Table of Contents
Charging Station Configuration
1. Configuration on the online portal
Charging stations must belong to an electrical zone. Generally, a zone is limited by a 63A circuit breaker to which one or more stations are connected.
Under Electrical zones, first create a zone with a maximum current and associate one or more DLM meters (Dynamic Load Management).
It is possible to create one or more zones according to the configuration of the parking lot.
The association of one or more DLM meters to a zone aims to limit the current of that zone based on other uncontrollable loads. For example, if the zone is connected behind the common area meter, a DLM meter should be added to the common area. See connection diagram.
If a meter is installed at the start of the zone and measures only that zone, do not select it as a DLM meter.
Select the meter closest to the zone as the consumption meter (for example, Meter 11 in the above diagram).
It is necessary to correctly define the amperage of the selected DLM meter in the meter settings under Meters and associate it with the Climkit Gateway, which will read and control the stations.
Then, create the charging stations under Charging Stations and assign them to the Climkit Gateway and the zone to which they are connected.
In the Name field, enter its unique OCPP identifier. This is its serial number for ABB Terra (e.g., TACW1142021G1XYZ).
Select the ABB Terra model for ABB stations or standard OCPP for other models (Schneider, etc.).
2. Configuration of stations
The Climkit system is compatible with charging stations equipped with the OCPP communication protocol.
Depending on the manufacturers, the stations are configured via their internal web server (accessible with the station's IP address) or through a mobile application (iOS or Android), as is the case for ABB Terra AC or Schneider stations.
Configure the OCPP station with the URL of the Climkit OCPP server, which corresponds to the IP address of the Climkit Gateway (static IP to be defined in the router) and port 9000:
ws://192.168.2.10:9000
Then, enter the unique OCPP identifier of the station with which it connects to the OCPP server in the Climkit online portal under the station's name. ABB Terra stations have identifiers like "TACW2242920G0720".
Here’s an example with the identifier "A22113020017":
Refer to the Advanced Configuration section of this documentation for configurations of certain station models: ABB, Schneider, Zaptec...
3. Climkit Remote OCPP Server
When no Climkit Gateway is installed, it is possible to connect a station directly to the Climkit online portal via the remote OCPP server.
This configuration allows management of metering, user authentication via RFID badges, and billing, but not dynamic load management for which a Gateway is essential.
Insert the URL of the remote OCPP server into the station's configuration:
ws://ocpp.climkit.io:9000
Create a ocpp-remote type Gateway in the online portal, create the station with its unique identifier under the Name field and associate it with this Gateway.
This configuration is mandatory for station types like Easee or Zaptec, which cannot be connected locally to a Climkit Gateway.
4. Troubleshooting
Connect to the internal webserver of the Gateway.
Check the internet connection of the Gateway and the connection of the station to the Gateway.
Users cannot badge
Search for the keyword Authorizing request and the station's serial number in the logs under Charge Points.
If the badge is still rejected, manually update the badge list on the Gateway by clicking Update configuration.
DLM meter reading issue
DLM meters are not being read. Error message:
DLM meters can't be read: "Last Main meter continuous reading: last reading older than ... seconds"
DLM meters (for example, the Introduction) must communicate periodically with the service that manages the charging stations so that zones can regulate their power accordingly. Check:
- The service that constantly reads the DLM meters has crashed. Restart the service and check if it remains active (green indicator at the top right of Charge points).
- The DLM meter cannot be read. Check the bus connection by trying to read this meter manually under the Meters tab using its unique Modbus address.
Users can charge but slowly (6A)
This is a safety behavior (fail-safe): when the zone does not know the state of the DLM meters, it sets the charging current to 6A.
- Check the amperage set for the meter in the online portal.
- Check that the meters are being read (see above).
5. OCPP states
Charging stations will display states on the platform once they are connected. These states are as follows:
Available: No vehicle is plugged into the station, and it is available for a new vehicle to connect.
Charging: The station is currently charging a vehicle.
Preparing: The station is no longer available for a new vehicle, but charging has not yet started. There is often a delay between the time a vehicle plugs in and when charging begins. This can be due to station preparation, communication between the vehicle and the station, or waiting for payment or authorization.
Finishing: Charging is complete, but the vehicle is still plugged in, so the station is not yet available for another vehicle.
SuspendedEVSE: A vehicle is plugged into the station, but it is not delivering energy due to a problem related to the station, such as energy management settings of the charger or lack of authorization.
SuspendedEV: A vehicle is plugged into the station, but the vehicle does not accept energy from the charger. This occurs when the vehicle is fully charged, or when someone has set the vehicle to stop charging at a certain threshold.
Reserved: The station is currently reserved for a specific user or vehicle, thus refusing to charge other users or vehicles.
Unavailable: The station is not available for charging at this moment. This status is often used to indicate that the station is waiting for maintenance or about to restart.
Faulted: The station is currently experiencing a fault or issue. Depending on the station, this can occur in various situations. Sometimes, it may mean that the charger will not be able to charge, but not always. If the fault status includes a more specific error code, it may provide more information about what is happening. In some cases, the fault can be resolved by restarting the charger or by unplugging the vehicle and plugging it back in (for example, if the cable is improperly connected or too tight).
