Making the switch to electric vehicles poses its own problems and finding the simplest, fastest, and most convenient solution to recharging the battery is the most important one. Continental teams up with Austrian startup Volterio in an attempt to revolutionize the way EVs are charged.
Volterio specializes in developing fully automatic, affordable, high-power charging solutions and it recently partnered with Continental’s Engineering Services (CES) to make an intelligent charging robot that will make the whole process much easier.
The system will consist of two components that will connect to one another. One unit will be placed in the underbody of the car and the second one will be on the garage floor. The smart system connecting them once the car is parked can be controlled through ultra-broadband (radio-based communication technology for short-range data transmission).
One great thing about the charging robot is that it can do its job even if you don’t park the car perfectly and you’re up to 30 cm (0.3 in) off from the ideal position. The angle at which you position the vehicle is not important either, as the physical connector between the car and the floor units has a conical design that allows for any alignment and orientation between the units, as explained by Continental.
The charging robot has other notable benefits as well. One of them is that it eliminates the need for users to handle heavy charging cables. Another one is the fact that the entire system is very efficient as the energy flows through a physical connection, so there’s no energy loss as is the case with wireless inductive charging via a magnetic field. Installing the system is also a quick, straightforward process. You can simply place the floor unit on the garage floor, or you can have it bolted down.
Continental and Volterio’s automatic charging robot is designed for private household use. We don’t have a price for the system yet, but we know from Continental that it is expected to enter mass production in 2024.
The system will consist of two components that will connect to one another. One unit will be placed in the underbody of the car and the second one will be on the garage floor. The smart system connecting them once the car is parked can be controlled through ultra-broadband (radio-based communication technology for short-range data transmission).
One great thing about the charging robot is that it can do its job even if you don’t park the car perfectly and you’re up to 30 cm (0.3 in) off from the ideal position. The angle at which you position the vehicle is not important either, as the physical connector between the car and the floor units has a conical design that allows for any alignment and orientation between the units, as explained by Continental.
The charging robot has other notable benefits as well. One of them is that it eliminates the need for users to handle heavy charging cables. Another one is the fact that the entire system is very efficient as the energy flows through a physical connection, so there’s no energy loss as is the case with wireless inductive charging via a magnetic field. Installing the system is also a quick, straightforward process. You can simply place the floor unit on the garage floor, or you can have it bolted down.
Continental and Volterio’s automatic charging robot is designed for private household use. We don’t have a price for the system yet, but we know from Continental that it is expected to enter mass production in 2024.