EV

Electreon Unveils Wireless EV Charger That Requires No Excavation

Posted on by Techtime

Electreon unveiled Lite DOT at IAA Transportation in Hanover, a new wireless charging system designed for electric passenger cars and light commercial vehicles. The new product marks a significant expansion beyond the company’s electric-road projects and charging infrastructure for commercial fleets, as Electreon seeks to turn wireless charging into a product that can be installed at homes, workplaces and commercial parking facilities.

Lite DOT delivers up to 11 kW of charging power, comparable to a three-phase residential AC charger. Instead of plugging in a cable, however, the driver simply parks the vehicle over a charging pad placed on the ground. Charging begins automatically once the vehicle is detected and authenticated. According to Electreon, power-transfer efficiency can reach up to 90% under specified conditions. The system also tolerates some parking misalignment, so the vehicle does not need to be positioned precisely over the center of the pad.

One of Lite DOT’s key features is its installation simplicity. Unlike Electreon’s existing DOT systems, in which charging coils are embedded beneath asphalt or concrete, Lite DOT sits above ground and requires no excavation. The system consists of a charging pad, a unit mounted on a wall or pole, and a three-phase electrical connection.

The pad itself contains no active electronics, and power transfer is activated only after an authorized receiver in the vehicle has been detected. The system is designed to operate in rain and snow and at temperatures ranging from -30°C to 50°C.

The Receiver Is Key

Using the system requires a wireless receiver to be installed underneath the vehicle. Electreon has developed a receiver architecture that can be adapted to different types of vehicles, giving the company two potential routes to market: integrating the receiver into new vehicles on the production line, or retrofitting it into existing vehicles. The receiver connects to the vehicle’s high-voltage system and CAN communications network, with the configuration adapted to each specific model.

This is where the network of partnerships Electreon has built in recent years could become particularly important. The company has worked with automakers including Toyota, Ford, Kia, Stellantis and Iveco, as well as Japanese automotive supplier Denso. Electreon currently cites more than 20 collaborations with vehicle manufacturers.

Its cooperation with Toyota and Denso is particularly relevant to the passenger-car market, as one of the partnership’s objectives is to develop receivers that can be integrated into both new and existing vehicles.

Electreon reported in July that it had completed development of the system, then referred to as “Charging while Parking,” and that it was in discussions with automakers and Tier-1 suppliers interested in manufacturing the receiver as well. Lite DOT is effectively the commercial product to emerge from that development. However, Electreon says the system is not yet commercially available and that its market launch date will be announced later.

Park, and the Car Charges Itself

Another potentially important market for Lite DOT is autonomous vehicles. While a human driver can connect a charging cable, a robotaxi, autonomous delivery vehicle or driverless logistics vehicle also needs a way to recharge without human intervention.

In this context, wireless charging becomes more than a convenience. An autonomous vehicle could drive to a parking space, position itself over the charger, recharge and then leave for its next mission without anyone having to plug it in.

Electreon is already applying this concept in industrial autonomous-vehicle projects, including its collaboration with ATLoS in Portugal. The company has also developed an inductive positioning system that allows an autonomous vehicle to align itself with the charging coils.

Lite DOT’s biggest challenge, however, may not be technological. For residential wireless charging to become a mass-market product, a sufficiently large installed base of vehicles must be equipped with compatible receivers. As long as the receiver remains a specialized and potentially costly addition, the value proposition for a private EV owner compared with a relatively simple and inexpensive conventional wallbox may not be compelling. Efficiency of up to 90% also implies greater energy losses than highly efficient wired charging.

The product’s success will therefore depend heavily on Electreon’s ability to turn the receiver from a specialized add-on into an integrated component of electric vehicles, working through automakers and Tier-1 suppliers.

If it succeeds, Lite DOT could mark the point at which technology originally developed for electrified roads evolves from a complex infrastructure project into an everyday charging product: arrive home, park the car, and charging simply begins.

EVR Motors partners with India-based Tier-1 Badve Group

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Badve Engineering Ltd, one of India’s leading Tier-1 automotive manufacturing companies for Indian and global OEMs, and Israeli startup EVR Motors have announced that they are forging a strategic commercial agreement. Under the new strategic partnership, Badve Group will manufacture in India EVR’s proprietary Trapezoidal Stator – RFPM electric motors, which measure half the weight and size of competing electric motors and provide superior power and torque performance. In the 3-wheeler (3W) segment, the collaboration will address both the commercial and passenger vehicles markets (L3 and L5 categories), which are poised for strong growth in India in the coming years.

