At Flipturn, we give fleets a single place where they can see and operate all of their EV fleet assets, including vehicles and chargers. We've seen first-hand that having detailed real-time data about charging can be a game changer for EV fleets:
- Knowing when charging will be done so a vehicle can go on its next route and another vehicle can charge in its place
- Knowing which chargers are in use right now, and by which vehicles
- Accounting for historical energy usage of each vehicle and charger, for cost analysis, LCFS credits, and more
DC fast chargers report a lot more real-time data than most Level 2 chargers
Depending on which chargers you have and which charging management system you use, you may be able to get more or less detail about your real-time operations.
Level 2 chargers are able to report real-time information about the charging session and charger:
- Current status of the charger – charging, available, etc
- Real-time energy usage (kWh) during a charging session, as well as energy used in total
- Real-time power usage (kW) during a charging session
DC fast chargers, in addition to the information above, are also able to collect detailed information about the vehicle:
- The ID of the vehicle plugged in, allowing you to see who is charging where
- The real-time state of charge of the vehicle, in percent, which is helpful to get a sense of when the vehicle will be ready to go
Here's how all of those details will show up in the Flipturn dashboard:
As you can see, today only DC fast chargers are generally able to report some of the most useful information that helps you operate your fleet efficiently. It's not always clear what kind of data reporting your charger will be capable of when you buy it, so it's worth checking with your vendor to make sure you can get all of the data you need!
On the horizon: ISO 15118 vehicle to charger communication
ISO 15118 is a new standard for vehicle to charger communication that can be integrated into Level 2 chargers and DC fast chargers.
It has many components including functionality for payments and vehicle-to-grid (V2G), but one of the most exciting aspects for fleets is that it will enable chargers to report even more in-depth details about the charging session:
- Level 2 chargers will be able to report the identity of the vehicle and the real-time state of charge percentage
- In addition to state of charge, vehicles will also be able to report the total amount of energy they will need to get to a full charge, helping with energy management and improving the ability to estimate charging completion time
ISO 15118 is supported by several vehicle models out today, including the Mustang Mach-E, and upcoming models like the Kia EV9, Hyundai IONIQ 6, and Volkswagen ID Buzz have announced support. On the charger side, it's seen a lot of adoption in Europe already, but there aren't yet many charger models that support it in the US. Flipturn is working with some early partners to be able to recommend ISO 15118-capable Level 2 chargers to US fleets.
Overview of charging options
Selecting the right charger and fleet operations platform for your fleet
We've found that many fleets, especially those with 5+ vehicles, benefit from having detailed real-time insights into their vehicles and charging operations. Today, the best way to get that is to use DC fast chargers combined with a platform like Flipturn.
However, not all fleets need the power provided by a DC fast charger, and they are more costly. At Flipturn, we are optimistic that the rise of ISO 15118-enabled Level 2 chargers will allow all fleets to take advantage of the detailed data reporting they need to run their operations efficiently.
We're here to help
Are you looking to have real-time insights and control over your fleet vehicles and chargers? We'd be happy to give you an overview of the best options available for your fleet. Contact us here.
