The impact of quick charging stations on the route planning of electric vehicles

Many companies have a growing interest in utilizing alternative fuel vehicles in their logistics operations due to increasing environmental concerns in developed countries. Consequently, green vehicle routing problems have attracted more attention in the literature. The Electric Vehicle Routing Problem (EVRP) is one such problem where the customers are served using an electric vehicle (EV) fleet. In this problem, the energy on the battery of the EV is consumed proportionally with distance traveled and the EV may need recharging en route in order to complete its tour. In this study, we consider a variant of EVRP where the customers are associated with service time windows and the stations may be equipped with normal and quick charging systems. In the quick charge case, the battery is recharged with the same energy in a shorter time but at a higher cost. Our objective is to minimize energy costs while operating minimum number of vehicles. We formulate the mathematical programming models of the single and multiple charger cases and solve them using a commercial solver. Our aim is to investigate the complexity of the problems and analyze the potential benefits associated with the quick charging option

Forecasting Recharging Demand to Integrate Electric Vehicle Fleets in Smart Grids

Electric vehicle fleets and smart grids are two growing technologies. These technologies provided new possibilities to reduce pollution and increase energy efficiency. In this sense, electric vehicles are used as mobile loads in the power grid. A distributed charging prioritization methodology is proposed in this paper. The solution is based on the concept of virtual power plants and the usage of evolutionary computation algorithms. Additionally, the comparison of several evolutionary algorithms, genetic algorithm, genetic algorithm with evolution control, particle swarm optimization, and hybrid solution are shown in order to evaluate the proposed architecture. The proposed solution is presented to prevent the overload of the power grid

IVIsion and IVInet – Tool Chain for the Electrification of City Bus Routes

AbstractThe Fraunhofer Institute for Transportation and Infrastructure (IVI) developed a method and matching tools (IVIsion and IVInet) that analyzes and evaluates individual bus routes or entire bus route networks regarding their suitability for electric buses.IVInet analyses the vehicle rostering plan and the route network. The software is designed especially for the development of suitable solutions in the transfer from diesel-powered bus networks to electric buses. Based on generalized values for traction energy demands and simplified assumptions regarding the energy demand of auxiliaries, heating, and cooling, the state of charge of the energy storage is analysed for the vehicle circulation under consideration of a boost charging strategy. With an optimization method the optimal number of charging infrastructure will be find under given conditions.IVIsion is an in-house development that comprises several program modules for data processing, for the calculation of driving systems, and for evaluating the calculation results. At least it contains more than 200 preconfigured drive trains for conventional, parallel, and serial hybrid as well as purely electrical driving systems. IVIsion offers opportunity for detailed calculations that take into account models for auxiliary units, the wiring system, drive train cooling, and passenger compartment air conditioning. All powertrain components, auxiliary components and their respective intelligent control strategies are part of the tool. The usage of the tool chain is explained in an application example

The Critical Role of Public Charging Infrastructure

Editors: Peter Fox-Penner, PhD, Z. Justin Ren, PhD, David O. JermainA decade after the launch of the contemporary global electric vehicle (EV) market, most cities face a major challenge preparing for rising EV demand. Some cities, and the leaders who shape them, are meeting and even leading demand for EV infrastructure. This book aggregates deep, groundbreaking research in the areas of urban EV deployment for city managers, private developers, urban planners, and utilities who want to understand and lead change

Comparative Analysis of European Examples of Freight Electric Vehicles Schemes—A Systematic Case Study Approach with Examples from Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK.

E-Mobility is a hot topic, in the public policy area as well as in business and scientific communities. Literature on electric freight transport is still relatively scarce. Urban freight transport is considered as one of the most promising fields of application of vehicle electrification, and there are on-going demonstration projects. This paper will discuss case study examples of electric freight vehicle initiatives in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and the UK and identify enablers and barriers for common trends

Electric vehicle charging and routing management via multi-infrastructure data fusion

The introduction of Electric Vehicles (EVs) has placed a strain on the aged and already overworked electrical grid. With each EV requiring the same amount of power as 3 to 140 single family homes, depending on how fast the charge occurs, measures need to be taken in order to protect the electrical grid from serious damage. The electric grid renovations proposed by the U.S. department of energy, commonly referred to as the smart grid, could help accommodate an even greater EV penetration. The introduction of the smart grid and other cutting-edge technologies create the potential for applications which provide new consumer conveniences and aid in the preservation of the electrical grid. This thesis aims to create one such application through the production of a prototype system which takes advantage of current and in-development technologies in order to route an electric vehicle to the closest and least detrimental charge station based on current conditions. Traffic conditions are assessed based on data collected from both ITSs (Intelligent Transportation Systems) and VANETs (Vehicle Ad-hoc Networks), while grid information is gathered through the early stages of the Smart Grid. The system is hosted in a cloud environment base on the current trend of offloading Information Technology systems to the cloud ; this also allows for the advantages of a shared data space between sub-systems. As part of the thesis the prototype system was put through a stress test in a simulated environment in order to both establish system requirements and determine scalability for use with larger maps. The system requirements were compared with the technical specifications of an off-the-shelf GPS routing device. It was determined that such a device could not handle routing with such extensive underlying data, and will require hosting the prototype in a cloud environment. The system was also used to perform a case study on charging station placement in the Greater Rochester area. It was determined that the current charging stations are insufficient for a significant number of electric vehicles and that adding even six stations would provide a greater EV operational area and provide a more uniform distribution of charging station usage

New logistical issues in using electric vehicle fleets with battery exchange infrastructure

AbstractThere is much reason to believe that fleets of service vehicles of many organizations will transform their vehicles that utilize alternative fuels that are more sustainable. The electric vehicle (EV) is a good candidate for this transformation, especially which “refuels” by exchanging its spent batteries with charged ones. This paper discusses some new logistical issues that must be addressed by such EV fleets, principally the issues related to the limited driving range of each EV's set of charged batteries and the possible detouring for battery exchanges. In particular, the paper addresses (1) the routing and scheduling of the fleet, (2) the locations of battery-exchange stations, and (3) the sizing of each facility. An overview of the literature on the topic is provided and some initial results are presented

A genetic algorithm to minimise number of vehicles in an electric vehicle routing problem

National Research Foundation (NRF) Singapore under Corp Lab @ University scheme; Fujitsu Lt