GM announced this week that their venture capital arm called GM Ventures will invest $5 million in a small company called Powermat. The company makes a charging system that uses wireless technology to charge smartphones and other devices, and is considered a pioneer in the filed.
Through this partnership the Powermat will produce an in-car wireless charging pad for the center console of the Chevy Volt, which will become available in mid-2012.
Since the Volt itself is modeled to be a reinvention of the automobile, it makes sense that the reinvention of in-car cellphone charging first appear in this vehicle as well.
“Imagine a mat or shelf where you could put your iPhone, your Droid or other personal device and charge it automatically while you commute to work, run errands or as you’re driving on a family vacation,” said Micky Bly, GM’s lead electronics executive, including infotainment, hybrids and battery electric vehicles.
“The Chevy Volt will be one of the first applications, but we intend to expand it across our vehicle portfolio,” Bly said.
Powermat was first founded in 2007 and already produces wireless charging mats for in-home use. This will be the first of its kind to be found in an automobile and the deal is exclusive for GM.
John Lauckner who is the President of GM Ventures was also the creator of the Volt concept back when he was VP of global program management. A big fan of smartphones himself, Lauckner had always dreamed of this idea for the car.
“We first developed the Volt concept car in 2006,” Lauckner said. “The intent was to revolutionize every aspect of the car, not just the propulsion system. We had something like this in mind even then, and we think it will have widespread appeal.”
Source (GM)
+5
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:43 am)One of the news stories I saw about this was speculating that this technology could be expanded to include charging the ENTIRE CAR.
Now, that’d be cool.
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:49 am)Has there been any updates on the Plug in Vue replacement? I am personally hopping there will be a 2011/2012 Equinox or Traverse with the Volt EREV system…..
-2
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:55 am)I don’t have or see much need for a smart phone myself and my current cell phone has sufficient charge for several days. Charging in a the car isn’t often needed. If I’m normally taking only a 40 mile or less round trip, why bother worrying about charging my phone? If the phone couldn’t deal with being charged once a day or less I would be getting rid of it.
-4
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:59 am)I’d prefer to not to charge my phone while driving the Volt, and save the electricity for driving.
well driving all of one foot on the power to charge a cell phone, but still… dont see the need
+4
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:09 am)This is very cool. When I first saw the reports I thought they were going to be charging the Volt wirelessly which would have been even cooler, but this will do as a starter.
+5
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:10 am)I wonder how much juice powermats consume when you arent charging anything….or how much they draw when a fully charged phone is on the mat.
+4
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:15 am)““We first developed the Volt concept car in 2006,” Lauckner said. “The intent was to revolutionize every aspect of the car, not just the propulsion system. We had something like this in mind even then, and we think it will have widespread appeal.””
LOVE that approach. SO refreshing for a big american industrial company.
Now, can the current flow the other way? Get an extra couple of feet on the way home from work? 8^)
+5
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:23 am)I wouldn’t worry too much about charging a cell phone using battery power from the Volt. My Droid battery has 5.3 Wh of capacity. That’s enough energy to go about the length of a football field in the Volt (less from a dead stop). Impressive actually. LOL
I love my smart phone BTW. Saves me the trouble of lugging out the computer and booting up every time I want to check my email or look something up. Cell phones are finally delivering on their potential if you ask me.
+11
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:30 am)You probably don’t want to hear this, but you’d be in the minority of cell phone users. Most people do have smart phones and most have a 12V charger to use in the car. This is much more convenient and I can see it being very popular.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:30 am)It’s a beautiful thing to see GM making use of the technology that’s out there. We have HD LCD displays, navigation, backup camera, built in hard drive, bluetooth, smart phone control etc. etc. The Prius had bluetooth 7 years ago. I had a friend who installed a 120 gig hard drive in his car with an mp3 player back in 2001 before 5 GB iPods were even on the market (for over $500). With GPSs being under $100 retail, and webcams being about $10-$20, I just don’t see why GM wouldn’t include all of this stuff.
What they need to do for the Volt is add an inverter. I have one of these.
http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=Cobra+inverter&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=13474537007632061747&ei=P-0lTbrTLoe-sQPGoLDwAQ&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=image&resnum=3&ved=0CDsQ8gIwAg#
For $24 retail you get 400 Watts of power from your car which I use to charge laptops while driving, its very handy on road trips when boredom sets in. This type of thing could be used to power lights or recharge things you need while camping etc. You could use it in case there was ever a blackout in your neighborhood, think about the peace of mind it would give people that don’t want to buy a standalone generator. I mean, some people might not use it, but it’s $24 retail! Put it as a $50 option instead of the cigarette lighter at least. Better yet, put a 1500 Watt inverter in there while you’re at it as an option.
