“You wish to go to the Testival?” with apologies to Stephen Sondheim, is a phrase that should have been on the minds of all stakeholders in the e-mobility sector recently. The Testival is one part of the 2024 North American Testival and Conference, hosted by CharIN, an international industry association with 300 members that works to promote EV charging standards and interoperability.
The event took place in June as part of a global event series presented by CharIN. An industry conference and the Testival were hosted by Lincoln Electric in Cleveland, Ohio. Attendees interacted with 22 vehicle platforms and 23 examples of EV supply equipment during the show, which was designed to promote performance enhancements and interoperability between vehicles and charging equipment.
The Testival gave the 415 attendees an opportunity to test the vehicles and equipment on display in real-life scenarios.
“The Testival began as a way to unite engineers in the pursuit of establishing universal standards for electric vehicle charging,” explained Claas Bracklo, Chairman of the Executive Board of CharIN. “Our goal was and remains to cultivate a collaborative environment where stakeholders from across the e-mobility sector could come together to exchange knowledge and collectively enhance the electric vehicle ownership and charging experience.”
In his welcoming remarks, Steve Sumner, Vice President of Corporate Innovation at Lincoln Electric, an American multinational manufacturer of welding products, emphasized how events such as the Testival are “focused on ensuring robust interoperability and are crucial for the industry’s growth and ultimately, for instilling consumer confidence.”
Event highlights included a showcase from the Joint Offices of Energy and Transportation focused on the EVerest open-source EV software project and prescribed testing demonstrations conducted by the ChargeX Consortium, a collaborative effort among Argonne National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Testival attendees also witnessed testing of the inaugural sets of charging equipment to be integrated with the ISO 15118-20 protocol, which is intended to streamline the charging experience through innovations such as Plug & Charge.
In 2025, CharIN will host three Testivals—one in Asia, one in Europe, and one in North America.
Source: CharIN
