InsideEVs Calls EVSE a "Charger"

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reeler said:
I will call it a charger as my car charges when I plug it in.
I can see the conversation Pipcecil would be having with Nissan about why his car won't charge:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=15372" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Pip: My charger is broken.

Nissan: Your charger is broken.

Pip: No, my charger is broken!

Nissan: No, your charger is broken!

Seems that using the correct terminology would make the conversation a bit clearer. ;)
 
InsideEVs posts article with correct usage of terminology:

"Charging Station Usage at Hanover Mall in Pennsylvania Shoots Up by 250% in Last 9 Months"

http://insideevs.com/charging-station-usage-at-hanover-mall-in-pennsylvania-shoots-up-by-250-in-last-9-months/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

No complaints yet from the layman that they can't understand the techno-babble. ;)
 
"I just bought a $1200 40A charger for my LEAF and paid $1500 to have my panel upgraded to work with it and my LEAF does not charge faster than a public station!"

"My car won't charge and the dealer said my charger did the damage and it won't be covered under warranty"
 
cwerdna said:
Since I see you have a '11 Leaf w/3.3 kW on-board charger and 2 Rav4 EVs (!) w/10 kW on-board chargers, please study the diagram at http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=262630#p262630" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; then the Miles Gained per hour at http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=101293" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; and http://www.myrav4ev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=67&sid=6f7a12c18e4e47da8200928452fc6c70" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. Tell me how you propose to explain the pieces of and bottlenecks related to max charge rates depending on the line voltage, max amperage of the EVSE, max draw and output of the on-board charger, etc.

I could care less if someone uses more precise language, especially where required. I just don't think it is productive to bag on someone using a variation in language that is perfectly clear in the context. Folks are being pedantic to point this out all the time. Just like that annoying person always correcting your grammar. You all can keep up with your crusade on this point, but know you are annoying to some.
 
reeler said:
I could care less if someone uses more precise language, especially where required. I just don't think it is productive to bag on someone using a variation in language that is perfectly clear in the context. Folks are being pedantic to point this out all the time. Just like that annoying person always correcting your grammar. You all can keep up with your crusade on this point, but know you are annoying to some.
Is it? Please explain how you'd explain all the difference pieces w/o causing confusion?

People who misuse the terminology are annoying and confusing people who really need to know (but might not realize it).

If I happen to spot posts from you or anyone else uses the wrong terminology, I'm going to keep stepping into correct the misinformation.
 
reeler said:
I could care less if someone uses more precise language, especially where required. I just don't think it is productive to bag on someone using a variation in language that is perfectly clear in the context. Folks are being pedantic to point this out all the time. Just like that annoying person always correcting your grammar. You all can keep up with your crusade on this point, but know you are annoying to some.
As EVdriver points out, people may not know that more precise language is needed until it is too late:

"I just bought a $1200 40A charger for my LEAF and paid $1500 to have my panel upgraded to work with it and my LEAF does not charge faster than a public station!"

If it annoys you, don't read this thread, since you already know it will annoy you.
 
cwerdna said:
Please explain how you'd explain all the difference pieces w/o causing confusion?

People who misuse the terminology are annoying and confusing people who really need to know (but might not realize it).
The reality of the current market aside, I feel the general public shouldn't HAVE to know the difference. Do you need to know the technicalities of the different kinds of gas pumps, storage tanks, flow rates, shutoff mechanisms, etc. to fill up an ICE? No. You pull in, pick your grade, plug in, pull the handle and you're done. Sometimes it fills in 3 minutes, sometimes 5, who cares? EV charging should be just as simple and invisible. That's where we need to get to, not arguing over proper terminology.
 
GeekEV said:
Do you need to know the technicalities of the different kinds of gas pumps, storage tanks, flow rates, shutoff mechanisms, etc. to fill up an ICE? No. You pull in, pick your grade, plug in, pull the handle and you're done.
But, except for some farmers, most people don't have to buy their own gas pump. So long as EVSEs are called chargers, people are going to assume that buying a faster "charger" will allow them to charge their car faster.

Ray
 
Sorry for resurrecting an old thread. But I just had to get this terminology battle out of my system! Good read and quite entertaining!

