INSOC – Integrated Solar DC Charging for Light Electric Vehicles

What is it?

INSOC is a charging infrastructure solution consisting of an easily replicable and scalable low-power DC-charging station for Light Electric Vehicles (LEVs) such as e-kick scooters and e-bikes with on-site produced renewable solar energy by an integrated PV canopy. The solution is modular, with 1 charger offering a space for parking and charging of 6 light electric vehicles.

INSOC offers charging LEVs via a Schuko socket that blocks the cable during charging to prevent cable theft. Another way of charging with INSOC is to recharge electric kick-scooters that have been suitably retrofitted in wireless/inductive DC mode.

INSOC connects with the INCAR mobile application back-end for the management of charging as well as related payments.

The INSOC system addresses the charging needs of LEVs in urban areas with the objective of minimizing logistics and operation costs for private users and e-mobility sharing service providers, avoiding the need to remove and charge batteries in an external hub. It also reduces the prices for the final users and improves their user experience due to the integration of charge-park-pay services.

Where?

INSOC will be demonstrated in Barcelona, Budapest, Rome, and Turku as well as Florence and Murcia.

For whom?

INSOC is designed for LEVs users and e-bike private users and renting companies. It will also benefit energy suppliers and Distribution System Operators due to the smart integration with decentralised renewable energy that minimise the grid impact and offer flexibility to the grid.

INSOC is expected to meet the needs of different actors involved in soft mobility management:

Public car parks (example context: park-and-ride car parks, serving citizens who decide to travel by their own light electric vehicles)
Recharging islands for light vehicles provided by sharing companies: in particular, the wireless mode would facilitate the collaboration of the end user in preparing the electric scooter for recharging by reducing the O&M costs of the scooter operator.
Employee parking of light electric vehicles to support soft mobility in a corporate context.

Timeline

What’s new with INSOC?

INSOC will be installed in all demonstration sited during August and September 2023.

ENEL-X way presented the final design of INSOC and is marketing the solution under the market name WayPark Micro. The production is ongoing without any technical issues.

Related deliverables

D5.1 INSOC System design

Contact

Maria Chiara Cavarretta – ENEL X Way

maria.cavarretta@enel.com