Cloud Dependency

General Discussion
1

So I get that many new appliances are internet enabled (I work in health IT).
I’ve read that Evnex chargers need to connect to the cloud every 28 days for a variety of reasons such as checking for a newer version of firmware etc.

My questions are:

  • What happens if the charger cannot connect to the cloud ? Will it still operate with no loss of functionality.
  • Will it still continue to operate, and for how long ?
  • Is part of its compliance (in NZ) dependent on making a regular connection to the cloud ?
  • What happens if Evnex closes down / is bought out etc ?

I’m keen to support a locally designed and produced charger - but would like to know that I’m going to get some longevity.

A supplementary question relates to integration with home automation. I have an existing openHAB installation and could not see a binding, but think there might be one for Home Assistant which could be ported.

2 Likes
2

I did wonder about that myself. I have been stung in the past with hardware that relies on a cloud service becoming a paperweight when the company behind it closed down. That was only a $250 camera, but this is a $2500 charger.

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3

Yes I’m interested to know about this, hope to see an Evnex reply :+1:

4

Sadly there is no answer. So instead of supporting a local business, I have bought a standards compliant open source EVSE. I will add it to my openHAB installation when it is installed, so it can use excess solar during the day to recharge the car.

5

In answer to the original questions:

The charger will operate for at least 28 days without a connection to the cloud, and will continue to follow the schedule which has been set (unless rebooted, in which case it will fall back to charging 24/7). It won’t be possible to see charging sessions in the app, or to change any settings on the charger.

I don’t think there are any compliance requirements affecting this behaviour.

Behind the scenes the charger communicates using a protocol called OCPP which is a very common standard. If Evnex closes down or is bought out, other cloud backends would be able to communicate with the charger.

The Home Assistant plugin has been developed by one of our customers but it isn’t something we support ourselves. I haven’t heard of openHAB but if it’s similar to HA then likely a similar approach could be taken.

Kind regards,

Tom