I think I'm going to go plug my phone into its CPSE (cellphone service equipment) now.

Thanks!

:lol:
 
I always refer to it as an overpriced extension cord with a gfa.

In my mind EVSE should not exist for l1, total waste of money plugging a ground fault into another ground fault outlet.
 
GeekEV said:
If an EV related web site wants to use an incorrect term to make the article more accessible to laypeople, I'm fine with it .

Agree here..
I've heard the same type of argument from "drone" purists...

It's frequently a losing battle.. If trying to "win" means you alienate the same public you want to encourage to join the crowd, it's worth looking at that...

Just my $0.00000002

desiv
 
It makes more sense to put real pressure on those who supposedly know better (like EV websites) than to pressure newbies about it. OTOH there is nothing wrong with gently steering newbies toward using accurate terminology. It's true that some people hate to be told that they are doing anything wrong, but human nature being what it is, giving in to them just drops the overall IQ of drivers.
 
Until someone comes up with a single word I will continue calling it a CHARGER

Getting the right charger for your car is just as hard as choosing the right octane at the gas pump.
EXCEPT A GAS PUMP DOES NOT HAVE ANY PUMP IN IT. But still the public gets on just fine. :lol: :roll:
 
I wonder when and who made up the terminology. "Electric vehicle service equipment" sounds like something used to change the oil on an electric car. "Fancy extension cord" sounds good to me. Nissan calls the 240V one you install on your house a "charger" according to my owner's manual. It seems to be at least part of the charging system.
 
I use "charging cable" or "charge cable." That is, of course, much too hard for those who communicate monosyllabically , but few people of moderate or better intelligence have trouble with it. Oh, wait: "charg-er" is two syllables...
 
Language changes over time. By the time EVs are mainstream, chargers will likely be the correct and widely accepted term for it even if the engineers want to call it something else. When someone goes to the doctor and says their finger is stuck up their nose, some might stop and think to say nostril to to be more accurate. If they say nose, it really doesn't help for the doctor to get offended and correct the person or to point out that apparently the truly correct term would be naris. (As I'm not a doctor I'm working off a Google search for this so don't get on me if I don't have that term right either).

Engineering terms of multiple words that get reduced to acronyms sometimes take off and gain general acceptance, e.g., RADAR. EV might make it but ideally simply car or auto will convey an EV eventually. EVSE is not as likely especially when for most people's use, charger will clearly get the idea across and is more natural. And that is the thing about language; it evolves over time based on how it is used in society. And from the looks of it thus far, charger is winning over EVSE or 'electric vehicle service equipment'. Seriously, who thought that 'electric vehicle service equipment' would work in the mainstream?

Different forums have different audiences. I would expect a medical journal to use more accurate terms like nostril or naris. I would expect an engineering forum to use EVSE. But for forums aimed at the broader consumer, which I believe InsideEVs and MyNissanLeaf to be, either is acceptable except for those times where the nature of the discussion really warrants the specificity. The above posts have a few examples of where that clarity is needed. But it seems to me that most of the time charger works just fine.
 
rmay635703 said:
In my mind EVSE should not exist for l1, total waste of money plugging a ground fault into another ground fault outlet.
Sounds like you have a lack of understanding of the other functions of an EVSE.

Besides the problem of the plugs on both ends not being able to withstand a large # of cycles, there'd be the problem of the long cable being energized at all times and possible shock hazard if it's damaged while energized. And, you'd have arcing problems upon disconnect.

We've had some discussion about this before: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=21726 and http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?t=4898.
 
IssacZachary said:
I wonder when and who made up the terminology. "Electric vehicle service equipment" sounds like something used to change the oil on an electric car. "Fancy extension cord" sounds good to me
I'm guessing the SAE.

http://standards.sae.org/j2293/2_199706/ is from 1997 and refers to EVSEs.
 
Lately I've been calling portable EVSEs "charging cables" and charging station type EVSEs "charging stations." This seems reasonable and rational to me, so as people increasingly start sentences with "So..." and "Being as," and the news media make fools of themselves trying to sound like telegrams from the brain-damaged, I'll be one of those (probably Cwerdna, too) trying to slow the "evolution" of language to a pace that doesn't turn it to gibberish in one generation.
 
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