I don’t think you’re going to hurt your range all that much. Charging your whole phone takes about as much power as driving 200 feet probably.
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:38 am)Couldn’t agree more. I can’t remember where I read about it, but I thought there was at least one company, possibly more working on a set-up to inductively charge an EV. You would drive over the plate, and it would charge automatically. Does anyone else know any more about this? Is that even safe to do?
+3
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:42 am)Now that is a great idea. I hate having a cord hanging out of the dashboard.
+3
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:51 am)Here is the math. Volt goes 40 miles nominal on a charge. So take the battery capacity used by the Volt to go that far (16KWh * 70%) and divide it into 40 miles and multiply it by 5280 to get how many feet it will go per KWh. (18857 ft/KWh) Next multiply that number by the watt hours of your phone battery and then divide by 1000 since your phone battery is watt hours instead of KW hours. Using JeremyK’s number of 5.3 Wh we get 99.9 feet. That is how many feet of travel you would lose by charging your phone assuming that your phone was completely discharged and the charger was 100% efficient. (hint – it is not) The biggest potential error of this was the 70% number used for how much of the battery is used by the Volt of its 16Kwh capacity.
Efficiency when charging a cell phone is no big deal but until they can be in the upper 90′s with efficiency for charging the car compared to plugging in I wouldn’t even consider non-contact charging for a car.
Jan 6th, 2011 (11:53 am)Jerome,
They shouldn’t consume any power when not in charge mode as they have an “auto-off” feature. The charging aspect of the Powermat isn’t new–your electric toothbrush does the same type of charging already. What’s different about Powermat is that the mat has a magnetic sensing technology that recognizes when a device is placed on the mat and then delivers a charge only to that receiver. By the way, there’s no way this could charge a car in its current technology format: the voltage is below trickle.
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:01 pm)Probably this one: http://www.witricity.com/
Very cool stuff.
+2
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:06 pm)Hmmm… remember the EV1 induction charger?
Just put the pad in a slot….
I always thought the the induction method could be that you drive over a pad in your garage and it charges the car… no plugging in.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:07 pm)I hope it comes with some way of securing the phone in place. Even when I’ve put my phone in a shallow cup holder, I’ve sent it flying towards my pedals when I’ve had to brake or swerve quickly. We could have a “Prius situation” should the phone fall between pedals and accelerate you towards a wall.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:14 pm)They should allow you to also tether your smart-phone to the Volt. Then you could forget OnStar and use your phone’s 4G.
I still think “mifi”-esque package from Verizon would be the way to go (would be cleaner), but if that doesn’t happen, I’d like to see tethering as an option.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:16 pm)Amen. Effeciency is a key positive attribute of electric cars–why lower that when it’s not really needed? Seems like we ought to be trying to go the other way instead.
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:21 pm)I was thinking more the other way around. Use the car’s wifi to run the smartphone (and wii and laptop etc.). This is the way that Dodge does it.
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:22 pm)T 1,
Of course if cold fusion comes out of the realm of junk science and into reality… then I guess I wouldn’t care about efficiency!
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:35 pm)You have to have a special battery to use this tech and the i-phone batt can’t easily be replaced so it is one that would be harder to use this.
Also the volt has a usb in the center compartment and they thought ahead to put slots to let the cord out of the compartment to get to the phone if you leave it in the cup holder. The usb both connects it to the center screen with the track info and charges it also. This works for me as GM designed it very well.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:40 pm)The charging mats have been around for home use for a while. They could be integrated in the storage bins in the top of the dash. Although for anyone with an iPhone, it will charge when connected to the audio system, so it’s still easily done.
As for charging the entire car inductively by driving over a plate or pad, that’s not going to happen anytime soon. The intensity of the field required to charge at 1500W would be quite hazardous to human health. We may end up with an inductive plug where there are no metal contacts but the fields can be contained in the plug receptacle. Either way, not good news for anyone with electronic medical devices. Heck, I’m not yet convinced that new new inductive cooking ranges are safe. One of these days, I’ll pull out my electromagnetics textbooks and go through the math, but that’s a lot of energy going through the air.
Luc
Jan 6th, 2011 (12:59 pm)Do you think that you could possibly retrofit the center console of a 2011 Volt to include the PowerMat?
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:06 pm)RF Guy,
Just the guy that might be able to answer a question I have had for some time.
It may have been addressed here sometime, but I don’t recall seeing it.
