EV Charging Stations and Formats in the US
Recently EV Authority was featured on CNET for the work it has been doing to construct an interactive collaborative Google Map listing of EV charging stations nation wide. At some point we assume that most gas/fueling stations across the US will include this type of "fuel" but as it stands, the number and location of chargers is very limited, even in California which has more than any other state.
There seems to be an interesting trend at work in the world of EV car chargers and battery powered electric vehicles (BEV's). This trend resembles the format wars we have become so accustomed to in the world of consumer electronics; Betamax vs VCR, MiniDisk vs. Compact Disk, and recently Blue Ray vs. HD DVD. In 1996 when General Motors introduced the EV1 for testing in California the local government set up a sprawling network of Magne Charge stations (built by a subsidiary of GM) equipped with special paddles designed specifically for this new generation of vehicles. Even within the Magne Charge product line there was a quick charger and a slower more natural speed version. In 2003 the EV1 program was officially canceled and all cars were recalled and subsequently destroyed by GM (see Who Killed the Electric Car for more information). Since that time there have been other EV's out roaming the streets, many home made, and all with different charging requirements. The most recent "standard" was announced at the EDTA bi-yearly conference in Washington DC and is called the J112 but many of the newest concept cars are being setup to charge directly from a standard 120V wall outlet.
The instability of the electric vehicle industry (including the recent struggles of Tesla Motors who is caught up in law suits with Fisker over the design of their Karma model as well as a funding hiccup thought by some to be intentional on the part of the last administration) and the lack of standardization has caused many consumers to be wary, especially when considering the $109K price tag of the Tesla and other high performance cars. In the case of one charging station at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park, we were told that the station was never being used, in fact, we were told it wasn't used even once by a real customer, only during promotional events. As a result that station has subsequently been transformed into an RV refueling and basic charge station not designed to facilitate EV's.
With all of this commotion it isn't surprising that many of the electric vehicle chargers that do still exist are either at city buildings or universities. As a prime example, the University of California Berkeley has three different charger types at its facility. This approach is designed to accommodate experimentation and work for as many types of cars (past and present) as possible but certainly isn't as efficient or affordable as we would all like. It's not exactly the model a small town gas station would use, but someday we may see a "multi charge" EV station equivalent to the R+-RW CD players of today. Things are looking bright however, as companies like ZAP and Aptera roll out consumer level EV's priced around $30K towards the end of this year. As entry level cars like these gain critical mass a dominant format is sure to emerge.
Stay tuned to EV Authority and keep an eye on our car charging map; add your own locations and tips for charging, and keep an eye out as new charging models introduced by A Better Place and ChargePoint offer battery swap and token systems in the coming years.
Just above is pictured one of the old MagneCharge paddle systems still in place at UC Berkeley dating back to the General Motors EV1.
There seems to be an interesting trend at work in the world of EV car chargers and battery powered electric vehicles (BEV's). This trend resembles the format wars we have become so accustomed to in the world of consumer electronics; Betamax vs VCR, MiniDisk vs. Compact Disk, and recently Blue Ray vs. HD DVD. In 1996 when General Motors introduced the EV1 for testing in California the local government set up a sprawling network of Magne Charge stations (built by a subsidiary of GM) equipped with special paddles designed specifically for this new generation of vehicles. Even within the Magne Charge product line there was a quick charger and a slower more natural speed version. In 2003 the EV1 program was officially canceled and all cars were recalled and subsequently destroyed by GM (see Who Killed the Electric Car for more information). Since that time there have been other EV's out roaming the streets, many home made, and all with different charging requirements. The most recent "standard" was announced at the EDTA bi-yearly conference in Washington DC and is called the J112 but many of the newest concept cars are being setup to charge directly from a standard 120V wall outlet.
The instability of the electric vehicle industry (including the recent struggles of Tesla Motors who is caught up in law suits with Fisker over the design of their Karma model as well as a funding hiccup thought by some to be intentional on the part of the last administration) and the lack of standardization has caused many consumers to be wary, especially when considering the $109K price tag of the Tesla and other high performance cars. In the case of one charging station at the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park, we were told that the station was never being used, in fact, we were told it wasn't used even once by a real customer, only during promotional events. As a result that station has subsequently been transformed into an RV refueling and basic charge station not designed to facilitate EV's.
With all of this commotion it isn't surprising that many of the electric vehicle chargers that do still exist are either at city buildings or universities. As a prime example, the University of California Berkeley has three different charger types at its facility. This approach is designed to accommodate experimentation and work for as many types of cars (past and present) as possible but certainly isn't as efficient or affordable as we would all like. It's not exactly the model a small town gas station would use, but someday we may see a "multi charge" EV station equivalent to the R+-RW CD players of today. Things are looking bright however, as companies like ZAP and Aptera roll out consumer level EV's priced around $30K towards the end of this year. As entry level cars like these gain critical mass a dominant format is sure to emerge.
Stay tuned to EV Authority and keep an eye on our car charging map; add your own locations and tips for charging, and keep an eye out as new charging models introduced by A Better Place and ChargePoint offer battery swap and token systems in the coming years.
Just above is pictured one of the old MagneCharge paddle systems still in place at UC Berkeley dating back to the General Motors EV1.
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