Badve Group has already initiated the joint development and localization process at one of its facilities in Pune for manufacturing the electric vehicles (EV) motors and is currently developing prototypes to cater Indian OEMs. The company plans to ramp up its production to an annual capacity of 0.5 million units by mid-2023 to meet the rising demand for EVs.

EVR motors has developed a unique, patented motor topology: The Trapezoidal Stator Radial Flux Permanent Magnet (TS-RFPM) Motor, enabling smaller, lighter, lower-cost motors, which can be tailored to user requirements. EVR is now developing a variety of motors, suitable for most mobility and industrial applications. EVR’s first motors are designed for 2-wheelers and 3-wheelers, as well as light commercial vehicles, and weigh less than half compared to similar power radial flux motors.

2-wheeler and 3-wheeler vehicles constitute around 90% of the Indian electric vehicles market. According to estimates, 6 million 3-wheeler vehicles are sold in India annually, and half-million of them are electric 3-wheelers.

On this occasion, Mr. Sumedh Badve (President, EV Division, Badve Group) said, “We are very excited about our partnership with EVR motors. The ground-breaking EVR technology and our proven manufacturing expertise, coupled with our strategic long-term customer relationships will ensure the success of this partnership. This partnership is in line with our core vision of sustainability and net zero emissions through green mobility. We are fully confident that these motors are best suited for adoption in the multi-terrain Indian landscape and will provide an enthralling experience to Indian riders.”

“The strategic partnership with Badve Group, a leading Tier 1 manufacturer, offers multiple OEMs access to EVR’s advanced motor technology, tailored for the Indian market and made in India”, said Mr. Opher Doron, CEO of EVR Motors. “Together with other recently announced agreements, this partnership will expand our total addressable market to encompass the most significant OEMs in the strongest e-vehicle market sectors in India. EVR is proud of the trust our customers place in us and our technology, and of the opportunity to play a significant role in electrifying Indian mobility”.

Napino Group forges licensing agreement with EVR Motors in India

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Napino Auto & Electronics Ltd., India’s premier Tier 1 automotive component manufacturing company, has forged a commercial licensing agreement with EVR Motors, an Israeli start-up with a newly designed and patented motor topology: the Trapezoidal Stator – Radial Flux Permanent Magnet (TS – RFPM) topology. The strategic partnership will see Napino partner with EVR to develop and manufacture motors for electric two wheelers in India. 

Napino is a Tier 1 supplier for almost all of India’s motorcycle and scooter manufacturers and has global partnerships with companies such as Continental and Shindengen.

The TSRF technology is distinctive because of its lightweight and compact design. The proprietary TS topology has a unique trapezoidal tooth shape core structure, which improves flux distribution, reduces leakage, and gives superior heat dissipation with good thermal capacity. The TS topology can be tailored for a wide variety of requirements and enable multiple variations based on the same design and tooling. The air-cooled motor for the two wheelers application weighs under 7 kgs, has a diameter of 130mm, and is a perfect fit for Indian two-wheeler electric vehicles. The voltage range is modular, between 48V and 96V.

The new collaboration with EVR for TSRF motors will give a new shape to the electric vehicle (EV) industry, with lower cost and better performance while maintaining the advantages of traditional RFPM motors. Thanks to this technology, the motor is significantly lighter, smaller, and more efficient than conventional electric motors.

EVR and Napino will bring together the expertise of designing and manufacturing the all-new TSRF motors at their state-of-the-art manufacturing facility.

Mr. Vaibhav Raheja, Joint Managing Director of Napino, commented, “This partnership will help us build a stronger electric vehicle portfolio.  These high-performance motors of up to 17KW would allow us to cater to the premium EV segment.  We are excited about bringing these products into the EV space.”

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Naveen Kumar, Group CEO of Napino said, “Our partnership with EVR for manufacturing their high class power and torque density electric motors is a practical solution for the Indian market. The TSRF motor offers enhanced flux density, thus reducing the motor size and related costs without compromising performance.”

