Evatran™ Installs Plugless Power™ Electric Vehicle Charging Unit at Google Headquarters

March 21, 2011 08:00 AM?Eastern Daylight Time?Plugless Power’s “hands-free” charging technology provides Google with a convenient option for recharging its electric vehicles

WYTHEVILLE, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Using technology similar to that available in an electric toothbrush, Google is trialing a Plugless Power? charging station for electric vehicles at its Mountain View, Calif. headquarters. Plugless Power is the first electric vehicle (EV) charging system on the market to offer consumers a simple way to charge their EVs with the ease of hands-free, automatic technology.

“The interest shown by Google and the cooperation we’ve received to retrofit their EV provides evidence that a simple, convenient charging process is needed for the widespread adoption of electric vehicles.”

Developed by Evatran?, LLC, Plugless Power is based on inductive technology, which has been used in electrical transformers for more than 100 years, and streamlines the charging of electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids by eliminating the nuisance of the cord and the plug.

“We are thrilled to have our first public release of the Plugless Power technology installed at Google’s headquarters,” said Tom Hough, co-founder and CEO of Plugless Power. “The interest shown by Google and the cooperation we’ve received to retrofit their EV provides evidence that a simple, convenient charging process is needed for the widespread adoption of electric vehicles.”

Google has multiple low-speed electric vehicles for short-range travel around its campus and includes plug-in vehicles in its on-campus employee car-sharing program. The company will initially use the Plugless Power station to charge a retrofitted short-range electric vehicle. Google showed interest in testing the Plugless Power technology and understanding how its features could simplify the charging process for its plug-in EV fleet vehicles.

According to Hough, this first public installation is an important step in bringing the technology to commercial customers, and Evatran is actively seeking other fleet trial opportunities with corporations and municipalities to experience the Plugless Power technology in the third quarter of 2011. Most EV models are eligible for Plugless Power through a simple retrofit process. In addition to fleet distribution, Evatran is currently working with automotive manufacturers to integrate the Plugless Power technology into mass-market EVs by 2012.

For more information about Plugless Power’s unique technology, visit www.pluglesspower.com.

About Plugless Power

Plugless Power? (www.pluglesspower.com), manufactured by Evatran?, is the first electric vehicle (EV) charging system on the market to offer customers a simple way to charge their EVs with the ease of hands-free, automatic technology. Utilizing inductive technology, which has been used in electrical transformers for more than 100 years, Plugless Power streamlines the charging of electric vehicles and extended-range hybrids by eliminating the nuisance of the cord and the plug. For more information, visit www.pluglesspower.com.

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Google Headquarters Tests Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging

 

As if you needed another reason to check out Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, electric vehicle technology startup Evatran announced this week that it has installed a Plugless Power charging station at Google HQ. This is the first public installation of Evatran's wireless EV charger, which uses something called "proximity charging" to juice up Googlers' Nissan Leafs and Tesla Roadsters.

The charging station is made up of a parking block, a control tower that keeps track of whether a car is charging, and an adapter mounted to the vehicle. When an adapter-equipped car pulls up to the parking space, the block adjusts to align with the adapter and starts charging. There is no flow of electricity between the adapter and the parking block--instead, the charger uses electrical induction, which generates power from the connection of two magnetic coils. In this case, the coils are housed inside the parking block and the adapter.

There is a disadvantage compared to the plug and cord variety of EV charger: the Plugless Power stations lose a little bit of energy in the transfer from coil to coil. Evatran plays off the problem on its website, explaining that "although Plugless Power does anticipate a small efficiency loss (less than 10%), this does not translate to an increased charging time. The capacity of an EV’s battery to accept charge is not affected by the efficiency loss. The battery will continue to accept the same amount of power at one time, but the charger will draw additional watts from the electrical outlet to compensate for the small efficiency loss."

Evatran doesn't plan on making its vehicle adapter available to everyone on Google's campus. The company will, however, test the technology using a retrofitted short-range EV owned by Google (there are many short-range EVs puttering around the campus). Evatran is working with automakers to integrate its adapter technology into mass-market EVs by next year. No word yet on a sale price for the parking block.

Follow Fast Company on Twitter. Ariel Schwartz can be reached by email.

Read More: Most Innovative Companies: Google

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