Carlo Gavazzi Introduces Level 1 And 2 EV Energy Level Meter
Carlo Gavazzi has released a single-phase electrical monitor device that is compact and has a backlit display to gather data about electrical system usage and real-time performance.
Measuring energy consumption is becoming a more complicated task than it used to be. New EV and alternative energy technologies place periodic demands on certain circuits, while sometimes even being used to deliver energy back to the grid in a reverse direction.
Electric Vehicle Charging And Solar Energy
The electric car is gaining in popularity every year, and some people have gone above and beyond and had charging stations installed in their homes. But how much energy are you actually consuming by charging your car at home? Home energy meters can view consumption to some extent, but they measure the combined amount of energy that the house is using, not respective to a single device or circuit.
Other common residential and commercial questions revolve around the use of solar panels or PV (photovoltaic cells) which convert sunlight into energy, but how much energy do they actually generate? Are your PV cells running at top efficiency?
These questions can only be quantitatively answered by measuring the energy for the circuit that is powering those devices.
Carlo Gavazzi, an automation component manufacturer, has recently released a single-phase energy meter that can help you determine energy consumption or generation and monitor real-time electrical system values.
Carlo Gavazzi’s new EM511 energy meter. Image used courtesy of Carlo Gavazzi
EM511 Energy Meter
Typically, household electrical power is considered single phase, but you technically have two phases in each home in North America, a layout often referred to as split phase. These two phases allow for up to 240 VAC current, 120 VAC in each phase. A level 1 EV charging unit uses 120 VAC (single phase), while the level 2 charger uses 240 VAC (two phase).
The EM511 is a single-phase self-contained energy meter that displays information about the circuit that is connected to it. Because the EM511 is an energy meter with bidirectional current flow, it can also be used in circuits that produce energy, such as a solar panel system, which produces DC current, or even applications where the vehicle pushes energy back into the electrical grid.
An energy meter can monitor, log, and even optimize EV charging. Image used courtesy of Unsplash
The EM511 features a 9-digit, backlit display for showing electrical data in dimly lit locations. Two mechanical keys are provided to scroll through data displayed on the device. The displays allow provide a configuration wizard that runs on a first-start-up routine. Technicians can quickly configure the EM511 using the provided keys and display.
Two terminal screws are provided that accept wire cross-sections up to 10 mm^2 or 8 AWG. This allows the EM511 to accept circuits with a current rating of up to 45 amps.
Measured Quantities
The variables measured and displayed are voltage, watts, VA (volt-amps), power factor, and Hz, with frequency being available over Modbus and has a resolution of 0.001 Hz. The consumed active energy has a resolution of 0.001 kWh.
Communication Protocols
A communication protocol is provided for configuration and live monitoring of electrical data. Standard digital outputs can provide alarm signals with both NO and NC digital contacts to interface with basic control systems. Different model versions of the EM511 provide either Modbus RTU on RS485 or M-Bus, a European meter connection standard, to transmit data to a PC with free software provided by Carlo Gavazzi.
UCS configuration and data view software. Image used courtesy of Carlo Gavazzi
Applications of Power Meters
A power meter on devices that consume or produce a lot of power allows technicians or users to data that can be used to determine if your system is running efficiently. With respect to solar panels, an end user can use the data collected from the EM511 to determine their return on investment.
With electric car charging applications, users can determine the exact cost of charging their cars at home or how much energy they have provided back into the electrical grid from their vehicles. These measurements might seem trivial for individual cases, but the total summation of energy used can become quite large over time.
Using a power meter such as the new Carlo Gavazzi EM511 gives the end user a better snapshot of power consumption and performance to ensure accurate and optimized electrical system performance.
