EV Charger

Electric Charger and Parking Meter

Did you know there are idling fees for public EV charging?

Tesla’s EV stations charge its users $.50 per minute when there at full capacity if the vehicle is not moved after intended time. If they are at full capacity, they charge $1.00 per minute.

There is opportunity to combine EV charging stations with a parking meter so that the user can pay to park while also paying to charge their vehicle.

Research

Designing for ChargePoint

  • ChargePoint is an American EV company that is in 14 countries and is one of the leading companies for EV charging

  • Slow charging (3kW) takes 10-14 hours for a full charge

  • Fast charger (7kW - 22kW) takes 4 - 6 hours

  • Rapid Charger (50k W - 120kW) takes 1 hour

  • DC fast chargers can take as little as 20 minutes

Focuses

Exploration of different handle forms

  • A form that fits in the hand comfortable and seamlessly

  • Using ChargePoint’s bright orange and finding similar design styles

The goal was to keep ergonomics in mind.

The handle is meant to fit into someone’s hand intuitively while the overall shape of the meter is recognizable to the user.

Why This Design?

The Product

This concept eliminated having to wait for your car to charge and instead allows you to run errands freely.

A product that can make EV charging more accessible while preventing idling fees.

Learning Outcomes

The importance of scale

  • I now have learned from this project the importance of designing for the human interaction.

  • The size of the charging port in relation to the handle needed to have a smooth transition

Designing with ChargePoint’s aesthetic

  • Keeping the brand language apparent, incorporating new ideas and simultaneously maintaining a familiar user experience.