Ford has filed a patent software for a magnetic EV charger that lets drivers cost with out having to get out of their automobiles.
Filed with america Patent and Trademark Workplace (USPTO) Nov. 1, 2022, the applying reveals how charging EVs may very well be extra automated, eliminating the necessity to bodily plug in a cable, saving effort and time.
Ford magnetic EV charger patent picture
Along with a standard cost port, Ford proposes becoming EVs (and plug-in hybrids) with a second port positioned within the bumper. To cost, the automobile is maneuvered to align this port with a charger, each of which might have magnets to safe the connection.
This is able to be a type of conductive charging, with a bodily connection between automobile and charging, slightly than inductive wi-fi charging, the place electrical energy is transmitted by way of an air hole, Ford famous within the software, including that this {hardware} may very well be configured for AC or DC charging.
Ford magnetic EV charger patent picture
To assist align the automobile with the charger, the applying additionally requires a point of articulation to allow a connection “so long as the motive force within reason shut” to the charger. Given the cost port’s bumper-mounted place, this sounds a bit like reversing to hitch up a trailer, one thing Ford has already tried to take the guesswork out of with its Professional Trailer Backup Help and Professional Trailer Hitch Help methods.
As with all new-car expertise, the looks of a patent software would not verify manufacturing intent. Ford is not the primary automaker making an attempt to get rid of charging cables, although. Ram unveiled an inductive charging robotic alongside its Revolution BEV electrical truck idea, whereas Tesla confirmed a considerably disturbing robotic charger prototype in 2015. Basic Motors hasn’t revealed something comparable, however has tried to patent twin cost ports for added power flexibility.