World's First Development: Car Charging and Payment Possible with Just a '220V' Outlet...

KERI Develops 'Billing-Type Outlet for Electric Vehicle Charging'
World's First OCPP 2.0.1 International Protocol Certification
Expect Significant Expansion of Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
"Charging Available at Parking Lots and Campgrounds, Major Impact on Electric Vehicle Adoption"

South Korea is leading the standard technology for electric vehicle (EV) chargers. It has developed the world's first system that eliminates the inconvenience of having to install separate charging facilities and allows charging and fee collection using only a 220V outlet in existing parking lots, camping sites, and other locations.

Electric vehicle charging facility. Stock photo. Not related to the article.

The Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) announced on the 29th that the ‘Billing-type Outlet Technology for EV Charging (Mode 1/2-only CS)’ developed by Dr. Jaejo Lee’s team has become the world’s first to receive the ‘OCPP (Open Charge Point Protocol) 2.0.1’ certification.

OCPP is an industry standard developed by the Open Charge Alliance (OCA) for the operation and maintenance of EV chargers. It is a type of communication protocol applied to provide information to charging users, user authentication, charging station status, and fault management. Currently, more than 50 countries worldwide use OCPP, and South Korea also established it as a core operating system last year when the Ministry of Environment mandated OCPP 1.6 certification for charger distribution projects.

The ‘billing-type outlet technology’ certified with OCPP 2.0.1 by KERI allows charging users to charge their EVs and make payments using a 220V outlet installed on the wall of a parking lot. This technology supports smart power distribution charging, optimized fee charging, and payment of charging fees, requiring a very high level of communication security to protect personal information.

The research team proposed the ‘billing-type outlet for EV charging’ technology to the OCA and received the world’s first OCPP 1.6 certification (technology name: Mode 1/2 only Charging Station) in March 2022. Through continuous research and development, they recently succeeded in obtaining the upgraded version OCPP 2.0.1 certification. OCPP 2.0.1 supports a more secure communication environment and enhanced charging technology responses, making it more suitable for smart charging such as Plug and Charge, wireless power transfer, and automatic charging.

This technology is expected to make a significant contribution to the expansion of the domestic and international EV markets. Currently, in South Korea alone, many apartment parking lots have large separate charging stations where residents take turns charging their EVs, causing inconvenience. However, by utilizing this technology, simply installing multiple 220V-based billing outlets in parking lots or outdoor camping sites can solve these problems. This is because complex electrical work or dedicated parking spaces for charging stations are not required. It can greatly expand the charging infrastructure, which is a major factor in the widespread adoption of EVs. Additionally, based on OCPP 2.0.1 certification, a foundation has been laid for users to enjoy communication-based convenience services beyond EV charging.

The KERI research team (from left: Sangwoo Son, Jaejo Lee, Changwoon Park), who developed the world's first 'billing-type outlet technology for electric vehicle charging' and received OCPP 2.0.1 certification. Photo by KERI

Dr. Jaejo Lee stated, “The EV charging infrastructure has moved beyond the era of simple charging to a ‘communication era’ that provides various services for users and manages them effectively. We will strive to lead the international standardization of EV charging protocols by preparing to publish a white paper related to OCA and billing-type outlets in South Korea.”

KERI explained, "We plan to support OCPP 2.0.1-related technologies so that domestic charger companies can have high competitiveness in the global market. The North American region has already adopted the OCPP 2.0.1 standard for charger distribution projects, and since South Korea has mandated OCPP 1.6 certification, the demand for OCPP 2.0.1 certification among charger manufacturers is expected to be considerable.”