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Q01. How many types of Electric Vehicle (EV) chargers in the market?Broadly speaking, there are AC Chargers (Slow or Medium charger) and DC Charger (Fast Charger). We can also define chargers by the 4 modes of charging in accordance with EMSD Code of Practice (COP) 2020, P. 239, 26S (2).
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Q02. What is AC Charger? What is DC Charger? What are the differences?AC Charger corresponds to mode 1 to 3 of the EMSD COP classification. It is the onboard charger inside the EV, but not the AC charger outside, that converts AC to DC and then feeds the DC into the Car’s Battery. DC Charger corresponds to mode 4 of the EMSD COP classification. It is also called Off board Charger as DC Charger has a converter inside which change grid AC to DC and then feed the power directly to the Car’s Battery.
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Q03. What is the typical power output of AC and DC Charger?Typical power outputs are AC Charging Mode 1: 13A Mode 2: 13A or 32A Max Mode 3: 7kw (32A 220V, single phase) or 21kw (32A 380V, three phases) DC Charging Mode 4: 21kw, 30kw and 50kw Mode 4: 100kw, 150kw, 180kw, 240kw, 300kw or 480kw, are also on the rise when more advanced and heavy-duty EVs are available. Mode 3 AC Charger (7kw, 21kw) and Mode 4 DC Charger (30kw, 50kw, 100kw, 150kw) are the most popular.
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Q04. What is the maximum power output of EV Charger? How to determine?Maximum power output of EV Charger is 480kw in the market. EV is the master of the charging process.EV will communicate with the EV Charger and exchange critical charging data/information to determine the charging current from EV charger to EV.
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Q05. How can I distinguish slow, medium and fast chargers (charging)?There is no fixed definition, esp. when more high power charger (HPC) is used. An acceptable simple rule of thumb is l Slow Charging - Mode 1/2 13A, i.e. 2.8kw Medium Charging - Mode 3, i.e. 7kw, 21kw Fast Charging – Mode 4, i.e. 50kw or above
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Q06. How fast can I charge? How far can an electric car go on a single charge?Charging Rate EV battery size is the most critical as the smaller the EV battery size - the faster the charging process will be completed. Assume EV battery size is 50kwh, a rough estimation is as follows: - 13A Socket (Mode 2) – ~18 hours or over - 7kw AC Charger – 7-8 hours - 21kw AC Charger – 2.5 – 8 hours (*) - 21kw DC Charger (20-80%) – 1.5-2.5 hours - 30kw DC Charger (20-80%) - ~1 hour - 50kw DC Charger (20-80%) – 0.5-1 hour - 100kw DC Charger (20-80%) – 20-30 minutes (*) wide range as it depends a lot on the EV. Most EVs are receptive to single phase charging only, i.e. 7kw (32A 220V, single phase) even the charger output is 21kw (32A 380V, 3 phases). Running Mile per Charge EV dependent because different battery materials and technologies are used. EV car’s efficiency is based on the number of miles that the car goes on a single kilowatt-hour (kWh) A typical efficient EV can go about 4 miles per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Next generation of battery technologies can use higher voltage, e.g. over 800V, and higher efficiency is expected. Different EVs have different size of battery pack size in kilowatt-hours (kWh), the amount of energy stored will therefore be different accordingly and will the number of miles per charge (subject to car’s efficiency and the battery size). Examples (for reference only) Audi Q4-etron (2021): Range (WLTP) – 208 miles BMW i4 eDrive40 (2021): Range (WLTP) – 365 miles Hyundai IONIQ5 (2021): Range (WLTP) – 238 miles Jaguar i-PACE (2018): Range (WLTP) – 292 miles Tesla Model Y (2022): Range (WLTP) – 315 miles (*) Pls refer to the EV manufacturers/distributors/resellers for more accurate and up-to-date figures. (**) WLTP stands “Worldwide harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure” which is a new standard to measure fuel consumption, CO2 emissions, and range.
