Arrow Electronics V2G reference design accelerates EV charger development

ISO 15118 software protocols and HomePlug Green PHY module jump start projects, leveraging preferred industry standards for feature-rich and future-proof electric vehicle charging

Arrow Electronics has unveiled a data-communication reference design for electric vehicles (EV) charging that combines software stacks for state-of-the-art protocols and a HomePlug Green PHY™ hardware module. The reference design helps accelerate time-to-market for EV supply equipment (EVSE) meeting the latest industry standards.

The software, developed at Arrow’s engineering solutions centre in Gdansk, contains protocol stacks for ISO 15118 Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) communication. There is also sample application code, as well as support for Open Charge-Point Protocol (OCCP) and Control Pilot interfaces as defined in IEC 61851 and SAE J1772.

“V2G is required for fast DC chargers and quickly becoming the preferred communication protocol for AC charging. It increases charger functionality with future-proof capabilities, including wireless charging, bi-directional power transfer and plug-and-charge feature,” said Vitali Damasevich, director of engineering for Eastern Europe and Arrow’s engineering solutions center EMEA. “Our reference design enables EV chargers producers to quickly adopt the new standard, relieving much of the software development needed by including the ISO 15118 protocol stack, and also providing a HomePlug Green PHY module to assist hardware design and integration.”

Completing the reference design, the hardware communication module contains the Lumissil CG5317 HomePlug Green PHY low-power communications transceiver. This integrated circuit is HomePlug compliant and AEC-Q100 Grade 2 qualified, allowing operation from -40°C to 105°C.

The Arrow GreenPHY reference design board is easily connected to various evaluation boards for testing and development, and Arrow’s engineers are ready to help customers integrate with their chosen MPU or MCU platform when finalising the design for production. Turnkey conformance tests are also available to help customers verify correct operation when connecting to various popular EV models. This saves significant time and development costs to secure the necessary product-level approvals.

The combination of software stacks and sample code, engineering support, and vehicle-specific tests presents a fast and efficient route to market. Moreover, the engineering team at Arrow’s engineering solutions centre is committed to ongoing development of the ISO 15118 stack as specifications evolve.

The software stack has recently been deployed by Arrow engineering services provider eInfochips in their DC charger design. THE DCFC is tailored for small and mid-sized commercial and public EV charging. With support for both U.S. and EU markets, and compliant with CE, FCC and UL standards, DCFC can also be managed remotely by drivers and charge point service providers via the eInfochips EVWER platform and mobile app.

The EV charging reference design is available now. For more information, please visit

Arrow Electronics released their own Vehicle-to-Grid communication Software Stack | Arrow.com 

Credit: Arrow Electronics