Those who resist purchasing an electric car because charging stations are less ubiquitous than gas stations or figuring out how to charge your car at home seems complicated have one less excuse to go green. A new system from British startup HaloIPT allows cars to be charge wirelessly using induction.
The wirelessly transmitted power goes to the car’s battery for an ongoing charge, similar to the concept of recharging an electric toothbrush but with a lot more energy. Each car is outfitted with a pad underneath the car that is ready to receive power.
The technology could also work for moving vehicles. The company is partnering with Drayson Racing Technologies to test drive the technology, which harnesses inductive power transfer via transmitters placed beneath the race track. The cars don’t have to be directly over the transmitters to receive electricity, nor do they have to be parked to receive, so HaloIPT says the system will work even as racers swerve around their competitors.
It’ll be a while before the race car sees the starting line: HaloIPT and Drayson plan to be ready for showtime by the end of 2015. But HaloIPT hopes to use what it learns with Drayson to apply their technology to non race car drivers’ needs.
In the meantime, wireless charging fans can ogle over the stationary model of the system featured in Rolls-Royce’s experimental 102EX Phantom.
The company outlines its vision in this video: