Ford’s Fathom electric vehicle is designed to make bidirectional charging more affordable by integrating much of the required power electronics into the vehicle itself. The system can charge when electricity prices are low and send power back to a home when prices rise, although customers will still need Ford’s Home Power Station and, for outage backup, a Home Backup Panel.
A charging system built into the vehicle
The new approach to bidirectional EV charging began when Ford acquired Auto Motive Power three years ago. The resulting technology is built around Fathom’s charging module, one of five powerful computers that each manage a different area of the vehicle’s functionality. This small number of domain controllers—an architecture associated with software-defined vehicles—replaces the dozens of separate electronic control units used in older designs.
Fathom currently does not require a wallbox with a built-in inverter, such as the 80-amp unit required by the Ford F-150 Lightning. However, Ford’s Home Power Station is still necessary. Ford says the device should cost about half as much as the $1,310 unit required for older heavy-duty trucks.
The system’s management software is designed to charge the vehicle when electricity prices are low and use the vehicle to power the home when prices are high.
Lower-cost home backup
Customers who want to use Fathom as an emergency battery during a power outage will also need Ford’s new Home Backup Panel. The automaker says the panel should cost 60 percent less than its first-generation panel, which cost about $5,000.
Adding vehicle-to-home, or V2H, capability to a home is therefore not free, but Ford says the new system should be considerably cheaper than earlier versions. Fathom is also the first two-way EV with AC power priced below $30,000.
Preparing for vehicle-to-grid testing
Ford is working with numerous utility companies in the United States and Canada to finalize the details required to begin Fathom’s vehicle-to-grid testing program. The company also says the system meets existing standards, including UL 1741 for chargers, IEEE 1547 for connecting vehicles to the power grid, and SAE J3068 for communications.
Source: arstechnica.com
