Greentech Lead America: Toyota has joined hands with Duke
Energy and Energy Systems Network (ESN) for a new pilot project in central
Indiana. The project will take advantage of the region’s existing
efforts deploying plug-in vehicles as part of the ‘Project Plug-IN’ initiative.
The project will test and validate the effectiveness of
communication standards developed by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)
to provide a simple and affordable smart grid communication protocol between
the vehicle, the charging station, and the utility company to effectively
manage vehicle charging.
The pilot project will use advanced technologies to give
customers the ability to achieve their own personal charging strategy
automatically.
Toyota will provide a UL
certified home charging station and a home gateway communication system to be
installed in each customer’s home, allowing the vehicle and the ‘smart grid’
equipment to communicate with each other to evaluate billing and power supply
control.
During the pilot, Duke
Energy customers will drive 5 Prius Plug-in Hybrid
vehicles regularly. Each Duke Energy customer will use the vehicle
communication system to monitor and manage their optimized charging using a
mobile software application provided by Toyota for the pilot project.
Duke Energy will simulate price structures and demand
response events to understand the impact to the customer’s bill and understand
how these types of programs can aid in grid reliability as plug-ins become more
prominent.
Each Duke Energy customer will use the vehicle
communication system to monitor and manage their optimized charging using a
mobile software application provided by Toyota for the pilot project.
Data collected from the vehicles and EVSEs will be
aggregated and maintained securely, protecting all personal information.
Surveys will be administered in order to gather qualitative data on customer
experience and behavior related to the pilot project.
editor@greentechlead.com