requirements for the power supply, and the connection between this charging equipment and the vehicle.
DD CLC/TS 50457-2, meanwhile, provides a communication protocol between the off-board charger and EV in conductive charging situations. IEC TS 61980-2 gives requirements around the communication between vehicle and wireless power transfer (WPT) systems connected to the supply network.
Another fundamental standard for manufacturers in this area is BS EN 62196-2, which provides requirements for plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets in terms of dimensional compatibility and interchangeability requirements for pin and contact-tube accessories.
Once a satisfactory connection can be achieved, the vehicle must communicate with the power grid. BS EN ISO 15118-3 provides requirements for a physical vehicle-to-grid communication interface, as well as data link requirements and basic signalling. Similarly, BS EN ISO 15118-8 offers requirements for wireless communication interfaces.
There are also standards around battery swapping scenarios – when a discharged battery is replaced with a full one to avoid charging delays. IEC TS 62840-1 provides manufacturers with overarching guidance on such systems, while BS EN IEC 62840-2 outlines specific safety requirements.
The use of standards ensure that components reach quality, safety and efficiency levels and inform electric vehicles design and aid legislative compliance.
We’ve written another article ‘Standards and opportunity: connected manufacturing, IoT and electric vehicles’ which you can read here.
