World’s First Wireless EV Charging Highway | Future of Electric Vehicles
The world is changing faster than ever before. New technological advancements and breakthroughs are coming every day. Every economic sector is in a transition phase, and the automobile industry is nothing different in this. We are on the edge of a massive shift in the automobile sector as the cars will be electrically powered. Almost every vehicle will be running on batteries instead of fossil fuels in the 2030s, as the government from all around the world targets. From Tesla to Tata, everybody is in a rat race to bring their electric cars to the market. There have come a few in the premium price segment. The new technology comes with new challenges, so is this electric car thing. As the cars will be getting new power sources, the refueling will also be replaced by recharging. The typical refueling stations are going to be replaced by new electric charging stations. The charging infrastructure is more critical than electric cars as it has to be developed before electric vehicles hit the markets. That’s why so many automakers are so interested and invested in these researches, which are exploring and improving different options of electric vehicle charging like swappable batteries, wired charging, solar-paneled cars, etc. On the other hand, Italy is all set to get its first wireless charging highway with the help of technology developed by a company from Israel called ElectReon Wireless.
The technology is so revolutionary on its own because it can altogether eliminate the poles and charging stations from the picture. Imagine your car getting charged when you are running it on a highway. It takes around 30 minutes to get a vehicle charged on a charging station which is way more than the classical refueling time of petrol cars which took hardly a minute or two. The technology developed by ElectReon could be a possible solution for the issue. The technology being tested by ElectReon allows the electric batteries to be charged wirelessly while they move on the road. It is being done in northern Italy on a kilometer-long stretch of highway between Milan and Brescia. This will be the first trial of this technology on an actual road.
The infrastructure involves installing copper coils under the asphalt. Energy is transferred directly and wirelessly to the vehicle’s batteries while driving using magnetic induction. The system includes a control unit located on the side of the lane of the electrified road. A receiver is installed in the chassis of each electric vehicle that is participating in the trial.
Adopting the idea of wireless on-road charging could make the consumers worry less about the nearest charging station and will be able to enjoy the journey. It will help ensure the mass adoption of electric vehicles, and it also makes the idea of electric vehicles more practical and realistic.
Suppose this idea of inserting wireless chargers under the road and eventually powering them using solar panels proves feasible. There won’t be any need for charging stations or large batteries for EVs. Therefore, electric vehicles can continue to drive around the clock without stopping to charge.
The company, ElectReon, also said that during this trial, it would also explore advanced IoT (Internet of Things) connectivity technologies to ensure road safety and the maximum productivity of commercial vehicles in the deployment of wireless charging road systems, as well as exploring road construction optimization to increase road durability while not interfering with the efficiency of inductive charging systems built into the specified roads.
To get a clearer picture of this project, take a look at the video by the company ElectReon.
If all significant roads could be outfitted with this technology at some point in the future, it could mean the end of waiting to charge an electric vehicle. The electrified roadway could also mean the elimination of one major bottleneck to the adoption of EVs worldwide. Thus, such projects can massively boost electric vehicle adoption worldwide.
