Domain Model and Security Principles of the re.alto API Platform
IoT connectivity
This article is intended as a guide/intro for developers/architects using our API platform.
20.01.2025
Development
Introduction
The vision of re.alto is to support businesses in developing outstanding products by providing APIs and energy-driven data solutions to help build digital products faster. We do this by connecting to devices through their existing IoT connectivity. At the core of our solution is a powerful IoT management platform. It connects to any type of device, streams device data in real-time and securely stores it for future retrieval. The platform can stream thousands of data sets per second, it can aggregate readings, it can retrieve charge data records (where available), and it can be used to manage and steer devices. Integration is also straightforward.
The guide below explains our domain model, the terminology used and our IoT platform’s security principles.
Domain Model Components (Terminology and Set-Up)
The platform is structured in Tenants. Tenant refers to a customer environment. Every Tenant has an administrator. The Tenant admin controls everything within that Tenant. The Tenant admin can be either a person or a program/app, which are known as Principals of type User or Client respectively. A Client is usually used by a backend system/process like an app and has a Client ID and a Client secret. A User logs in using an email and password. It is this Client ID or User ID that defines what you have access to see on the platform. The Tenant admin is also a Principal (which is therefore either a Client ID or a User). Members are Clients or Users that are part of a Tenant but are not admins. Members also either have a Client ID or a User ID, however members cannot remove/add themselves or other members to a Tenant, only the Tenant admin has the right to do this.
In each Tenant, the Tenant admin can onboard devices which we refer to as Entities. An Entity is added in the system via an onboarding request raised by a Principal with access, which also becomes the owner unless a different owner is specified in the request. Any sort of device that we onboard becomes an Entity and receives an Entity ID. Each Entity has an owner. The Entity owner has the right to change its properties. Members have reduced rights and can read the data but cannot alter the properties of an Entity.
Entities can be grouped together in Collectives. A Tenant can have multiple Collectives, making it easy to separate different Entities into groups (depending on company they belong to, for example). Entities that are grouped together in Collectives can be displayed together. Each Collective has an owner that is assigned by the Tenant admin, and multiple members can be added to each Collective, all of whom then have rights to see the data of the Entities within that Collective. “Collective” refers to a group of Entities and of Users who are members of a Collective. A Collective of Entities has a Collective owner and Collective members. The data from all Entities in a Collective can be shared with a number of Principals (User or Client IDs). The owner of the Collective can set certain parameters on an Entity, such as its name. Members can only use the Entities (ie: read their data).
The Collective is a powerful tool to link various Entities together and then share the data with other people or programs. For example, a fleet manager could use a Collective to conveniently see the data from all of their company’s vehicles in one place. However, a Collective could also refer to a household with multiple cars, a heat pump etc, and any member of that Collective could then view the data from all Entities within that Collective.
Security
The security principles are based on the domain model explained in the first part of this article. You must be the Tenant owner/admin or member of the Tenant, or the Collective owner or member of the Collective, to be able to see the data of a device. To authenticate against our platform, a Client ID or User ID is required. Once you have that, you must be the owner or member of a Tenant or Collective in order to access data. Every individual record, Tenant, Entity and Collective is secured with these security rights. The only way to access our platform is to have a Principal ID, which is either the Client ID (for programs) or the User ID (for people). This ID is either a member of a Tenant or a Collective, or the owner of an Entity. This determines whether you can see that Entity and its data and do something with this data or not. If you do not have rights to any Entities, Tenants or Collectives, you won’t be able to view any data.
re.alto’s customer can have one Tenant on our platform but organise onboarded Entities into various Collectives within that Tenant. This means if Company A is working with various companies/fleet managers, for example, they can onboard the vehicles from various companies and organise each of these into their own Collective, meaning each company/fleet manager will only be able to see the data from the cars in their respective Collective and not the data from cars organised into a separate collective by Company A. Any vehicle added to the Collective later can also easily be viewed without any additional work – that is the power of the Collective. Company A is the owner of the Collective within their Tenant, but they can make Fleet Manager A a member of a Collective and assign them rights within that Collective, so that they can see data from vehicles within the Collective. But they will remain unable to view data from vehicles in the other Collectives within Company A’s Tenant. You have to be a member of a specific Collective to see the data from entities within that Collective – and that is where the domain model meets the security model.
New Feature: Guided Onboarding of EVs
IoT connectivity
This article looks at the benefits of one of our newer features: the guided onboarding of EVs to the re.alto platform.
14.10.2024
Electric Vehicles/IoT Connectivity
The guided onboarding process is a graphical interface where the user (in this case the driver) can trigger the onboarding of their vehicle onto the re.alto platform by following a link and then entering their own vehicle data, as opposed to our client having to set this up for each individual user/vehicle first. Our guided onboarding feature enables users to onboard their device themselves through a web-based UI created by re.alto. This allows re.alto to interact directly with those users, greatly minimising the integration effort for our client.
