Fundamentals of High Voltage xEV, Safety, and PPE C2001

SAE International Fundamentals of High Voltage xEV, Safety, and PPE C2001

Do you know what personal protective equipment (PPE), tools, and instruments are needed to keep you safe around high voltage (HV) vehicles? Are you aware of how to protect yourself or your employees when working around high voltage systems and platforms?

Safety is paramount when working around any type of high voltage. As electric vehicles (EV) and EV fleets become more prevalent, the critical need for OEMs, suppliers, companies, and organizations to provide comprehensive safety training for teams working with or around xEV systems and platforms increases. Engineers, technologists, and technicians involved in the design, development, testing, and/or servicing of high voltage EV systems must learn to protect themselves using safe procedures and practices.

This one-day course explains EV safety fundamentals, including personal protective equipment (PPE) and how to develop and establish common safety procedures for working around high voltage vehicles. You’ll learn how to safely connect and disable a high voltage system for testing and diagnostic purposes – and during disaster and crash events. You’ll be introduced to various types of EV, their characteristics, architecture, and components, including how to determine critical connection and disconnection procedures. The course explains the tools, PPE, safety procedures, and practices that should be in place, as well as methods to establish new procedures and test PPE. It also discusses how to develop and comply with FMVSS 305 requirements and OSHA PPE guidelines.


Learning Objectives

By participating in this course, you’ll be able to:

  • Describe the various xEV’s subsystems and components
  • Identify, select, test, care for high voltage (HV) electrical gloves per ASTM requirements
  • Recite the steps to disable a HV EV
  • Utilize appropriate processes and PPE tools when disabling/connecting EV
  • Safely measure HV vehicle platforms
  • Explain the EV grounding mechanism
  • Explain OSHA PPE & FMVSS 305 requirements
  • Describe interlock system types, operational mechanism, strategic location, testing, schematic circuits, failure modes, diagnostics, and standardization
  • Determine how to deal with HV vehicle subsystems during vehicle crash
  • Examine the EV HV system for faults, failures, and discharge circuits

Who Should Attend

An engineering degree or prior knowledge of high voltage EV systems is not required in order to benefit from and successfully complete this course. However, prior experience in the automotive field as an engineer, technologist, or technician would be beneficial.

You must complete all course contact hours and successfully pass the learning assessment to obtain CEUs.



Course Outline

Module 1: What & Why Electrification?

  • xEV categories and architectures
  • Series, parallel, and combined market

Module 2: The Effects of Electricity on the Body

  • Effects of electricity – current & voltage levels
  • Electrical shock
  • Ground circuit

Module 3: Grounding Mechanisms for Internal Combustion Engines and EV

  • Distinguish grounding mechanisms
  • High voltage isolation fault system
  • Isolation fault detection

Module 4: High Voltage xEV PPE, Tools, and Equipment

  • Required PPE equipment – selection, use and care
  • Measurement categories – Category I, II, III & IV
  • Multimeters and their capabilities
  • Most common electrical safety mistakes

Module 5: High Voltage EV Labeling

Module 6: BEV High Voltage Connection and Disconnection

  • High voltage cable and electrical symbol identification
  • Existing service disconnect types, corresponding locations, and methods of removing and installing them
  • High voltage fuses and their uses

Module 7: EV Motor and Power Electronics High Voltage Connection and Disconnection

  • Interlock systems and their control strategies
  • Interlock system types, operational mechanism, strategic location, testing, schematic circuits, and failure modes
  • Diagnostics and standardization
  • Active and passive bus discharge systems, location, circuits, and operation

Module 8: High Voltage Vehicles and Subsystems During Disaster and Crash Events

Module 9: High Voltage Vehicle Subsystem Tear Down and Assembly Process

Module 10: Factors That Can Affect xEV High Voltage Performance

  • Clearance and creepage distances between conductive parts
  • Pollution degree and altitude
  • Corona discharge, arcing, and dielectric breakdown
  • Oxidation and galvanic corrosion

Module 11: Summary – Safety Procedures with High Voltage xEV 



Instructors


Theodore Robert Swaim is an internationally recognized expert in lithium batteries and power systems, both in aviation and motor vehicles. Starting in aviation as a teenager and licensed airplane mechanic, he later worked for aerospace firms around the world as an engineer until becoming an accident investigator at the National Transportation Safety Board from 1988 until retirement almost 32 years later. At retirement Mr. Swaim had achieved the unique position of being the NTSB’s National Resource Specialist for Aviation Systems Engineering. He also served as Accredited Representative of the United States for international investigations, Investigator In Charge for domestic investigations, aviation cyber-security expert, and other roles as required.

Since leaving the NTSB, Mr. Swaim has continued to teach accident investigation classes at the NTSB Academy, started the consulting group HowItBroke.com, and is an ongoing member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE J2990) Hybrid and EV First and Second Responder Task Force. With the rapidly increasing number of EVs around the world, Mr. Swaim developed a hands-on firefighter class which is based in what has and has not worked. The class is based in ISO-17840, which is the standard recommended by the NTSB to be used for emergency response guides and material. (NTSB Safety Recommendations H-20-30 and H-20-32)


Theodore

Mr. Theodore Bohn is with the Center for Transportation Research at Argonne National Laboratory. He is a principal electrical engineer in the EV-Smart Grid Interoperability Center, identifying and validating interoperability issues related to PEV charging systems. He actively serves on SAE, IEEE, and EV charging standards committees, including safety standards. Mr. Bohn received his BS and MS degree in electrical engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He holds an adjunct faculty position at University of Wisconsin-Madison where he has developed and delivered EV charging safety related education and training materials.



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