DevicePilot partners with Connected Kerb and University of Strathclyde for Electric Vehicle project

‘Assure Charge’ project aims to bring 99% reliability to EV charging

Cambridge, UK, 14 October 2021 – DevicePilot, the service monitoring platform for connected devices, today announced its partnership with the ‘Assure Charge’ project – alongside EV charging company, Connected Kerb, and PNDC, part of the University of Strathclyde. The seven-month research project aims to improve the reliability and efficiency of Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure, to combat user experience issues that remain a major barrier to entry for consumers. The DevicePilot platform will continuously monitor and analyse several Connected Kerb charge points in Scotland.  Its real-time data will be used to identify potential technical issues, coordinate repairs/software updates, and automate maintenance – helping Connected Kerb reach targets of 99%+ uptime/reliability. The aim of this small trial is to create processes that will work for tens of thousands of devices in a nationwide rollout, covering reactive, proactive, and preventive maintenance.  

EV charging is a relatively new infrastructure challenge for local councils and traditional vehicle service hubs such as petrol stations and supermarkets. There is a growing demand for greater than 99% reliability of EV charging infrastructure, as supported by The EV Energy Taskforce and EVA England. This is seen as an important milestone for EVs to achieve widespread adoption in the UK. However, charge points are routinely found in disrepair. They regularly break through accident and misuse, and need routine physical maintenance as well as remote software updates to work efficiently.

Funded by Innovate UK, the Assure Charge project has deployed a small number of charge points in Scotland which will be monitored using the DevicePilot platform. DevicePilot will monitor for common faults, such as overheating, power cuts and components breaking down. For example, physical sensors in the charge points can tell if the device is at 90 degrees, or if it has been accidently damaged by a vehicle. The platform will be used to troubleshoot these issues and schedule repair tasks. Connected Kerb will also use this data to help it improve diagnostics, predict failure rates based on usage, and automate maintenance.

DevicePilot CEO and co-founder, Pilgrim Beart said:

“A lesson I learnt early in my technology career is that ‘anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.’ This mantra is certainly true for EV charging. A massive network of consumer devices in almost constant use will naturally encounter user error and costly repairs on a routine basis. It’s not a problem we can kick down the road. It’s vital that the right processes are developed now to pre-empt and mitigate these inevitable issues.  

“Assure Charge is a remarkable project, but we are just one piece in a much bigger puzzle. People in the UK can refuel combustion engine cars seamlessly anywhere in the country, but only because of decades of work and innovation behind the scenes. EV charging has a similarly long road ahead of it, and this project is a perfect demonstration of how many stakeholders need to come together to build an ecosystem that actually works on a mass scale.”

Ryan Sims, Senior Research & Development Engineer at PNDC, said:

“Ensuring a reliable charging network is highlighted by the OZEV as one of four critical areas for mass-market EV roll-out. The PNDC team is excited to apply its experience in EV infrastructure and power networks to this challenge, and look forward to working in collaboration with Connected Kerb to improve the user experience for EV drivers across the UK.”

Richard Turnbull, Head of Wireless & Innovation Projects for Connected Kerb, commented:

“As we near the 2030 Net Zero target and the number and utilisation of charging points increases, reliability will play a critical role in keeping motorists moving and ensuring a smooth transition to zero emission travel. 

“Through this project we plan to improve charge point analytics in real time to provide a solution that offers full transparency and creates predictive and preventative O&M solutions. Ultimately, if successful, this will improve standards and confidence in network reliability, enabling a quicker transition to zero emission travel. We are looking forward to progressing this project and are really proud to be involved.”

About DevicePilot

DevicePilot is a SaaS company based in London, UK, providing the device analytics needed to analyse performance, track KPIs and trigger actions from IoT devices. The company works with IoT industry leaders to help grow businesses whilst keeping operational costs down. Unlike DIY systems, the tool is easy to use and infinitely scalable.

About Connected Kerb

Connected Kerb are one of the UK’s leading charging point providers, delivering future-proof, cost-effective and sustainable EV charging solutions for the public sector, developers, fleets, workplaces, car parks and other organisations to help accelerate the transition to EVs for all. Its unique solution combines power and data at the kerb to deliver user-friendly and reliable charging and provide the foundation for connected cities and communities.