For a regular onboarding session, the client would need to know each user’s VIN number (the vehicle’s unique identification number) and car brand to create a classic onboarding request. This can delay the onboarding process for the client as they would need to collect the user-specific VIN numbers and car brands before each onboarding session could begin. The benefit of a guided onboarding session, in comparison, is that the session can be instigated without prior knowledge of the vehicle brand or VIN number. The guided onboarding session simply creates a guided onboarding URL with a unique code. Clicking on the URL begins the onboarding journey by directing the user to re.alto’s web UI screens for guiding users in onboarding their car, where they can then fill in the required information about their vehicle themselves and consent to sharing their data. The VIN/brand combination is verified by re.alto and the connection is confirmed. The integration effort and admin work is minimised for the client, as each individual user can complete the onboarding process for their own vehicle. The session can be started without the client needing to provide each individual VIN number and car manufacturer upfront. Since implementing this feature, it has become faster and easier for people using our platform to onboard cars. While a client/admin would previously have had to collect each user’s vehicle-specific information before being able to begin this process, the process is now automated for them in the guided onboarding session.
To explain the feature more clearly, here is an example: Client 1 makes a website or application for their users (in this example, their employees) to interact with. The functionality behind this website/app calls re.alto’s APIs (which we use to collect data from a vehicle, such as the state of charge and location for our client). In the classic onboarding version, however, the re.alto platform could not be called for the onboarding prior to the client inputting both the VIN number and car brand of the user. Hence, the client would first need to collect this information from each of their users through their own application before being able to trigger the onboarding sessions through re.alto. Instead of creating an onboarding request in this way, the client can now simply create a guided onboarding session which can be accessed via a unique URL containing a secure access code. The client can share this URL with their users directly or redirect them to it from their own application. The client can easily create multiple onboarding requests and send these to multiple users at the same time. Users are then redirected to UIs of re.alto where they are informed that the client’s company wants to connect to their vehicle. They can then input their own vehicle data, give their consent and trigger the onboarding flow themselves, saving the client time and ensuring a smoother, more professional journey for the user. The first screen focuses on consent, the second requests the vehicle information and the final one is the verification and confirmation stage.
Guided onboarding simplifies the onboarding journey and integration for our clients by enabling re.alto to interact directly with the client’s users. Whereas the previous system on the platform required the client or admin to know each individual user’s VIN and car brand upfront, a guided onboarding session makes it possible to begin the onboarding process before inputting any of this information. In addition, the user must now confirm that they give their consent to sharing their vehicle data, something that was not clearly captured in the classic onboarding process, leaving the prior consent capturing to the client. This added consent tracking and management ensures a securer and more professional process for all.
Guided onboarding is currently only available for electric vehicles, but additional types of devices will be added in future. More information on guided onboarding can be found in the re.alto readme or by contacting us.
New Feature: Charge Sessions API
IoT connectivity
We’re excited to announce that our EV connectivity platform now has a new added feature available: the Charge Sessions API.
27.06.2024
Electric Vehicles/IoT Connectivity
We’re excited to announce that our EV connectivity platform now has a new added feature available: the Charge Sessions API.
The Charge Sessions API offers an overview of an electric vehicle’s charging sessions. It enables the platform user to see when, where and how much a vehicle charged and is available as an add-on for any vehicle connected to our platform. re.alto is able to obtain this data from the car with no need for any additional hardware, and we provide this information in a very standardised way for various car brands on the market, making it a versatile and very useful product for those in need of EV charging data.
Using our own Readings API, re.alto’s platform is now automatically able to derive a vehicle’s charge session data based on various information collected from the car, such as its real-time location at all times, the battery state of charge and whether it is currently plugged or not. Our solution spares development time and saves the platform user from having to figure out how to standardise and use all this different data together themselves. This feature is ideal for anyone either building apps relating to EV charging or managing fleets of EVs. Any app that you want to connect with an electric car can very easily determine from this product when a charge session was happening, how much the vehicle was charged and even the location where the charging took place. It enables our platform users to see when a charging session has started and ended, how much the vehicle’s battery was charged, how fast the vehicle was charging and how much energy was consumed in the session. The start and end value of the battery is displayed as a percentage (%), the charge speed is shown in kilowatts and the charge total is displayed in kw/h. This is very useful for apps focusing on dynamic tariffs and/or energy and cost optimisation, for example, to determine when the best time to charge the vehicle is.
