▲ Photos from the electric vehicle testing site (Photo provided by KERI)


International Electric Vehicle Testing Event Held, With Participation from Seven Electric Vehicle Companies and Nine Charger Manufacturers
Countries and companies that secure international standards for electric vehicles and chargers will take the lead in the electric vehicle market.

The Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) and Charin are examining technical issues that arise during rapid charging of electric vehicles with the common goal of contributing to the inspection and resolution of charging errors.

KERI will conduct cross-validation testing with electric vehicle companies and charger manufacturers at the 'Test+Festival in Asia' held from October 25th to 27th.

Hosted by Charin and organized by KERI, the testing event will bring together leading domestic and international electric vehicle manufacturers and charger manufacturers to examine technical issues that arise during rapid charging of electric vehicles and establish a foundation for leading international standards by ensuring compatibility.

KERI is the world's first 'electric vehicle global interoperability conformity assessment agency' designated by the international electric vehicle charging technology association 'CharIN'.

This testing event will be held at KERI Ansan Branch, and will be attended by Acting Director Kim Nam-gyun, Ansan Vice Mayor Kim Dae-soon, and Secretary General Andre Kaufung. Lee Sang-hoon, head of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and others attended the opening ceremony.

A total of seven electric vehicle manufacturers, including Hyundai Motor Company, Renault Samsung Motors, BMW, and Volkswagen, participated in the event, and nine charger manufacturers, including ABB and Daeyoung Chaebi, will conduct cross-validation tests on a total of 11 electric vehicles produced by these companies.

The main purpose of the electric vehicle test is to contribute to the commercialization of eco-friendly electric vehicles by △preliminarily checking for various errors that occur during rapid charging and △securing unified charging compatibility (interoperability) between complete vehicle and charger manufacturers.

Between the electric vehicle and the charger, there is a 'coupler (connector + inlet)', which is a kind of connecting device and charging jack, and a 'sequence', which is an invisible communication protocol.

In the case of couplers, Korea is securing compatibility after the National Institute of Standards and Technology recommended Combo 1.

On the other hand, despite the establishment of domestic and international standards for charging sequences, many domestic and international major automakers and various charger companies are participating in the infrastructure construction, and differences in standard interpretation by manufacturer are causing frequent customer inconvenience due to compatibility errors occurring in the field during rapid charging.

Additionally, if new technologies such as PnC (payment for charging through certificates in electric vehicles) and V2G (bidirectional charging technology) are applied in the future, the frequency of errors may increase further due to increased technological complexity.

To address this, KERI held its own internal testing in 2018 and 2019, and overseas, Charin has held testing once a year in each continent of Europe and North America since 2019.

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▲ Acting KERI President Kim Nam-gyun delivers a welcoming address at the opening ceremony of the Charin Electric Vehicle Test Festival. (Photo provided by KERI)

Kim Nam-gyun, acting president of KERI, said, “We have moved beyond the early days of the electric vehicle market, which focused only on simple charging, and now it is time to start applying new technologies in electric vehicle charging systems, such as PnC and V2G.” He added, “Going forward, the issue of interoperability between electric vehicles and chargers will become a global concern, and countries or companies that have secured international standards will take the lead in the electric vehicle market.”

Meanwhile, to solve the electric vehicle charging problem, KERI held its own internal tests in 2018 and 2019 in Korea, and overseas, Charin has held tests once a year in Europe and North America since 2019.