The European commercial vehicle manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus AG has chosen ABB’s e-bus fast-charging units for its electric bus research and development facilities in Munich, Germany — specifically, for depot and opportunity charging — according to an email recently sent to EV Obsession.
To explain (for those not closely following the company’s announcements), MAN Truck & Bus announced a few months back plans for serial production of all-electric buses to begin by 2019, and pilot projects with the electric buses to begin in 2018.
The buses in question are of course being developed at the aforementioned MAN Truck & Bus R&D facilities in Munich, Germany.
“Energy efficient and sustainable transportation is a key focus area of ABB’s Next Level strategy and we are committed to further advance e-mobility,” stated Robert Itschner, Managing Director of ABB’s Power Conversion business unit. “ABB offers different technologies and solutions for electric vehicle charging and we are very pleased that MAN Truck & Bus chose our fast chargers for its test facilities.”
The email continues:
For depot charging tests — used at the terminus where a bus has a longer stop — MAN will use an ABB fast charger with a CCS2 connector at its facility. Following the EU standardization for electric vehicle charging, it is the same connector that is used for electric cars. For opportunity charging tests, ABB will supply a charge pole with inverted pantograph. With its automated rooftop connection and a typical charge time of three to six minutes, opportunity fast charging systems allow charging at end stops and can easily be integrated in existing bus routes.
The fast-charging solutions are based on IEC 61851-23, the international standard for fast charging electric vehicles. This ensures the appropriate safety systems are in place, the electrical design is in accordance with regulations, and the systems architecture and working principles are supported by a wider automotive community in the future.
Notably, both MAN Truck & Bus AG and ABB are program partners in the European e-bus charging system (eBusCS) initiative, which aims for the international standardization of electric bus charging standards.