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Q07. How can I choose the right EV Charger?Budget l Limited budget – AC Charger will mainly be chosen l Budget allows– AC Charger with few DC Chargers or just DC Charger The price of AC charger is cheaper and more affordable. Installation purposes lHome Charging AC Charger will always be the choice as more time (8-10 hours) are allowed for charging at night after work. lDestination Charging Both AC and DC chargers will be used but DC charger will always be chosen as it could serve the purpose of powering up the EV in short time. lInstallation location - Indoor, Outdoor or Semi-Outdoor environment - Need to know the required IP (Ingress Protection) rating of EV charger. - Rain canopy or enclosure will sometimes be used but it will increase the material and installation cost, and will increase the inconvenient to use. System requirements Standalone or System Connection Ready Requirement of System or Not, for example - EV Charger Management and Control System - Load Management System - Payment Systems - Car Parking System and etc. The user shall also ask the EV charger supplier which type of protocol the EV chargers are using for the charger to system communication. Some company will use proprietary protocol but this kind of closed system specifically for the company is not recommended.Instead, some open and international standard like Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP) is more widespread in use and generally accepted by the market
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Q08. What are the most common charging standards in HK?BS1363, so-called 13A plug/socket (Mode 1/2 charging) IEC60309, so-called industrial plug/socket (Mode 1/2 charging, plug/socket) SAE J1772, so-called Type 1 (Mode 3 charging, connector/inlet) IEC 62196 Type 2, also called Type 2 (Mode 3 charging, plug/socket, connector/inlet) GB 20234.2 AC, also simply called GB (AC) (Mode 3 charging, connector/inlet) (*) IEC DC Combo (Combo 2), also called CCS2 (Mode 4 charging, connector/inlet) CHAdeMO, sometimes called Japanese Standard (Mode 4 charging, connector/inlet) GB 20234.3 DC, also simply called GB (DC) (Mode 4 charging, connector/inlet) (*) GB (AC) is not common in HK so when we say GB, it usually refers to GB (DC).
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Q09. What is OCA? What is OCPP?OCA stands for Open Charge Alliance (https://www.openchargealliance.org/about-us/). It is an organization with over 220 members spanning across all sectors of EV industry, including charging equipment manufacturers, software and system providers, charging network operators and research organizations. (https://www.openchargealliance.org/participants/). They are formed with the mission to foster the global development, adoption and compliance of communication protocols in the EV charging infrastructure and related standards through collaboration, education, testing and certification. OCPP stands for Open Charge Point Protocol OCPP (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Charge_Point_Protocol). It was developed in 2009 and intended to serve as an open standard to facilitate communications between EV charging stations and central management system giving charging station customers the choice and flexibility to use any network on any charge station thereby allowing them to compete on price, service, product features, and innovation.The latest version is OCPP 2.0 but the most popular version is OCPP 1.60.
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Q10. What are the functions of EV Charger Management and Control System?EV Charger Management and Control System is an application which serves the following functionalities Monitoring and control EV Charger Equipment, including EV Charger, Payment Kiosk, Car Parking Sensor, Car Parking Lock, Car Lock, locally or remotely through OCPP. Smart and intelligently tracking the EV Charger availability and status, power consumption, user usages, dynamic load sharing, devices/equipment operation, statistical logging data for further analysis and enhancement User/member/operator control and authentication by granting different rights of access, use, manage and delete to users, and operators, and maintain a proper white, sometimes black, list of users such that only authorized persons could be allowed to use the chargers and platform. Payment transaction and tariff setting tools to allow EV charger site operators to execute their formulate tariff policy based on the EV charger power output rate, pricing structure (per power (kwh), per time (minutes or hours), time schedule, weekend or weekday. Allow integration and interoperability with other systems and apps application, which is sometimes required by the users.The ideal platform should be future proof and runs on open protocols such as OCPP to enable the flexibility of data and transaction interchanged with other systems.
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Q11. What is Snapcharge 2.0?Snapcharge 2.0 is EV Charger Management and Control Platform developed by evMega. Useful functionalities include Dashboard Car parking map with charger status display Load management (optional) Charger/power statistics records (downloadable by excel or csv) User/member/operator/charger/device management Tariff setting and control Charger/transaction/fault logging files management and etc. The platform is currently in use by CLP Power Station and Hong Kong International Airport which demonstrates its high reliability and stability that could meet the market needs and expectations.
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Q12. What can I do if power source is not enough for the installation?Three approaches are possible Zoning based on time schedule to use Reduced current – available by some EV Charger vendors, e.g. evMega Load management system. All are possible using evMega chargers and Load Management System (LMS). Reduced current and load management system requires diversity for the implementation. It is allowed under the new version of EMSD COP 2020 Section 26S 1(c) which states “Diversity may be allowed for a dedicated distribution circuit applying multiple electric vehicle charging points if load control is possible”.
