Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) is making available its 48 voltage DC protocol for electric charging solutions for the construction sector.
At present there is not an industry standard for 48V DC (direct current) charging solutions – the power required for electric compact machines – which means companies need to source multiple different chargers if they have a multi-branded fleet.
As a result, Volvo CE has published its own software protocol, as well as plug specifications, used on its 48V off-board DC chargers – with DC charging often commonly referred to as fast charging. This enables other OEMs and suppliers to use it in the development of their own charging solutions for compact machines.
A 48V power supply is designed for the smallest range of compact construction machines.
For heavier equipment, the use of a 600V power supply is required for which an industry standard protocol has already been designed.
Fredrik Tjernström, Electromobility Solutions Sales at Volvo CE, said: “By making our charging interface public, we hope that we will see more and more charging solution providers and other machine OEMs using one and the same charging protocol – moving us a step closer to an industry standard for the benefit of customers everywhere.”
Image courtesy of Volvo CE.
