E-Mobility Engineering 015 l EMotive Scarab off-road truck dossier l In Conversation: Giulio Ornella l Hall effect and magnetic sensors focus l Challenge of batteries for heavy-duty EVs l Alpha Motor Corporation digest l Automated charging insight l HVAC systems focus

As the connector and the location are the same, this is suitable for automation and the first candidate for widespread automation. As a result, volume production of electric trucks is due in 2024. The length of the cable will still be limited to that level of power, as the longer the cable the heavier it will be, and truckers will be less able to use the system. These trucks stop in the same place for charging. If the robot arm is at the right height, this can allow for a shorter cable rather than having it come down from the top of the gas pump, as it does at the moment. Other robot chargers Researchers at the Technical University of Graz have developed a prototype of a fully autonomous, mobile charging robot that finds its way independently to a parked EV and supplies it with energy. The researchers worked with ARTI Robots and wallbox charger maker Alveri on the design. The platform orients itself independently in space using a Lidar sensor and moves towards a selected vehicle at up to 20 kph. The arm mounted on the bed of the robot guides the charging cable to the charging flap and docks there. After charging, the robot unplugs itself and moves away from the vehicle. “For an automated system the process of refuelling or charging a vehicle is a very complex, millimetre-precise matter,” says Bernhard Walzel from the Institute of Automotive Engineering at TU Graz. He and colleague Helmut Brunner developed a stationary system in 2018, using multiple cameras, and have moved this technology to a mobile platform. Two different approaches to automated charging for underbody and side connections (Courtesy of CharIN) The Megawatt Charging System for higher power truck charging was launched in June 2022 (Courtesy of CharIN) 58 Autumn 2022 | E-Mobility Engineering Deep insight | Automated charging