For employers/mobility service providers, the Charge Sessions API also offers numerous advantages. The ability to communicate charge session data and determine where a charging session took place is useful for employers wanting to reimburse their employees for their electricity costs for charging at home. Also, when it comes to saving money on charge poles in a company carpark, the charging behaviour of your drivers will ultimately affect how many charge poles you need to offer at your parking facility. If a driver hogs a charge pole all day (or for far longer than necessary to charge their vehicle), you will end up purchasing a larger number of charge poles in order to comfortably accommodate all EV drivers. In collecting state of charge data, re.alto can determine when a car parked at work is fully charged and can inform that driver, so that they can move their vehicle and free up the charge pole for the next user (who we can then also alert to the fact that a pole has now become available!). Improving driver behaviour is a much cheaper and more efficient solution than installing an excessive number of expensive charge poles, especially as EV fleets are expected to continue to grow. Another issue that our charge session API can help alleviate for employers/mobility service providers/fleet managers is the range anxiety of their EV drivers, which often causes these employees to demand an EV with the largest battery pack option available – which is usually the most expensive and is often excessive for their average usage. Analysing charge session information can help employers/fleet managers monitor battery usage and determine whether such a large battery is really necessary for their next electric vehicle order.
With our standardised and versatile APIs, you can save development time and focus on delivering value to your customers. The Charge Sessions API is an optional add-on available through our EV connectivity platform and is ideal for those building an app related to EV charging or for those managing a fleet of EVs / mobility service providers.
This feature is currently still in the beta phase while we work on adding a guided onboarding option aimed at non-developers, but if you are interested in accessing it now, please reach out to our team for more information on how to do so, and we’ll be happy to assist you.
Example from Charge Sessions API:
Remote EV Charging via Official APIs
IoT connectivity
Remote Charging via Official APIs: the Mercedes Benz / Tesla Connector
14.02.2024
Electric Vehicles/IoT Connectivity
re.alto has been testing the official APIs from Mercedes-Benz and Tesla and our development team is satisfied with the response from both so far. The new APIs enable near real-time monitoring with a reading every five minutes and offer access to interesting data. This connectivity provides a lot of potential and opportunities when it comes to smart charging and smarter energy management – no smart charge pole is required and using an official or native API means the data obtained is reliable.
Back in November, we published an article on the new EU Data Act, highlighting that the new regulations ultimately mean that OEMS/manufacturers in the European Union must make the data of their appliances available to the user for free in a machine-readable format (ie: an application programming interface to extract or share data). Manufacturers therefore need to build interfaces to give consumers (or companies) the opportunity to download or read this data. Some OEMs are ahead of the game, with car manufacturers Mercedes-Benz and Tesla offering access and already making a remote control function available over their official APIs.
A remote connection to the electric vehicle is also important for charging-related use cases. Most people want the comfort to charge their EV at home, yet an EV adds a significant peak load to the household installation. Load balancing, optimised solar consumption, dynamic rate charging: most of these features require the installation of a smart charge pole. A smart charge pole easily mounts to 1000€ above a regular one. That is where remote charging can be a game changer. Remote charging can help these consumers save money while increasing comfort in use cases such as smart charging or obtaining data from the car to help their employer reimburse their transport expenses.
The APIs will also allow us to control EV charging to a certain degree with the aim to be able to stop and start charging the vehicle on command. This opens the potential to optimally schedule the charging of the EV, so that the consumer is only consuming energy at the time when it is most cost-efficient to do so. Our developers tested this function and saw that, in most cases, the vehicle responds to the command to stop or start charging in less than a minute. This is certainly impressive and will enable interesting new use cases as a result, especially for those with a dynamic energy tariff and those harnessing solar power – however, we will delve into these use cases in more detail soon.
We expect it to be a major game changer that car manufacturers are now enabling this remote control function via an official API, and with the EU Data Act demanding that users be given access to data, it won’t be long until more OEMs follow suit and make data available via official channels.
The EU Data Act
IoT connectivity
This article looks at the EU Data Act and what it means for OEMs.
30.11.2023
News/Energy APIs
What is the EU Data Act?
The EU Data Act (regulation on harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data), proposed by the European Commission in February 2022, will play a significant role in Europe’s digital transformation going forward. The Data Act has now been adopted and is expected to be published in the next few days. As an EU Regulation, the provisions of the Data Act are binding and directly applicable in all Members States and will apply from 20 months from the date of entry into force.
The Data Act will provide a framework for data access and data sharing and aims to make more data available for companies and consumers, and to ensure fairness regarding the distribution and use of this data. According to the European Commission, the main objective of the Data Act is “to make Europe a leader in the data economy by harnessing the potential of the ever-increasing amount of industrial data, in order to benefit the European economy and society”. The Commission states that “the strategy for data focuses on putting people first in developing technology and defending and promoting European values and rights in the digital world” and emphasises that the Data Act is “a key pillar of the European strategy for data”.
An essential part of this act for the average citizen is regarding the data generated by Internet of Things (IoT) devices, such as electric vehicles or smart home devices. IoT appliances are smart devices that can connect to the internet and independently communicate in real time with other devices or apps within the IoT network. When someone purchases an item from a store, they become the legal owner of that physical item. The situation with digital data from connected devices and who owns or uses it, however, has always been more complicated, and the new act aims to create clarity here.
