The problem of charging batteries is one of the reasons that hinder the widespread adoption of electric vehicles. Perhaps the development of researchers from Cornell University in the United States, who created a technology for charging batteries while driving an electric car, will help solve it.

The development was led by Khurram Afridi, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Khurram Afridi, who has been working on a project to introduce wireless charging infrastructure on American roads for the past seven years.

«There will be a recharging lane on the highways, something like a busy lane. If your car has little energy while driving, you start moving along such a lane. The system will be able to determine which car is moving in the charging lane, and later you will receive a bill“, Afridi said. It is assumed that the project will be ready for large-scale deployment on public roads in the United States in only 5-10 years. Regardless, Afridi believes that wireless charging is the best way to get rid of drivers’ fears about the unavailability of charging stations.

In their work, the researchers used the developments of Nikola Tesla, who, 100 years ago, used alternating electric fields to power off-grid lanterns. The new technology involves the incorporation of special metal plates into the roadway, connected to a power line and a high-frequency inverter. These plates will create alternating electric fields that attract and repulse pairs of plates attached to the bottom of the electric vehicle, generating energy.

Researchers have already managed to achieve some success. With the help of their technology, electric vehicles with a ground clearance of up to 18 cm can be propelled. In addition, charging continues even if the electric vehicle is traveling on a road with plates that are several meters apart and not fully aligned. At the moment, the new technology can fully charge the battery of a small electric vehicle like the Nissan Leaf in 4-5 hours.

The main difficulties in the development process were related to the selection of suitable components that could withstand high voltages and were also suitable for use in different weather conditions. It is also worth noting that in order to integrate the new technology, it will be necessary to carry out overhaul of public roads, which requires the allocation of huge funds. According to scientists, electrification should start with busy highways and main roads in major American cities.

There are currently about 1,8 million electric vehicles registered in the United States. To provide them with energy, 41 thousand stations with about 100 thousand chargers are envisaged. This is clearly not enough to meet the needs of owners of electric vehicles. It’s worth noting that a recent study by the University of California-Davis found that one in five electric vehicle owners in the state eventually returned to using a combustion engine.