IEC 62196

The following parts of IEC 62196 series have been published: Additional parts of IEC 62196 are under preparation (as of April 2024):[10] IEC 62196-1 provides a general description of the interface between an electric vehicle and a charging station as well as general mechanical and electrical requirements and tests for plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets that are intended to be used for EV charging.

This edition was applicable to plugs, socket-outlets, connectors, inlets and cable assemblies for AC and DC charging of electric vehicles with rated voltages and rated currents as follows: Typical connectors and inlets that were built according to this edition of the standard used spring-loaded butt contacts and were made by Avcon and Maréchal Electric.

One significant change was the increase of the maximum voltage of connectors, inlets and cable assemblies for DC charging to 1500 V. The development of this edition was coordinated with the first edition of IEC 62196-2, which describes several configurations of pin-and-sleeve contacts for AC charging.

This edition includes additional requirements for contact materials and plating, makes changes to the temperature rise test to include additional points of measurement, and includes additional tests for accessories to address thermal stresses and stability, mechanical wear and abuse, and exposure to contaminants.

The designs are described with sufficient detail to allow compatibility between products of different manufacturers.

IEC 62196-2 describes three different designs (Types 1, 2, and 3) with different configurations and dimensions which support: Each design includes male and female connectors, generally arranged as The EVSE may be a tethered station, in which case the cable is permanently attached and only the latter two interfaces are relevant.

In Europe, untethered stations may be offered, where the cable is detachable and all four interfaces are present.

It features a round housing, which has a notch on the vehicle inlet for proper orientation, with five pin-and-sleeve contacts for two AC conductors, a protective conductor and two signal pins that are used for the control pilot function (according to IEC 61851-1 Annex A) and for proximity detection (using an auxiliary switch and no current coding, according to IEC 61851-1 Annex B).

It features a round housing, which is flattened on one side for proper orientation, with up to seven pin-and-sleeve contacts for up to four AC conductors, a protective conductor and two signal pins that are used for the control pilot function (according to IEC 61851-1 Annex A) and for simultaneous proximity detection and current coding (according to IEC 61851-1 Annex B).

Since the second edition of the standard, additional touch protection of the contacts can optionally be provided by shutters.

Pins and sleeves were swapped between the inlet and the connector and the dimensions were slightly changed.

Typically, Type 3C is encountered on charging infrastructure (but not vehicles) because it provides a shutter to prevent touching the contacts, which is a requirement for publicly-accessible EVSE in 12 European countries.

[16]: 8, 10, 12 It features an oval housing, which is flattened on two sides for proper orientation, with up to seven pin-and-sleeve contacts for up to four AC conductors, a protective earth conductor and one or two signal pins that are used for simultaneous proximity detection and current coding (according to IEC 61851-1 Annex B) and, where present, for the control pilot function (according to IEC 61851-1 Annex A).

The designs are described with sufficient detail to allow compatibility between products of different manufacturers.

Configurations with the letters CC and DD were discussed during the work on the document but are not specified in the published version of IEC 62196-3:2014.

Within the European Union, regulation requires all public DC charging stations to be equipped with a configuration FF connector.

This IEC technical specification describes how vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets according to IEC 62196-3 can be used with cables with quite small conductor cross section if thermal management is applied.