Plugless Power gearing up for production of its hands-free EV charging stations
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted December 16th 2009 1:23PM
posted December 16th 2009 1:23PM
Unless your electric vehicles tend to strictly circle your home base, you're going to need to charge up on-the-go -- and until some sort of standard gets worked out, we're likely to see the "EV filling station" approached on many different angles. In the last six months alone we've seen 'em pop up in a New York alleyway and a North Carolina McDonald's, and Better Place has tested one of its novel battery switching stations in Tokyo -- with more on the horizon. Eager to get in on the game, Plugless Power (whose parent company, MTC Transformers, has been working with similar tech for the grid for years now) looks like its finally ready to commercialize its own hands-free (and plug-free) proximity charging system. With any luck, environmentally conscious commuters will be juicin' up in their garages by the end of next year. And who knows? Maybe this sort of thing will be available at Sparky's Fill'R'Up on the PA Turnpike at some point in the near future. PR after the break.
Plugless Power(TM) Advances Toward Production Readiness with Syncroness
Industrial Design Firm to Develop Plan for Product Commercialization
WYTHEVILLE, Va., Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Evatran, LLC, a clean technology company producing innovative charging solutions for electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids, announced today that it has contracted with Syncroness, a product development and design consultancy, to facilitate the commercialization of Plugless Power(TM), the world's first "hands-free" proximity charging system for electric vehicles. The dual-component system utilizing inductive charging offers EV drivers a convenient, universal and reliable way to charge their vehicles.
"We are impressed with Syncroness' portfolio, which includes designing and managing the complete development-to-production process for a range of successful consumer products," says Rebecca Hough, director of sales and marketing for Evatran. "We also anticipate leveraging Syncroness' expertise to help us comply with third-party approvals and standards."
The initial phase of the project contract between Evatran and Syncroness involves a three-week session to produce a nine-month plan to bring Plugless Power up to full production ability by 4Q 2010. "We are pleased to be working with Evatran's highly experienced engineering team," said Jorg Lorscheider, chief marketing officer of Syncroness. "Recognizing the potential of Plugless Power, we are honored to be playing a pivotal role in defining this product's long-term strategy."
Evatran anticipates a production-ready model of Plugless Power(TM) will be available to drivers by Fall 2010. For more on Evatran, visit www.evatran.com.
About Evatran
Evatran is the manufacturer of Plugless Power(TM), the world's first "hands-free" charging system for electric vehicles. Utilizing a unique dual-component system based on inductive technology, Evatran's Plugless Power(TM) will streamline the process of charging electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids by eliminating the nuisance of the cord and the plug. The result is an electric-vehicle charging system that is convenient, universal and reliable. Evatran's customers are manufacturers, dealers, corporations, municipalities, utilities, residential developers, retailers, small businesses and drivers of electric or extended-range hybrid vehicles.
About Syncroness
Syncroness, Inc. is a leader in strategic, outsourced engineering and industrial design for new product innovation. Based in Westminster, Colorado and Laguna Niguel, CA, Syncroness was recently rated as one of 500 fastest-growing technology companies in the US (Deloitte.) With a staff of 50 engineers and over 30 years of project experience, Syncroness develops successful products in medical, aerospace, scientific, transportation, security, consumer and industrial markets. For more on Syncroness, visit www.syncroness.com.
SOURCE Evatran, LLC
Industrial Design Firm to Develop Plan for Product Commercialization
WYTHEVILLE, Va., Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Evatran, LLC, a clean technology company producing innovative charging solutions for electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids, announced today that it has contracted with Syncroness, a product development and design consultancy, to facilitate the commercialization of Plugless Power(TM), the world's first "hands-free" proximity charging system for electric vehicles. The dual-component system utilizing inductive charging offers EV drivers a convenient, universal and reliable way to charge their vehicles.
"We are impressed with Syncroness' portfolio, which includes designing and managing the complete development-to-production process for a range of successful consumer products," says Rebecca Hough, director of sales and marketing for Evatran. "We also anticipate leveraging Syncroness' expertise to help us comply with third-party approvals and standards."
The initial phase of the project contract between Evatran and Syncroness involves a three-week session to produce a nine-month plan to bring Plugless Power up to full production ability by 4Q 2010. "We are pleased to be working with Evatran's highly experienced engineering team," said Jorg Lorscheider, chief marketing officer of Syncroness. "Recognizing the potential of Plugless Power, we are honored to be playing a pivotal role in defining this product's long-term strategy."
Evatran anticipates a production-ready model of Plugless Power(TM) will be available to drivers by Fall 2010. For more on Evatran, visit www.evatran.com.
About Evatran
Evatran is the manufacturer of Plugless Power(TM), the world's first "hands-free" charging system for electric vehicles. Utilizing a unique dual-component system based on inductive technology, Evatran's Plugless Power(TM) will streamline the process of charging electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids by eliminating the nuisance of the cord and the plug. The result is an electric-vehicle charging system that is convenient, universal and reliable. Evatran's customers are manufacturers, dealers, corporations, municipalities, utilities, residential developers, retailers, small businesses and drivers of electric or extended-range hybrid vehicles.
About Syncroness
Syncroness, Inc. is a leader in strategic, outsourced engineering and industrial design for new product innovation. Based in Westminster, Colorado and Laguna Niguel, CA, Syncroness was recently rated as one of 500 fastest-growing technology companies in the US (Deloitte.) With a staff of 50 engineers and over 30 years of project experience, Syncroness develops successful products in medical, aerospace, scientific, transportation, security, consumer and industrial markets. For more on Syncroness, visit www.syncroness.com.
SOURCE Evatran, LLC
Really? This is the last thing the ailing EV movement needs, a hugely inefficient charging mechanism to make electric vehicles far less efficient than standard fuel vehicles.