- The new Data Act (Art. 3(1)) mandates that all connected products should be designed and manufactured in such a manner that the product data, including the relevant metadata, is, where relevant and technically feasible, by default directly accessible to the user easily, securely and free of charge in a comprehensive, structured, commonly used and machine-readable format – (i.e. not only accessible to the owner, but also to the one leasing the product, for instance). This particular obligation will apply from 32 months after the date of entry into force.
- It also stipulates (in Art. 4) that where data cannot be accessed directly by the user of the connected product or related service, data holders should make accessible the data to the user, free of charge and in real-time. This means that, after the date of application (~last quarter of 2025), the manufacturers of these devices must provide users with free access to the data produced by those devices.
- In addition, upon request by the user (or by a party acting on behalf of the user), that data should also be made available to third parties and such a request should be free of charge to the user (see Art. 5). The act also specifies the obligations of third parties receiving the data at the request of the user, e.g. they can only use it for the purposes and conditions agreed with the user and subject to relevant EU law on data protection (see Art. 6). However, making data available to third parties (data recipient under Art. 5) must not necessarily be for free, and the act provides conditions as well as rules regarding compensation (Art. 8 and 9).
Finally, while specific obligations for making available data in Union legal acts that entered into force on or before the date of entry into force of the Data Act will remain unaffected, these harmonised rules should impact the update of existing or new Union sector legislation.
What other enabling EU framework is out there?
In the meantime, recent EU legislation is already paving the way towards accessing and sharing of data from connected devices.
For instance, the recently revised Renewable Energy Directive (RED, Directive (EU) 2023/2413) not only mandates a Union target for 2030 of at least 42,5% of share from renewables in the gross final energy consumption. It also asks Member States to (Art. 20a(3)):
- ensure that manufacturers of domestic and industrial batteries enable real-time access to basic battery management system information to battery owners and users and third parties acting on their behalf.
- adopt measures to require that vehicle manufacturers make available in real-time in-vehicle data to EV owners and users as well as third parties acting on their behalf.
We can find similar provisions for instance in the proposed revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), asking Member States (Art. 14) to ensure that building owners, tenants and managers can have direct access to their buildings system’s data (inc. data from building automation and control systems, meters and charging points for e-mobility).
The recently proposed reform of the Electricity Market Design also asks Member States (Art. 7b) to allow transmission system operators and distribution system operators to use data from dedicated metering devices (submeters or embedded meters) for the observability and settlement of demand response and flexibility services.
Last but not least, as part of the Action Plan on the Digitalisation of the Energy System, there is a focus on the need to enable an EU framework for data access and sharing, namely via so-called EU energy data space(s). In that regard, the Commission announced the creation of an expert group (“Data for Energy” working group) that will support them in the definition of high-level use cases for data sharing (in particular for flexibility services for energy markets and grids, and smart and bi-directional charging for EVs) and in defining the governance of EU energy data space(s).
What does this mean for OEMs/manufacturers?
The new Data Act ultimately means that the European Union is going to impose upon OEMs/manufacturers to make the data of their appliances available to the user for free in a machine-readable format (ie: an application programming interface or API to extract or share data). To enable access to the data, manufacturers will therefore need to build interfaces to give consumers (or companies) the opportunity to download or read this data. Some OEMs, such as SMA Solar, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, are ahead of the game and have already been working on building this infrastructure over the past year or two. Others, however, have not yet dedicated resources to implementing this and will need to follow suit in the year to come. With the last quarter of 2025 deadline set, the remaining OEMs will find themselves under pressure to switch their focus to ensure they are compliant with the new legislation on time.
How can re.alto help those requiring access to this data?
re.alto works with IoT connectivity and acts as a connector between OEMs and third parties. While there was previously a question of whether OEMS would choose to offer access to this data, it is now being dictated by legislation, and their compliance is therefore mandatory. That ultimately means that the IoT technology is emerging, and each OEM will have to make their data machine-readable and create a suitable interface to share this data by 2025 at the latest. But while compliance in ensuring data is machine-readable is compulsory, the EU has not imposed a standard by which all OEMs must comply when implementing this. That means that each OEM will create their own kind of interface, with the API for each device or brand potentially differing greatly from the next. The result will be a jungle of different interfaces/APIs to integrate with, making it incredibly complicated for third parties to access the various data they require when building their own energy-as-a-service products.
That is where re.alto comes in. This recent evolution in EU legislation supports our vision and aligns with the services and solutions we are offering our customers. If you are building energy-as-a-service products or applications and want to be able to access energy data from various OEMs or devices, we can give you access via a single, standardised API. re.alto can create a path through this jungle of APIs, so you can use one single interface to communicate with them all. Whether you want to add electric vehicles or heat pumps to your solution, we can act as a standard interface for all of the energy-related transactions and connections, thus simplifying access to energy data for third party use.
