What is a smart electric vehicle charging station?

While the traditional charging station is well known to electric vehicle drivers, the smart charging station is a new advantageous charging method that is attracting more and more individuals and businesses alike.

Connected to the network, this terminal transmits and analyzes various information related to the electrical network of the house or building and to the vehicle in order to optimize the charging of the latter, in order to avoid any overrun of the energy capacity . To do this, there are three types of smart terminals, each with significant advantages. Let's find them.

What is a smart charging station for electric vehicles?

Smart charging stations are a new way to charge your electric vehicle. Indeed, these recent devices are excellent ways to optimize the charging of your car thanks to their connection to the network which allows easier and more appropriate energy management. The smart charging station has the great advantage of allowing its user to manage the energy he wishes to allocate to charging his vehicle, taking into account the electricity needs of other devices in the house or building. running on the same network. This simplified management promotes energy savings and optimizes the charging of the electric car.

The smart charging station is a specific terminal equipped with a suitable module that allows the vehicle, once plugged in, to be connected to the network. The terminal transmits information through the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection to a mobile application or a dedicated management platform. This information may relate to the charging time, power, speed, but also the total capacity of the home network and the needs of other devices in operation. The network manager analyzes them and adapts the charging of the electric vehicle according to the results obtained in order to allow the owner to optimize the charging time while saving energy. It should also be noted that the motorist retains control of his energy in this way.

The different types of smart charging stations

There are three types of smart charging station.

Power Sharing

Power Sharing – or load balancing – is most common among network operators and companies that are equipped with several charging stations for electric cars. This device makes it possible to distribute the local energy capacity between the various terminals in a balanced way while preserving the capacity limits of the network. This means that the energy is distributed evenly between the different charging stations used. As a result, if only one car is plugged in, it will receive all available power. If another is added to the network, the available energy will be divided equally between the two vehicles, and so on.

An advantageous mode of operation that allows users to avoid having to invest in the installation of more expensive infrastructure in the event of the addition of a charging station for an additional vehicle. It is no longer necessary to make upgrades, Power Sharing takes care of it all by itself thanks to its homogeneous distribution of the available energy, which limits the costs.

Power Boost

This other form of intelligent charging – also called peak shaving – is recommended for home installations limited to one or two charging stations. The function of this device is to avoid any overrun of the electrical capacity of the network in order to better manage energy consumption.

This results in a balancing of the energy devoted to the electric vehicle to be charged according to the energy available on the home network, that is to say according to the other electrical devices used at the same time. As a result, the Power Boost charging station recharges the car with the maximum energy available without exceeding the capacity of the network, then it reduces the energy allocated to the vehicle when other devices are working and consuming, or even temporarily interrupts the recharge if the energy runs out, all in order to avoid any overrun of the energy limit, any overconsumption and any surplus on the bill.

Dynamic Power Sharing

This device combines the other two smart charging modes, Power Boost and Power Sharing. It allows the driver to better assess the electricity needs of his building according to the available energy capacity. This means that when the energy needs for the building are lower than the energy capacity, all the remaining and available energy is allocated to the various charging stations for electric vehicles, in a uniform and balanced manner.

Conversely, when the energy needs of the building are equivalent to or greater than the energy capacity of this building, the charging stations for electric vehicles are not powered. They will have to wait for a decrease in the energy needs of the building to be supplied with energy and to be able to recharge the vehicles.

This charging method avoids exceeding the energy capacity and therefore limits any risk of surplus on the bill, by taking advantage of the building's energy needs and occasional reductions in its consumption.

How much does a smart charging station cost?

It is difficult to accurately quantify the cost of a smart charging station. Nevertheless, these new charging methods for electric vehicles are generally sold between 950 euros and 1,500 euros each.

To this price, you will have to add the price of the installation, which can only be carried out by a certified professional. Each of these professionals can set the rates of their choice and these vary greatly depending on the distance between the electricity meter and the location of the charging station, the number of charging stations to be installed, the work to be carried out, or even any constraints. on the site.

As a result, it is always recommended to request several quotes from different professionals and compare them while playing the competition to be sure to opt for the offer with the best value for money.

In any case, there are financial aids to reduce the expenses related to the installation of a smart charging station for electric vehicles. Do not hesitate to ask.