In science fiction, this type of stuff happens all the time. Imagine traveling down the road when your electric car suddenly begins to charge itself. You are not required to come to a halt. There is no need for you to exit the vehicle at this time. Nothing.
Now, this wish may come true soon. At the very least, it has a good chance of happening in Indiana.
The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT), Purdue University, and the German firm Magment GmbH have collaborated on developing a technology that would allow electric vehicles to receive wireless charging while they are being driven. The long-term goal is to create the first concrete pavement in the world that can wirelessly charge electronic devices.
The teams mention the project’s progression through three critical stages in the news release they have issued.
The first two phases will consist of various types of testing and analysis of the pavement, as well as research on optimizing the surface. The Joint Transportation Research Program (JTRP) on the Purdue campus in West Lafayette is the organization that will be responsible for carrying out this task in the end.
[Read: Engineering Students Invent Edible Tape for Burritos So You Never Have a Messy Meal Again]
After completing these stages, INDOT will move on to the next phase of the project, which will involve the construction of a test site that is at least a quarter-mile in length. Here, the crew will evaluate the concrete’s ability to accommodate high-powered heavy vehicles charging at a total capacity (200 kilowatts and above).
On the other hand, this testbed’s particular site has not yet been decided upon.
When all of these phases have been successfully finished, the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) will move forward with plans to electrify a section of an interstate highway in Indiana, the precise place of that has not been confirmed as of yet. The new technology will be used, having been built and refined during the trials mentioned above.
It is anticipated that work will start on the project later in the summer. And if it is successful, it will usher in a new era. However, in the event that it does not, thankfully, it is not the only wireless power generating or charging technology that is now under development.
As far as the new project in Indiana is concerned, it is not entirely apparent what kinds of strategies the engineers want to implement to create sufficient energy to power electric cars, as very little information has been supplied up to this point in time. As additional information becomes available, we will wait to learn more about the situation with bated breath.
If one thing is sure, the new program will be favorable to the environment and assist us in making progress toward a greener tomorrow—that is, if it is successful.
Sign up for our newsletter to get the best of The Sized delivered to your inbox daily.
