Electric School Buses and V2X Technology

Find out how electric school buses can support the community during weather emergencies through Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Technology.


What is Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Technology?

Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Technology is when an electric vehicle is used as a mobile battery, and stored energy in the vehicle is discharged to another entity such as the electric grid, other vehicles, infrastructure, and more.

Applications of V2X technology:

Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G)

Electric vehicles (EVs) draw energy from the grid (typically during periods of low cost and low demand) and discharge energy back to the grid (during periods of high cost and high demand) to help stabilize local electric grids.

Vehicle-to-Building (V2B)

EVs discharge stored energy to a building or home, usually to provide backup power or to offset times of peak energy demand.

What is Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) Technology?

Vehicle-to-Grid, or V2G, is a bidirectional charging technology that allows the batteries in electric vehicles to provide power back to the utility grid when it is of greatest need.

V2G transforms EVs, such as electric school buses, into large mobile batteries that can help stabilize the electric grid. Electric buses are ideally suited for V2G charging as they are essentially batteries on wheels, which can provide capacity, stability, and emergency power to the grid.

Benefits of V2G Technology

Backup Power During Emergencies
Electric school buses can assist during weather or climate emergencies by providing mobile power sources to emergency shelters or critical infrastructure when regular power is disrupted. V2G-enabled electric school buses have large batteries which can be used to power critical facilities in emergencies and outages — just like a backup generator but without the harmful emissions and noise.
Extreme weather and times of high demand are challenging the electric grid’s resilience and ability to deliver reliable electricity across the US. Power outages during these times show why it’s important to keep essential services such as schools, nursing homes, and healthcare facilities online.
As the grid evolves and a growing number of services and products become electrified, electric grids will require new solutions like V2G to remain reliable and resilient. V2G-enabled electric school buses are batteries on wheels that allow for greater electric grid flexibility.
Grid Resiliency
Electric buses can help stabilize the grid in your community through V2G. Buses only charge during the times of day with the lowest energy demand and discharge extra energy during times of peak demand. This helps the community stay online, especially during the hottest and coldest days. All of this happens in the background and doesn’t impact daily bus routes.
What is Vehicle-to-Building (V2B) Technology?
Vehicle-to-Building (V2B) Technology allows electric vehicles to power a building using bidirectional charging. Energy can be drawn from an EV, such as an electric school bus, to use the vehicle as a mobile battery source. V2B can be used to provide backup power during a power outage or to support a building’s electric loads during times of peak demand.
V2B technology can be used as an alternative or as a supplement to traditional backup generators for emergency power. EV batteries can power a home for days, which is longer than many portable generators. EVs are also a clean and quiet power source.
How Electric School Buses Can Help During a Weather Emergency Using V2X
During weather emergencies like hurricanes, floods, or severe storms, V2X-enabled electric school buses can act as mobile power sources, providing backup electricity in the event of a power outage. Electric school buses have a large battery capacity and can discharge stored energy back to the grid through bidirectional charging, providing temporary power to critical infrastructure such as hospitals and emergency shelters. Electric school buses can take part in different forms of V2X, including V2G and V2G, to provide power either to the grid or directly to a building as needed.
Xos Mobile Battery

Backup Power for Electric Vehicles: Mobile Batteries

What happens if an electric vehicle, such as an electric school bus, is stuck without a charging station or needs emergency power?
Mobile charging solutions like the Xos Hub can provide backup power to commercial and passenger EVs. This mobile charging station can provide quick, sustainable energy access to EV fleets.
The Xos Hub provides DC fast charging and can be used for a range of applications, including remote and rescue charging, semi-permanent charging, and backup power in the event of a grid outage. The onboard XOS Hub batteries can be recharged from any DC fast charger.
Highland is currently piloting an Xos Hub mobile charging station with a few customers to provide backup power.

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.