رؤية الشركة: الشحن من أجل مستقبل مستدام
Overview of Key Points in Charging Pile Structure Design
I.Technical Requirements for Charging Piles
Charging piles serve as "gas stations" for EVs. There are three main types: AC charging piles, DC charging piles, and AC/DC integrated charging piles that are capable of both AC and DC charging.
DC charging piles are just like "fast-food restaurants" on highways. They offer fast charging, making them suitable for installation in locations such as highways and dedicated charging stations. This enables EVs to "refuel" quickly and resume their journey.
AC charging piles are like "convenience stores" in communities. Although they charge at a slow pace, they are highly convenient. They are usually installed in residential areas, parking lots, roadside parking spaces, and highway service areas, allowing people to charge their vehicles at any time and place.
Modern charging piles are highly intelligent and capable of "communication". However, they don't communicate randomly; instead, they follow a "protocol" known as OCPP1.6. This " protocol " is like a common "language rule" that enables seamless "communication" among charging piles, EVs, and charging station management systems.
Just as we need to use language that others can understand during a conversation, charging piles must also communicate in accordance with this rule. In this way, EVs can determine the appropriate charging amount, and the charging station management system can monitor the operations of the charging piles. As a result, everyone can collaborate to ensure a safe and efficient charging process..
Moreover, this "translator" must meet certain requirements, such as being rainproof and waterproof to prevent malfunctions caused by weather conditions; it must also ensure safety and no leakage. Additionally, it should have stable communication capabilities to maintain continuous contact and avoid "communication breakdowns"..
In summary, charging piles are like "gas stations" for EVs. With this "translator", EVs can charge more conveniently and safely, enabling them to travel longer distances.
1. Environmental conditions:
⑴ Working environment temperature: -20℃～+50℃;
⑵ Relative humidity: 5%～95%;
⑶ Altitude: ≤2000m;
⑷Earthquake resistance: similar to an "earthquake simulation test" for the equipment.
Imagine that the ground beneath our feet begins to move like waves. This movement is not random, similar to a sine wave, with alternating upward and downward movements.
There are two types of this movement. One is side-to-side sway, just like the gentle waves on the sea, swaying horizontally. The other is up-and-down movement, just like when we drive over speed bumps, the car bounces up and down. However, the amplitude of this movement is much larger than what we usually encounter.
During the side-to-side sway, it is equivalent to adding an acceleration of 0.3g to the ground, where "g" represents the gravitational acceleration that we commonly feel on Earth. During the up-and-down movement, it is like adding an acceleration of 0.15g to the ground..
Moreover, this "earthquake" does not come once, it happens three times consecutively. Each time it comes, it moves in a regular manner like a sine wave.
This experiment is used to simulate an earthquake to to test whether the equipment can withstand the impact of an earthquake without breaking.
Ultimately, the equipment must perform well in this "earthquake simulation test", that is, it must be able to withstand such "trembling" and have spare power. We use a number to represent this spare power, that is, the safety factor must be greater than 1.67.
In simple terms, the equipment must be robust enough to ensure safety during an "earthquake" and not be damaged.
2. Environmental Resistance Requirements:
⑴ The protection level of the charging pile housing should reach: IP32 for indoor use and IP54 for outdoor use. Additionally, necessary rain- and sun- protection devices should be installed.
⑵ Three-proof (moisture-proof, mildew-proof, and salt spray-proof) requirements: The printed circuit boards, connectors and other circuit components in the charger should be protected against moisture, mildew and salt spray, so that the charger can operate normally in an outdoor humid and salty environment.
⑶ Anti-rust (anti-oxidation) protection: The iron housing of the charging pile and the exposed iron brackets and parts should adopt double-layer anti-rust measures. Non-iron metal housing should also be equipped with an anti-oxidation protective film or be treated with anti-oxidation.
⑷ The charging pile housing should be able to withstand the impact strength test specified in 8.2.10 of GB 7251.3-2005.
II.Characteristics of the Sheet Metal Charging Pile Housing Structure
The charging pile is generally composed of a pile body, a charging socket, a protection control device, a metering device, a card swiping device, a human-computer interaction interface, etc., as shown in the figure below.
