Oslo will soon have a world first with wireless charging of electric taxis. Taxi stands in the Norwegian capital will get induction plates, which will allow electric taxis to charge wirelessly while drivers wait for customers. With this, the city government hopes to accelerate the electrification of taxis. By 2023, all taxis in Oslo must be electric.
According to a press release from the initiators, the charging infrastructure is the biggest problem currently facing taxi drivers with electric cars.
It would take too long to find a charging station and have to wait for the car to be charged.
Fast charging using induction plates could solve this problem, with taxis only having to drive up to the plate. Charging then starts automatically. This allows the taxi drivers to charge at a location on the sites where they are already waiting and where the customers are coming, the press release says.
For the taxi stands, the city council is working with energy company Fortum and induction specialist Momentum Dynamics.
The parties do not yet indicate how many induction plates there will be. They do say that charging will be done with a maximum of 75 kW.
For wireless charging, taxis must first be equipped with a receiver.
The induction technology (known from electric toothbrushes, among others) has been around for some time. For a further explanation Wireless charging
The article from the De Ingenieur outlines how it works:Inductive charging breaks record BMW has
been supplying it with its electric cars since last year, including in the Netherlands.
However, there is no sign of a breakthrough yet because the technology still has some snags. For instance, charging with a cord and a plug is significantly faster than contactless charging
