[YoSePpI]

Good to make things less confusing for the masses. It'll also make replacement and accessory parts cheaper.

 

[Jeffhre1]

If everyone goes to SAE, then will makers have the choice of proprietary on the car with a short SAE compatible cord or will all makers be all SAE all the time. Older news but related ( http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/shai_agassi_on_electric_cars.html )

 

[CaptJackSparrow1]

3!!!!

They need to focus on protecting the contacts/plug from the elements so those who park outside like me because my trailer park has no garage won't fry the car or have a human BBQ.

 

[c_harnett]

Now, people are going to be freaked out over whether or not they can plug it into a regular wall socket.

Memo to GM: This SAE standard is all well and good but if you can't plug the Volt into a regular wall socket, too, that's not going to be real good for business. Sometimes, less is more. As in, less talk about the Volt might be more productive for GM and better PR for the Volt.

 

[Twitterific]

Let the folks at Monster design the cable. These guys know what they are doing. All other cables pale in comparison. Let Monster handle it and be done with it. All this design by committee creates nothing but watered down garbage. Too much politics involved in standards groups, they never have the interest of the end-user in mind, just how to fatten their corporate wallets.

 

[CaptJackSparrow1]

That connector above better have a standard NEMA20A on the other side to charge the car.
There is an "onboard charger" on the Volt right? You should be able to plug right into a 110VAC NEMA20A houshold outlet? From the look of that adapter you'll need another adapter to couple the connectors.

Can of worms......OPEN!

 

[statik7]

I thought all the major auto companies had already gotten together years ago and decided they would use this plug? Maybe this is just making it 'officially' offical? I've never heard of anyone planning on using anything but.
------------------
I would say they already decided on this standard plug over a decade ago (although I don't believe it was level 2 then (240V)...but I could be wrong):

SAE Committee Selects Conductive Technology for Use As a Universal Electric Vehicle Charging Standard

WARRENDALE, Pa., May 27 -- After 18 months of extensive
deliberations and testing, the Society of Automotive Engineers Electric Vehicle Charging Systems Committee has voted to adopt a charge coupler design based on butt type contact technology for incorporation into the SAE J1772 Recommended Practice for EV Conductive Charge Coupler.

The decision marks a significant milestone in the effort to establish a single EV charging standard and sets the stage for a marketplace competition...

"The vigorous competition resulted in improvements in both designs under consideration," said Craig Toepfer, chairman of the SAE Electric Vehicle Charging Systems Committee. "The committee members carefully weighed the test results, evaluated the compliance of each design with the performance and functional requirements specified in J1772 -- including human factors and the perception of safety -- and chose the design they felt represented the best technology for the application."

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/press/date/19980527/press012917.html

 

[DDB]

Capt Jack @ 6 strikes again...can you plug that thing into a regular 110V wall outlet? ANYONE???

 

[Steven16]

They should just use the standard 3 prong plug that your toaster has. Everyone is familiar with that.

 

[Randy1]

I f I remember correctly about the voltage/current relationship, the advantage of a 220-240V/8A draw over a 110-120V/8A draw is that there is a constant flow of electrons (albeit in different directions) with 220V (both halves of the sine wave/two hot legs/push and pull) as opposed to only having current flow half the cycle (hz) with 110V. My point is that if the wiring can only handle 8A, the 220V option should take close to half the time (in theory atleast). Are 220-240V GFI circuits going to be required? Are they available/common? I could be way off--it's been 35 years since I took that correspondence course.

 

[statik7]

#7 Statik (me)

Sorry I meant to put the whole date on that article I linked...it was from May 27th, 1998...about 11 years old

 

[SteveF]

Any special plug should only be optional. Provide the new auto charging standard plug only if it for supporting higher AMPs and intelligent communication to the elec grid. Then, provide the support for standard 110V plug that will fit anywhere at home or on the road, even if less effective or not as safe (it still is grounded so should be as safe as other home fixtures).

