News release overview
Hitachi Develops the Most Compact, Lightweight EV Charging Technology in the Industry with Fast Charging and Multi-Vehicle Charging Capabilities
New technology will accelerate the spread of electric vehicles by reducing charging equipment's footprint by 40% and weight by 70% while having the flexibility to handle fast charging and multi-vehicle charging
Features of developed technology and trial electric vehicle charging system
Tokyo, August 25, 2021 --- Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501, "Hitachi") today announced that, with the aim of supporting the realization of a decarbonized society, it has developed a multi-port EV (1) charging technology that will enable users to switch between fast charging or multi-vehicle charging while making charging infrastructure more compact and lightweight, which is essential to promoting the spread of EVs. Specifically, Hitachi developed a prototype of a 350-kW EV charging system equipped with compact solid state transformers (SST(2)) which is the most compact and lightweight system of its kind in the industry.(3) Based on this, it will be possible to easily install EV charging equipment even in existing infrastructure with limited installation space. Furthermore, its extensibility means it may be used for either fast charging or multi-vehicle charging, enabling it to meet users' needs in a variety of scenarios, such as charging an EV equipped with a large-capacity battery in a short time or simultaneously charging multiple EVs overnight.
Hitachi will pursue further research aimed at practical application of this technology, and in collaboration with the entire Hitachi Group, it will contribute to the realization of a decarbonized society by creating new energy solutions and services such as EV operations management.
(1) EV: Electric Vehicle.
(2) SST: Solid State Transformer. This technology makes a transformer more compact using a semiconductor drive.
(3) Based on in-house research (as of July 2021). "EV charging equipment" indicates the power converter and power receiving equipment (transformer) but does not include the charging port. Specifically, the calculations were performed by comparing the combined footprint and weight of a power converter and transformer with a capacity of at least 150 kW. The value factors in the conventional installation interval of 20 cm between the power convertor and transformer.
