DTI, BPS Develops Standards to Support Electric Vehicles

To support the government's drive to modernize the public transport system, the Department of Trade and Industry’s Bureau of Philippine Standards (DTI-BPS) has released several standards that cater to the emerging market of electric vehicles (EVs).

Through the BPS Technical Committee on Road Vehicles (BPS/TC 44)'s Sub Committee on Electric Road Vehicles (SC 21), standards focused on the ensuring safety and road performance of electric vehicles were developed. The SC 21 under the recommendation of TC 44 released the Philippine National Standard/International Organization for Standardization (PNS ISO) 6469 series of standards under the general title electrically propelled road vehicles--Safety Specifications to assure the safety of EVs. These 6469 series of standards include:

• PNS ISO 6469-1:2012 Electrically propelled road vehicles – Safety Specifications – Part 1: On-board rechargeable energy storage system
• PNS ISO 6469-2:2012 Electrically propelled road vehicles – Safety Specifications – Part 2: Vehicle operational safety means and protection against failures
• PNS ISO 6469-3:2012 Electrically road vehicles – Safety Specifications – Part 3: Protection of persons against electric hazards
• PNS ISO 6469-4:2012 Electrically propelled road vehicles – Safety Specifications – Part 4: Post Crash electrical safety

An Electric Vehicle is any vehicle propelled by an electric motor drawing current from a rechargeable storage battery or from other portable energy storage device made for use on public streets, roads, or highways. Through these standards, specific areas of these electrically-propelled road vehicles, electric propulsion systems, related components and their vehicle integration, and their corresponding power and charging systems were studied, reviewed, and developed.

To further the advancement of standards on electric vehicles, the BPS has adopted International Standards (IS) from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). To date, there are already 45 PNS related to EVs that include EV safety specification, fuel cell road vehicles, hybrid vehicle, charging systems, lithium-ion battery packs, plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets, and vehicle grid communication interface.

Since 2008, the BPS has been actively participating in the development of a more consumer and environment-friendly mode of transportation such as electric vehicles. In 2012 alone, 22 standards on EV were made available as a response to the emerging market of advanced public transport.

A copy of the Philippine National Standards (PNS) on road vehicles are available for a minimal fee at the BPS Standards Data Center, 3F Trade and Industry Building, 631 Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Makati City; at 791.3127; or through bps@dti.gov.ph.