If you want to place several charging stations in one place, for example a company car park or garage, you need to beware of the load on the electric grid. A car is usually charged at a relatively high power for several hours. So if several cars are charged at the same time, overloading the grid is a real possibility.
This can also occur in your home. An obvious example: If you use the dishwasher, dryer, electric cooker, fryer and then charge your electric car at the same time, the fuse may blow because the electric grid is overloaded. To prevent this in charging appliances, we use load balancing.
Load balancing is actually a form of smart charging,distributing the available power equally among all active charging stations. It takes into account several factors, such as the available electricity capacity, the charging speed of connected vehicles and the energy consumption at the time. Smart algorithms determine which charging station candraw electricity at what time to ensure that all cars are sufficiently charged.This prevents overcharging and optimises energy consumption. This is especially useful when several cars are often charged at the same time or there is an irregular charging pattern.
The illustration below shows how the available power of 22 kW is efficiently distributed to the different electric vehicles that are charging. The system automatically evaluates in real-time how much power should be sent to which car.
Example of how load balancing distributes power across different electric cars
Whether you need load balancing for your charging station depends on your situation. However, it is strongly recommended. It is the best way to avoid power outages and prepare your charging station for the future.
With the introduction of the digital meter,it is important to prevent your car from using too much power at peak times, as this can significantly increase your energy bill.
Many homes are not equipped to power multiple heavy power consumers at the same time. Load balancing helps prevent power outages caused by overloading your fuse.
Static load balancing is 'stupid' because it works with fixed charging rates. Regardless of what happens to the grid, the power remains the same for all EVs. This also means that the charging station is not connected to the meter box, so it cannot read the power and automatically control it. This approach is possible with all charging stations and is usually already built into the device.
On the other hand is dynamic load balancing' because it can adjust power in real time to match the grid. Itis perfect for larger charging networks with high demand. Changing charging rates based on available capacity helps optimise the charging process and reduce energy costs.
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