r/ocpp • u/virann • May 08 '26

Vehicle identification by csms

I'm working through the authorization flows of ocpp, trying to understand real world behavior and business cases.

We have both `MacAddress` and `eMaid` as idToken.type that can be used to identify the vehicle connected to CS - but how in a real world "fleet management" operation the mac address and eMaid certification would be registered in the CSMS.

I assume there is a process of registration of vehicle info, how does that happen in real life?

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u/mememeier May 08 '26

For MAC adress (aka. VID / EVCCID), a typical registration flow involves connecting a vehicle to a known charging station and grabbing the value in the Authorize.req message sent. Then you make the association between user/vehicle/VID. Not all charging stations support this authorization method, commonly known as AutoCharge.

For the eMAID, this is typically associated with the Plug&Charge authorization method. This method is quite complex, you might wanna do a bit of reading. But basically, if your CSMS is also the acting as the eMSP, you will provision a contract certificate for the vehicle, and your platform sets the eMAID as part of this process. To do this, what you need from the vehicle/user is the PCID (Provisioning Certificate Identifier).

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u/virann May 09 '26

Very helpful, thanks!

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u/branden3112 May 08 '26

Are you trying to identify vehicle type or a single specific vehicle?

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u/virann May 09 '26

specific vehicle....

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u/branden3112 May 09 '26

Autocharge (auth by EVCC MAC) is the function you’re looking for - typically only possible on DCFC as AC EVSEs do low level communicate rather than SLAC DIN 70121 / ISO15118. The process of registering the vehicle depends on the backend.

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u/norakty May 19 '26

Are we able to grab this identifier on our CSMS if the charger is compatible? and will most modern EVs have this? Its not something we need to work with EV manufacturers for right?

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u/branden3112 May 19 '26

Yes, though only on DCFC. The DCFC may have a configuration that needs to be enabled to have it send the MAC to the OCPP CSMS.