OpenEVSE - Open Source Charging Station

[MashedPotato]

I had a GREAT time today, and I got to bring home quite a souvenir...

Thank you Chris for sharing your efforts, organizing a successful event, and for the generosity you offered all of us.

Thank you Dory for the location, the popcorn that none of us noticed, and your cheery hospitality.

Thank you to my fellow builders and observers for sharing your tools, sharing your expertise, and sharing your company.

Harry

 

[Boomer23]

More pics from today, some more details for those interested:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/71336612@N00/sets/72157632151341902/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[z0ner]

Kudos to the photographers, I may be referencing some of those as I finish up my project.

First of all, thanks to Chris and Dori for teaching and hosting. We had ample space, and Chris was very patient and helpful.

I learned many valuable tips and can definitely appreciate the process. I didn't finish my unit (to my knowledge nobody did), but walked away with the confidence knowing it will be completed soon, and that there is a wealth of community support that can easily be tapped into.

I was able to get the cabling cut and crimped, the mounting plate and enclosure drilled, and the major components mounted. Believe it or not, coupled with the introduction and getting acclimated, that took roughly five to six hours.

I still had the soldering to do, and just finished the bulk of it here at home. It took me about two hours to solder the Arduino shield, and mount it to the Adafruit display. There are roughly 96 solder points (I think I remember Chris saying only the down and select buttons are necessary so I didn't solder the other four). Including a display is an optional step, but something we all wanted so Chris ordered the kit beforehand.

I probably have about three to four more hours at best, assuming it will fire up properly the first time - ha HA. My worry is that with so many solder points and not an Arduino Uno, I can't test the display beforehand.

I was great meeting new people and getting reacquainted with others.

 

[garygid]

I found these instructions and pictures for building and
connecting the LCD display board to the OpenEVSE:

http://code.google.com/p/open-evse/wiki/AdaFruitRGBdisplay" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As seen in the picture there:
NOTE: This does not match the sample board that
I saw at the workshop... at least as I remember it!

Ground - green, to 4th hole from the left
+5v - yellow, to the 3rd hole from the left
Serial Clock (A5) - orange, right-most hole
Serial Data (A4) - red, 2nd to right-most hole

Then, jumper the 4th hole to the 5th, grounding the
5th hole so that the display background will work.

If this is incorrect, please tell me and I will edit.

 

[garygid]

When connecting the OpenEVSE Plus board, see:
(Are there better instructions?)

http://code.google.com/p/open-evse/wiki/OpenEVSE_Plus_spec" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As pictured there (with the Power Supply on the right),
and working clockwise from the lower left side:

1. The two small wires from the AC input side of the relay
go to the Line 1 and Line 2 screw block.

Presumably polarity is not important, but I would consider
Line 1 to be the Red AC Input line (hot), and Line 2 to be
the Black input line.

2. The two small wires from the Output side of the relay
go to the AC Test 1 and AC Test 2 screw block.

Again, I presume that the polarity is not important,
but I would use the same polarity as used in #1 above.

3. The 2x3 ISP header is only used for re-programming
the OpenEVSE board's microprocessor chip.

4. The 1x4 I2C (eye squared see) header is used to connect
the LCD display to the control board, and the Green (Ground)
wire goes toward the right.

5. The 1x6 pin header, labeled FTDI, might be used to connect
a serial port, probably to a PC for some debugging or logging.
We do not use it, so no connection there.

6. The Pilot connection, usually the Orange wire from the J1772
cable, usually after going through a pair of orange Anderson
connectors.

Note: If strain relief is done properly, the Anderson connector
that is connected to this screw terminal would be fastened
to something (like the base plate) such that STARTING to pull
the J1772 cable out would IMMEDIATELY disconnect the Orange
Anderson connector pair, thus disconnecting the Control
Pilot signal to/from the car.

7. Ground - usually a green wire, connected to the
ground terminal block, which should also have the large
Green wire from the J1772 cable and the large Green wire
from the AC Input cable connected to it.

Note: If installing Surge Protector "discs", they are usually
connected from each AC Line In to Ground, I believe,
probably using as short a path as is practical.

8. Two screw terminals to activate a relay, controlled
using 12v DC (from the power supply on the OpenEVSE
Plus board). Apparently polarity does not matter.

9. Two pins to connect the Current Transformer (CT) coil.
For our use, the polarity is not important.
How is one meant to connect the CT wires here?