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Q13. What is the function of Load Management System (LMS)? How it works?Load Management System (LMS) is an EV Charger System Application which could dynamically assign the scarce resource of power current to EV charge points based on various algorithms, including First priority (VIP) Dynamic even distribution Queueing Mixed mode, fail safe when chargers or charger cluster(s) disconnected from network. Minimum charging current will be set under fail safe mode. In general, the implementation (the approach) can be different by the system developer but the objectives to increase the number of charger points availability with enhanced dynamic power distributions based on pre-defined settings of actual needs are basically the same. Sophisticated Load Management System (LMS) could sometimes work in 3 different levels, say level 1 (within cluster), level 2 (among clusters) and level 2 (sharing with other loads).
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Q14. How many types of charging cable in the market? How to choose?Mode 2 EV Charging Cable – 13A Mode 2 EV Charging Cable - 32A industrial Socket Mode 3 EV Charging Cable – Type 2 (Charger Side) – Type 1 (EV Side) Mode 3 EV Charging Cable – Type 2 (Charger Side) – Type 2 (EV Side) Mode 3 EV Charging Cable – Type 2 (Charger Side) – GB (EV Side) Mode 4 EV Charging Cable – CHAdeMO (Connector or Gun) Mode 4 EV Charging Cable – CCS2 (IEC), Air-Cool (Connector or Gun) Mode 4 EV Charging Cable – CCS2 (IEC), Liquid-Cool (Connector or Gun) Mode 4 EV Charging Cable – GB/T (Connector or Gun)
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Q15. What is diversity factor? Is it allowed by statutory regulations?Diversity factor is the ratio of the sum of the individual maximum demands of the various subdivisions of a system (or part of a system) to the maximum demand of the whole system (or part of the system) under consideration” It is now allowed for EV Charger by statutory regulation. EMSD COP 2020 Section 26S 1(c) states “Diversity may be allowed for a dedicated distribution circuit applying multiple electric vehicle charging points if load control is possible”. EPD “Design Guidelines for Electric Vehicle Charging-enabling Infrastructure under the EV-charging at Home Subsidy Scheme” point 4.4” also states: “… the diversity factor of the EVCEI (*) should be 0.5 or higher, otherwise prior approval should be sought from the EPD before finalizing the works specifications.” *EVCEI stand for electric vehicle charging- enabling infrastructure. In other words, implementation of load management system for EV charger is also possible when the regulation of diversity on EV charger is loosen.
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Q16. Is EV Charger dangerous when it is used outdoor?It is basically safe to use EV charger even in the outdoor environment. EMSD COP 2020 stipulates the requirements for the compliance of the following for the installation: Compliance of IEC61851 (26S 3(A)) and IEC62196 (26S 3(B)(i)) Compliance of IEC 60529 (IP rating for indoor and outdoor use) (26S 3(A)) (*) Fault Protection (26S 4(d)) which includes the use of appropriate RCD type.
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Q17. What is Ingress Protection (IP) rating?The IP rating or IP code classifies the degree of protection provided by an enclosure, for electrical equipment with a rated voltage not exceeding 72.5 kV. First Digit: Solid particle protection Second digit: Liquid ingress protection For More detail ref to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code
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Q18. I want to install EV charger but there is no wall near my car parking bay. Can you help?There are different mounting methods wall mount floorstand ceiling mount and etc. If the car parking bay is a floating island and there is no wall nearby, we could provide the floorstand/pole for the installation. Ceiling mount type charger can also be an option as it could save the space or use in position where installation of floorstand/pole is also not possible.
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Q19. How to implement a payment system for EV Charger? Can I charge my client?EV Charger Payment can be done through Payment Kiosk EV Charger Mobile Apps The payment system can be integrated with payment gateways such as Octopus, Wechat Pay, Alipay, Visa/Mastercard and etc. evMega Octopus Payment Kiosk has been type-tested by Octopus with certificate. EV Charger Operator might sometimes wish to recover the cost of the charging services and make a profit by providing the service. They could approach CLP (Power) and HK Electric directly to obtain the application form.
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Q20. Which are the standard procedures of the EV charger installation?Preparation Project Team formation Study and analyze requirement Prepare detailed implementation approach and schedule. System Development Hardware and Software Configuration Set Up UAT Environment and production Environment. Commencement of works and installation on site Material Delivery and Work. Installation of Busbar Chamber, MCB, Trunking , Conduit, Network Box, Power & Data Cable and finally the EV Charger. Completion and acceptance of the EV Charging System Make Good for workmanship details & Site Clearance Finally, Testing and Commission Completion of Defects Liability and Maintenance Normally, 12 months from the date of acceptance (Free).
