Audi e-tron to work as energy storage in smart homes
Audi is getting involved in the EEBUS initiative for the intelligent home integration of electric cars with the e-tron being the first EV to use the standard. Earlier this week at the Audi plant in Brussels, developers tested the standard’s cross-industry compatibility.
Audi is working with more than 70 international companies to create a common language for energy management in the Internet of Things with the EEBUS standard. Audi’s e-tron is the first electric car with a charging system that uses the new communication standard.
At the “Plugfest E-Mobility” held at the Audi plant in Brussels, developers and engineers performed model tests to check whether photovoltaics systems, charging infrastructure, electric cars, and the heating systems could communicate without interference. The devices were connected via a home energy management system (HEMS) that allows all energy-relevant devices to exchange information on their electricity requirements.
For home charging integration, Audi is cooperating with two partner companies, SMA Solar Technology and Hager Group, who are similarly involved in the implementation of the EEBUS initiative standard. Now following the testing event, the companies involved intend to pass the EEBUS specification for use in e-mobility.
In combination with the connect charging system and an appropriately equipped HEMS, a suitably equipped electric vehicle can also take advantage of variable electricity rates. If a home is equipped with a photovoltaic system, the customer can also optimize the charging process to prefer the electricity generated by the system for charging the vehicle. The vehicle does this by considering either forecast phases of sunshine or the current flow of electricity at the home’s connection point to the public grid.
EEBUS devices will quite possibly interact with the power grid to an even greater extent in the future, such as with an interface with the grid operator via HEMS. This would allow electric vehicles to more effectively adapt their charge relevant to grid bottlenecks supporting the stability of the power grid, for example, if multiple electric vehicles are charging simultaneously.
The specifications of the communication standard will be released at the beginning of February 2019.
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