The sheet metal structure of the charging pile body is made of low-carbon steel plate with a thickness of about 1.5mm. The manufacturing process involves sheet metal tower punching, bending, and welding. Some charging piles adopt a double-layer structure design considering the needs of outdoor protection and heat insulation. The overall shape of the product is mainly rectangular, and the frame is welded as a whole. Rounded curved surfaces are added in certain areas to enhance the aesthetic appearance. To ensure the overall strength of the charging pile, reinforcing ribs or reinforcing plates are generally welded.
The outer surface of the pile body is generally arranged with panel indicator lights, panel buttons, charging interfaces and heat dissipation holes, etc. The rear door or side is equipped with an anti-theft lock, and the pile body is fixed to the installation base by anchor bolts.
Fasteners are generally made of electroplated galvanized or stainless steel. In order to ensure that the charging pile body has a certain corrosion resistance, the charging pile is generally sprayed with outdoor powder coating or outdoor paint to ensure its service life.
III.Anti-corrosion design of sheet metal structure charging pile body
⑴ The appearance of the charging pile body structure should not have sharp corners.
⑵ The top cover of the charging pile is recommended to have a slope of more than 5° to prevent water accumulation on the top.
⑶ Relatively sealed products use dehumidifiers for dehumidification to prevent condensation. For products with heat dissipation needs and heat dissipation holes, humidity controllers + heaters should be used for dehumidification to prevent condensation.
⑷ After sheet metal welding, the outdoor environment should be fully considered, external welds should be fully welded to meet the IP54 waterproof standard.
⑸ For sealed welded structures such as door panel reinforcements, spraying cannot enter the interior of the sealed structure. The design should be improved by assembling after spraying, or welding with galvanized sheets, or electrophoresis after welding and then spraying.
⑹ Welded structures should avoid narrow gaps and narrow spaces that cannot be entered by spray guns.
⑺ Heat dissipation holes should be designed as components as much as possible to avoid narrow welds and interlayers.
⑻ Outsourced lock rods, hinges, etc. should be made of 304 stainless steel as much as possible, and the neutral salt spray resistance time GB 2423.17 should not be less than 96h.
⑼ The nameplate fixing method is changed to waterproof core-pulling rivets or adhesive bonding. Waterproof treatment must be done when screws are required.
⑽ All fasteners should be zinc-nickel alloy plated or 304 stainless steel treated. Zinc-nickel alloy fasteners should meet the neutral salt spray test for 96 hours without white rust. All exposed fasteners should be made of 304 stainless steel.
⑾ Zinc-nickel alloy fasteners should avoid being used in conjunction with stainless steel.
⑿ The installation anchor holes of the charging piles need to be pre-processed, and the holes should not be drilled after the charging piles are placed. The inlet holes at the bottom of the charging piles should be sealed with fireproof mud to prevent surface water vapor from entering the pile body from the inlet holes. After installation, silicone sealant can be applied between the pile body and the cement installation platform to strengthen the bottom seal of the pile body.
IV.Optimization of Charging Pile Process Design
The structure of the charging pile is quite complicated, with many welds, interlayers, and some are semi-enclosed or fully enclosed. It's like playing with building blocks. There are gaps or hidden places between the blocks, which are difficult to handle.
These complex structures pose significant challenges to the production of charging piles. In particular, electrostatic shielding affects the traditional powder - spraying method (which is like putting a "rust - proof coat" on the charging pile). Electrostatic shielding is like an "invisible coat" on welds and interlayers, preventing powder from adhering to these areas. As a result, these areas are prone to rust and damage.