My question is about the VOLT and EMF radiation. These large batteries and larger electric motors obviously are different than those found in standard ICE driven cars. What level
of EMF is considered to be safe by conservative health care professionals and where does VOLT fit in with those levels? There is good bit of debate about the effects of cell phones on us and now I am hearing about warning labels on them when used by the very young.
As many here know, I am a huge fan of the VOLT and not by any means a troll.
I am just wondering if there might be cause for some concern.
(And if so, might a bit of copper mesh sheilding fix it?)
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:08 pm)That’s what I meant by turning the Volt’s 4G into a mifi-like hotspot. What does Dodge call it, and what is the price?
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:10 pm)What special battery? The mat chargers come w/skins for your devices to charge them.
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:12 pm)Ummm….
No thanks on this feature.
But if the device required to be plugged into your phone, “Reciever”, to allow charging is free and will still be free if/when I get a new phone……sure.
But if the device is in the car and have to buy the receiver for the phone and all phones the family has, then pull that thing outta the car and don’t charge me for it.
@TheRFMan
Companies already have some good products for wireless power transmission.
http://www.witricity.com/pages/application.html
Even Intel has one…
http://newsroom.intel.com/docs/DOC-1119
I was originally very doubtfull about this stuff but WiTricity looks promising. Maybe GM should be looking into their stuff and corner the “Wireless Charging” market?
Now I don’t know about the Level 2 charging for an EV but it looks like they have the 120V stuff going good.
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:16 pm)Finally, a use for frozen batteries! ;^0
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:26 pm)GM announced this week that their venture capital arm called GM Ventures will invest $5 million in a small company called Powermat.
5 million sounds like alot of money to invest in a small company that stands to potentially profit well if this feature is added to tech packages. Will I need to wear my aluminum hat when riding in the car for protection from EMF? LOL
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:29 pm)ronr64,
Yep, I just used 10.4 kWh as the battery capacity of the Volt. In reality, it would take a fair amount of energy just to accelerate up to a very low speed, so 99 ft would be very optimistic…yet reasonable if you were already rolling along at cruising speed.
+3
Jan 6th, 2011 (1:53 pm)Big day for tech announcements for GM. The following one could turn out to be HUGE!!! GM signs a worldwide licensing deal with Argonne labs for their composite cathode material.
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/news/article.aspx?Feed=PR&Date=20110106&ID=12572734&Symbol=GM
Jan 6th, 2011 (2:15 pm)Steve,
I don’t have or see much need for a smart phone myself and my current cell phone has sufficient charge for several days. Charging in a the car isn’t often needed. If I’m normally taking only a 40 mile or less round trip, why bother worrying about charging my phone? If the phone couldn’t deal with being charged once a day or less I would be getting rid of it.
I sort of agree. However, a Bluetooth headset that can be charged this way would be useful. The car is typically the only place people use the things, and being able to quickly put it into your ear without unplugging charging cables when an unexpected call comes in would be great.
Jan 6th, 2011 (2:23 pm)Real talk time is still only in hours not days. Heavy users that are on the road a lot, like salespeople, will find this very handy. The headset charging is also a good application.
Jan 6th, 2011 (2:26 pm)Haven’t mobile phones already recently gone to a standard charge plug or is that supposed to start soon?
Jan 6th, 2011 (2:39 pm)Nope. Connectors for iPhones are different, Droid phones are different, Crackberries are diff, Nokia, Samsung…..etc.
You would *THINK* they would settle on one single friggin interface connection……..SHEEEEESH!!
/sup wit dat?!?!?!?
Jan 6th, 2011 (2:42 pm)Interesting coincidence.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-20027579-94.html?tag=nl.e700
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (3:03 pm)Yes you can do that also but it has to connect to the phone thru a plug in and makes the phone bulky to handle. They are also working with Qualcom to implement a standard on all phones so it is already in the phone and you just have a mat.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (3:12 pm)Kind of cool,
But before you go out and buy the charge mat system that adds a bulky case to your nice thin smart phone, think about just plugging into the USB port in the VOLT to charge and listen to some nice music at the same time? Sorry I’m not really getting this device and why it’s perfect for the VOLT???
Now if the company had a larger version for the floor of my garage and I could park the VOLT on top of it to charge, now that would be pretty cool.
=====SWAIN::——————————-
GM VOLT Customer Advisory Board Member
Jan 6th, 2011 (3:45 pm)koz, big news indeed.
I saw the story in the Freep, and also quotes LG pres as saying they’re hoping to cut battery cost in half in 5-10 years. “Lord, give me patience. And I want it right now!”
+5
Jan 6th, 2011 (4:03 pm)And the cost of sutomobiles rises again. Whatever happened to basic transprtation?
