Futurist thinking: charging docking systems

[mtbwalt]

Elon reported said in 2016 that you would soon be able to summon your Tesla from the other side of the country - it would drive itself to you and handle charging on its own.

Obviously we are not there yet. But the idea of a car managing its own charging is an interesting one from an engineering standpoint. It would presumably either require a human attendant at charging sites, or some form of docking system for management of the electrical connection. Current charge ports, aside from being openable without external actuation (like a twist off gas cap), seem like poor candidates for easy automated connection unless you had a really sophisticated and expensive apparatus managing the charger. Maybe a cheaper solution would be some sort of conical bay optimized for easy targeting perhaps with magnetic lock?

Not sure if Tesla or others have already been designing things in this regard as I am a new owner. Anyone have any info on charging system docking for EVs to allow for automation of charging in the true FSD scenario?

 

[Earl]

It has been thought of by none other than Tesla

 

[ThomasD]

I wonder how flexible that would be after being in the elements for a while. Unless that flexible arm is heated I think Snow and Ice would prevent it from moving easily

 

[Earl]

I wonder how flexible that would be after being in the elements for a while. Unless that flexible arm is heated I think Snow and Ice would prevent it from moving easily

Easy problem to solve: Cover all Superchargers with solar carports. Who wouldn't like that?

 

[mtbwalt]

Very cool. Seems like it is a little more complex than it needs to be but I guess it needs to accommodate different car types.

 

[Watts_Up]

Wireless could be a very easy for FSD FSC (Full Self Charging) !!!

Wireless vs wired DC fast charging efficiency test​

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Interview with Momentum Dynamics about wireless charging​

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Fortum's 75 kW wireless charging project for taxis​

 

[ThomasD]

Wouldn't those plates be susuptable to damage? Will they be able to charge when covered in the slushy mess of winter driving. Or when they are dirty? You can heat them to melt Snow but that won't keep them clean.













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[ThomasD]

Can that snake charger fit in between cars at supercharger stations?

 

[Watts_Up]

Wouldn't those plates be susuptable to damage? Will they be able to charge when covered in the slushy mess of winter driving. Or when they are dirty? You can heat them to melt Snow but that won't keep them clean.

If you are making reference to the above videos, all the wireless charging were located in Norway, hofully snow must have been accounted for (?).

 

[Tiger]

Wouldn't those plates be susuptable to damage? Will they be able to charge when covered in the slushy mess of winter driving. Or when they are dirty? You can heat them to melt Snow but that won't keep them clean.

They are in Norway so yes, snow accounted for. I guess you think the snake is sexy, but wireless over-the-air charging just works better (low charging losses) and has no moving parts so snake is dead. This is how grid transformers too work anyways, "over the air".

 

[ThomasD]

This would be cool Maybe they can work with manufactures to maintain factory warranty.

 

[mtbwalt]

Admittedly, the comments on the videos about the inductive charging methods raise valid points with regard to hardware expense and other factors. Still, once build out it seems far more fault tolerant than the snake robot which looks very cool from a design standpoint but also fragile and delicate. If a direct connection is chosen I think a multi axis robotic arm mounted on a frame it can translate along would ultimately be cheaper to mass produce compared to the snake. There are also a lot of similar platforms already in use.

 

[Watts_Up]

Doing a quick search, I noticed that both robotic arm and wireless charging are used by transportation bus companies:

Robot charges electric bus! Rocsys and Ebusco introduce the automation of bus

Wireless Charging Electric Bus Technology - 5 Minute 8 Miles