Energy technology goes beyond charging cars

The technology behind an Australian-produced electric vehicle charger could provide an answer to the challenges outlined in the government’s Energy White Paper, thanks to its potential to lower investment in electricity infrastructure by helping better use the existing capacity in the grid.

The federal government’s recently released Energy White Paper found that electricity pricing needed to be overhauled to stop inefficient investment in infrastructure only used during rare peak demand times - amounting to a only couple of hot days each year.

The report called for innovations to allow customers to better manage their energy use. The ChargeIQ electric vehicle charger, developed by Victorian-based Australian information technology company DiUS Computing, does just that.

The ChargeIQ electric vehicle charger was used as part of the Victorian Department of Transport’s Demand Response Load Control Electric Vehicle Trial that ran from June until mid-December 2012.

ChargeIQ includes a web interface and smartphone application to allow drivers to take advantage of flexible pricing to reduce the cost of their electric vehicle charging.

The technology that sets it apart from other electric vehicle chargers is that it is claimed to be the only ZigBee Smart Energy certified electric vehicle charger with the ability to communicate with smart meters to automatically adjust the charging load based on a request from an energy company.

While ChargeIQ is designed to help electric vehicle owners save money by taking advantage of flexible pricing tariffs, its implications could be far-reaching for the electricity industry.

Using the smart meter network, it can potentially reduce demand on the electricity grid at peak times by enabling electricity companies to interact with homeowners to adjust their loads.

The technology behind ChargeIQ has the potential to leverage the investment made in the smart meter network to better manage the demand for electricity during peak times and ultimately deliver cost reductions to the consumer.

DiUS, along with key industry partner Grey Innovation, has established Percepscion Pty Ltd to commercialise Smart Energy technology beyond electric vehicle charging.

For more information, visit the DiUS website at www.dius.com.au.