10. Two pins reserved for future use.

Again, if this is not perfectly correct, tell me and I will edit.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

51 photos from today's OpenEVSE workshop. Thanks to Gary for planning these HTB gatherings (this was my first), and to Chris for setting up the workshop. It was very educational.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kf6oak/sets/72157632146039517/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Feel free to use these photos in any way.

wow! looks like a great time. Wish i could have made it! we did a GID meter build in Seattle last winter. it was a great time and like u all, most of us did not finish our builds either except me but i had help from a "master builder!"

 

[z0ner]

I found these instructions and pictures for building and
connecting the LCD display board to the OpenEVSE:

http://code.google.com/p/open-evse/wiki/AdaFruitRGBdisplay" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As seen in the picture there:
NOTE: This does not match the sample board that
I saw at the workshop... at least as I remember it!

Ground - green, to 4th hole from the left
+5v - yellow, to the 3rd hole from the left
Serial Clock (A5) - orange, right-most hole
Serial Data (A4) - red, 2nd to right-most hole

Then, jumper the 4th hole to the 5th, grounding the
5th hole so that the display background will work.

If this is incorrect, please tell me and I will edit.

That's how I did mine, but I *DID* solder the stacking pins as shown in pic two, before seeing some workshop pics that show G,+V,A5,A4 being soldered directly to the board. In hindsight that would have been easier to do.

 

[garygid]

Connecting the J1772 cable.

The actual connections are relatively simple, since there are
only 4 wires to connect. However, the physical placement,
routing of the heavy duty wires, and addition of connectors
adds to the task considerably, especially when using a small
box to contain it all.

Cable entry to the box.
The gland is large, so it requires placement so that the
external part of the gland does not interfere with the
hinges or locking tabs.

The cable passes through the gland, and the outer insulation
is carefully removed from the cable, so that the individual wires
can be routed within the box. Arranging things within the box such
that there is room for the ferrite "pipe" (if used), the Anderson connectors,
and the Current Transformer, all without overly-kinking the
big power wires (Red and Black) is a non-trivial job.

Here is a good description of using Anderson connectors:

http://www.powerwerx.com/assembly.asp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I plan to put the ferrite noise-reducing "pipe" on the wires as soon
as they enter the box, I think.

From the cable, the
1. Orange (Pilot) wire goes just a short distance, goes through the orange
Anderson connector pair, and connects to the Pilot screw terminal on
the OpenEVSE board.

2. Red and black (power) wires should go through the red (and black)
Anderson connectors, and then connect to the relay, using the special
yellow crimp-on spade-lug connectors provided.

Note: These two power wires should pass through the center of the
Current Transformer on the way to the relay. The CT can be put on
either side of the Anderson connectors, but I think that I will try to
put the CT between the relay and the Anderson connectors.

As far as I know, polarity is not important, but I intend to connect
the black output to the black input, and the red output to the red input.

3. Green Ground wire also goes through an Anderson connector pair (green)
and it connects to one of the screw openings of the Ground Block.

-----
If you are implementing the J1772 cable pull-away safety disconnect,
the Pilot (orange) Anderson connection should pull apart immediately.
Then, the power connections should open, and finally the Ground.
I suspect that the best way to do this is to attach the inside half of each
Anderson connector pair to something solid, like the base plate.
But, as supplied, we do not have a way to attach them.

However, here is a link for the Anderson connector spacer parts.

http://www.powerwerx.com/anderson-powerpoles/housings-contacts/1399G1-1399G6-1399G2-short-long-spacers.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here are the pins to interconnect the connectors and spacers, we
probably need 4 pins, 2 screws and nuts, and 3 of the short spacers.

http://www.powerwerx.com/anderson-powerpoles/housings-contacts/roll-pins.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Then we would assemble the in-box side of the connectors as one
screwed-down 4-pole connector, that the 4 individual on-cable connectors,
on different length wires, would pull out of.

I think I will try to assemble something like this (OsRsBsG) :
Orange, screw, spacer, pin, Red, pin, spacer, pin, Black, pin, spacer, screw, Green
and screw it down to the base plate. The challenge will be to find the right place
to mount this sace-consuming structure.

-----
Again, corrections please, and I will edit.

 

[mitch672]

Gary, take a look at how I've done it.

I used 4 of these "mounting wings":
http://www.powerwerx.com/anderson-powerpoles/housings-contacts/1399G9-powerpole-mounting-wing.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mitch

 

[garygid]

Yes, that's similar to what I had in mind, but I did not
see those parts when I ordered.
Maybe I could drill holes in the spacers.

Very nice picture to illustrate the concept,
keeping any strain off the internal components.

