CARL to the rescue with mobile EV charging
Electric chargers could soon been finding vehicles rather than other way around, after a Chinese mobility provider secured a number of patents to develop its autonomous charging robot.
Called CARL, the robot has been designed by Aiways. Developed with 30kwh and 60kwh capacities, it can provide a fast charge to any EV with a recognised charging standard, recharging an EV battery to 80% in under 50 minutes.
Having parked their vehicle in public, home or workplace car parks, EV owners can summon a CARL located nearby via a smartphone app and leave their vehicle unattended. The robot will then use GPS data to locate the vehicle within the area in which it operates, plug in and start charging it automatically. Once the charging process is complete, CARL will continue to the next user, or return to its base station.
Alex Klose, vice-president for overseas operations at Aiways, said: “Instead of drivers trying to find a charger, the charger will find them. We want to make EV ownership as simple, easy and enjoyable as possible, and CARL provides a blueprint for how EVs can be charged in the future.”
