Solar Technology Embedded Into Driverless Shuttles To Improve Efficiency
At the virtual CES 2021, German solar mobility provider Sono Motors revealed a collaboration with EasyMile to install its solar technology on their driverless shuttles.
Sono Motors also showed off the new pre-production prototype of its Sion electric city car, which features 248 photovoltaic panels embedded into the vehicle’s exterior parts, providing up to 34 km (21 mi) of additional range daily. However, the battery pack can connect to a charger for longer trips, making the per charge range 255 km (158.5 mi).
Sono Motors plans to apply its embedded solar cell technology to various platforms, with EasyMile’s EZ10 autonomous pod among the first. The technology could lead to new types of energy-efficient transportation and reduce the dependency of the still low number of available charging stations for electric vehicles.
The unique solar technology is applied to a vehicle’s exterior by installing solar cells integrated into flexible polymers instead of glass, making it lighter, cheaper, and more efficient than any other existing vehicle solar technology.
This method allows the start-up to integrate solar panels on limitless vehicle types, opening the door for new application possibilities. Buses and trucks are particularly suitable for the technology since it has a significant contact area.
The EZ10 electric shuttle has already seen use in over 30 countries worldwide. It operates sixteen hours per charge, and it takes six hours to recharge from empty fully. This could be dramatically improved with the new solar technology.
EasyMile said:
The solar cells convert sunlight into energy that is stored in the vehicle’s battery. Solar cells can significantly increase the range of the electric vehicle. This could give the driverless shuttle even more autonomy as it would be more independent of the charging infrastructure. A big cost-saver for private sites as well as an advantage for the many communities that use the shuttle as an extension of the public transportation network.
These new solar body panels are not intended to replace traditional charging methods. Instead, they are designed to reduce the number of charging intervals – as the shuttle should harvest solar energy while cruising or parked.
Gloss