I also ordered a 15/30/45 crimp tool so that we will
have the capability locally, and at Gatherings.

Thanks.

 

[leafmealone]

Thanks to Chris for putting together the workshop and all his efforts!

Dori so graciously provided a great location.

Watching MashedPotato building the adafruit display was amazing.

Thanks to Robert for the soldering tips!

The experience was invaluable and I learned so much from observing everyone. It will make finishing mine so much easier!

Hats off again to Chris.

 

[garygid]

Connecting the AC Power Input Cable:

The AC Power cable usually has two "hot" wires (Red and Black),
and a Ground wire (Green). In some cords there might be a
white Neutral wire, which we do not use.

Note: If you want to put a ferrite "tube" on the AC Input, it is probably
good to slide it over the Red and Black "hot"wires near where they
enter the box through the gland, well before they attach
to the fuse holders. However, if you might want to remove it,
perhaps to make comparison measurements, then putting it over
the wires that go from the fuse holders to the relay is another option.

1. The green Ground wire attaches to the Ground Bar, at one of
the screw terminals there.

2. The hot Black wire will connect to the end of a fuse carrier, often
connected by soldering. The other "end" (sometimes a "side" terminal)
of the fuse holder connects (using another piece of the same Black
wire) to the relay, usually with a crimp-on spade-lug connectors on
the relay end, and soldered on the fuse-holder end.

Use of appropriate shrink tubing to cover the end and side connection
of the fuse holder should be considered, but is probably not required.

If using a surge-suppression component, it is usually attached between
the fused (side) side of the AC hot line and Ground, using as short a
connection as is practical. So, mounting the Ground Bar close to the fuses
is probably desirable.

3. Attach the other hot AC Input (usually Red in a 240v cable) in the
same way as #2, but using the other fuse holder and 2nd pole of
the relay.

Note: All four of the AC Power connections to the relay are made with
crimp-on connectors if the relay has spade lugs to use. Higher current
relays will typically have screw terminals to use.

 

[z0ner]

If someone (maybe even Gary if he's finished) can post a couple of detailed, close up shots of his subset instructions, I'm sure many would be very appreciative (including me ).

 

[mitch672]

zOner, you can look at my build on the OpenEVSE google site, lots of pictures.

http://code.google.com/p/open-evse/wiki/EVSE_by_mwolrich" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mitch

 

[LeafyD]

Chris and Gary, thanks for that great build event Saturday! I learned a lot of new skills and hope to learn some more in the course of finishing up my project.  And, yes , even though my popcorn was snubbed and the chocolate thingies downright insulted  :? , I do look forward to making the office available for more such gatherings in the future. I appreciated the clean up job everyone did and thank you for the kind words above!  Dori 

 

[fotajoye]

I have read the recent posts and I applaud those who participated. I built my unit from the simple board without an Arduino; however, for those of you who want an introduction to what an Arduino is about, perhaps the following link will be of value:
http://twit.tv/show/know-how/21" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[TonyWilliams]

Chris,

Please confirm that I have genuine ITT 75 amp plugs !!!!

Tony

Ok, I've confirmed the problem is 100% on the Blink side. I constructed a J1772 extension using a brand-new 70A ITT inlet connected to a brand-new 70A handle. I then connected this to the same blink and then to the Rav4.

Here's a thermograph of the same Rav4 inlet after charging 60 minutes at 30A with the new handle: (Evenly balanced and only 88 degrees max)

Here's the new 70A inlet connected to the same Blink, not it looks almost the same as the Rav4 did in my first test!

Here's the Blink handle:

I think it's safe to say the Blink has a problem on one side. I will take it apart later for inspection.

-Phil

 

[chris1howell]

Chris,

Please confirm that I have genuine ITT 75 amp plugs !!!!

Tony

Yes sir, I only recommend and use the genuine Leviton/ITT cables.

The cables provided in the workshop were the 75A ITT and 30A ITT purchased directly from Leviton.

 

[MashedPotato]

If I had paid more attention at the workshop to those who were building the 75amp EVSE, I would know the answer to this question.

How is that HUGE 75amp contactor energized? Does the Open EVSE board do it directly, or is it connected to a relay which in turn energizes the contactor?

Harry

 

[TonyWilliams]

If I had paid more attention at the workshop to those who were building the 75amp EVSE, I would know the answer to this question.

How is that HUGE 75amp contactor energized? Does the Open EVSE board do it directly, or is it connected to a relay which in turn energizes the contactor?

Harry

There's a relay.

Here's the 65 amp model in my Clipper Creek CS-40 that I brought along for show-and-tell.