On a test track in Versailles, Qualcomm has demonstrated how electric cars can be charged dynamically and without contact while driving.
Qualcomm
Qualcomm Technologies has demonstrated dynamic electric vehicle charging (DEVC), i.e. charging cars while driving. The company has developed a dynamic charging system (DEVC system) based on the Qualcomm Halo wireless electric vehicle charging technology. The system is capable of charging an electric car dynamically at up to 20 kilowatts at motorway speeds according to Qualcomm.
Charging even in reverse
Qualcomm also demonstrated simultaneous charging where two vehicles on the same track can charge dynamically at the same time. In the process, the vehicles can charge their batteries regardless of the direction they are driving. Charging is possible even in reverse, explains the US chip specialist.
The dynamic charging system is demonstrated at the 100-metre test track built by VEDECOM at Satory, Versailles, near Paris. Qualcomm Technologies and VEDECOM have integrated the ground plates of the Qualcomm Halo charging system into the test track, while VEDECOM and Renault have installed the vehicle pads into two electric Renault Kangoos.
Following the demonstration, the Qualcomm Halo charging system is to be handed over to VEDECOM to perform tests as part of the FABRIC (“Feasibility analysis and development of on-Road charging solutions for future electric vehicles”) project. These tests are to analyse the operation, safety and efficiency of the energy transfer to the vehicles for a wide range of scenarios, including at various speeds, vehicle identification and authorisation on entering the track, mutual power level agreement between the track and the vehicle, as well as optimal alignment of the vehicle along the track.
The FABRIC project
FABRIC is a €9 million project, mostly funded by the European Union, addressing the technological feasibility, economic viability, and socio-environmental sustainability of non-contact electric charging. The project began in January 2014 and will continue through to December 2017.
It is being undertaken by a consortium of 25 organisations from nine European countries, including automotive manufacturers, suppliers, service providers and research organisations from automotive, road and energy infrastructure domains. VEDECOM is one of the key players in the FABRIC project and is responsible for demonstrating dynamic charging at Satory based on the Qualcomm Halo system. The main aim of the FABRIC project is to find out to what extent non-contact charging can extend the range of electric cars.