Many cars now offer wireless charging of mobile phones. If I place my mobile phone over the center console of the Tesla, it charges without physical contact with the power source. It works the same way when I charge the electric toothbrush. It is set up on a charger where you can easily spill water and toothpaste without anything shorting out.
The concept also works for charging electric cars
It is being tested in several places at the moment. In Haakon VIIs gate in Oslo, Norgestaxis has its own wireless charging stations. It is a project in collaboration with Jaguar Land Rover. The cars used are Jaguar I-Pace adapted for induction charging. In Gothenburg, a similar project is run with the Volvo XC-40 Recharge from Cabonline taxi. The project is a collaboration between Volvo Bil, Volvo Car Sörred, Vattenfall, inCharge and Göteborg Energi. The cars included in the program are in use more than 12 hours per day and drive 100 km a year. Not only do you get to test the charging system, but also the Volvos.
Rechargeable roads
Induction charging also opens up possibilities for building rechargeable roads. On Gotland, there is currently a 1,6 km long rechargeable road between the center of Visby and the airport where an electric-powered bus runs regularly. It is a project run by Smartroad Gotland together with the Israeli technology company Electreon. The project is financed by the Swedish Transport Administration. Several countries are studying the experiences from Gotland. A similar project is to be built in Detroit, where Ford is involved. There are many people who are skeptical about rechargeable roads, including how they cope with snow, ice, salt and plowing. So far, the road on Gotland seems to have worked well since it was put into operation in October last year.
Builds little in height
The solution from Electreon is based on copper loops under the road. They only build 8 cm, so no structural changes to the foundation are needed. According to the manufacturer, the electric loops do not pose any risk to people - neither inside the vehicles nor along the road.
Creates green lungs in the cities
Although the technology for rechargeable roads exists, a number of unsolved questions remain with regard to larger developments. How will the developments be financed? Who will pay? - And how should the fee be calculated? One solution is via tolls, where electric cars with induction charging options pay a higher rate than other cars. Currently, rechargeable streets can be a natural part of green, emission-free areas that are being introduced in several cities down in Europe. Then hybrid cars equipped with induction chargers can also be admitted in line with zero-emission vehicles.
Goes a long way on a small battery pack
Rechargeable roads can mean a flourishing of rechargeable hybrid cars and electric cars with small battery packs. Not everyone wants - or can afford - to buy large electric SUVs of 2,5 tonnes - at least not in Southern Europe. Fiat (Stellantis) has a collaboration with Electreon where they test rechargeable roads both on a truck train and an electric Fiat 500. Another thing that speaks for rechargeable roads is that few car owners have their own garage and home charger in the big cities.
No new idea
Many people think that electric cars are a recent invention. The fact is that several car manufacturers built electric cars already in the car's infancy in the 1900th century. Petrol was expensive and pollution was an issue even then. Anders de Lange recently sent me a 1920 paper presenting ideas from the British scientist Archibald Low. Dr. Low researched wireless communication, including TV signals and wireless remote control. He built the first remote-controlled drone in the world. Another of Low's ideas was electric cars that could capture electricity from wireless power fields – a predecessor to today's rechargeable roads (see main image).
I think that Dr. Low's solution would hardly be harmless to the people inside the vehicles - at least not in terms of electromagnetic radiation. What strikes me, however, is how elegant today's cars could have been if electric car technology had taken over in the early 1900th century.
Thumbs up for cigar shaped cars.
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