Integrating Bidirectional EV Charging with Residential Energy Management Systems

Abstract

This paper presents a custom Home Assistant (HA) setup for real-time control of bidirectional electric vehicle (EV) charging within a residential Home Energy Management System (HEMS). The proposed system enables Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) operation, allowing the EV to act as both a flexible load and a distributed energy storage unit. A custom Smart Charging Algorithm (SCA) is developed to optimize EV charging and discharging based on electricity prices, solar generation forecasts, household demand, and user preferences. The algorithm is implemented as a lightweight HA add-on and deployed both in the HA environment and on the EV charging hardware for local execution and fallback. This work highlights the potential of open-source platforms like Home Assistant to enable intelligent, decentralized energy management with bidirectional EV integration. This study contributes to the objectives of the EU Green Deal and REPowerEU by supporting clean energy transitions at the household level, and aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goals 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and 13 (Climate Action).