In case you haven’t noticed just yet, it looks like the future is upon us. With electric vehicles and charging stations popping up everywhere, cities managing to power their needs entirely from solar and wind energy, as well as vertical farms and gardens producing food, the world is moving forward into what will hopefully one day become an entirely sustainable-working globe.
In fact, just recently, ElectReon shared that they have a partnership with the Michigan Department of Transportation in order to create a wireless charging demonstration project that will have at least 1-mile stretch of road to recharge EVs while people drive them on that road.
This project held in Michigan is hoping to be launched no later than next year, in the city of Detroit, which is the site of Ford’s central transportation innovation district. This will provide the infrastructure that will wirelessly charge EVs whether they are stationary or moving over that particular stretch of pavement.
According to Gov. Gretchen Witmer, who explained that this wireless charging project is considered quite an integral part in electrifying vehicle fleets.
She shared in a statement, “As we aim to lead the future of mobility and electrification by boosting electric vehicle production and lowering consumer costs, a wireless in-road charging system is the next piece to the puzzle for sustainability.”
In fact, the Michigan project will be funded by the state, who will provide at least $1.9 million for the undertaking. This is to be carried out in collaboration with the Ford Automotive Company, DTE – which is a local energy company that will be the one to provide the necessary connection to the electricity grid for the electric road, as well as ROUSH CleanTech. This is a company that converts commercial vehicles into EVs which will also provide an electric truck to the project too.
As explained by Michigan Central development director, Carolina Pluszczynski, “Hosting the first wireless charging road system in the U.S. as part of the open platform we are providing at Michigan Central will serve as a magnet to attract innovators to test on this nationally significant asset, and also show people the value electrification can create.”
Notably, ElectReon – which is a company based in Israel, also has very similar inaugural projects that have already been operating in Italy, Germany, and Sweden. It is also getting ready to provide a wireless charging network in Israel for at least 200 public buses in the busiest city in the country, Tel Aviv.
Moreover, ElectReon’s inductive in-road charging technology was already used in a project in Brescia, Italy, near Milan, known as the “Arena of the Future.” ElectReon managed to integrate their wireless technology to charge two Stellantis vehicles, as well as an IVECO bus as they drove down the road.
Just last October, the first fully-operational bus using ElectReon’s charging technology was also launched in Gotland, Sweden, in the city of Visby. It also helped the country reach its mark of installing 2,000 km of electric highways by the year 2030.
According to a spokesperson for the Higer bus company, “Electreon’s wireless technology works excellently with our electric vehicles and we are now ready to mass produce vehicles with the new technology.”
And hopefully, after seeing the success of these projects, the rest of the world will begin to move towards the same type of sustainability in the not so distant future.
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