Upcoming Nissan ZEV Electric Car to Employ Wireless Charging

By Jason Friend

Jason Friend

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I am the son of a UAW member and want to see the U.S. Automotive Industry thrive and progress into the future however that may be. My dream car would... More

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2,372 views Jul 21, 2009

Nissan EV-02 prototype at speed

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With the Nissan ZEV expected to be unveiled on August 2nd, in Yokohama, Japan, could it be that Nissan has the answer to range anxiety?  It is possible that the Nissan ZEV Electric car could use a wireless charging technology that uses an electromagnetic field over a distance and has been proven to work in small electrical devices.  The technology is called inductive charging.

If inductive charging bays were installed in parking decks, malls, or shopping centers, then the customer would be able to drive in and recharge their car while they shop without having to plug the vehicle in. For now your car would still need to plug in to your charging station while at home.

Nissan wants to do more than just using charging bays. It is possible they could design the wireless charging technology to be built into roads and highways and allow electric cars to continuously charge while moving down the road. Nissan has said they are unsure of the cost, specifics in design, or the amount of charge the car will receive using this continuous charge technology.

With Nissan wanting to produce 50,000 ZEV's in its first year, and keeping the price affordable, and have it on the market
by the end of 2010, its possible that Nissan may be the front runner in pure electrical vehicles. Not to mention the ZEV is one of the few pure electrical vehicle that won't look like an egg.  Or at least, so Nissan says.  The vehicle hasn't been revealed yet so we'll see soon.

Source (Guardian UK)