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Qualcomm pairs up with Delta Motorsport, flirts with Renault for Halo wireless charging trials

Daniel Cooper
Senior Editor
Updated ·4 min read

Qualcomm will be trialling its wireless charging system in London later this year, adding two names to turn Qualcomm Halo from a New Zealand science project into reality. It's teaming up with Delta Motorsport, which will add the induction platform to some of its E-4 electric sports coupés in preparation for the city-wide trial. It's also signed a memorandum of understanding with Renault, paving the way for the French auto maker to investigate adding the tech to future EVs. As part of the deal, both companies will get a seat on the steering committee for the project -- maybe the company will let them sit in the passenger seat and change gears.

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Qualcomm and Delta Motorsport Announce Integration of Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging into Delta E-4 Coupe Electric Vehicles for London Trial

LONDON, July 24, 2012 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) and Delta Motorsport, a leading UK automotive and motorsport engineering consultancy, today announced that Delta has agreed to integrate the Qualcomm Halo™ Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) system into its Delta E-4 Coupe electric vehicles, which are intended for deployment in Qualcomm's London WEVC trial.

The London WEVC trial is scheduled to commence in the second half of 2012 and is expected to be supported by a cross section of stakeholders, including government departments and agencies, as well as commercial and private sector enterprises. The objectives of the trial are to evaluate the commercial viability of the wireless charging of electric vehicles (EVs), to develop a further understanding of issues relating to the integration of WEVC technology into EVs, to build knowledge associated with the deployment of WEVC into a megacity, and to gain user feedback on the use of WEVC-enabled electric vehicles.

"Delta Motorsport has developed an advanced passenger EV that is a good platform to demonstrate our Qualcomm Halo Wireless EV Charging in pre-commercial deployments," said Anthony Thomson, vice president of business development and marketing at Qualcomm Europe Inc. "Delta brings high-performance automotive engineering design to the London WEVC trial and the Delta E-4 Coupe displays technology at the cutting edge of EV innovation."

"Wireless EV Charging is the next technology step for the Delta E-4 Coupe, while the integration of Qualcomm Halo EV charging technology into the Delta E-4 Coupe and rigorous user testing in the London trial will help us better understand future EV engineering challenges," said Nick Carpenter, technical director at Delta Motorsport.

Delta Motorsport also plans to participate with Qualcomm Europe Inc. on a steering committee for the London trial and to provide support for the London Trial.

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Qualcomm and Renault Announce Memorandum of Understanding on Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging Technology

LONDON, July 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) and Renault s.a.s. today announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) concerning their intended cooperation on the London trial of Qualcomm Halo™ Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) technology, and their intent with respect to conducting preliminary studies of the integration of this technology into Renault vehicles. Renault will also join the London trial steering committee.

In November 2011, Qualcomm announced a WEVC trial in London to commence in 2012 that is supported by a cross section of stakeholders ranging from government departments and agencies to commercial and private sector enterprises. The objectives of the trial are to evaluate the commercial viability of wireless EV charging and gain user feedback on the use of WEVC-enabled vehicles.

"We are very excited about the prospects of working with Renault, a global leader in electric vehicles and an innovator in the growing low carbon vehicle market," said Anthony Thomson, vice president of business development and marketing at Qualcomm. "Renault's participation in the WEVC London trial aligns with Qualcomm's drive to make charging of electric vehicles simple and effortless."

"Our intended participation in the WEVC London trial with Qualcomm complements Renault's European research and development project involving 10 partners to demonstrate wireless inductive charging of electric vehicles in a public environment with a high level of performance and safety," said Jacques Hebrard, vice president of Energy and Environment Advanced Projects director at Renault. "The deployment of wireless inductive charging requires inter-operability between cars and ground systems within common European and, hopefully, worldwide standards."