Transport Evolved, UK weekly show
Guys, did you have a look at how Teslas started ? Many or almost all major companies and/or their discoveries come from DIY ... and starts in a small garage ...
(JB Straubel, CTO of Tesla, on Tesla's early days, in front of Stanford students)
Kevin Sharpe, founder of
ZeroCarbonWolrd.org, gathered with friends to present the build of a DIY EVSE for any Electric Car in Europe
Very professional build and very instructive video, thanks Kevin !
"On Sunday 20th October 2013, Founder & Patron of Zero Carbon World - Kevin Sharpe, joined David Peilow and Grant Thomas for the UKs FIRST Electric Vehicle Supply Equpment (EVSE) Build Day. They built 3 32 Amp PORTABLE EVSE chargers. The whole event was followed live on Twitter using the hashtag #EVSEBuildDay.
What?
The objective was to show just how simple an Electric Car Charging station is; essentially 3 components. The completed units can charge all current and future electric cars as you can choose what connectivity.
Why?
This Portable EVSE will allow an Electric Car driver to connect to 'normal' electrical outlets found on Camp Sites, yachting marinas, commercial and hotels as well as the early Zero Carbon World Charging stations. This 32 Amp Commando Connection will allow a BMW i3 or a Leaf Mk 1.5 or a Tesla to charge at the full 32 Amps. Equally you could choose to fit a 16A commando plug, or indeed anything else you would like. Or build a simple 32A to 16A commando converter - we'll show you that as well!
An electric car, like the Nissan LEAF, comes with a charging cable (AKA EVSE brick) that trickle charges a Nissan LEAF at 10 Amps, meaning about 10 hours for a full charge. Using a dedicated charging station, or this Portable EVSE Charger, the same car could charge 60% faster at 16 Amps from a commando plug connection, and hence charges 60% quicker. If you have a BMW i3, or if you have paid £800 for the 6.6kWh charger in the Mk1.5 LEAF, you can charge at a full 32 Amps using this Portable EVSE, from a 32A Commando Connection reducing charging time to 4 hours.
As a Nissan LEAF / BMW i3 / Vauxhall Ampera / Citroen C-Zero / Mistubishi iMiev driver this will give you the flexibility to charge where and how you want. It's an essential piece of kit for the roving EV driver!"
