According to MathWorks, bidirectional charging is transforming EVs into flexible energy assets, enabling power to flow both into and out of the vehicle. As renewable energy expands, this capability helps grids store surplus power and release it intelligently when demand peaks.
For years, an EV’s battery had just one job: move the vehicle. Once the vehicle was parked, that powerful battery simply sat idle. Today, that is beginning to change.
Bidirectional charging is turning EVs into flexible energy assets. It allows electricity to flow not only into the vehicle, but also back to homes, buildings, or even the grid. This matters because renewable energy is growing fast, and grids need smart ways to store and release power when demand rises. EV batteries can help smooth peak loads, stabilise the grid, and even provide emergency backup during outages, says, Mr. Graham Dudgeon, Senior Principal Product Manager for Electrical Technology at MathWorks.
Speaking to this publication, Mr. Dudgeon said that a stationary EV battery is an “unused asset with real value.” Bidirectional chargers unlock that value by enabling energy to move both ways—charging the battery when power is abundant and sending it back when it is needed most. This simple shift transforms the charger into the key enabler of vehicle-to-grid systems, accelerating clean energy adoption while redefining what an EV can do beyond the road.
Balancing the Grid Without Stranding the Driver
A common worry with vehicle-to-grid systems is simple: what if the car gives away too much power and is not ready when the driver needs it? After all, people want enough charge for both short city trips and long journeys.
This is where scale and smart control change the picture. When millions of EVs are connected, they act like a single virtual power plant. “The goal is not to drain individual vehicles, but to optimise the system. Power can be sent back to the grid to cut peak demand, while still ensuring every vehicle is fully charged by the time it is unplugged. That balance is achieved through optimisation rules built into the charging system, allowing both the grid and the driver to benefit,” he explained.
This is where MathWorks plays a critical role. Its strength lies in model-based design, which brings simulation into the development process from the very beginning. Whether engineers are designing a bidirectional charger or managing thousands of EVs as one system, simulation helps answer key questions early. With tools for system modelling, control design, optimisation and statistics, MathWorks enables automakers, power equipment firms and utilities to coordinate EVs intelligently—turning complexity into a working, reliable energy solution.
Designing for India’s Real-World Grid
Markets like India bring a unique set of challenges for bidirectional charging. Grid quality varies from State to State, policies are still evolving, and power parameters like frequency and voltage must stay within strict limits to ensure stability. Even small deviations can affect power quality for everyone connected to the grid.
This wide mix of conditions is what engineers call the design space—the real-world environment a technology must work in. Grid frequency, voltage tolerance, policy rules and infrastructure maturity all become part of that space. “From a global viewpoint, this design space can look very different from one country to another,” and India sits at the more complex end of that spectrum, he explained.
This is where MathWorks steps in. Its simulation tools help engineers explore these variables early in the design phase and test how systems behave under different grid conditions. The goal is simple: build confidence that a design will meet power-quality requirements and still work reliably across regions with uneven infrastructure.
Commercial Economics
The same thinking extends to the business side. Investments in bidirectional charging are not just engineering decisions—they are techno-economic ones. Automakers, charger suppliers, utilities and public stakeholders all need to be part of the process. Instead of guessing returns, engineers can combine technical models with economic assumptions and use optimisation tools to evaluate performance and returns together. The outcome is not a one-size-fits-all answer, but a system-specific view of what works best—technically and financially—for a given market, he pointed out.
Will Bidirectional Charging make sense in a Multi-Fuel Future?
India’s electrification story is very different from many global markets. Two-wheelers and three-wheelers are electrifying fast, while cars will take much longer. At the same time, vehicle makers are not betting on one solution. They are working on many fuel paths in parallel—electric, LNG, biofuels, hydrogen and more—all with one goal: lowering emissions.
In this mix, bidirectional charging cannot be seen in isolation. According to him, it becomes part of a much larger puzzle from an energy system point of view. Utilities and infrastructure planners are not just asking whether charging helps, but whether it still makes sense when combined with many other technologies. It is a layered problem, where each technology sits within a broader energy pyramid and must prove its value alongside the rest.
Another key concern is battery life. Using an EV battery to support the grid means more charging and discharging cycles, which can shorten battery life. But cycling is only one factor. Batteries also age with time and heat. This turns the issue into a battery management challenge, not a deal-breaker, he observed.
With the right controls, the impact can be managed. How much energy is drawn, how fast it is drawn, and how well the battery is cooled – all matter. These variables can be tuned using optimisation methods and smart battery management strategies. Tools from MathWorks allow engineers to study these trade-offs and reduce degradation, ensuring the battery delivers value to both the grid and the user without compromising long-term reliability.
Saving Time, Cost and Risk through Simulation
In complex technologies like bidirectional charging, mistakes discovered late can be very expensive, Mr. Dudgeon said, adding that this is where MathWorks makes a clear difference. Its core strength is model-based design—bringing simulation into the process from the very first stage of development and using it all the way through. Engineers build a simulation model early, then keep refining it as the system grows more complex. That model becomes a shared reference across teams, reducing misalignment and rework; because design issues are spotted in simulation and therefore, many problems are solved before any hardware is built. MathWorks also supports control system development and automatic code generation, allowing tested algorithms to be directly deployed onto real processors. The result is faster development, lower cost, and much lower risk—giving engineers confidence that the system they deliver is the best version possible.
Building Confidence
At its core, the value of MathWorks lies in helping engineers make the right decisions early. By using model-based design, simulation becomes the foundation of development—not an afterthought. A single, evolving model guides teams from concept to deployment, helping them spot errors before hardware is built, align across functions, and reduce costly late-stage changes.
With support for control design and automatic code generation, ideas tested in simulation can move smoothly into real systems. For companies working on complex technologies like bidirectional charging, this approach saves time, cuts cost, lowers risk, and most importantly, builds confidence that the final system will work as intended in the real world.