Conclusion
The new EU Data Act, as well as other recent pieces of EU legislation, is shaking up IoT connectivity and putting pressure on manufacturers/OEMs to make their data machine-readable and available to the public sector and ultimately the end consumer. Going forward, the strategies of OEMs will no longer play a role in whether they choose to make this data available – legislation now dictates that they must comply. While compliance is mandatory, the EU has not set any standard for the resulting infrastructure. This means that data will be available via many very different kinds of APIs and interfaces, resulting in connectivity being complicated. To simplify all of this for third party use, re.alto translates everything into one standard API connection, regardless of the kind of device or its brand.
If you are building energy-as-a-service apps or solutions and want to know more about how we can help you access the data you require in the simplest way possible, don’t hesitate to reach out to us!
Vehicle IoT: an Alternative to Smart Charge Poles
IoT connectivity
Vehicle IoT connectivity: an alternative to smart charge poles / smart charge points.
29.08.2023
Electric Vehicles/IoT Connectivity
We are in a new era of mobility, with the uptake of electric vehicles firmly on the rise. With more electric vehicles comes the need for reliable, and better still, smarter charging options. Smart charging enables vehicles to charge at the most suitable moment, for example when grid costs are at their lowest, avoiding spikes in consumption and saving consumers money.
The transition to an electric vehicle and all this encompasses is still new territory for most people, however, and comes with a lot of considerations for fleet managers and vehicle owners alike, one of which is figuring out which charge pole to purchase, for example a single-phase EV charger or a three-phase one, and whether to invest in a smart charge point or just a simple charge pole. There are currently various solutions available and choosing the most suitable and compatible is not always easy.
One way of optimising your charging is via a smart charge point. A smart charge point gives consumers the power to monitor their energy usage and remotely control their charging activity. Such charge points can be expensive, however, and due to this technology still being developed, they are not always reliable, and there may be concerns about potential safety deficiencies. This is a new and emerging technology with certain flaws that still needing ironing out, as we have seen recently in Sweden, where even a well-established brand like Easee can encounter some issues regarding regulations in terms of compliance and documentation. This ultimately leaves consumers with a degree of uncertainty about the longevity of such solutions.
Thankfully, smart charge points are not the only option when it comes to smart charging. The sector is always evolving, and with the right software, the car’s own internet of things (IoT) connections can provide the same reliable data as a smart charge point at a fraction of the cost and without the risks. This is the reason why Tesla, for example, is not selling smart charging stations, only simple ones, focussing the smart part of the charging process on the car itself. Monitoring data such as state of charge or odometer readings does not require expensive additional hardware, as most vehicles are already connected to the internet today, for example to allow an app from the manufacturer to communicate with the vehicle. By leveraging these already-embedded IoT solutions, electric cars are able to share digital information and communicate intelligently with other entities within this IoT network. re.alto uses this existing setup, via a collaboration with the manufacturers, to collect data such as state of charge from the car and provide it to fleet or facility managers either directly or via an API into their preferred IT solution. This is a much simpler, cheaper and more reliable way of monitoring data from the car than installing a pricey smart charge point.
When it comes to transitioning to EVs, fleet managers and vehicle owners must do a lot of exploratory work before making big decisions regarding their charging setups. To complicate this decision-making process further, a lot of the available technology is not yet mature. This means that there is no guarantee that the solution they choose will also be the one that will survive and become standard in the long term. With numerous potential solutions on the table, it is a guessing game on which will prevail in the long run. While many people are opting for smart charge poles right now, this isn’t the cheapest option available. If vehicle IoT, as outlined above, takes over, with smart charging then being done as standard directly via the vehicle, these smart charge points could ultimately become redundant. Smart charging directly from the vehicle itself helps consumers or fleet managers avoid issues like Easee has now encountered regarding compliance, because with a simple charge pole and direct vehicle IoT, no one is likely to face such complexity in regard to regulations. The re.alto Connect solution works on this theory and eliminates the need for a smart charge point, saving users money and helping avoid the issues outlined above. It is sufficient to use just a simple charge pole and let the vehicle IoT handle the smartness, which is ultimately both easier and cheaper.
Reach out to us today for more information on how re.alto can help you do this.
Meet re.alto's Connect Platform
IoT connectivity
Learn more about our connectivity platform.
30.06.2023
Energy APIs/IoT Connectivity
re.alto Connect has been around for a while now, but what exactly is it and what can it do? Product Owner Lenny Kraaijenhof describes Connect as “the platform powering innovative energy products”. Although we often refer to Connect itself as a product, it is in fact more of a platform with the ability to power a lot of different products and solutions. Lenny sees the platform as the “backbone” to enable third parties to build their own energy-as-a-service solutions, along with powering re.alto’s new Xenn product, which is fully based around this platform. He refers to the platform offering as “infrastructure-as-a-service”, as we offer a solid infrastructure for others to use as a foundation for their own products. The platform was built around re.alto’s fundamental objective, which has always been to reduce complexity and simplify access to energy data. Our infrastructure provides insight into energy usage, including consumption and production insight, and historical data. It is very rich in data and can offer insight into energy tariffs linked to consumption, including peak detection, which is especially useful for the Belgian market currently, and we can also communicate directly with many different entities, such as EVs, PV installations and heat pumps.
