Successful start for world's first wireless electric road for trucks

Israel tech company ElectReon has completed a test of dynamic wireless charging of a 40 tonne long haul electric truck on the island of Gotland, Sweden. This marks the world's first truck operations on a public wireless electric road and is an important milestone for the Smartroad Gotland project and for electric mobility. The test verified that the road infrastructure successfully functions in real life conditions and that the system is not affected by snow or rain.

The test was conducted on a public stretch of electric road, that was deployed in November 2019, between the airport and the town of Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland. It took place for a week and a half in winter conditions with rain and snow.

Initially, the management unit was installed on the side of the road, connected to the electric grid and the coils under the road. Next, the communication with the coils was tested and then the static charging of the truck via its five receivers. Finally, the system was operated for dynamic charging of the truck on a 50 metre (164 feet) section at a speed of up to 30 km/h. The cloud based system was automatically operated and remotely monitored. 

The results of the test are satisfactory, the system operated while the truck was on the move and all the receivers functioned and transferred 45 kW to the truck's battery. During the coming months the transferred power and vehicle speed will be increased gradually in order to reach the goal of 125 kW and highway speed. Furthermore, additional electric road segments will be deployed and an electric bus will be in commercial operation as an airport shuttle.

Oren Ezer, CEO of Electreon Wireless, said: “We are excited to wirelessly charge a long haul electric truck while driving on a public road for the first time ever. The results of the test are an important milestone for the project funded by the Swedish Transport Administration and for enabling electric mobility that is convenient, cost effective, and sustainable.”

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