Apparatus for above-ground power distribution and electronic charging infrastructure, and related systems and methods

1 . A protective charging station for electric vehicles, comprising:

a housing body elongate along a longitudinal direction, the housing body comprising concrete and including a base extending between a first sidewall and a second sidewall opposite each other along a lateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the base configured to sit atop a parking surface, the housing body defining an internal volume that extends upward from the base and laterally between the first and second sidewalls;

a cover opposite the base along a vertical direction that is perpendicular to the longitudinal and lateral directions;

a charger connected to the housing body;

at least one charge cable extending from the charger to a charge head that is configured to dock with a charge port of an electric vehicle, wherein the at least one charge cable is iteratable between a neutral configuration, in which at least a majority of the at least one charge cable is disposed underneath the cover and within the internal volume, and an active configuration, in which a portion of the at least the majority of charge cable extends outside the internal volume; and

a feeder cable that extends along the internal volume and is in electrical communication with the charger, wherein the feeder cable is configured to supply power from a power source to the charger.

2 . The protective charging station of claim 1 , further comprising one or more additional feeder cables that extend through the internal volume from a first end of the housing body to a second end of the housing body, wherein the one or more additional feeder cables are configured to supply power to one or more respective chargers downstream of the protective charging station.

3 . The protective charging station of claim 2 , further comprising:

a first set of racks mounted to a first interior surface of the first sidewall; and

a second set of racks mounted to a second interior surface of the second sidewall,

wherein the one or more additional feeder cables are carried on one or more respective ones of the first and second sets of racks.

4 . The protective charging station of claim 3 , further comprising first and second dividers within the internal volume that each extend along the longitudinal direction and substantially along the vertical direction, the first and second dividers being located between the first set of racks and the second set of racks along the lateral direction, the first and second dividers defining a compartment between each other along the lateral direction, wherein the at least the majority of the charge cable is disposed in the compartment when in the neutral configuration.

5 . The protective charging station of claim 4 , wherein the cover comprises:

at least one holster configured to support the charge head when the at least one charge cable is in the neutral configuration;

at least one port through which the at least one charge cable extends; and

at least one access panel adjacent the at least one port, wherein the at least one access panel is iteratable between a closed position and an open position, such that when the at least one access panel is in the open position the at least the majority of the at least one charge cable is accessible to a user.

6 . The protective charging station of claim 1 , wherein the cover comprises a top surface, and the charger has a mount portion that is recessed from the top surface along the vertical direction.

7 . The protective charging station of claim 6 , wherein a portion of the charger extends upward from the top surface of the cover, and the cover further comprises a charger access panel adjacent the charger, wherein the charger access panel is iteratable between a closed position and an open position, such that when the charger access panel is in the open position the mount portion of the charger is accessible to a user.

8 . The protective charging station of claim 1 ,

wherein the housing body has a first end and a second end opposite each other along the longitudinal direction, the first and second sidewalls each having an upper portion configured to mount with the cover for substantially enclosing the internal volume along the vertical direction, the housing body including a conduit support structure located within the internal volume and configured to support the feeder cable and a plurality of additional feeder cables, wherein the feeder cable and the plurality of additional feeder cables extend from the first end to the second end of the housing body.

9 . The protective charging station of claim 8 , wherein the housing body comprises concrete, each of the first and second sidewalls has a thickness of at least 4 inches, and the housing body has sufficient strength to satisfy P1/S10, P2/S20, and P3/S30 ratings according to ASTM F3016-19.

10 . The protective charging station of claim 8 , wherein the conduit support structure comprises a plurality of racks extending from at least one of first and second interior surfaces of the first and second sidewalls, respectively, each of the plurality of racks configured to support one or more of the plurality of feeder cables.

11 . The protective charging station of claim 10 , wherein:

the plurality of racks comprise a first set of racks mounted to the first interior surface and a second set of racks mounted to the second interior surface; and

the housing further comprises first and second dividers within the internal volume that each extend along the longitudinal direction and substantially along the vertical direction, the first and second dividers being located between the first and second sets of racks along the lateral direction, the first and second dividers defining a compartment therebetween for housing one or more charge cables.

12 . The protective charging station of claim 8 , wherein the base defines at least one opening that is open to an exterior of the housing body, the at least one opening configured for providing on or more of: underground access to the interior volume; drainage; and a pick point for connection to an apparatus for moving the housing.

13 . The protective charging station of claim 8 , wherein the first end has a first mating structure, the second end has a second mating structure configured to mate with the first mating structure such that a plurality of housing bodies each having the first and second mating structures are interconnectable with each other first end to second end.

14 . The protective charging station of claim 8 , wherein the base comprising a first pair of openings adjacent the first end and a second pair of openings adjacent the second end, wherein the first and second pairs of openings are configured to receive respective portions of leveling inserts that are individually adjustable for leveling the base.

15 . A system for charging electric vehicles, comprising:

a plurality of the protective charging stations of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of protective charging stations are interconnected with each other and are in electrical communication with the power source.

16 . The system of claim 15 , wherein a majority of the plurality of protective charging stations each comprise a plurality of additional feeder cables extending along the internal volume and in electrical communication with the charger of the respective protective charging station, wherein the additional feeder cables are configured to supply power from the power source to the chargers of others of the protective charging stations, such that each charger is supplied power by a respective one of the feeder cables, such that the feeder cable and the plurality of additional feeder cables are connected in parallel.

17 . The system of claim 15 , wherein, each cover includes at least one holster for seating the at least one charge head, and

wherein, in at least a majority of the plurality of protective charging stations, the at least one charge cable comprises first and second charge cables, the at least one charge head comprises first and second charge heads, and the at least one holster comprises first and second holsters.

18 . The system of claim 15 , wherein at least some of the plurality of protective charging stations are disposed between opposed inner ends of a pair of parking stalls spaced from each other along the lateral direction.

19 . The system of claim 15 , further comprising at least one bridge unit extending between a pair of protective charging stations of the plurality of protective charging stations, the at least one bridge unit having a bridge body that defines an internal bridge volume that extends along the vertical direction between a bridge top portion and a bridge bottom portion, wherein the top bridge portion is recessed along the vertical direction with respect to the covers of the pair of protective charging stations, such that the bridge body is configured to allow one or more of foot traffic and vehicle traffic over the bridge top portion.

20 . The system of claim 15 , further comprising a fixture housing unit extending between a pair of protective charging stations of the plurality of protective charging stations, the fixture housing unit comprising a pair of housing members positioned opposite each other along the lateral direction, thereby bracketing an interior space between sidewalls of the pair of housing members, wherein the interior space is configured to contain at least a portion of a fixture mounted to the parking surface.