Get out of the car and plug in a plug you lazy hippies!
Unless this is some kind of under-car rising contact system, this needs to be killed before it renders EV advantages nullified.
@cybereal "Hugely inefficient"? Many of the inductive systems that have been used in industrial settings over the past 5+ years have an efficiency of over 90%.
@cybereal ailing?
hardly.
@Kybuck
Actually, even 1% energy loss is about 200Wh of lost energy for a car with 20kWh total energy (and that is somewhere in the region of electric cars hitting streets the next couple of years).
So "efficiency of over 90%" IS hugely inefficient...
@Kybuck That efficiency is achieved through accurate alignment and close proximity of the two induction coils. I'm doubtful your average driver will be able to park that well.
@harrykim23 Exactly not to mention reduced efficiency of the car due to lugging around a sizeable receiving coil that can handle the necessary current
So just plug in the damn car you lazy bastards
I would think the inefficiencies of inductive coupling would void the "green" benefits
This system would also make Vehicle to Grid technologies impossible unless car manufacturers want to add AC converters to their existing DC converters inside the vehicle.
Waste. Of. Energy.
Wow, I didn't know VW was making an EV version of the Sportwagen...
http://www.autofans.us/images/Volkswagen/2009 Volkswagen Jetta Sportwagen 1.jpg
Link fail...try this: http://bit.ly/6nnPY7
@ncqe That's exactly what I was thinking when I saw that picture, since that's the very same car and color that my wife drives. Bring it on, VW!
@ncqe
is that a new model car?
@nabberuk
funny that they used the record holder for the most highway fuel efficient production car in America, that is not EV but diesel.
if it was efficient i could see this being pretty good. Pull up to the traffic lights whilst on red, your car could be charging whilst your waiting.
Use ideas like this and EV cars suddenly could have a brilliant range
2 years later....
We just found out hands-free EV charging stations may cause cancer.
These gas stations can't even keep the damn air compressor working to put air in your tires. Now we're going to trust them to keep this thing maintained. :)
While recharging, please ignore that slight tingling you feel in the hair on your arms. It is normal.
I know squat about electricity. But presumably there are no electromagnetic field concerns with such charging stations? Just curious. I mean the whole uproar about high tension power lines was bunk? If it wasn't, is EMF a concern here?
@digitalh
It's not an issue because it's inductive charging. There is no E-field, it's purely an H-field (magnetic).
Unless you're worried about the Earth's magnetic field you really shouldn't be worried about this.
@digitalh
And the same thing on the powerline issue. People concerned about high voltage lines (from a field emissions perspective) don't understand physics.
1- The fields fall off 1/R^2 so by the time it gets more than a few feet away the field strength is negligible.
2- The radiation of said fields is non-ionizing and is just as likely to cause cancer as lightning, cell towers, wifi routers, microwave ovens, vacuum cleaners, or cordless drills. (i.e. impossible as the particles don't have enough energy to cause cellular damage vs. the typical high energy ionizing radiation seen in things like solar flares or nuclear blasts).
@COCOViper
And how do you think is this H-field created? It's an electro-magnet in there, so you bet there is an E-field. And a whopping strong one to boot, if you want to get any kind of meaningful charge into your car (meaningful in percent of the total energy stored by the batteries).
So thanks, but no thanks, I prefer the "conventional" way of charging my car...
Inductive charging is wasteful. Powerful EMF gives me the willies.
Wow this is going to be awesome. Future here we come haha
If done right with an idiot proof docking system and efficient charging, this could help revolutionize the mass market acceptance of EVs
@zwier Idiot-proof?
I think the average idiot can probably easily handle a 3 phase charging cord. If they can plug in a lamp, they can plug in and charge the EV. Yes, it is a bigger cord. Yes, it handles more current.
It would be easy to idiot proof the cord so it is not live at 240V (or whatever) until the plug was firmly seated in the socket.
Inductive charging in your garage? Pointless. Inductive charging at 65 mph in the EV-only lane on the freeway? Priceless
@tmarks11 Yes, Idiot proof.
We have seen countless "average consumers" mangle cables and even run into charging stations in their own garages. You would be surprised to see how the average joe can destroy their own property by accident, not to mention what happens with public parking lots, ice/snow, public streets, vandals, gum in sockets, the elderly, vandals, etc. Imagine the extra cost of repairing or pulling gum from hundreds of charging sockets all over san francisco.
You are right, at first glance it isn't a huge inconvenience to plug in at night. We have done the research and witnessed countless consumers simply forget, for whatever reason, to plug in when they arrive home from work or an errand. It isn't a good user experience when you get up in the morning and realize that you don't have enough juice to get to work. You cant just gas up on the way to work.
Remember, technology infrastructure builds very slowly for masses. I will be pretty hard to get your dream wireless charging highway if people don't even accept inductive home charging.
@zwier
Out of curiosity, how do you plan on sticking gum in a live socket with your fingers?
@Roy911 We have already encountered it. I've had to remove various common and alien objects from past test market prototypes.
Unless they start putting in EV lanes in highways that use these, I don't see this type of thing catching on.
Why would I spend money on this, when it takes only a second to plug in a high-amperage power cable?
It was tested in Yokohama not Tokyo.
http://www.yokohamaliving.com/2009/05/15/better-place-battery-swap-station-in-yokohama/
Does anyone know if this is a publicly traded company? If so, do you know what the ticker symbol is? I looked all over the place and I still can't find it.
@jeffs177 Private
High CURRENT EMF is really asking for cancer especially if it's going to be wireless high voltage charging. I think I'll breath out of a tailpipe and get lung cancer first before using an wireless EV.