Control Pilot Monitoring for Low-Power Dual EV Charging Inlets
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Solution Overview
Problem
The continuous power consumption by the charge controller in electric vehicles to monitor control pilot lines for charging operations leads to undesirable power loss, as it must remain active even during infrequent charging events.
Innovation Solution
A control pilot monitoring module that detects active charging inlets and activates the charge controller only when necessary, using a measure circuit, evaluate circuit, and switch circuit to manage power-line communication signals, allowing the charge controller to be kept in a power-down or sleep mode most of the time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the charge controller is continuously powered on to monitor control pilot lines, then the charging operation can be detected reliably, but the power consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring function is segmented into two parts: a low-power monitoring module that continuously monitors control pilot lines, and a high-power charge controller that is activated only when charging is detected. This segmentation allows the system to maintain reliable monitoring while minimizing power consumption by keeping the charge controller in sleep mode during non-charging periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring module performs preliminary detection of charging operations by continuously watching control pilot lines for specific signal patterns. When a charging event is preliminarily detected, the system then activates the charge controller to handle the actual charging process, avoiding the need for continuous charge controller operation.
2Speed
If the charge controller is kept awake to detect charging events, then the response time to charging events is reduced, but the battery life decreases due to continuous power consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring module operates in a periodic fashion, continuously checking control pilot lines for charging signals while the charge controller remains in sleep mode. This periodic monitoring approach enables fast detection of charging events without requiring the charge controller to remain continuously active, thus preserving battery life while maintaining responsive charging detection.
3Device complexity
If a single charge controller monitors multiple charging inlets, then the system complexity is reduced, but the power consumption remains high due to continuous monitoring requirement
Solution Approach 1:
The system is segmented into a dedicated monitoring module with multiple input channels for multiple charging inlets, and a single charge controller that is activated only when needed. This segmentation allows the monitoring of multiple inlets without requiring the charge controller to continuously process signals from all inlets, reducing power consumption while maintaining system simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The monitoring module is designed with multi-functionality to handle multiple charging inlets simultaneously using a single unified monitoring architecture. This universal monitoring approach consolidates the monitoring function into one module that can detect charging events across multiple inlets, avoiding the need for separate charge controllers for each inlet while minimizing power consumption through selective activation.
Data Source
AI summary
A control pilot monitoring module in an on-board charger of an electrical vehicle includes a measure circuit and an evaluate circuit to perform the control pilot line monitoring to determine the operational state of one or more charging inlets. In response to detecting an active charging inlet having a connection to an EVSE, the control pilot monitoring module issues a control signal to activate or wake up a charge controller of the on-board charger to initiate the charging operation. In some embodiment, in the case of a dual charging inlet electrical vehicle, the control pilot line monitoring module further includes a switch circuit to switchably connect signals associated with the active charging inlet to the charge controller. In this manner, a single charge controller can be used to support dual charging inlet electric vehicle.