| Voltage and insulation | Define insulation distances from the actual working voltage, transient overvoltage, pollution degree, material group, and equipment installation conditions. | Keep high-voltage and SELV/control circuits appropriately separated. Specify creepage and clearance requirements on drawings, and verify them on the finished PCB and assembly. | IEC 60664-1; applicable EVSE product standards and regional requirements |
| Charging equipment safety | Design the module as part of the complete charging system, not as an isolated PCB. | Consider protective earthing, electric-shock protection, abnormal operating conditions, temperature rise, and coordination with enclosure, connectors, fuses, and contactors. | IEC 61851-1; IEC 61851-23 for DC EV supply equipment |
| Power and current paths | Size copper, planes, vias, terminals, and busbar interfaces for continuous and transient current under the real thermal conditions. | Use current-carrying calculations and thermal measurements. Account for copper thickness, trace geometry, ambient temperature, airflow, and nearby heat sources; do not rely on trace width alone. | IPC-2152; manufacturer process and component limits |
| Thermal management | Provide a defined heat-flow path for switching devices, magnetic components, rectifiers, and other high-loss parts. | Place heat-generating components with heatsink and airflow requirements in mind. Validate hot spots under full-load and worst-case ambient conditions, including enclosure effects. | Thermal simulation and prototype testing; component datasheet limits |
| Power conversion and EMI | Control switching-current loops and high-frequency noise through careful placement, routing, and return-path design. | Minimize critical switching loops, keep gate-drive paths short, separate noisy power sections from sensitive sensing and communication circuits, and plan filtering and shielding interfaces early. | Applicable EMC requirements; IEC 61851 series where relevant |
| Sensing and control | Protect measurement and control circuits from power-stage noise and electrical transients. | Route voltage and current sensing as controlled, low-noise paths; use appropriate isolation components and protection circuits; verify signal accuracy during switching and fault conditions. | System safety analysis; isolation-component datasheets |
| PCB materials and construction | Select laminate, copper weight, layer stack-up, and board thickness to meet electrical, thermal, mechanical, and manufacturing needs. | Confirm material ratings, finished copper requirements, via construction, solder-mask clearances, and fabrication tolerances with the PCB fabricator before release. | IPC-2221 for generic PCB design guidance; fabricator capability documentation |
| Reliability and verification | Build inspection and testing into the design and manufacturing plan. | Provide test access where practical. Define checks for shorts, opens, polarity, isolation, functional operation, and thermal performance; establish acceptance criteria for the assembled board. | IPC-A-610 assembly acceptability; product-specific validation plan |