EV Charger POS Payment Control for Secure Card-Based Charging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Many existing electric vehicle charging stations require proprietary payment methods, such as mobile apps, which are not user-friendly for all customers, especially those less tech-savvy or uncomfortable with digital payment systems.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a payment management system that allows traditional payment methods like credit or debit cards, and supports ISO 15118 for secure, automated authentication and payment directly between the EV and the charging station, using a point-of-sale terminal and fueling platform.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If proprietary payment methods like mobile apps are used, then payment security and transaction control are improved, but ease of operation deteriorates for non-tech-savvy customers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a point-of-sale terminal as an intermediary device that bridges the gap between the charging station and traditional payment systems. This terminal accepts credit/debit cards and other conventional payment methods, allowing customers who are not comfortable with mobile apps to complete transactions while maintaining secure payment processing through the intermediary layer.
Solution Approach 2:
The charging station system is enhanced to support multiple payment methods simultaneously - both proprietary mobile app payments and traditional card-based payments through the POS terminal. This multi-functionality ensures that the system can serve diverse customer preferences and technical comfort levels without compromising security or ease of use.
2Ease of operation
If traditional payment methods like credit cards are added, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
By using the point-of-sale terminal as an intermediary, the patent avoids the need to build complex native payment processing capabilities directly into the charging station controller. The terminal handles the complexity of card readers, payment gateways, and transaction security, while the charging station simply needs to communicate basic transaction data to the terminal.
Solution Approach 2:
The payment processing function is segmented into a separate component (the POS terminal) rather than being integrated into the core charging station system. This modular approach allows traditional payment methods to be added without increasing the complexity of the main charging control system, as the payment functionality resides in a distinct, self-contained unit.
Data Source
AI summary
Various exemplary devices, systems, and methods relating to a payment management system for an electric vehicle (EV) charging station are provided. In general, an EV charging station controller is configured to control an operation of the EV charging station and initiate an EV charging transaction upon receiving an indication of approval of payment for delivery of electrical charge from the EV charging station using a credit card or a debit card via a point-of-sale (POS) terminal. In another embodiment, the EV charging station controller is configured to initiate an EV charging transaction upon receiving an indication of approval of payment for delivery of electrical charge from the EV charging station using a loyalty card via the POS terminal. The loyalty card can be associated with customer payment information locally stored in a database of the EV charging station.