Opher Doron, CEO of EVR Motors commented, “We’re excited about our strategic partnership with Napino, a leading Tier 1 supplier, to manufacture and commercialize EVR’s motors for the Indian market. Meeting the growing demand for electric motors and accelerating EV adoption in India is only possible when joining hands with a leading automotive player. Combining our unique technology with Napino’s engineering and manufacturing excellence will make a real difference in making our world more sustainable and improving the quality of life in India.”

Napino Group, a technology conglomerate and a leader in the automotive and electronics space, is a Tier 1 supplier of proprietary solutions to global OEMs. A USD 230 Million group, Napino is rapidly diversifying into new business segments and expanding its footprints with growing market share across all its product lines. Napino is one of the first few industrial players today to have etched their mark in supplying EV electronic components to leading OEMs in India. Few chargers, motors and controllers are also being developed jointly with leading OEMs and our technology partner. It endeavours to maintain its reputation to deliver high technology and quality products to its customers.

Considering the present global conditions, India is emerging as a lucrative destination for electronic manufacturing services. With its long history of excellence, demonstrable investment in technology & people, robust supply chain and a commitment to exemplary customer service, Napino is already working with many of the world’s leading Automotive, Consumer Goods and Healthcare OEMs.

StoreDot to develop a 2-minute of charge battery

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 StoreDot Company, the developer of extreme fast charging (XFC) battery technology for electric vehicles, has revealed its development roadmap of the company for the next decade. Within this roadmap, the company stated that by 2032 it will be capable of mass producing of a 100-mile of range on a 2-minute charge battery. Current company’s battery, 100-mile of range on a 5-minute charge, will be delivered by the end of 2024.

Another milestone at the company’s roadmap is a 100-mile of range on a 3-minute charge battery, delivered by 2028. The progress in the roadmap is involved in a gradual transition to a solid-state battery. With this type batteries the electrolyte, through which the ions pass in the loading-unloading process between the electrodes, is made of solid material and not liquid or polymer-gel. The 2028 version will be semi-solid state, while the final 2032 battery will be full solid-state.    

Solid state batteries are an objective of the whole automotive industry. Such batteries should be safer and have a larger capacity, and therefore allow for a greater driving range. The challenge is to develop a solid material that will be stable at the one hand, and with high conductance rate at the other hand.

Dr Doron Myersdorf, StoreDot CEO, says: “It’s absolutely crucial that we give global automotive manufacturers a clear and realistic roadmap. Each milestone at our roadmap represents a radical 20% performance improvement – a major impact on the driver’s experience”.

Ultra-fast charging of EV’s batteries

StoreDot has developed the FlashBattery technology, allowing Li-ion batteries to be charged in only several minutes. This technology is based on NanoDots particles, each at the size of 2 nanometers, characterized by high capacity and integrated in the electrolytic liquid within the battery.

In early 2021, StoreDot has produced the pilot production batch of EV batteries in a plant of the Chinese battery manufacturer Eve Energy. These batteries were used to demonstrate full charge of a two-wheeled EV in just five minutes.

Vontier acquired the Israeli Driivz

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Vontier, a U.S-based corporation focused on smart transportation and mobility solutions, aquired the israeli Driivz, a provider an EV charging management software platform for EV charging operations, energy management, advanced billing capabilities and driver self-service tool.  Pursuant to the transaction, Driivz will continue to be run as an independent company , a wholly owned subsidiary of Vontier and managed by founder and CEO Doron Frenkel. Since its establishment in 2013, Drives has raised about $ 33 million from industrial entities, including the energy company Centrica and Volvo. The relationships with Vontier started early in 2020 with the first investment of the corporation in Driivz.

Mark Morelli, President and CEO of Vontier say the acquisition is intended to accelerate the company’s portfolio diversification in the EV market. “Vontier believes the next decade could bring the most significant changes to global mobility since the invention of the automobile. The acquisition is part of our strategic goal to be a complete solution provider for the smart EV market, and therefore we commit that during the five next years we will invest more than $500 million in crafting these solutions”.

According to Morelli, Driivz Company provides a hardware agnostic, cutting edge software technology in the world of EVCI (Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure). Driivz’s platform includes tools for management of the charging grids’ operational system, billing, drivers’ interfaces, EV fleet management and charging in commercial and condos. Among the prominent clients of the company are Centrica, EVgo, Volvo Group and eMobility Power. The platform currently serves about 800,000 users in 20 countries. It manages about 100,000 charging stations that are based on a variety of 500 hardware systems. The company employs 70 employees in Israel, Europe and the USA and is going to add 30 more employees by the end of the year.

