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My cat made an insightful suggestion a few weeks ago, although he did not know he did so…
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“You can see me in the dark because of my eyes”
In a way, he was saying: “The reason you cannot see the charge receptacle in the dark is because an engineer purchased it to spec for fire retardance, hence black ABS fiber-filled plastic. It’s black on black in the dark. There are no human factor considerations.
What if you gave the charge receptacle an eye like this?”
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However, this is a special eye.
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Of course, placing luminous film in a dark compartment means it will not glow when you open the door.
However, it is highly reflective, and even very low levels of light will emit a glow. My problem is the EVSE is in a very shadowed area of our parking garage. During the day, slit windows let in sunlight. At night the nearest light is 25’ away opposite the charging port. My best measurements show I have less than 1 lux near the port.
However, before and after pictures show a visible ‘target’ that means I connect with no problems. In worst case conditions, I can turn on my emergency flashers and get a strong reflection from the cat eye.
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There are also some other interesting things you can do with 6900.
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So, it’s a quick, no power, human factor solution for well under $10. In the ideal world this would be 10-cent post molding insert to the J1772 receptacle that would make the human interface easier. For now, feel free to play with the idea.
The cutting guide is below. Simply scale so that the 50mm reference is 50mm on your paper.
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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
“You can see me in the dark because of my eyes”
In a way, he was saying: “The reason you cannot see the charge receptacle in the dark is because an engineer purchased it to spec for fire retardance, hence black ABS fiber-filled plastic. It’s black on black in the dark. There are no human factor considerations.
What if you gave the charge receptacle an eye like this?”
However, this is a special eye.
- It’s made from a wonderful material called 3M 6900 Luminous Film. It both is highly reflective and luminous. Even a small amount of ambient light gives a reflection and builds a glow. It’s thin, about 0.2mm, and has a strong adhesive back. Overall lifetime is rated 7 years in protected conditions (such as the inside of a charge port).
- It glows very brightly with just minor exposure to shop lighting
- Having used this in hospital safety installations, 3M 6900 applied on valves, switches, and medical gas manifolds gave enough indication to a hospital worker to safely shut-down or transition services in the event of a power failure. The film reflects and glows even with minimal lighting such as a battery powered exit sign 10 meters away.
- It’s expensive, but there are sellers on Etsy, as well as tactical equipment suppliers that sell small pieces for between $2-$6.
Of course, placing luminous film in a dark compartment means it will not glow when you open the door.
However, it is highly reflective, and even very low levels of light will emit a glow. My problem is the EVSE is in a very shadowed area of our parking garage. During the day, slit windows let in sunlight. At night the nearest light is 25’ away opposite the charging port. My best measurements show I have less than 1 lux near the port.
However, before and after pictures show a visible ‘target’ that means I connect with no problems. In worst case conditions, I can turn on my emergency flashers and get a strong reflection from the cat eye.
There are also some other interesting things you can do with 6900.
- With a different cut out, you can place the film inside the J1772 EVSE connector, let it charge during the day to make the connector itself a glow-in-the-dark flashlight.
So, it’s a quick, no power, human factor solution for well under $10. In the ideal world this would be 10-cent post molding insert to the J1772 receptacle that would make the human interface easier. For now, feel free to play with the idea.
The cutting guide is below. Simply scale so that the 50mm reference is 50mm on your paper.
- The cutout is the result of several experiments and avoids snagging the cat eye on J1772 plug seals and ridges.
- You can cut the film with most hobby die cutters, scissors, or leather punches (Cutting dimensions below). The cutout makes three cat eyes from a narrow strip of 3m 6900. Adapt as needed.
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