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Q21. Do you have EV Charger Apps?evMega also developed its own EV charger Apps. It supports both IOS & Android and provides the following functions Find a station to check site information (Current status of charging station) Scan QR code (Confirm charge time/ payment etc.) Payment (Credit Card, Wechat, Alipay) Charging (report connected time and charging status while charging has been initiated) Charging Record (Check the record via App)
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Q22. Can I remotely check if the charger and/or charging bay is available?Yes, you can find the information from our App Location of EV Stations Number and EV charger type in the Station Whether the EV stations/EV Chargers are available
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Q23. Can I make reservation and/or booking by Apps?Yes, evMega Apps supports the optional features of reservation and booking if need.
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Q24. Can you help if I wanna impose extra fee or penalty to those drivers who overstay in the EV Charging Bay? Can you do it automatically by system?EV Charging Service Tariff setting is allowed by Snapcharge 2.0 system. Different charging rate based on time use and/or different time schedule could be set. For more sophisticated application, the system can be integrated with car parking sensor system car lock system car parking lock system car parking control system to implement a more complicated penalty system. Please come to talk to our system engineer for the details.
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Q25. Can you lock the car or lock the car parking bay to ensure the driver pays the penalty before he or she leaves?Yes, it is possible but the use is not recommended because the lock to prevent EV leaving will possibly cause damage to the car body and cause the potential liability issue.
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Q26. What are the new regulations of EMSD COP 2020 on EV Charger?Please refer to 26S Charging Facilities for Electric vehicle (page 239-241) https://www.emsd.gov.hk/filemanager/en/content_443/COP_E_2020.pdf
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Q27. What are the new regulations of Fire Services Department on EV Charger?According to the FSD Circular Letter No. 4/2020 Additional Fire Safety Requirements for Car Parking Facilities installed with Electric Vehicle Charging Facilities, Fireman’s emergency switch should be added. This additional requirement will take effect from 1 September 2020 for all initial building plan submissions. Building plans submitted before 1 September 2020 and all existing buildings planned with the EV charging facilities are advised to enhance the fire safety provisions as stated in the foregoing paragraph for the sake of fire safety. For those recent submissions, you are encouraged to voluntarily incorporate the additional requirements for EV charging facilities in your amendment submissions. If need, please consult our sales professional. Currently, we provide KATKO Fireman's Switch and Fixing Board.
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Q28. Will you provide Defeat Liability Period (DLP)? How long will it be? Can I extend the warranty after DLP?One year free Defeat Liability Period (DLP) will be provided for evMega’s products.Extended warranty period is welcome and quotation will be given on request.
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Q29. Can you provide local supporting services? What service level can you provide?All EVMEGA products are warranted against defaults for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of commissioning for the Hardware. Local supporting team includes service engineer, E&M engineers, EV specialists and IT specialists who are familiar with OCPP and system platform development. All operations of set-up, commissioning, Level 2 maintenance or preventive maintenance are to be operated by “Certified technicians” trained by EVMEGA, or by technicians trained and supervised by these “Certified technicians”. The minimum service level of problem fixing is as follows: Severity Response time by phone or on-site 1 – Fatal 4 business hours 2 – Severe Impact 8 business hours 3 – Degraded Operation Before end of the next business day 4 – Minimal Impact Within 3 days 5 - Feasibility Study of New Functionalities 1-2 week Field maintenance service includes parts will be provided within office hour (Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. except public holiday)
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Q30. What is EHSS? What are the application criteria? Is it still opened for the application?EHSS stand for “EV-charging at home subsidy scheme” offered by HK government to subsidize (Total: $2 billion) the installation of EV Charging station in car parks of existing private residential buildings. For the application criteria, Please refer to https://www.evhomecharging.gov.hk/en/eligibility
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Q31. I would like to resell your products/solutions overseas? I will contemplate to be your contractor’s partner? Is it possible?Sure, please come and discuss with our sales professional by Sales Hotline: (852) 2180 2400 email: sales@evmega.com
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Q32. I am the property manager; how could I enable the EV charging facilities in the property I managed?The EV charging enabling involves the design of electricity provision, installation of individual chargers as well as the setting of load management. In general, there are two solutions: 1. To install some quick chargers in the communal spaces, so the users could book the chargers 2. To build the infrastructure in the carpark for each parking spaces, so the user could install their own chargers. Our design team would be happy to provide you the design solution with your floor plan as well as the electricity loading information.
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