With the re.alto connectivity platform, we build connector programs to facilitate the connection between re.alto and energy devices. The data collected through these small programs is stored in a data lake. An essential feature of this platform is how easy it is for our clients to start connecting to multiple different cars, solar panels and other devices. The devices already communicate via APIs, but they send their information in a format that is not standardised, meaning a BMW would communicate differently to a Citroen, for example. We normalise, standardise and clean the data, and then make it available to access through a single unified REST API, meaning the structure for all data is then the same. We can even compact it to make it easier to work with. Only one single API connection is required for all the different data that the client or consumer wishes to access, and the user can access this data without the need for any additional hardware. We provide aggregated reports by linking various datasets, such as pricing information, for more useful reporting, which third parties can use in their own apps or products. Interested parties simply reach out to us, we give them access to the platform, and they can then begin onboarding their various devices. From a feature perspective, users begin adding their entities or devices in “asset management”, where they can link EVs, solar panels et cetera. Our onboarding process is incredibly simple, it’s easy to connect new devices, and users are then able to access data from those entities and use this in their products. Each entity is given an ID and information about each one will be displayed to the user in the same way, regardless of the type of entity or the brand. Having all data in a standardised format makes life much easier for our users.
What makes the platform really stand out is its versatility and its reliability. Product Owner Lenny Kraaijenhof describes it as “one platform with many use cases and many potential products”. The re.alto Connect platform is multi-faceted and the potential for third parties is incredible. A standard subscription to the platform grants users access to the Connect API, which will allow them to onboard various energy-related devices and obtain data from them. Additional features on offer can give users further insights, such as forecasting, optimisation or market insights. And Lenny sees the potential for yet further additions in the form of embedded solutions and fleet management tools. The first offering is the above-mentioned “infrastructure-as-a-service”, where third parties can access the API and then use our platform as the infrastructure to build their own innovative product on top of. We basically provide the infrastructure for users to build their own energy-as-a-service solutions, usually in the form of an app. We also offer special bespoke solutions, in which we provide a consulting service and assist third parties in using our platform to build their own product. We invest time in discovering together with the client what their product could be and then tailor our offering to their requirements, therefore becoming more of a hands-on partner. Finally, we have seen growing demand for “embedded solutions” based on a plug-and-play concept with the potential to enrich an existing app or product, so this is where Lenny sees re.alto Connect really expanding in future. His vision is to build our own mini products on top of the platform and sell these as white-labelled products, which can then easily be embedded in a third party’s own app or product as a widget or similar, with minimal effort on their part. We’re currently running similar pilot projects with companies like KBC, who are interested in the benefits of such plug-and-play solutions. GDPR compliance is of utmost importance to us throughout all of this, and that is why we ensure that the platform we offer our clients meets those requirements. In addition, we always use the official channels to gain access to assets and data, and either form official partnerships or sign contracts with our partners, meaning our Connect platform is incredibly reliable and well-maintained.
With the re.alto Connect platform, we reduce complexity and have many tools and features that are of great benefit to product builders. The platform infrastructure is very versatile and can offer insight into energy usage and peak detection. The API can retrieve information directly from EVs and can communicate directly with devices, with users able to easily control EVs and other assets via the command hub. Connect simplifies asset management and can even determine whether the data received is valid to ensure accurate reporting. We can offer audit trails (useful if dealing with sensitive data) and advanced access management, so users can control who has access to certain data. The platform is a brilliant starting point for any third party developing their own energy services, be that via an app or another kind of product. Our platform lends itself particularly well to use cases revolving around fleet management solutions, smart energy services B2B, smart energy services B2C and to those requiring embedded solutions. Our users can simply connect to distributed energy assets over the cloud, enabling them to build smarter energy solutions and steer controllable assets with one single integration to the re.alto platform. It has never been simpler!
If you have questions about how the re.alto’s connectivity platform could benefit you, please reach out to us and we’ll be happy to assist you!
The Hybrid Model: The Pitfalls in Your EV Charging Process and How to Overcome Them
With the increased electrification of the transport sector and electrical vehicles set to gradually phase out internal combustion engines, the transition to a decarbonised society is underway, and we have entered an exciting time for technological advancement. With this new technology comes the development of a completely new ecosystem consisting of the various electric mobility players, such as charge pole operators and mobility service providers, as the transport and energy sectors merge.
Fleet managers often still face a learning curve to become familiar with the various roles in this new ecosystem. Managing a fleet of EV requires not fuel cards but charge cards. Vehicles have more limited range but can charge at home. Maintenance cycles are completely different, as are initial acquisition and residual value assessments. Not to mention that in this new and fast evolving landscape, it is a challenge to remain up to date with the various solutions and their interoperability. Regardless of the solution chosen, however, this new ecosystem currently lacks the ability to read data from electric vehicles, data sets that are essential for many EV-related use cases.
