This EV charger reference design is particularly advantageous for high-end residential and commercial applications, requiring a high degree of integration.
The reliability and performance of Electric Vehicle (EV) chargers are essential for driving global market adoption. EV manufacturers prioritise delivering robust, weather-resistant, and user-friendly charging solutions. Microchip Technology has introduced a flexible and scalable EV Charger Reference Design to support this effort and accelerate development. This reference design integrates most of the active components required for EV chargers, including the microcontroller (MCU), analog front-end, memory, connectivity, and power conversion—all sourced from Microchip. This comprehensive integration streamlines the development process, allowing manufacturers to bring new charging solutions to market more quickly. The EV charger reference designs are adaptable, offering various solutions to meet the diverse needs of residential and commercial charging applications. These designs come with complete hardware design files, source code, and software stacks that are rigorously tested and compliant with industry communication protocols, such as the Open Charge Point Protocol (OCPP).
OCPP ensures interoperability between charging stations and central systems, independent of the network or vendor. It is tailored for high-end residential and commercial charging stations. It features integration with OCPP 1.6 for communication with charging networks and a Wi-Fi SoC for remote management, making it ideal for sophisticated charging setups. It achieves cost efficiency by combining secure communications and the OCPP 1.6 stack on a Wi-Fi MCU-based SoC module (WFI32). The design also includes an AC energy metering function via the ATM90E32, which enhances reporting capabilities, reduces the processing load on the SoC, and simplifies the manufacturing process through automated calibration. The design supports the expansion of charging capacity up to 22kW with an integrated relay and driver. This design offers an integrated solution that combines communication and the OCPP 1.6 stack on a WFI32 SoC module, reducing system costs while enhancing compatibility and reliability for high-end residential and commercial applications using Microchip-sourced components. It features the ATM90E32AS for precise energy monitoring, essential for accurate billing, and an onboard relay and driver with built-in safety mechanisms for flexible and secure charging.
The design supports robust connectivity via Wi-Fi, GSM/LTE, and Ethernet, and ensures secure WebSocket (WSS) communication through a compliant OCPP 1.6 stack, complemented by full CP logic for reliable vehicle communication and a secure boot loader with firmware update capabilities. Ready for rapid deployment, it includes functional source code and compliant OCPP stacks in a library format, supports up to 22kW power with 1% energy measurement accuracy, and integrates safety features like PEN detection, RCD, and earth fault detection, with communication options for cloud connectivity via OCPP 1.6.
Microchip has tested this reference design. It comes with a bill of materials (BOM), schematics, assembly drawing, printed circuit board (PCB) layout, and more. The company’s website has additional data about the reference design. To read more about this reference design, click here.
