Inductive Charging Connector

[stone]

Hello,

Will the inductive charge link be available for the 2013 models?


I've read that it won't be available until the 2014 model year,
and I've heard doubts that it will be available then or any
time soon.

I've read that the inductive link will not be backward compatible
for retrofit. Is this true? Why would it be such a difficult hack to
modify the leaf to accept the inductive charging link?

Thanks.

 

[planet4ever]

You can include me among the "anytime soon" doubters. Also among the scoffers. Are we so lazy that we're willing to add maybe 20% to our EV charging bill just so we can save a few seconds plugging in? And by the way, the experimental setups I have read about seem to be topping out at about 3kW, so you can probably forget about faster charging with the new LEAF charger.

As for retrofit, you gotta be kidding. Surely you don't want to stick this thing under the existing bottom plate of the car where it will get scraped trying to get into driveways. And you certainly can't have it above the bottom plate, which would shield the power. So for starters you have to replace that plate with one designed specifically for inductive charging. And I'm guessing the receiver coil would extend up into the "engine" compartment enough that other components there would need to be shifted or rearranged. Retrofit sounds to me like a horrendously expensive nightmare.

Ray

 

[Nubo]

Definitely do not want one. My wife has an electronic medical implant and it would basically make the garage off limits.

Though I do think after a few years of vandalism and Copper theft, the commercial EVSE operators will be pushing hard for wireless.

 

[siai]

I lived through the GM (think the current Frankenplug) requirement for inductive charging. What a nightmare! It adds an extreme amount of cost and an extreme efficency loss. They we orginally dreamed up by GM and sold under the Magnacharger name. Toyota didn't even name their charger but as they were made by the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works, they became known as "TAL" chargers. GM couldn't settle on the paddle size (large or small) or the way the vehicle interfaced with the Magnacharger (RF or optical). The stupid Magnacharger would convert 240, 60 HZ current to a high frequency current to go through small transformers in the paddle and the port (which ocasionally caught fire) in the car. Then this went to the battery charge in the vehicle. The Magnachargers (back in the day) were four times more expensive to buy then the highest priced EVSE's of today. Don't even think of L1 or L2 charging as it can't be done. In addition, the TAL chargers could accomadate both paddle size (with an adapter) and both interface modes, the GM unit could not. Be very afraid of calls for inductive charging by those who think we are too stupid to put a plug in a socket. Remember the current EVSE is really unnecessary for charging the vehicle, it is just one layer of protection---inductive is one layer too far. On the old RAV4-EV one of the biggest problem areas was the charge port and capacitors in the charger system related to the high frequency current. Oh, and by the way, look for GM to mess with the Frankenplug and it's protocalls just to mess things up like they have done in the past!

 

[stone]

Are we so lazy that we're willing to add maybe 20% to our EV charging bill just so we can save a few seconds plugging in?

As for retrofit, you gotta be kidding. Surely you don't want to stick this thing under the existing bottom plate of the car where it will get scraped trying to get into driveways.

Uh, yeah, I'm lazy and I'm willing.

But seriously, I switched to a mouse that recharges inductively. And it's simply more cooler and convenient.

And as far as the retrofit. Don't be pessimistic about cleverness. I don't know how big the hardware would need to be for such a link. But I was thinking that you could oversize the pad on the garage floor. And then have the thing on the car, deploy using a little motorized arm. This would NOT really be that difficult.

I don't know what the bottom plate is made of, but it's probably something light that can be cut and modified with bodyshop tech. Now you just need to find an open spot on top for a place to put it.

If Roomba can do it, Leaf can too.

Thanks Ray for your answers, you're very helpful.

 

[EVDRIVER]

Are we so lazy that we're willing to add maybe 20% to our EV charging bill just so we can save a few seconds plugging in?

As for retrofit, you gotta be kidding. Surely you don't want to stick this thing under the existing bottom plate of the car where it will get scraped trying to get into driveways.

Uh, yeah, I'm lazy and I'm willing.

But seriously, I switched to a mouse that recharges inductively. And it's simply more cooler and convenient.

And as far as the retrofit. Don't be pessimistic about cleverness. I don't know how big the hardware would need to be for such a link. But I was thinking that you could oversize the pad on the garage floor. And then have the thing on the car, deploy using a little motorized arm. This would NOT really be that difficult.

I don't know what the bottom plate is made of, but it's probably something light that can be cut and modified with bodyshop tech. Now you just need to find an open spot on top for a place to put it.

If Roomba can do it, Leaf can too.

Thanks Ray for your answers, you're very helpful.

There are companies that already have working units, they are not complicated just inefficient by design.

 

[Randy]

I see inductive charging being more useful or practical with EV fleet charging. We sometimes have drivers in our fleet LEAFs who forget to plug in because they just don't use the car that much...Sucks for the next driver, who finds the car isn't full....

But as a residential EV driver, I think inductive charging is DOA. Who wants to lose 10-15% efficiency just to save plugging in, which I do everytime I get home anyways and let the timer take care of the charging?

Plus you'd be limited to one very specific parking place or location in your garage to charge wirelessly, right? So you'd need to have plug-in equiment to charge for those occasions when it would be necessary (and carry it around with you) and then buy the wireless stuff to retrofit the garage and car? For convenience? Some may want it, but not me...

How about spending the resources on either getting more range out of the exist car or engineering a slightly larger battery option?

 

[davewill]

Well, you can sign up for a free trial for Plugless Power if you're really into it: http://www.pluglesspower.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Edit: As noted below it's just free charging for 6mo, which if you read further is defined as a $150 rebate.

 

[EVDRIVER]

Well, you can sign up for a free trial for Plugless Power if you're really into it: http://www.pluglesspower.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Free?

 

[JeremyW]

Well, you can sign up for a free trial for Plugless Power if you're really into it: http://www.pluglesspower.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Free?

Free electricity for 6 months. Woo. :roll:

 

[smkettner]

I plan to specifically avoid any inductive charging.
Bad enough to require that evse.

 

[KillaWhat]

Just got an email from Plugless.
It looks like they are making (in my opinion) the same mistake AV made in the beginning.
Locking you into a "program",

"Call us, we'll come out, do a survey, then you talk with an advisor, then we introduce you to your Bosch certified installer, yada yada, etc."

I think this wireless charging, as a concept, is very cool.
It would eliminate some of the EV from the EV.
I know my wife would be a lot happier just parking the Leaf, and having it auto charge, rather than having to pop the port open, pull out the big cord, plug it in, then unplug, etc.

I'll wait until I can just buy one myself.


$3098 + Installation

http://www.pluglesspower.com/prelaunch" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.
http://www.pluginnow.com/installation-process" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[DarkStar]

At my destinations, I would rather use conductive charging. However I think the strongest application for inductive charging would be with special freeway lanes with inductive charging built into them. State highway departments could charge a toll based on the distance traveled in those lanes and EV drivers would get additional range.

How much range a moving vehicle would get and the fees charged require much research and discussion, but I would consider any options.