The solution uses Versinetic load management module, LinkRay combined with Gemini’s payment technology to consolidate payments from any OCPP compatible EV charger onto one easy-to-manage payment terminal and platform. The solution brings about considerable cost savings for EV site operators and simplifies overall charging point ownership and management.
Many EV charging operators manage charging sites containing multiple charging points from different vendors. Each AC and DC charging point post requires its own payment terminal and with it, ongoing subscription and management costs or the use of a mobile application requiring sign up and assignment of payment before charging.
The Versinetic-Gemini solution means that EV site owners will no longer need to purchase, install and maintain one payment terminal per charging point. Instead, the solution requires one terminal and therefore one cost for all chargers on the site. The solution also bypasses the need for EV charging site owners to subscribe to cloud services on a per charger basis at their facility.
Graeme Wintle, Director, Versinetic said: “As an EV design consultancy team and long-term champion of EVs, we are always looking to solve problems for our clients and facilitate the electrification of the UK's roads. As EV charging facility operators can face high set up and running costs, we believe our unified payment solution will be an industry game changer, it not only reduces overheads for site owners, it simplifies maintenance for installers through LinkRay’s remote troubleshooting capabilities. There is no comparable product on the market and we are looking forward to rolling it out to existing and new customers now.”
Versinetic’s partnership with Gemini 2000, further extends the functionality of its flagship product, LinkRay, which enables sophisticated charge management and remote monitoring capabilities, unparalleled in the current marketplace. LinkRay is a small hardware module that is fitted onsite and connects to any set of AC or DC chargers, balancing charge outputs so as not to exceed site limits. It can work standalone, handling authentication using RFID or the Gemini payment terminal or by passing messages from the chargers to an OCPP-compatible back-office management system (CSMS) to authorise transactions for billing.
Julian Moskov, Gemini 2000, said: “Our work with Versinetic will simplify payments for EV charging and ultimately help bring more EVs onto the roads. Versinetic’s LinkRay solution and long-standing experience in EV solutions was a great fit for our contactless payment technology. The payment process for EV charging can be a confusing and frustrating process for drivers and site operators alike. Our solution sees EV drivers benefiting from a simple and clear charging experience, and having one payment terminal to contend with benefits site operators with lower set-up and running costs.”
As a load balancing device, LinkRay can have up to 100 chargers connected to it. Any EV chargers, regardless of vendor, that are OCPP compatible can be linked to the LinkRay module. Further benefits of LinkRay include historical graphing of site power to ensure that power configuration, operational status and site usage is all within expected parameters.
Gemini’s payment terminal allows LinkRay to bridge the gap between an offline system with pre-authorised tags (whitelist), this scenario is commonly used with businesses not billing transactions on company vehicles, and a cloud-based systems predominantly taking payment for each transaction. LinkRay can be used in both scenarios or a hybrid of pre-authorised or paid transactions. Transaction logs can be downloaded from LinkRay or through the Gemini merchant portal.
