Skip to main content

London to trial wireless charging

Qualcomm has announced the first wireless electric vehicle charging (WEVC) trial for London in collaboration with the UK Government, as well as the Mayor of London's office and Transport for London (TfL). The pre-commercial trial is expected to start in early 2012 and will involve as many as 50 electric vehicles (EVs) using Qualcomm wireless inductive power transfer technology that enables high-efficiency power transfer across a large air gap. The driver simply parks the vehicle in the usual way and the sys
April 30, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
5358 Qualcomm has announced the first wireless electric vehicle charging (WEVC) trial for London in collaboration with the UK Government, as well as the Mayor of London's office and 2387 Transport for London (TfL).

The pre-commercial trial is expected to start in early 2012 and will involve as many as 50 electric vehicles (EVs) using Qualcomm wireless inductive power transfer technology that enables high-efficiency power transfer across a large air gap. The driver simply parks the vehicle in the usual way and the system automatically aligns for power transfer, making parking easier and charging hassle free.

The trial, which will be based partially in Tech City, the East London cluster receiving the strong support of the Prime Minister, is planned to leverage the entrepreneurial community there and encourage companies to innovate around services and applications, in order to enhance the smart EV experience.

Prime Minister David Cameron said, "This wireless charging technology is a giant leap forward for the electric car industry and I am delighted that London businesses will be among the first to benefit from the trial. Creative, high-tech advances such as this are extremely important as we work to rebalance our economy, and the decision to trial this at Tech City shows confidence in the UK as an ideal place for innovation and investment."

5356 Addison Lee, the UK's largest minicab company, and 5357 Chargemaster, a leading European operator of advanced EV charging infrastructure, have also agreed to participate in the WEVC London trial.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Clemson University to trial wireless EEV charging technology
    March 16, 2012
    Clemson University's International Center for Automotive Research (CU-ICAR) in South Carolina has announced that it will participate in the 2012 Apollo Launch Programme hosted by Evatran, a developer of Plugless Power wireless electric vehicle recharging systems.
  • Hertz first to trial wireless EV recharging
    March 16, 2012
    The Hertz Corporation and Hertz Global EV are implementing what is claimed as the first wireless charging system for electric vehicles (EVs) in the car rental industry.
  • Nissan moves to speed up EV charging infrastructure
    February 29, 2012
    Nissan has teamed up with leading European utility and electrical vehicle (EV) supply equipment companies to speed development of cheaper, smaller, quick chargers for electric vehicle batteries, and accelerate the installation of publicly-available Quick Charge (QC) points across Europe.
  • EV charging infrastructure – what’s the future?
    November 14, 2022
    Road designers, construction companies and concessionaire firms will increasingly need answers about electric vehicle charging infrastructure and a new website is there to help – EV Charging and Infrastructure, evcandi.com - follows the latest news, technology and regulations.