Artificial Intelligence and Operational Data: The New Paradigm for Reliability in Electric Vehicle Charging

In the electric mobility ecosystem, charging infrastructure is much more than a set of connection points; it is the pillar on which we build user trust. At Etecnic, our mission has always been to raise the efficiency, availability, and quality of service of this infrastructure. However, in the face of increasingly larger and more heterogeneous networks, traditional management is no longer enough; the future demands an evolution from reaction to anticipation. Under this premise, we have recently concluded a key innovation project within the framework of the PADIH program (Support Program for Digital Innovation Hubs). In this scenario, Artificial Intelligence is not just a trend, but the master tool to ensure a network that is always available and ready for the future.

The expansion of electric mobility generates a huge volume of operational data every second. However, the real challenge is not capturing this data, but structuring it so that it tells us a useful story. During the project, we faced the complexity of normalizing highly diverse information sources due to the technical disparity of the chargers. Thanks to the collaboration with the Fundació Eurecat, we have worked on milestones that define our new technical roadmap:

• Define a clear methodology for the charging process, classifying behaviors and operational typologies.
• Integrate data from heterogeneous systems into a solid and normalized base that allows large-scale analysis.
• Analyze thousands of real sessions to identify behavioral patterns that previously went unnoticed.

We have not limited ourselves to applying standard solutions. The project has involved a deep experimentation phase with different algorithmic approaches designed for the analysis of complex time series. We have evaluated AI models capable of analyzing sequential patterns and, most importantly, detecting minimal deviations from the expected behavior of the systems. This technical validation not only confirms that we are on the right track, but also defines a clear technological roadmap for the future evolution of our infrastructure management platform.

The most valuable result of this work is the foundation of a predictive maintenance model. We no longer wait for a charger to fail to act; we are building the technological capacity to:

• Anticipate technical incidents before they affect the end-user service.
• Minimize downtime, reducing the impact of breakdowns on the network.
• Optimize maintenance processes, achieving smarter and more efficient resource management.
• Guarantee maximum network availability, reinforcing the reliability of electric mobility in our territory.

We have traveled this path hand in hand with the technological ecosystem, with the support of the Catalonia Digital Innovation Hub (DIH4CAT). For Etecnic, innovation is not an isolated concept, but a continuous commitment to service improvement and sustainability. Initiatives like this allow us to continue leading infrastructure management, preparing today to respond to the mobility needs of tomorrow.

ETECNIC MOVILIDAD ELECTRICA SOCIEDAD LIMITADA has been a beneficiary of the project: “Initial advice and PoC of the use of advanced algorithms for anomaly detection and breakdown prediction in Electric Vehicle Chargers” with reference “2024/DIH_01/000439” within the framework of the PADIH Program grants: Aid to small and medium-sized enterprises within the Support program for Digital Innovation Hubs, in the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (DIH_001) based on Order ICT/1296/2022, of December 22. This program is part of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, funded by the European Union – Next Generation EU, and promoted by the Ministry of Industry and Tourism and the School of Industrial Organization (EOI).