Bus Depot Fire blamed on an electric bus catching fire while being charged

WheezyRider

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Apr 20, 2020
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I saw this story about a bus depot fire but had not realized it was being blamed on an electric bus bursting into flames while being charged.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/05/22/eight-fire-crews-battle-inferno-hertfordshire-bus-depot/
Probably due to a cyber attack? Hack into the web linked charge controller system and create a huge fire...I think we will see a lot of this in the coming year. Too many charge controllers have poor security and can be taken over externally. This goes for a lot of domestic car charging ports too.
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
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Probably due to a cyber attack? Hack into the web linked charge controller system and create a huge fire...I think we will see a lot of this in the coming year. Too many charge controllers have poor security and can be taken over externally. This goes for a lot of domestic car charging ports too.
Very unlikely, probably impossible. There's almost 900,000 plug-in electric cars in the UK now, the majority with home chargers and a complete absence of such a thing occurring. The charge control is jointly by the charger and the vehicle. If they can't handshake the charge discontinues.

We have hundreds of battery fully electric buses in London now, both single and double deckers, plus a large number of diesel electric hybrids

I only know of one fire of an e-bus and that was one of the hybrids while it was being driven. We have had a number of diesel buses catch fire and completely burn out while in service, plenty of photos on the web of these burning, like this one:



The one hybrid that caught fire is in the photo below:

 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,793
30,369
This is the sort of thing I was talking about:


These things seem to be set up without much security built in and are relatively easy to exploit. I don't think it's a good idea to assume that inbuilt fail safes cannot also be hacked. Cars and chargers are internet linked these days, so both can be hacked.
Yes, I'm aware of this, but it doesn't show any knowledge of how chargers and e-vehicles actually work together. They only mention one make of charger and give "such as" possibilities. It's guesswork.

My car for example only accepts up to 50 kw charge rate from a public rapid or ultra rapid charger, but I can connect to anything up to the latest 350 kW ultra rapid units. When I connect the charger, it and the car handshake to agree that before the charging commences. If the rate suddenly goes up the car disconnects, so I report the charger fault.

The essential facet that has to be understood is that the car controls the charge rate. For example, once I first connect to a rapid or ultra rapid, the car limits the charge rate according to what is already in the battery. The highest I've seen is 44 kW, and as the charge reaches 80% the car reduces what it will accept, dropping by stages. For example I've seen 22kW at 84%, 7 kW at 91%.

The proposition that hacking can cause damage through home charge units is even more ludicrous, since the supply is limited by the fuse or MCB in the consumer unit supplying the unique charger circuit. I daresay the charger units are also protected by their internal supply limiting to their 3.3 kW or 6.6 kW rating.

The only possibility I can see is the home charger unit being disrupted and unable to supply anything.
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