Vehicle Characterization for Unidirectional Charging Management

EV charging control can be achieved by directly accessing the EV controller via charging station (EVSE). In this project, a Phoenix Controller is used inside a Leviton EVSE with Modbus via Ethernet interface to control several EVs. The EVs tested are Scion IQ, Chevy Volt, and BMW Mini-E. They are tested and characterized in terms of supporting unidirectional grid services.     
  • Microgrid integration of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) requires analysis of individual charging control dynamics of different PEV models under various charging/discharging control commands.
  • At Energy Storage Laboratory (ESL) of NREL, different PEVs are tested to understand their dynamic response characteristics when charged/discharged by the grid. PEVs are connected to the grid using a Leviton EVSE that is modified and remote controlled using a Phoenix controller as shown in Figure on the left side. 
  • The EVSE is controlled using Modbus protocol utilizing the Ethernet connection of Phoenix controller inside the Leviton EVSE. The controller accepts integer values of reference current starting from 6 A to the rated current of the on-board charger.
  • The results of the tests and the developed models are shown above.
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Related Publications, 
  1. M. C. Kisacikoglu, T. Markel, A. Meintz, J. Zhang, and M. Jun.  “EV-Grid Integration (EVGI) Control and System Implementation — Research Overview” presented in IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conf, Long Beach, CA, Mar. 2016. [Link]
  2. A. Meintz, T. Markel, M. Jun, and J. Zhang "Integrating PEVs with Renewables and the Grid" in IEEE Transportation Electrification Conf., Dearborn, MI, Jun 2016. [Link]
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