New York is saying goodbye to the unsightly charging stations and hello to futuristic “trees” that promise to blend seamlessly into the urban landscape. A New York-based energy innovator, Gravity Technologies, has unveiled its latest creation: curbside charging stations that mix a lamp post and a tree. It is not the best description, but in reality, the solution is simple, neat, and functional. Sure, you won’t find a single leaf on any of those futuristic “trees,” but what other tree packs a 500 kW punch?
Charging Up The Concrete Jungle
The electric car revolution faces major speed bumps, one of which is charging infrastructure. Owning an electric car is easy if you live in a house with a garage. But what if you live in the city, in an apartment block? Public chargers are still too few and always busy with the growing number of EVs. For electric cars to make sense and become a no-brainer replacement for gas-powered vehicles, charging has to be as easy as using the gas pump. If it’s easier – it’ll be a win-win scenario.
Gravity Technologies claims to have the solution. The company has developed a design that addresses the issue of EV charging in crowded cities, where space is at a premium. Their “charging trees” don’t take any more room than street lights; they integrate seamlessly into the existing infrastructure, offering an aesthetically pleasing solution for urban EV owners.
Supercharging Trees
These aren’t your average saplings — they are lightning-fast. The company offers two models: 200 kW and 500 kW. The faster one can add 200 miles of range to your EV in as little as 5 minutes, provided your car supports such fast charging. The slower one promises the same range in about 13 minutes, which is more than sufficient.
The company keeps the ease of use at the top of its agenda, and all you need is a handy app to use one of the chargers. Park your car next to one of them, plug it in, and go and enjoy that well-deserved cup of latte. The exciting bit is the bi-directional charging – leave your car plugged in for longer, and it can send some of the juice back to the grid. That means your EV can support the grid and make you money at the same time. Probably enough to pay for that latte.
Gravity Technologies is rolling out the chargers across New York City, but the company has ambitious plans to expand nationwide. If successful, Tesla’s Supercharger stations will have a worthy competitor. Apart from some competition, the standardized and user-friendly charging experience is the important story here. Pulling up to a gas station does not require using hundreds of apps and a degree in operating heavy machinery. Once EV charging becomes this easy, we won’t even look back to the gas-powered days. Companies like Gravity are paving the way to that little brighter future.