Priority-Based Charging of Electric Vehicles to Prevent Distribution Transformer Overloading

There is a need for charge scheduling schemes that can manage the adverse effects on distribution systems due to the imminent influx of electric vehicles. An immediate effect of widespread domestic charging will be sustained overloads on the distribution transformer, especially during the peak load hours. In this paper, a scheduling algorithm that prevents the transformer’s load from rising beyond its rated capacity is introduced. During peak load hours, the charging of low-priority vehicles is delayed until sufficient capacity becomes available. The priority value assigned to each plugged-in vehicle is designed to reflect its owner’s urgency of charge requirement. By shifting the electric vehicle loads from on-peak to off-peak hours, the scheduling algorithm can limit the transformer loading without missing any charging deadline.