Automotive

Chargery brings the charging station to EV drivers

Chargery brings the charging station to EV drivers
Chargery is currently testing its mobile EV charging service with DriveNow
Chargery is currently testing its mobile EV charging service with DriveNow
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The motor-assisted trailer measures 1 meter in length and 0.65 meters wide (3.3 x 2.1 ft) and weighing about 150 kg (330 lb)
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The motor-assisted trailer measures 1 meter in length and 0.65 meters wide (3.3 x 2.1 ft) and weighing about 150 kg (330 lb)
The Chargery trailer is home to 24 kWh Li-ion batteries, but this could soon increase to 50 kWh
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The Chargery trailer is home to 24 kWh Li-ion batteries, but this could soon increase to 50 kWh
Chargery is currently testing its mobile EV charging service with DriveNow
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Chargery is currently testing its mobile EV charging service with DriveNow
View gallery - 3 images

At the moment, when your EV's battery is running low in urban areas, you may have to go a little out of your way to find a charging point. And even if you do locate one that's close by, you could find it already in use or blocked by an inconsiderate driver's combustion engine vehicle. Though auto makers and fuel suppliers have committed to installing more chargers to meet rising EV demand, Berlin's Chargery proposes bringing the charging station to its customers by bicycle.

At the moment, the service is focusing on businesses but when the scheme rolls out to private customers, bookings will be made via an iOS/Android companion app for a pay per use model, with the price inclusive of delivery.

When a driver makes a booking, a bicycle courier with Chargery trailer measuring 1 meter in length and 0.65 meters wide (3.3 x 2.1 ft) and weighing about 150 kg (330 lb) in tow races to the agreed drop-off point. Once there, the motor-assisted trailer is unhitched from the bike and cabled up to the customer's vehicle.

"Right now we're using AC-charging," Chargery's Christian Lang told us. "So Typ1 and Typ2 AC-connectors are supported. We are currently working on DC-solutions – both CCS and CHAdeMO."

The motor-assisted trailer measures 1 meter in length and 0.65 meters wide (3.3 x 2.1 ft) and weighing about 150 kg (330 lb)
The motor-assisted trailer measures 1 meter in length and 0.65 meters wide (3.3 x 2.1 ft) and weighing about 150 kg (330 lb)

The courier leaves the box in situ and pedals off to pick up a discharged trailer that's been used by another customer. This is then taken to a decentralized charging hub to replenish its batteries, ready for the next call.

Chargery says that the electricity used to charge its battery-packed trailers is 100 percent sustainably sourced, and each trailer currently carries a dozen 2 kWh Li-ion battery packs. This should be enough for about 160 km (100 miles) of electric range, but the company is looking to increase capacity to 50 kWh in the future. Fast charging up to 35 kW is supported, the trailer is built to IP67 standards to protect it from weather and damage and 4G data transmission capabilities are included to allow for remote charge control.

The Chargery project is currently undergoing testing in collaboration with carsharing service DriveNow, and is expected to expand to other business schemes from April next year. By 2021, the company hopes to cover 13 cities in Europe, and have 350 trailers in operation.

Source: Chargery

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3 comments
3 comments
Mark Pettit
So i could theoretically increase the range on an electric MC by towing one of these?🤔
Paul Anthony
How did the bike driver get that big old heavy unit up on to the curb in front of the car? What kind of security does this thing have anybody can hook up a bike and just drive it away?
Riaanh
@Paul, it seems as if there could be a hub motor in the single front wheel of the trailer.