E-MOBILITY W
CHARGING ON THE GO
Could we soon be charging our cars on the move like we do our mobile phones? Jake Holmes sits down with Philip Clarke to discuss how his company’s new PowerBank
technology could solve some of the charging challenges for electric vehicles
hile widespread, the introduction of electric vehicle (EV) fl eets has been limited by
the availability of charging due to both the national grid’s ability to supply suff icient current to depos and charging speeds. Drivers can spend in excess of an hour a day charging their vehicles, signifi cantly reducing productivity. The problem is not necessarily with the vehicles themselves, but rather the recharging process, says Philip Clarke, founder and CEO of EV charging technology developer, Tual.
CHARGING CHALLENGES
Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGV) often are working on 3% to 4% margins, and therefore benefi t from any increase in output and productivity possible. The downtime in charging to operating companies can be extremely costly in terms of lost productivity and potential revenue. Across sectors, there is a move towards electrifi cation due to environmental and legislative pressures. However, current charging speeds and availability are not yet in line with the growing demand for EV fl eets. Research from trucking and
logistics services provider Megafl eet reveals that fl eets are unable to charge at 80% of locations that they want to. This includes depots that do not have suff icient power, as well as remote sites. There is also very limited availability of street charging for electric vans for people who take their vehicles home overnight.
POWERBANK PERFORMANCE Tual believes it has a solution to these issues with its PowerBank solution. The technology provides DC chargers to a combined charging system (CCS) standard but has an integrated battery energy supply. This allows the Tual’s chargers to operate in places the grid does not go. Clarke compares the technology
The PowerBank charging device
to a portable battery used for mobile phones, saying: “You, me, and three billion other people have got used to solving that for ourselves by carrying around a power bank in our backpack, and it means we don’t have to plug into the grid… This is the same idea
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www.engineerlive.com
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