Open communication between charging station and car
In the ideal charging infrastructure, every element talks the same language and everyone can participate. Cars communicate with charging stations, charging stations with energy providers, charging stations with charging plazas or with each other, perhaps the network can communicate with a car. In between, there should still be room for innovative apps, services over the charging cables or other applications that we do not yet know about. For example, any electric car should be able to charge at any charging station, and any provider of new EV charging services should be able to participate barrier-free. We call this open communication in the same language interoperability, and it is one of the most important factors on the road to sustainable electric mobility.
An open EV charging infrastructure with access for EV drivers and industry players will accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles, encourage innovation and reduce costs. To shape this open EV charging market, ElaadNL invests in projects on open standards, roaming solutions and leads and promotes open markets at national and international government levels.
ElaadNL actively contributes to the development of open standards. Open standards or open protocols ensure that EV charging systems speak the same language. By providing rules and guidelines for data communication, open standards unleash new market opportunities for thousands of companies around the world.
OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol) is the global open communication protocol between the charging station and the central system of the charging station operator. This protocol handles the charging transaction and can also exchange information between the vehicle and the electricity grid. OCPP is an initiative of ElaadNL in the Netherlands and has been expanded and improved over the past eight years by pioneers in the international EV charging industry. OCPP is currently hosted by the Open Charge Alliance, a Dutch foundation with over 100 members from 25 countries on four continents. OCPP has been downloaded more than 17,000 times by developers around the world and is considered the de facto global standard.
OSCP (Open Smart Charging Protocol) is an open communication protocol between the charge point management system and the energy management system of the site owner or the system of the DSO (Distribution System Operator). This protocol communicates a 24-hour forecast of the available capacity of the power grid. The Service Provider adjusts the electric vehicle charging profiles within the limits of available capacity. OSCP is hosted by the Open Charge Alliance.
OCPI (Open Charge Point Interface) is an open protocol between operators and service providers. This internationally supported independent interface supports the affordability and availability of charging infrastructure. ElaadNL is one of the initiators including EV Box, The New Motion, Greenflux and Last Mile solutions. The protocol provides accurate charging station information such as location, availability and pricing, manages bilateral roaming and provides real-time billing and mobile access to charging stations. OCPI is facilitated by the Dutch Charging Infrastructure Knowledge Platform (NKL).
Open ADR (Open Automated Demand Response) is an open and standardized way for electricity suppliers and system operators to communicate DR signals with each other and with their customers in a common language over an existing IP-based communications network, such as the Internet. As the most comprehensive standard for automated demand response, OpenADR has gained broad industry-wide support. Together with LF Energy, ElaadNL is developing OpenLEADR.
Standards such as ISO/IEC 15118 and IEC 61851-1 were developed to ensure basic-level interoperability of front-end communication and signaling processes for smart charging between electric vehicles and charging points. ISO/IEC 15118 provides communication between the electric vehicle and the charging point. IEC 61850 communicates between the charging point and the energy supplier. Also see the project PKI – Public Key Infrastructure in which ISO15118 and the implementation of an open network is researched and tested.
For electric vehicle adaptation in Europe, EV drivers need to be able to charge at any charging station in any country. For this purpose, there are several roaming options available in Europe. Although these options differ to some extent, they all have the same goal: to open up the EV charging infrastructure to all EV drivers. Allowing roaming will allow for innovation, accelerate EV adoption and improve the customer experience. Moreover, roaming is already mandatory in some European countries in anticipation of future European mandates.
ElaadNL actively contributes to roaming through its platform e-clearing.net, a platform aimed at exchanging roaming authorization, charging transaction and charge point information data.