Electric vehicles are becoming increasingly popular in societies and an important part of smart grids. Utility companies should be able to provide them with vital energy as they need electric energy instead of fuel, and this is where new challenges emerge in the network. In order to avoid causing utilities to incur additional energy and economic losses, researchers have proposed smart charging as a way to provide adequate energy to vehicles. When developing a charging schedule for a fleet of EVs, special considerations are made on variables such as energy, cost, and EVs milage. In this review paper, the importance of EVs integration into smart grids is studied, and then different methods to develop EVs charging scheduling are investigated. These methods can vary from optimization algorithms to learning-based, and game theory-based approaches. Then, as the considered system consists of three main actors, including EV users, the utility operator, and aggregators, a systematic review is conducted on these actors, and objectives related to each one are analyzed. Finally, research gaps related to the problem are studied. Researchers can use this review to conduct further research on the integration of EVs into smart grids.

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This paper offers a literature review on different structures and control strategies of the microgrid. The implementation of a microgrid system provides significant advantages for both electric utility and end-users. Microgrid control is one of the most sophisticated parts of such implementations that must be taken into account before moving to the next steps. The different control objectives and structures of the main grid and microgrid lead to various control methods proposed for microgrids. The hierarchical structure is the most accepted method for microgrid control that has three levels including primary, secondary, and tertiary. The focus of this study will be on the main modes of typical microgrids, types of microgrid and how to control them. The investigation of this paper will give an overview to the readers, and in our next paper, we will focus more deeply on the subject, with a specific concentration on the concept of secondary control and corresponding trending methods.