Electric Vehicle Charging
This guide and the corresponding flow diagrams are designed for Charge Point Operators (CPO), Charge Point Manufacturers (OEM’s) or Charge Station Management System (CSMS) developers to provide a series of recommended procedures for single or multiple connectors on chargers that are integrated with Payter terminals using cloud APIs.
The guide is structured into four key topics. Each topic focuses on different aspects of utilizing Payter services to enhance the user experience and operational efficiency.
Whilst much of the content in this guide applies to both the P6x and Apollo device families, some functionality is only possible with the newer Apollo range, particularly graphical User Interface customization and Incremental Authorization features.
This guide frequently refers to MyPayter, the terminal management and reporting portal used to manage all Payter solutions. Be mindful that there are entirely separate test and production versions of MyPayter so please ensure any changes made take place in the most appropriate version for your requirements.
Please also note that, for security reasons, the two deployments are entirely separated meaning that it is not possible to move or copy any configuration parameters from one to the other.
All references to the display or provision of a receipt merely indicate that it would be commonplace or recommended for integrators to provide receipt data at this stage. Payter solutions cannot generate receipts directly, and will only display provided text, images or a QR code as defined and controlled by the integrator who must otherwise include or have access to a receipt generation and management solution.
Use Case and the User Experience
When and why to Start and Stop sessions are fully in the domain of the controller, but there are certain standardized approaches employed in the EV Industry, which are detailed in their own dedicated pages.
Payter emphasize the handling of adverse scenarios such as declined transactions, communication losses, and system errors. The outlined use cases address such situations to enhance system reliability and user experience by detailing error handling and recovery procedures, thereby ensuring operational consistency under a variety of conditions.
Each use case provides a detailed sequence of interactions between the driver and the system, showcasing the system’s capabilities to manage success and failures, communicate effectively with the user, and secure transactional integrity. All use cases share some fundamental similarities; A core flow that starts with the capture of card data, and ends with a charging session, and final payment, being completed.
Start Session
Different options on how to begin the process of card payment:
Stop Session
How to ensure a session is ended by an authorized person and finalized promptly and accurately:
Error Scenarios
A selection of possible issues and how to handle them, when either the charge station or driver do not follow the expected paths.
Things to Consider
In addition to the provided Use Cases, there are a few key things to consider when accepting card payments as a Charge Point Operator. These are summarised below and detailed in a linked, dedicated page for each.
| Things to Consider | Description |
|---|---|
| EV Receipts | Guidance on how to provide receipts to drivers, following a completed charge session. |
| Setting the Authorization Amount | Some best practice on ensuring that payment is taken for all dispensed goods. |
| Integration Approach | The Pro’s and Con’s of a local or cloud integration. |
| Session Management | The importance of ensuring sessions are closed in a timely fashion. |
| Pre-Session Checklist | Everything required before starting a charge session. |
| Post-Session Checklist | Everything that needs to be finalized when charging is completed. |
| Idle Fees | When a vehicle is parked in a charging bay but has completed charging, idle fees can encourage the bay to be released. |
User Interface (UI) Options
Throughout these flows, there are references to using the terminal to provide a user interface.
- This is completely optional
- This is available on the Apollo terminal family only
- The functionality to achieve this is documented separately, here.
Glossary of Terms
There are a number of acronyms used throughout this documentation. Some common ones are referenced below.
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| RFID | Radio Frequency Identification Every other kind of contactless-enabled card, including non-EMV payment cards, E-MSP cards, other closed-user group cards, and even hotel room keys. |
| CUG | Closed User Group A subset of RFID cards that can be used to identify a specific user. Can be used as a membership scheme, to provide a discount, or for any other use where possession is considered important. Payter devices read these cards, but do not generally validate or authenticate them. |
| UI | User Interface Usually a touchscreen on a charger, that allows the driver to interact with the Charge Station. In some implementations, this can be as simple as printed instructions on the charger e.g. “Plug in to Start” |