Electric 40-Ton Truck Gets Dynamically Wirelessly Charged

Last month, the Smartroad Gotland consortium successfully wirelessly charged (stationary) a special prototype of a 40-ton all-electric truck as part of preparations for the dynamic wireless charging project onpublic roads on the island of Gotland (Sweden).

The vehicle is equipped with five 20 kW receivers (total 100 kW) and is able to recharge when stationary at an efficiency of around 90%. The typical passenger car would be equipped with just a single receiver.

"The purpose of the new test facility was to integrate and test the full ElectReon system with management unit, coils, and receivers before operations starts on the public road of Gotland. Five receivers were installed on the trailer of an electric truck, Sweden’s first fully electric 40-ton truck. The test took place in winter conditions, with temperatures around zero C.

The results showed that the system successfully charged the electric truck statically through wireless power transfer. The system was activated and supervised remotely enabling management of all relevant charging and metering parameters. The receivers transmitted about 20 kW each with an efficiency of about 90%."

See also

Green Power To Introduce Wireless Charging In South Korea

BMW Expands Its 530e Pilot Wireless Charging Program To U.S.

Once the test section of the 1.6 km (1 mile) out of a 4.1 km (2.5 miles) route between the airport and the city center of Visby is ready, the prototype electric truck (from early 2020) and electric bus (before summer 2020) will be able to drive using wireless power. The energy surplus would be used to recharge the batteries.

We wonder whether dynamic wireless charging, through five receivers - probably over several sections powered simultaneously - will negatively affect efficiency, compared to the stationary test?

In theory, roads equipped with dynamic wireless charging would allow mass electrification of transport, using EVs with small battery packs.

In the real world, costs of infrastructure, receivers for vehicles, and efficiency losses, as well as required standardization, are rather prohibitive factors to consider it - at least today - something more than a science experiment.

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Smartroad Gotland first deployment:

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