福特汽车今日宣布推出两款新型电动汽车充电器，将使其即将推出的 Fathom 皮卡能够作为电池，向家庭或电网供电。
Ford announced two new EV chargers today that will allow its forthcoming Fathom pickup truck to serve as a battery capable of delivering power to the home or grid.
这两款新充电器的价格预计仅为福特现有同类产品的一半左右，这可能让该技术惠及更多家庭。福特表示，Fathom 的起售价为 28,350 美元。
The new chargers promise to be about half the cost of Ford’s existing equivalent products, which could make the technology available to more households. Ford said the Fathom itself will start at $28,350.
福特称，Fathom 能够向家庭输送“超过 10 千瓦”电力。这将使该电动汽车能够替代小型备用发电机。对大多数美国家庭而言，这不足以供全屋用电，但可维持冰箱和空调运行约半天。
The Fathom will be capable of delivering “over 10 kW” to a home, Ford said. That would allow the electric vehicle to substitute for a small standby generator. For most U.S. homes, it wouldn’t be enough to power everything, but it could keep a refrigerator and air conditioner operational for about half a day.
这种能力一直被宣传为电动汽车相较于燃油车的优势，但目前很少有电动汽车配备完善的相关设备，且利用车辆到万物（V2X）服务所需的充电器往往价格昂贵。福特的这两款设备提供相似但不同的功能。
Such capability has been touted as an advantage EVs have over fossil fuel vehicles, but not many EVs come properly equipped, and the chargers required to make use of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) services tend to be costly. Ford’s two devices offer similar but differing capabilities.
Home Power Station（家庭电力站）设备可帮助用户在电价低时为 Fathom 充电、在电价高时向家庭回馈电力，从而降低水电账单。福特表示，该设备售价约 650 美元，比其第一代双向充电器便宜约 50%。
The Home Power Station device can help customers shave down their utility bill by charging the Fathom when power prices are low and sending electricity back to the home when prices are high. The automaker says it will cost around $650, about 50% less than its first generation bidirectional charger.
另一款 Home Backup Power（家庭备用电源）套装将 Home Power Station 与第二款设备 Home Backup Panel（家庭备用配电箱）捆绑销售，使 Fathom 在停电时也能为家庭的部分或全部用电负荷供电。福特称，该套装售价约 2,100 美元，比其第一代产品便宜约 60%。
The other option, Home Backup Power, is a package that bundles the Home Power Station with a second device, the Home Backup Panel, to allow the Fathom to also power parts or all of a home when the power goes out. Ford says the package will cost around $2,100, about 60% less than its first generation product.
上述价格均不含安装费用，现有 V2X 充电器的安装费视家庭所需电气改造工程量而定，最高可达 10,000 美元。福特未宣布与任何安装商建立合作伙伴关系，但一位发言人对 TechCrunch 表示，福特稍后将公布更多详情。
None of those prices include installation, which for existing V2X chargers can run up to $10,000, depending on how much electrical work needs to be done to prepare the home. Ford did not announce any partnerships with installers, though a spokesperson told TechCrunch that Ford would release more details at a later date.
Fathom 能够供电的负载将因家庭和各安装的具体情况而异。例如，空调和冰箱等设备通常需要较大的启动功率浪涌，启动后负载会下降。所谓的软启动装置有助于缓解浪涌，但会增加安装成本。
Which loads the Fathom can power will vary by household and the specifics of each installation. Things like air conditioners and refrigerators, for example, typically require a large surge of power to start up, after which point their load drops. So-called soft start devices can help mitigate the surge, though they add cost to the installation.
这两款充电器都将允许 Fathom 车主参与虚拟电厂（VPP），虚拟电厂利用软件控制一组分布式储能设备，例如电动汽车。
Both chargers will allow Fathom customers to participate in virtual power plants (VPPs), which use software to control a fleet of distributed energy storage devices, such as EVs.
随着人工智能数据中心导致电网压力增加，公用事业公司一直在探索虚拟电厂是否有助于缓解边缘拥堵。
As staring on the grid grows due to AI data centers, utilities have been exploring whether VPPs can help alleviate congestion at the edges.
注册并保持车辆插电的 Fathom 车主可以将电力卖回电网，通常能获得溢价。福特未透露 Fathom 车主能赚多少，但根据电网需求和参与程度，回报每年可达 1000 美元以上。
Fathom owners who enroll and keep their truck plugged in can sell electricity back to the grid, often at a premium. Ford did not say how much Fathom owners can stand to make, but the payouts can be upwards of $1,000 per year, depending on the grid’s needs and the level of participation.
包括福特在内的车企正深入布局储能领域，因为此类服务的需求激增。Fathom 驱动的虚拟电厂是福特进军该市场的最新尝试，但不太可能是最后一次。
Automakers, including Ford, have been diving deep into energy storage as demand for such services surges. The Fathom-powered VPP is Ford’s latest foray into the market, but it’s unlikely to be its last.