Industry players who already have optimisation processes running with charge poles are aware that charge poles cannot read the state of charge of a battery, which is a key parameter in optimising charging. While a charge pole is, to some degree, able to steer the charging of a vehicle, it is not capable of determining the current state of charge of the car’s battery or how many kilometres it has driven. This presents a problem for smart charging use cases because a significant factor in intelligently controlling the charging process is knowing the state of the battery, particularly when it first plugs in, as this will determine how long it needs to charge for. To optimise a charging session, it is necessary to know how much charging is required. If not, you might jump the gun and charge in the morning, while the bulk of your solar energy is generated in the afternoon. If you already have charge poles that you are optimising your charging process with, we have unlocked a data set that you can use to further improve your optimisations.
re.alto adds extra value to the charging process by offering our new hybrid model, which combines the capabilities of the existing charging infrastructure with the extensive data sets we now have available, including state of charge and kilometres driven. Users can get the state of charge and odometer reading through re.alto and then use the charge pole infrastructure to influence charging behaviour. The result is a complete solution, offering optimisation potential to anyone interested in doing smart charging today. With our solution, you can access state of charge of the battery, whether plugged or not and at any moment in time, enabling you to optimise charging and even anticipate charging. While charge pole infrastructure alone does not take the needs of the EV driver into consideration, our solution helps ensure the driver’s needs are met and that they have sufficient battery charge at a specific moment in time, while also reaping the financial benefits of opting to charge at a time when the price is lowest. For larger fleets or parking areas, optimisation between vehicles is also possible through a form of prioritisation, in which charging speed could be controlled based on the number of vehicles charging simultaneously or on the status of each individual battery. This is all done through the assetless connectivity of our cloud solution.
There are benefits to our hybrid model for utilities too. Electrification can present a challenge for the energy industry, as EVs introduce a high and relatively unpredictable energy demand onto the grid, which can make portfolio optimisation difficult. The statistical models that most utilities refer to for EVs today are significantly younger than their other consumption models, plus there are many external factors that can influence EV charging behaviour. Our data sets can help utilities better predict when an EV will be plugged in and how long it will need to charge, thanks to GPS coordinates and the state of charge of a vehicle, and this data can even be aggregated across an entire fleet. With the data sets we have on offer, utilities can better anticipate the energy needs of an EV portfolio over the next 24 hours and therefore source energy more accurately.
With our hybrid model, we directly obtain additional data from the car, and in doing so, enrich the solution that CPOs and MSPs have running today to ensure they do not run into the issues outlined above. We can provide the missing piece of the puzzle in the form of the data sets that your current EV ecosystem lacks. Whether your use case relates to smart-charging, portfolio optimisation or leasing contract management, our solution is the key to driving further optimisations.
Don’t hesitate to reach out to your service providers today to set this in motion with the help of re.alto.
Integration with BMW
At the end of last year, we announced the launch of re.alto Connect. This product offers cloud-based, assetless connectivity to various kinds of high energy consuming applications at home and now also enables connectivity to electric vehicles. With EV uptake advancing and EVs set to have a fundamental impact on the decarbonisation of our society, re.alto is thrilled to announce that we have now integrated BMW vehicles onto our Connect platform, a significant milestone in maturing the Connect product.
BMW is a pioneer in electric vehicles in Europe and worldwide. The company is driving the energy transition by enabling use cases like smart charging, which creates a lot of value for their customers. Our integration with their platform will help enable the many interesting use cases that we unlock through re.alto Connect, use cases that any company with BMW cars in their portfolio can potentially benefit from. This integration means re.alto has access to the official BMW APIs, enabling us to provide our clients with reliable and high-quality data, while also generating value for BMW’s EV customers, who are partaking in the energy transition and can expect to see their assets increase in value as the ecosystem grows. With increasingly more use cases now arising around capacity tariff optimisation, vehicle and battery health monitoring, employee reimbursement, CAPEX reductions, Energy-as-a-Service and smart charging, there have never been more opportunities in e-mobility.
Alongside standard telematics data, such as charging data records and GPS locations, re.alto Connect gives clients access to the more elusive state of charge and odometer data. We are able to provide BMW EV insights for fleet and private vehicles. While our customers are mainly larger companies operating fleets, the end users of these devices reap many of the financial benefits of the optimisation offered by EV monitoring and eventually by smart charging. The BMW platform currently enables EV insights through re.alto, and we are also in the process of implementing further features, such as the ability to steer the charging of a car, which will ultimately allow us to provide smart charging functionalities to third parties without the need for a smart charge pole.
Our EV insights features offer value to those responsible for residual value calculations and are useful in employee reimbursement use cases. Residual value estimation can help leasing companies and fleet managers better manage their fleets. With some of the data sets we have available now, they can easily assess the health status of these fleets and determine the rate of depreciation of their vehicles. Utilities and charge pole operators, on the other hand, will be interested in state of charge data to optimise charging. This is data that we can provide our clients through re.alto Connect.