Therefore, the process design of the charging pile requires great care. We must find a way to make these difficult places also wear "rust-proof coat" to guarantee the durability and safety of the charging pile. In order to solve this problem, 5 process design schemes are proposed:
a. Double-layer powder coating system. Primer: 50μm epoxy heavy anti-corrosion powder; flour: 50μm pure polyester weather-resistant powder; total thickness: not less than 100μm.
b. Electrophoresis base + powder coating system. Primer: electrophoresis 20-30μm; flour: 50μm pure polyester weather-resistant powder; total thickness: not less than 70μm.
c. Dip coating + powder spray system. Primer: water-based epoxy anti-corrosion primer (dip coating) 25-30μm; flour: 50μm pure polyester weather-resistant powder; total thickness: not less than 80μm. d. Electrophoresis base + powder coating system. Primer: electrophoresis 20-30μm; flour: 50μm pure polyester weather-resistant powder; total thickness: not less than 70μm.
e. Dip coating + powder spray system. Primer: water-based epoxy anticorrosive primer (dip coating) 25-30μm; powder: pure polyester weather-resistant powder 50μm; total thickness: not less than 80μm.
V.Key Points of Charging Pile Structural Design
Appearance design: Appearance design plays a crucial role in user experience and the acceptance of charging stations. A good appearance design should be modern, intuitive, ergonomic, and in line with urban planning and environmental aesthetics.
Structural materials: Charging piles need to be durable and protective. Metals or alloys with strong weather resistance are usually employed. At the same time, waterproof, dustproof and corrosion-resistant designs are also very important.
The charging socket is like the "energy entrance" of EVs. Designers have to consider multiple factors during its designing.
Firstly, the socket must be able to "recognize" the charging interface of different vehicle models, just as plugs and sockets in daily use need to be compatible. There are many different brands and models of EVs, and their charging interfaces may vary. Therefore, this charging socket must be a "universal socket" that supports multiple charging standards, such as CHAdeMO, CCS, Type 2 AC, etc.
Secondly, the socket ought to be user-friendly. Imagine how inconvenient it would be if the socket is difficult to plug in or unplug. Designers must ensure that the socket is easy to operate.
Most importantly, safety is the top priority. The charging socket must have a self-locking function, like adding a "safety lock" to the socket to prevent accidental unplugging. It should also be equipped with a safety protection mechanism, akin to putting on a "bulletproof vest" to safeguard against any unexpected situations during charging and ensure electrical safety.
In conclusion, this charging socket functions as an "intimate assistant" for EVs, which is smart and reliable to enable the charging process to be convenient and safe.
Cooling system: Heat may be generated during charging, so an effective cooling system needs to be designed to ensure the stability and safety of the equipment. This may include fans, heat sinks, etc.
Power distribution system: A reasonable power distribution system needs to be designed inside the charging pile to ensure balanced power supply when multiple charging points operate simultaneously and prevent overload of the power grid.
Safety design: Charging piles need to consider the safety of users, including anti-electric shock design, fire safety, lightning protection, etc. In addition, charging piles should also have safety functions such as overload protection, temperature protection and short circuit protection.
Intelligent electronic system: To improve the intelligence level of charging piles, advanced electronic systems need to be installed, including user identification, payment systems, remote monitoring and fault detection functions.
Cable management system: The management of charging pile cables is also a key design point. Issues such as cable storage, waterproofing, anti-theft and easy maintenance need to be considered.
Maintainability: Given that charging piles usually operate for a long time, easy maintenance is an important design aspect. Modular design and remote fault monitoring can improve the maintainability of charging piles.
The charging piles we are talking about now should not only be convenient for us to charge EVs, but also be "environmentally friendly experts".
Just as we advocate water and electricity conservation in daily life, charging piles should also be designed to be more energy-saving and environmentally friendly. For example, some energy-saving equipment can be used to reduce power consumption during operation.
In addition, solar panels can be installed on the top of the charging pile, like putting a "solar hat" on it. This allows the charging pile to utilize solar energy for self - charging, reducing its reliance on traditional fossil fuels such as coal and oil.
These designs need to be carefully considered from the appearance to the internal system of the charging pile. In this manner, the charging pile can not only provide convenient charging services, but also ensure our safe and stable use of electricity, and it is easy to maintain. Furthermore, its environmental friendliness makes contributions to the protection of our planet.
Looking ahead, the charging piles that are both smart and environmentally friendly will enhance our lives.
