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Engineering EV, Charger Safety and Security

From a quick access port to help firefighters fight EV battery fires faster to preventing public charger vandalism, here are some safety developments that haven’t made the big headlines.

Renault’s Fireman Access port is sealed by a pressure-sensitive disc in the top of a vehicle’s high-voltage battery. (Renault)

Most of the news surrounding EV technological development in the past year has been around batteries and charging capacity. But engineers have also been busy working on security and safety issues, from charging stations to finding ways for firefighters to better douse fires. We’ve rounded up a few of the most notable and novel efforts below.

Renault’s fire (or water) in the hole

Earlier this year, Renault Group said it is making its Fireman Access system available to the global OEM community via free licensing.

The exclusive system allows emergency responders to put out an EV fire in about the same time they can on an internal combustion vehicle. The crux of the system is an adhesive disc over an opening in the high-voltage battery. Normally, it stays sealed, but when a high-pressure fire hose is attached, the disc dislodges, allowing the cells to be almost immediately flooded with water.

Renault says the system allows a fire to be extinguished in a tenth of the time, and without wasting thousands of gallons of water, compared to keeping a hose on an EV fire at a distance, the standard practice for many fire departments worldwide.

A still image from a promotional video that shows water pouring in a Fireman Access port to quench an internal thermal runaway. (Renault)

Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo said in a news release that the system was developed with the cooperation of actual firefighters. “Fireman Access is a practical demonstration of what can be achieved by combining our expertise as a manufacturer with the skills of the men and women who keep us safe every day,” he said.

The project was done in conjunction with the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt.

EVject: Emergency disconnect for EV charging connections

Charging can be ended via the touchscreen inside the vehicle. Then, when the driver pulls away from the charger, the charging cable and main part of the plug fall away, leaving only this small piece still attached to the vehicle. (EVject)

The world of safety in mobility is filled with what-if questions that, despite a seemingly small use case, deserve an answer. One such question: What happens if you need to leave your charging station extremely quickly? Most EV software prevents the vehicle from moving when plugged into a charger. So what happens if you’re in a situation in which you can’t exit your vehicle to disconnect the charger due to personal safety concerns (for instance, a suspicious person approaching)?

EVject is as simple to use as connecting one end to the charger, the other end to the vehicle and pulling a trigger on the vehicle-end plug. Charging starts normally, but the driver can press the “unlock charge port” button or tap the charging (lightning bolt) icon on the vehicle’s touchscreen or app to perform an emergency disconnect and then shift into drive or reverse. This activates the breakaway feature, where EVject splits into two parts at the on-vehicle port, enabling a getaway with only a small piece of the EVject attached to the charge port.

The EVject plug works as a normal charging connection, with the exception of a bottom trigger that engages the system and allows a driver to flee a dangerous situation without exiting the vehicle being charged. (EVject)

The company says the technology has been tested at high-power outputs (250kW, 480V, and 520 amps) and in extreme conditions up to 115 F (46 C), ensuring reliability. A key feature of the system is thermal sensing that interrupts charging briefly if the plug becomes too hot (defined by Underwriters Labs as more than 85 C / 185 F).

The company cites a 2022 Consumer Reports study in saying that women are twice as likely to cite safety concerns when using EV chargers. Company officials conclude that the technology is crucial in making public charging stations safer and more user-friendly.

Plugs are available in CCS1 to CCS1, CCS2 to CCS2 and NACS to NACS2 configurations. The system is listed on the company’s site for $299, but the company said that plugs separated in actual emergencies could be replaced at a discount.

And this technology isn’t just for individual drivers. In an interview with EV influencer Kim Java, company founder Kreg Peeler said it’s a concern of fleet owners also, a market the company is already in discussions with.

ChargePoint fights vandalism with hardened cable, software

ChargePoint’s new cables, despite being hardened against attempts to cut them, keep the same flexibility as previous cables, meaning the end user experience is the same. (ChargePoint)

Inoperable public chargers are one of the biggest problems faced by EV drivers and feared by potential EV buyers. A study by ChargerHelp, the EV charger maintenance company, reported a dismal uptime of 73% late last year.

ChargePoint, operator of the nation’s largest number of public charging points (Tesla leads in fast chargers) announced a two-pronged approach to tackle the problem earlier this year.

The biggest problem – and a most unsightly PR problem – is chargers that have been vandalized, with cables cut clean through, sometimes for the valuable metal within. In announcing that it would start deploying hardened cut-resistant cabling, ChargePoint CEO Rick Wilmer said the company was not a “victim of vandalism.” Rather, he said, “we are responsible for solving it, not only for our customers but for the industry. We are sharing the technology to combat vandalism in the most aggressive way possible with the aim to eliminate charger reliability as a hindrance to EV adoption.”

The cut-resistant cables are protected by what the company calls novel materials like hardened steel and usespecific polymers, likened to bulletresistant material. They are said to keep the flexibility of original cables despite the added security.

In an ongoing test, Tesla is having its wire bundles (that are eventually coated) engraved as a signal to scrapyards that they should not accept the presumably stolen material. (Tesla)

In addition to deploying cables at its own charging stations, ChargePoint said it would sell cables to other companies as part of its effort to improve the industry’s overall uptime.

The company also released ChargePoint Protect, security software that integrates with components already on public chargers, such as speakers and video screens. The software, available for free, detects cable tampering in real time and works to deter vandals and thieves. It also can alert operators via SMS and email to ensure faster intervention.

Tesla protects cables with a *surprise* for vandals

In this still from a DyeDefender demonstration video, a “vandal” is sprayed with the blue dye after cutting into the pressurized outer cable. (DyeDefender)

ChargePoint isn’t alone in looking for ways to secure its equipment. In early spring, Electrek and other outlets reported two novel methods EV giant Tesla was testing to secure its chargers and superchargers.

One, in an amusing (unless you’re a vandal) method inspired by those dye packs some banks deploy during robbery attempts, uses cable sheathing that contains blue dye under pressure. The technology, called DyeDefender from a company called CatStrap that originally specialized in protecting catalytic converters, ensures that anyone cutting through the cabling is sprayed with the semipermanent dye, making for easy identification of suspects.

In another, more subtle effort, cables made for Tesla have “property of Tesla Motors” engraved on the wire bundles. Max de Zegher, Tesla’s charging director, said on X that it would indicate to scrapyards that they should not buy scavenged products and notify the company. “It’s a scalable, cost-effective solution that doesn’t impact service operations & customer experience,” he said. 

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Automotive Software

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