US Patent 11858367 Loading dock-integrated electric vehicle charging system and method

A loading dock safety system integrated with an electric vehicle charging station is disclosed. The system employs an electric vehicle charging station for charging electric vehicles and a safety control device for monitoring and controlling the loading dock safety equipment. The electric vehicle charging station has a charging connector with an electronically controlled latching mechanism to secure the charging connector to the charging port of the electric vehicle. During the process of loading and unloading cargo from the electric vehicle, the charging connector is locked to the charging port, which, in turn, prevents the EV from departing from the loading dock until the transfer of cargo is complete.