While sales of electric vehicles (EVs) continue to increase, thanks to lucrative subsidies offered by state and federal governments, the demand for electric commercial trucks and vans has not yet materialized. There could be several reasons for that, including limited model availability, higher upfront costs, charging infrastructure concerns, and potential range anxiety.
An Israeli company is currently addressing those last two concerns by offering a new wireless charging solution for EVs, as well as commercial fleet operators and consumers. Electreon has developed a proprietary new technology that can be embedded in roads, parking lots, etc., and can charge an electric car or truck whether it is stopped or in motion.
According to the company, their wireless electric road technology is based on magnetic resonance induction, with copper coils installed under the roadway. The coils transfer energy to a receiver – which the company estimates will cost around $1,000 -- that can be mounted under any kind of electric vehicle. The company says this technology will reduce the need for large batteries and extensive grid connection capacity, flattening the electrical demand curve and significantly lowering costs.
To prove its point, the company recently announced that during a 100-hour demonstration, a Toyota RAV4 covered 1,206 miles using the company’s wireless electric road technology. Only 25% of the 200-meter demo track was electrified, and 56 different drivers drove for 100 hours straight over five successive days, pausing only momentarily to switch drivers (without switching off the engine), and never for dedicated charging downtime. The car’s 18 kWh battery was never depleted, because the electric road continually charged the vehicle as it drove around the track.
Electreon currently has projects underway across Europe, the Middle East, and North America. In the U.S., the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) announced last year that it had entered into a five-year agreement with Electreon to develop and work toward implementing a scalable, wireless, public, in-road charging network for EVs.
"The potential for electrifying roads and cities is practically endless and working together with MDOT, we are reshaping the future of transportation," said Oren Ezer, CEO and co-founder of Electreon.
