Electric-vehicle charging cords could soon go the way of the cassette tape, floppy disk and landline telephone.
Suppliers like Qualcomm Inc. and a handful of after-market companies offer wireless charging that requires no cords or physical contact. Some automakers are beginning to implement it on their fleets, although it will likely first be available mostly on high-end luxury makes. Mercedes-Benz, for example, will offer wireless charging on its S550e plug-in hybrid next year.
Inductive charging uses two coils of wire in two objects — in this case, a pad on the car connected to its battery and a separate pad on the ground — to create an electromagnetic field.
When the objects come in close contact with one another, an electric current travels over the open space to create a charge. It’s the same way you wirelessly charge an electric toothbrush, video game controller or cellphone.
In the future, suppliers envision a world where wireless chargers would be built directly into roadways so the car would charge while you drive, eliminating range anxiety. The coils could be built into designated highway lanes, or at places where cars often idle, such as stoplights and on-street parking spots. If wireless charging is implemented in parking garages or lots, autonomous EVs could one day park themselves over the pads and, when fully charged, move another vehicle in to charge.
“It’s so easy, that’s the big selling feature for it. It’s so convenient,” said John Currie, manager of business development for Qualcomm Halo. “You don’t have to remember to plug or unplug or handle those cables anymore. The car can just charge automatically where you normally park.”
Currie recently demonstrated the Qualcomm system with a hybrid Honda Accord over a small, rectangular black mat on the ground. To start charging, Currie hit a button on the car’s touchscreen, and a circular graphic on the screen showed the car was properly aligned and was charging. A wall-mounted box connected to the ground mat completes the system.
Qualcomm Halo has wireless EV charging systems with 3.3 kilowatts and 7 kilowatts charging capacity and has demonstrated power transfers of up to 20 kilowatts, said Chris Borroni-Bird, vice president of strategic development from Qualcomm Technologies Inc.
Qualcomm has licensed its Halo wireless EV charging technology to three suppliers: Southfield-based Lear Corp., U.K.-based Ricardo and Switzerland-based BRUSA Elektronik AG. Ricardo, an engineering firm with offices in Van Buren Township, plans to hit the marketplace in about three years.
But some challenges remain. Drivers don’t always drive straight over the charging pad to perfectly align the two coils. SUVs and vehicles that sit higher above the ground have a tougher time picking up a charge. And charging stops if an object or animal ends up on the pad.
Read more of the original article in The Detroit News
