Which slot to choose at stations. Supercharging etiquette.

[andrewket]

This goes against the logic of how chargers share power. In talking to a newbie yesterday he was told by sales staff to do just this. While it may work at some locations, it will not work at all locations. Maumee, OH, for instance is set up 1a,2a,3a and then 1b,2b,3b. One could end up on the same charger by using the farthest away logic depending on what other slots are taken. Is it not easier just to pick a non paired vacancy?

Following the pairing is of course the best way. Unfortunately, it takes longer to explain this, and believe it or not some people have trouble understanding it. So I suspect the sales staff have simplified it, which as you point out will not always yield the best result.

I believe the best option is for the the car to tell the driver where to go when arriving at a SuC. We've been suggesting this for awhile. Tesla has the data. They just need to spend a few cycles to implement it. It will also work in the future if Tesla makes changes to the SuC design. They could move to 3:1 (pedestal to cabinet) or 1:1 and it still works. Of course you wouldn't need it if the ratio is 1:1, but different ratios can be used by SuC location without changing the customer experience.

 

[kort677]

This goes against the logic of how chargers share power. In talking to a newbie yesterday he was told by sales staff to do just this. While it may work at some locations, it will not work at all locations. Maumee, OH, for instance is set up 1a,2a,3a and then 1b,2b,3b. One could end up on the same charger by using the farthest away logic depending on what other slots are taken. Is it not easier just to pick a non paired vacancy?

that is the point, always avoid using a charger that it's pair is in use.
it takes a moment to see who is on what but that shouldn't be difficult because

 

[Ciaopec]

that is the point, always avoid using a charger that it's pair is in use.
it takes a moment to see who is on what but that shouldn't be difficult because

I avoid bring the a/b thing into the equation and just tell people to pick an unused number. And around here it is easy to "drive by" and see which numbers are in use.

 

[Skotty]

This discussion makes me think of the "which urinal to use" debate.

 

[Ciaopec]

This discussion makes me think of the "which urinal to use" debate.

True, I suppose, but if you're on a long distance trip and in a hurry, then you want the quickest charge AND a nearby, open urinal stall!

 

[RDoc]

As has been suggested before, it would be useful if Tesla would indicate how much capacity was available on each open charger. If a car was near the end of its charger, the paired charger would be the one to use and vice versa.

 

[CuriousG]

This discussion makes me think of the "which urinal to use" debate.

The difference being electron vs electrolyte for dispensing.

 

[kort677]

I avoid bring the a/b thing into the equation and just tell people to pick an unused number. And around here it is easy to "drive by" and see which numbers are in use.

the A/B thing is everything. 1a and 2a could be right next to each other but they're not paired.

 

[kort677]

This discussion makes me think of the "which urinal to use" debate.

I rarely share urinals

 

[kort677]

As has been suggested before, it would be useful if Tesla would indicate how much capacity was available on each open charger. If a car was near the end of its charger, the paired charger would be the one to use and vice versa.

there isn't a need for tesla to go to the expense and trouble to provide information that is easily discerned by simple obversation

 

[No2DinosaurFuel]

What tesla should do is when a tesla arrives at a supercharging stations, a top view of all the chargers shows up and the car's current SOC. This way people would know which slot to take for the fastest charging. Again it will help ease congestions because everyone is optimizing which at the end of the day means more supercharging for everyone.

 

[pdxgibby]

there isn't a need for tesla to go to the expense and trouble to provide information that is easily discerned by simple obversation

Elon has tweeted that more supercharger information busy/free, etc. is coming via OTA update. This tweet was sent in April, 2016. We'll see if that is contained in the Nav update. Sure would be nice.

 

[Ciaopec]

the A/B thing is everything. 1a and 2a could be right next to each other but they're not paired.

Exactly. Now leave the a/b out of your statement for new new drivers and I have said the same thing. One and 2 (and 3 and 4) are not paired.

Every super charger I have visited has been set up like this:

1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 or 1 2 3 1 2 3.

Our brains are wired differently. If I omit the a/b and tell someone the easiest way to avoid co-pairing (and reduced charging power) is to "try not to plug into the same numbered stall".

You can also tell them not to plug into 1b if someone is on 1a.

There are procedures so that no one chargers at a lower rate. There are techniques on how to present that idea.

You say "tomayto", I say "tomahto": let's call the whole thing off.

 

[HankLloydRight]

Right. A/B really don't matter at all. Only the numbers matter. I've said many times, they could replace the numbers with colors, or animals, or shapes. Just pick a stall that's not already where someone isn't charging in the other <thing>. A/B is meaningless. Today you could remove A/B from every supercharger, and nothing would change.

 

[davecolene0606]

This goes against the logic of how chargers share power. In talking to a newbie yesterday he was told by sales staff to do just this. While it may work at some locations, it will not work at all locations. Maumee, OH, for instance is set up 1a,2a,3a and then 1b,2b,3b. One could end up on the same charger by using the farthest away logic depending on what other slots are taken. Is it not easier just to pick a non paired vacancy?

PSL, FL is set up 1a2a3a1b2b3b as well. Respect the pair if you can.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

there isn't a need for tesla to go to the expense and trouble to provide information that is easily discerned by simple obversation

The only simple observation is the A/B pairing or simply finding an unused number. But, that's not what they were getting at.

What they were getting at is having a simple way of finding the optimal stall to use in case where there isn't an unused #. When you're forced to share, but you want to share with someone almost done.

You also don't know how long a person intends on being there.

I'd much rather share with someone about to leave who's just finishing up eating versus someone who just got there and started his charge 5 minutes ago.

 

[S4WRXTTCS]

Why I find a bit mind boggling is why Tesla didn't setup it up assuming people would use them in conjunction with the rules of urinal usage.

You always leave an empty one between you and the other person.

That way no one would have to read any number or know anything about pairing.

All the engineering challenges Tesla can solve, but they couldn't do that.

 

[WannabeOwner]

If I am going to have to pair:

An empty car suggests to me "long time to charge"
If someone is in their car it might be because it is almost ready to go. Either way, I can just stroll up and ask them how long they will be

 

[No2DinosaurFuel]

Ok verified there is sharing tapering. Was at Gilroy this weekend. Started fine. 108KW. About 3 minutes in another local tesla arrived. Once they plugged in, my charging reduce sharply to 90KW almost instantly. It dropped down a bit to 80KW. When the other guys left. I knew they were local because they picked up something and was back within 5 minutes. Once they unplugged, my rate didn't increase. Had to move to another stall to get it to charge full again. But at that point I was at greater than 50% so it started to taper.

So yes sharing does slow others down.

 

[Blissedout]

The SuC cable to a car that has finished charging will cool off. You may be able to use that to choose the best slot paired with an empty car.