 

[stopcrazypp1]

Worst comes to worst, you will have to use an adapter for 110v/220v charging. The standard J1772 will be useful for faster charging systems outside the home, since those will require a external charger.

If the standard gets adopted, you will see a J1772 socket on the car and you will probably be provided an adapter to plug into your standard 110v sockets (or the car will have a separate socket for that, but that's less likely). The advantage of a standard socket on the car is that once things get going it'll be easy to find adapters for all kinds of sockets since all the plug-ins will use the same socket on the car end.

 

[Jim I]

I think you are missing the point here. This plug and socket is for the car end. The other end will be a regular wall plug for 120V.

It makes all the cars have the same plug in adapter. So if charging stations do become a reality, there is no problem in plugging in any car.

I think the reason they are not making a reguar cord adapter on the car is that they do not want you plugging in a #18 lamp extension cord and having it melt, or you getting a real shock if you are standing in a puddle when you plug it in!

RandyB #11: GFCI breakers for 240V are readily available. They are a bit expensive however. I have one on my pool filter circuit.

 

[logistiker]

In reply to #6 & #9:

My guess is by the number of prongs on the J1772 plug (1 ground, 1 neutral and two hots) they want one cable to rule them all (pun intended) that they provide with the car to handle dual voltage. Then you have adapters for 220V plugs (there are many styles in Europe and the US) and an adapter for the standard 110V 3-prong plug. Frankly, I'll be running a 220v circuit to my garage since I'd rather take advantage of faster charge times.

 

[George K]

#4 charlie h
"but if you can’t plug the Volt into a regular wall socket, too, that’s not going to be real good for business"

In several of the pics I've seen, of the Volt charging, I have seen a handle like high tech looking device which has a light on indicating it is still charging.

http://www.hybridcars.com/gallery/22082/photo

If I charge at home and at work, or a downtown charging station, or a friends house, etc., I don't want to have to carry the special charging extension cord with me (in order to tell if it is still charging), or for any reason for that matter.

The other thing is, the first thing people are going to do when they go to buy a Volt, is to buy an extension cord. I, myself, have one that is 25' and one that is 50' , both 12 gauge, for another location.

I am against this type of device (picture), as it gets away from standardization. The light indicator should be on the car itself, not a unique extension cord!!!!

Hymotion has a very simple setup for charging a Prius. A spring loaded rubber stopper , hinges on the top. It's a bit cheap, but it allows for a standard extension cord.

=D~~~~

 

[statik7]

#11 RandyB said:

I f I remember correctly about the voltage/current relationship, the advantage of a 220-240V/8A draw over a 110-120V/8A draw is that there is a constant flow of electrons (albeit in different directions) with 220V (both halves of the sine wave/two hot legs/push and pull) as opposed to only having current flow half the cycle (hz) with 110V. My point is that if the wiring can only handle 8A, the 220V option should take close to half the time (in theory atleast). Are 220-240V GFI circuits going to be required? Are they available/common? I could be way off–it’s been 35 years since I took that correspondence course.
==============================

I don't know if they are required, but according the the test package from Hymotion PHEV Prius it says you have to have a GFCI...so I think it is likely it will be required sometime (if not now).

I do know, that if you have your plug in the garage, (which seems likely, lol) it is required in many places (but not all)....along with a weatherproof receptacle. Going to cost you $100-$150 bucks, used to be a tricky purchase, but Home Depot has carried them for several years now.

Going to need 2-pole device config, 2-pole devices connect to the 2 Line conductors on 240V branch circuits, or the 2 Line and the 1 grounded Neutral conductors on 120V/240V multiwire branch circuits.

 

[DonC]

The plug is actually very important but contrary to the suggestion above it has been discussed a number of times. The bottom line is that standards are good, especially when, among other things, they prevent you from being electrocuted. (People arguing they just want a standard plug should be able to get one -- quick exit from the gene pool and so forth! LOL). The third connection is for two communication with the grid (not available) or a charging station.

Nice find by statik. Yeah, standards take a long time to develop.