You have decided to buy an electric vehicle, you have even decided on the model and brand you are going to buy. Now all that remains is to decide how you are going to charge the vehicle, and at this point you will once again find yourself faced with a wide range of charging solutions that you need to analyse carefully, because this analysis will determine how efficient, in terms of savings and sustainability, you are going to be in the coming years. If you are in this situation, keep reading this article about smart chargers and the charge modulation functionality.
Smart chargers
Although the number of public charging units is increasing day by day throughout the country, not only at petrol stations, but also at hotels, leisure establishments, shopping centres, etc., it is essential to have your own charging point in order to be able to charge your vehicle in optimum energy charging conditions, quickly, at an optimum cost, without interrupting your daily schedule and activities, and which offers the necessary safety for the people and installations involved.
Only a smart charger will be able to achieve these goals. It is called smart because it incorporates a series of functionalities into its design that will allow the maximum use of the energy available without interrupting domestic activities.
One of these functionalities is charge modulation, which some manufacturers incorporate into their chargers, but not all of them are equally efficient, so it is advisable to thoroughly study the true scope of each manufacturer’s charge modulation.
You have decided to buy an electric vehicle, you have even decided on the model and brand you are going to buy. Now all that remains is to decide how you are going to charge the vehicle, and at this point you will once again find yourself faced with a wide range of charging solutions that you need to analyse carefully, because this analysis will determine how efficient, in terms of savings and sustainability, you are going to be in the coming years. If you are in this situation, keep reading this article about smart chargers and the charge modulation functionality.
Smart chargers
Although the number of public charging units is increasing day by day throughout the country, not only at petrol stations, but also at hotels, leisure establishments, shopping centres, etc., it is essential to have your own charging point in order to be able to charge your vehicle in optimum energy charging conditions, quickly, at an optimum cost, without interrupting your daily schedule and activities, and which offers the necessary safety for the people and installations involved.
Only a smart charger will be able to achieve these goals. It is called smart because it incorporates a series of functionalities into its design that will allow the maximum use of the energy available without interrupting domestic activities.
One of these functionalities is charge modulation, which some manufacturers incorporate into their chargers, but not all of them are equally efficient, so it is advisable to thoroughly study the true scope of each manufacturer’s charge modulation.
Smart charge modulation
Charge modulation is that functionality that allows the available energy to be balanced between the different energy needs that will arise throughout the day, in this case, in a domestic installation.
Your home is equipped with an electrical installation that provides service to different household appliances, lighting points, domestic hot water installations, heating or air conditioning and is linked to an energy source, solar photovoltaic or grid, and to its contracted power and tariff.
The incorporation of a domestic electric vehicle charging system means one more point of consumption and, therefore, one more point of balance to be reached. The goal for the owner, if they want to be truly energy efficient, will be to use the available power smartly without increasing their electricity bill and without interrupting their normal household activities.
A smart and complete charge modulation functionality is one that, therefore, allows you to control the following factors:
- Constantly analyse the electricity consumption of all services or appliances connected to the installation.
- Prioritise the operation of those that allow you to perform domestic activities: lighting, use of electrical appliances, heating, air conditioning, etc.
- Identify the most cost-effective times within your electricity tariff and take advantage of them.
- Identify the most cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy source, in the event of having a photovoltaic solar installation and connection to the electricity grid, and make the most of the advantages of clean energy.
- Protect the installation from possible tripping of the protections due to consumption overload and, therefore, not interrupt household activities.
- Provide the necessary safety to the installation, in order to protect people and connected devices.
Smart charge modulation of the Orbis Viaris Range
Orbis’ R&D+i department, with a clear vocation for the design and development of solutions for a smart use of energy, has created a complete charging power modulation system for EVs, unique in the market, with the aim of offering the consumer a solution that meets all the present and future needs of their home or business.
This exclusive technology, integrated into the Orbis Viaris range of chargers, ensures the maximum use of the electricity available, the maintenance of household activities and one or more vehicles charged and ready to go, all without having to increase the contracted power.
How does it do it?
The connection of the Viaris charger to the domestic installation allows you to always identify the electrical consumption of your home and compare it with the contracted power, thus identifying the power available for use by the EV charger.
It prioritises consumption inside the home over the connected vehicle, to ensure the continuity of the home’s activity.
It starts charging the vehicle with the surplus power available.
Moreover, with the new built-in power selection mode, in a three-phase installation, even if the available power is low (less than the necessary 4,140 W), the charger is able to autonomously change the charging mode from three-phase to single-phase to start charging the vehicle with that small amount of available power. Once it detects that the available power is high again, it switches to three-phase mode and charges the vehicle quicker.
If two vehicles are connected, it identifies the power output and charging capacity of each car and performs a charging process adapted to the characteristics of each of them.
If you have a solar photovoltaic installation, from which you want to obtain the maximum performance, the Viaris smart charge modulator will identify the peaks of greatest availability of sunlight to perform, for example, the charging in three-phase mode at a higher speed.
It also identifies, under programming, the hours with the lowest electricity rates, for example, at night and in the early hours of the morning, in order to charge the vehicle at a higher speed and lower cost while respecting the home’s internal consumption.
Benefits of the Orbis Viaris smart charge modulation system
The intelligence of the Orbis Viaris charge modulation solution brings benefits that we can classify in terms of savings, safety and convenience:
Savings
The constant analysis of the power consumed and available in the home, and only using what is available, is what allows you to avoid having to contract more power in your electrical installation when incorporating an EV charger. Therefore, you will save on the fixed fee for the contracted power and on the fee charged by the electricity company for switching to a higher power.
Identifying times with lower tariffs will allow you to charge your EV with cheaper energy.
Detecting times when there is more sunlight available, in the case of having a photovoltaic solar installation, will provide a charge with self-generated energy.
The smart charge modulation system is incorporated as standard into Orbis Viaris chargers, so there is no need to purchase any additional device.
Safety
The monitoring of domestic electricity consumption by the smart power modulator avoids extraordinary consumption that the circuit cannot handle safely, thus avoiding overloading and ensuring the safety of the installation and people.
Convenience
There is no need to install any additional devices.
Al priorizar el consumo en el interior de la vivienda, e identificar la potencia contratada, no tendrás que preocuparte por la actuación de las protecciones de sobrecarga. Tus actividades diarias no se verán interrumpidas.
The Orbis Viaris chargers use energy smartly
The smart charge modulation system is integrated into all chargers in the Orbis Viaris range, whether for private or public use, and whether for domestic or professional environments. This integration ensures the best use of the available energy and guarantees financial, safety and convenience benefits, as well as contributing to building a better planet.
You can view the Orbis Viaris range of smart chargers here.