We’re currently working on access to start and stop charging commands, which will enable more advanced use cases, such as smart charging and optimisation for a capacity tariff. These are use cases that can be provided by any company with a large B2C client portfolio that wants to offer Energy-as-a-Service. With current end user apps, increasingly more companies are taking advantage of the opportunity in diversifying to other sectors where they can further monetise their extensive user base. re.alto is developing the energy services for third parties to take advantage of. This is an ongoing process, and we will communicate more on this once these additional features have been implemented.
Are you a fleet manager or leasing company interested in capacity tariff optimisation, residual value calculations or involved in employee reimbursement? Or are you an electric utility needing to know state of charge for smart charging purposes? If either applies to you, re.alto Connect is the solution you have been waiting for. Get in touch with us today to find out how Connect can benefit and transform your business.
What is an API?
IoT connectivity
The term API is an acronym. It stands for “Application Programming Interface.”
Energy APIs
An API is a vital building block in any digital transformation strategy, and one of the most valuable in achieving scale, reach and innovation. Behind every mobile app and online experience, there is at least one API. At its most basic level, an API is used to integrate diverse systems by acting as the communication interface which allows two different web-based applications to exchange data over a network connection without the need to merge physical operational infrastructure.
Companies of any size can use APIs for many operational solutions, from analytics to online payments. APIs are the set of protocols which make an organisation’s data and services digitally available to external developers, partners and internal teams over the internet, creating a two-way path for data, digital products and services and a seamless cross-channel experience.
How do APIs work?
One of the most commonly used analogies for APIs is that of a restaurant waiter. It glosses over many of the complexities but it’s useful for understanding the basics.
In a restaurant, the waiter gives you a menu of dishes available to order as well as a description of each item. You choose what you’d like to eat, and the waiter sends the message to the chef who prepares the food. The waiter then brings it straight to your table. You don’t know how the chef made the food or what happened in the kitchen – the waiter is the communication link between you and the kitchen, and he delivered exactly what you ordered.
For developers, an API works in a similar way to that waiter – it is a communication channel delivering an exchange of data or services. An API lists a range of operations which developers can use, along with a description of what each can do. The developer knows he needs a particular function in the app he’s building, so he chooses one of the API components which will deliver that functionality from the API provider and integrates it into his own application.
APIs in Everyday Life
Just think of the number of applications you use on a daily basis which have an embedded Google map or involve getting directions. Chances are that those applications are using the Google Maps API or Google Maps Directions API, which allow developers to access Google’s static and dynamic maps and street views.
If you’ve ever used PayPal to pay for something online, you’ve done so courtesy of an API. When you click ‘Pay with PayPal’, the e-commerce application sends an order request to the PayPal API with the amount owed and other required details. The user is then authenticated through a pop-up and, if all is ok, the PayPal application sends payment confirmation back to the application.
Amazon released its own API to enable developers to easily access Amazon’s product information so that third party websites can post direct links to products on Amazon.com with the ‘Buy Now’ option. And streaming services like Spotify use complex APIs to distribute content across different platforms.
I'm Building an App - How Can APIs Help?
There are a number of advantages to an API-led approach as a developer, but efficiency and innovation are top of the list.
APIs reduce the quantity of code developers need to write themselves when building software, so the faster approach means greater efficiency, both in time and budget. If, for example, a digital application required a weather forecast function, a developer can simply integrate one of the many weather APIs available online rather than needing to build an entire meteorological system from scratch.
By removing any barriers through the intelligent use of APIs, new functionality, or indeed entirely new digital products and services, can be developed faster for rapid innovation. In an increasingly fast-moving market such as energy, the capability to move quickly, respond to new challenges and stay competitive is crucial.
My Company Doesn't Have an API. Should We Build One?
As we’ve seen, APIs should be a key component of any long-term digitalisation strategy.
APIs can be private or public. Private APIs are used only by a company’s internal developers and are not available to third parties. They are a useful tool to integrating and streamlining your own internal digital processes, creating greater efficiencies and potentially speeding up product time to market through faster development.
So private APIs are useful, but the benefits of making them public have even greater potential. Public, or Open, APIs allow you to extend your data, digital products and services beyond your own boundaries into new markets, acting as a revenue stream and new sales channel. They enable customers to integrate directly with your systems in a flexible way which works for them, building the foundation for a mutually beneficial commercial partnership.
Let’s go back to the example of Google Maps. Between 2016 to 2018, Uber paid Google $58million for the use of Google Maps in its app to help drivers navigate and visualise the journey for customers. That’s a significant discount on Google’s normal rate for use of its Maps API for a good reason – market visibility. Just think of the millions of Uber customers using Google Maps daily within the Uber app. Public APIs can increase your own reach and attract new customers. Not only that, but by charging for usage of your APIs, you are better positioned to monetise your own data and services.
