A comparison of Autocharge and ISO 15118's Plug & Charge
author
Marc Mültin
updated
July 6, 2021
published
June 11, 2019
Event date
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The terms Autocharge and Plug & Charge are currently circulating in the electric vehicle (EV) industry. At first glance, both refer to the same user experience: offering a seamless and customer-friendly charging process that starts as soon as the EV driver plugs the charging cable into the EV — with no additional user steps required.
To simplify the charging experience, the e-mobility industry is working to eliminate the hassle of using an external device to authorise the EV driver at a charging station. The act of paying with a credit card, using an app to scan a QR code, or finding that easy-to-lose RFID card can be a thing of the past.
In fact, the technology to make this vision into a reality is available now. Secure and scalable IT systems can seamlessly authenticate the user, automatically authorise him or her for the charging process, and settle the billing process after charging. The two main applications currently used for the Combined Charging System (CCS) are Autocharge and ISO 15118’s Plug & Charge. But which hassle-free charging application is best suited for any given situation? Without further background knowledge, one might even confuse Autocharge with Plug & Charge (which is a term coined by the ISO 15118 standard). However, the two approaches differ drastically in their underlying security and complexity. The implementer not only needs to consider the necessary security level for a particular use case, but also must consider the related implementation and operational costs, along with the long-term viability, for the selected approach. This article will shed light on the differences between Autocharge and ISO 15118’s Plug & Charge. The objective is to enable readers to decide which solution is favourable for each particular use case.
V2G Clarity and Hubject have joined forces to examine and explore the differences between Autocharge and ISO 15118’s Plug & Charge. The objective of this report is to enable readers to decide which solution is favourable for each particular use case. Click here or on the image below to download the 14-page whitepaper.
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With OCPP 2.0.1 and the new device model concept, a station can automatically describe its full layout and capabilities to the cloud-based CSMS. This allows for plug-and-play installation of a charging station. It also lets the CSMS read and control any component remotely.
Sara stands for Station Analytics and Remote Administration
The Open Charge Alliance is the official body that specifies OCPP 2.0.1 and defines a set of certification profiles. Each profile tests a certain set of functionalities. Depending on the functionality of your charger or CSMS, you might want to certify for either a subset or all of these profiles.
Continuous Integration / Continuous Deployment (CI/CD)
Scotti stands for Simple Compliance Testing Tool for Interoperability.
Efficient XML Interchange (EXI) is a very compact representation of XML. All ISO 15118 messages are defined in XML. EXI improves serialisation and parsing speed on embedded devices (like an EV and a charging station controller) and allows more efficient use of memory and battery life, compared to standard (textual) XML.
The Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) is a lightweight, publish-subscribe network protocol that transports messages between devices.
A CSMS is a cloud-based management system operated by the company that is managing the charging stations. A charging station connects to a CSMS using OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol).
Automated Connection Device (ACD), a conductive charging concept that doesn't require a person to plug in the charging cable. A first implementation is ACD-P, where 'P' stands for 'pantograph' charging of buses.
Power line communication, a communication technology that enables sending data over existing power cables.
Signal Level Attenuation Characterisation (SLAC) is based on power line communication (specifically HomePlug Green PHY) and is a protocol to establish the data link between the EV and the charging station via the charging cable.
Charge Point Operator, the entity monitoring and managing an EV charger network.