Volvo have recently conducted testing on Inductive Charging for Electric Vehicles. The process involves the charging of electric vehicles through contactless induction charging. Already this technology is seen in toothbrushs and mobile phones and offers consumers the convenience of charging a device without the use of cables and wires. According to Volvo, induction charging offers enormous potential for the auto electric industry.
The Swedish automaker conducted testing with Flanders’ Drive, an automotive technology knowledge center in Belgium and a consortium of other companies, to determine whether wireless charging was practical, efficient and safe in real-world trials.
Their conclusion? Quite simply, that it is practical, safe and efficient.
“Cordless technology is a comfortable and effective way to conveniently transfer energy,” said Lennart Stegland, Vice President, Electric Propulsion System at Volvo Car Group. The project won’t end there though, as Stegland adds, “There is not yet any common standard for inductive charging. We will continue our research and evaluate the feasibility of the technology in our hybrid and electric car project.”
The research project evaluated inductive charging for both cars using Volvo’s test-bed electric car, the c30 electric and Volvo’s buses. Some European routes already use inductive charging, to good effect, but the technology is still in its relative infancy.
“The tests demonstrated that our Volvo C30 Electric can be fully charged without a power cable in app. 2.5 hours,” said Stegland. Volvo also took the opportunity to further develop slow and regular charging with one of the project’s partners, Inverto.
Volvo hasn’t yet announced a full-scale production battery-electric vehicle, but continues to take orders to sell the V60 plug-in Hybrid which it launched last year. In April, Volvo announced that the car’s popularity had led to an increase in production capacity to 10,000, from an initial 4,000-6,000 estimate.
The V60’s low CO2 emissions–48 g/km–and high economy ratings make for an attractive purchase in Europe, where many cities and governments operate greenhouse gas-based tax systems.