Electreon and Ford will deploy first wireless EV charging road in the U.S

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Electreon Company won, together with Ford, the State of Michigan RFP to build a wireless Electric Road System (ERS) in Detroit. The project includes deploying a 1 mile wireless charging road and stationary wireless charging stations, in a central mobility innovation district supported by Ford Motor Co. and others. The road is planned to be operational by 2023, and it will be the first wireless EV charging road in the United States.

At the end of 2020 Ford revealed it plan of restoring Corktown district, Detroit’s oldest neighborhood, including the iconic Michigan Central Station, which also be renovated. The purpose of the project is to craft an ecosystem that demonstrates the future global mobility, and allow companies and start-up all over the world to demonstrate their technologies. For this reason, Electreon estimates that the Michigan project might be major component in introducing their technology to the American market, and in generating strategic joint ventures with leading companies in the market.

In addition to Ford Motor Co., other renowned American companies are taking part, to include Jacobs Engineering, which will lead the road design and will support project management and the energy company DTE, which will provide the connection of the new road to the power grid. Other companies in this project are KIEWIT Company, one of the largest infrastructure companies in the USA, which will support infrastructure works’ planning and execution and CleanTech ROUSH Company, specialized in converting industrial vehicles to alternative fuel vehicles, and will provide an electric truck for the project. Electreon will be the provider of its wireless electronic charging technology and will lead the planning, execution and operation of the project.

Electreon Wireless developed an electric road technology that charges the batteries of electric vehicles during their drive on the electrical section. It is based on the use of magnetic coils that are placed under the traffic lanes and charge the vehicles’ chargers wirelessly, using magnetic induction. This helps to reduce the weight of the electric vehicles, since a relatively small battery is needed. The system includes a management unit located on the sides of the traffic lanes of the electric road, and a receiver unit located in the vehicle’s undercarriage.

Bosch to manufacture IRP’s powertrain components for E-Vehicles

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IRP System Company from Nes-Ziona, Israel, announced it has signed a strategic agreement with Bosch Company for serial manufacturing of IRP’s personal mobility electric motor controllers. Along the product it develops and manufactures Bosch offer industrialization and production services for other companies in the automotive world. The new cooperation will focus on manufacturing controllers for Electric personal mobility vehicles (scooters, motorcycles, 3-wheelers and quadricycles), IRP’s largest market segment as of today. Some of the company’s solutions are already integrated in several commercial models, and in order to meet growing demands it extends its production capabilities through the agreement with Bosch.  

IRP has developed the TrueDrive technology, an array of engines and controllers running by patented algorithm, which improve electric engines efficiency, reduce costs and enlarge the vehicle’s driving range. Dan Shoshani, VP Marketing & Product Management at IRP Systems, explains to Techtime: “The main challenge in the Electric Vehicle controllers’ world is to craft a controller that offers high performance with maximum safety, together with competitive price. Our cutting edge technology meets the highest standards of the automotive industry. We put a lot of attention in the driver’s experience and in providing outstanding ‘in-control’ driving feeling for its e-vehicle. We manage to achieve this through our unique algorithmics which is built-in the controller”.

IRP Systems was co-founded by CEO Moran Price and CTO Paul Price. At start, they aimed their technology for the aviation’s world applications, but in later years the company has changed focus and migrate its technology for the automotive world. Today it develops powertrain solutions for scooters, motorcycles, 3-wheelers and quadricycles with power up to 150kw and for passenger’s cars. The solution is composed of three major components: controllers, engines and battery management system.

A successful joint experiment with Renault

In the last year, IRP Systems took part at Renault-Nissan innovation lab in Tel-Aviv. Within this experiment, the company’s technology was tested in a Renault’s light vehicle. As a proof of concept, four electric engines and IRP’s control array have been installed in a Renault Twizy car. Company has reported that the size of the four new engines is only one third of the original engines’ size, and they managed to double driving range between charging with higher the ratio of speed thanks to the engines’ higher torque (power).

Bosch Company announced that the production will be performed in the frame of its DfX (Design for eXcellence) service. This service integrates the production, tech and automation constraints in the engineering design – early at the planning stages. The industrialization and manufacturing of IRP’s products will be led by Bosch Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS) business unit headquarters in Mondeville, France, together with Bosch Technology local team in Israel.