+2
Jan 6th, 2011 (4:14 pm)#28
Amen. KISS. +1 Hiya Captain!
+2
Jan 6th, 2011 (4:16 pm)#40
Right. +1
Jan 6th, 2011 (4:44 pm)They are not that bulky and most people (that I know) put protective cases on their phones anyway.
http://www.powermat.com/?gclid=CLG-pJ7GpqYCFY64KgodzlNkng
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (4:50 pm)This stuff should have been put in cars years ago. I can’t believe it took as long as it did just to get a hard drive in a car. Finally it appears modern technology is making it inside the cabin. I’m sorry if you don’t like this, but is it just cost related, or do you just not want it? IMHO, I think they should go further. I’d like the Volt ap to be applied to all GM cars, and have remote start as a standard thru OnStar so range is not an issue. I’d like to be able to pull up my car’s health from a website. I like to be able to wirelessly sync my car w/my home network. Embrace the future. A lot of people spend a lot of time in their cars, and they want more than “basic” transportation from A to B.
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:09 pm)My issue is if I don’t want it I shouldn’t have to pay for it. Nor should it be present in the car.
Consider this Onstar crap. I don’t want or need it. But regardless, it’s going to be in there.
Forced upgrades causes the increase in a cars price. See below….
http://www.hybridcenter.org/hybrid-scorecard/
KISS!!!
/really you just need to get from point “A” to point “B” right?
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:10 pm)Noel!!!
Long time ne see from you man.
+2
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:14 pm)I think this will a great idea when there are some standards for wireless charging. When you can just set your phone on a pad and it works it will be really cool. Right now Powermat only works with a few phones. Same with the Duracell unit, which of course is not compatible with Powermat. Any other phone has to have a separate unit that plugs into the charger port of your phone. If I have to do that, I may as well charge at home.
These companies need to work with the cell phone makers to have this capability built in to the phones. Then it will be worth having.
JMHO
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:16 pm)I don’t know what it costs. They tried to sell me on it with my last truck, but, it was included in a very expensive (like $4k) upgrade.
I’m with CJS on some of my vehicles. Engine, 4 wheels, brakes. That’s about it for a truck. Now for my daily commuter car, I want some more bells and whistles. It’s real boring driving less than 20 miles for an hour!
As far as not needing this thing… In my case I charge in the car a lot. iPhone uses gobs of electricity. You have to charge whenever possible. I’m constantly plugging and unplugging the thing. Having a pad to sit it on would be great!
The implementation in the video is not good however. Bulky charge case vs plug in cable… I guess I need to wait for iPhone 5 with integrated wireless charging.
/OT. My new 6-month electric rate contract starting in March is 7.9c/kwh. Down from 10.2c. On the down side, mid-grade gasoline went up to $3.10 from $2.89 in the last week!
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:17 pm)Looks like it was Europe that standardized. WTF. Why would the manufacturers just extend that to US too?
http://www.gadgetell.com/tech/comment/micro-usb-to-be-new-standard-phone-charger/
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:19 pm)…er
much cool(er), IMO
-1
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:23 pm)I have an order in for my Volt. My salesman called today and said that the other volt in the dealers allocation which had been sold was now not sold (the buyer got his deposit back) and that volt is now free to be sold. The GM at the dealership is giving my salesman 1st try at selling it and he has till Monday to sell it before he opens it up to the rest of Sales staff (The original cancelled sale was his) Delivery will be within 3-4 months probably sooner according to dealer. I am in Syracuse NY E-mail me if anyone interested
Jan 6th, 2011 (5:56 pm)scottf200 also posted this link and quote on the forum:
http://chicagobreakingbusiness.com/2…batteries.html
“Batteries using the new technology will go into production in 2012 at a new plant LG Chem Power is building in Holland, Mich. The company is working with the enhanced cathode material in Korea, according to Jeff Chamberlain of Argonne. That will make them available for use in the Volt that same year, said Mohamed Alamgir, Research Director, LG Chem Power.”
2012!!! Wow, that would be phenomenal.
Jan 6th, 2011 (6:25 pm)Someone needs to miniaturize a Nuclear power plant to put in an EV. Drive into a Uranium station once a year with your car to replace the pencil sized rod. How much bad radiation could come from a pencil sized Uranium rod?
NPNS!
+2
Jan 6th, 2011 (6:31 pm)AMEN and AMEN
GM pay attention. I have a STANDARD AC PLUG in the back of my Tahoe Hybrid. The concept of putting one (or more) in EVERY car, especially ELECTRIC ones seems to be a no-brainer!
Jan 6th, 2011 (6:53 pm)Nuclear Power Plants create electricity by use of multiple coolant loops and steam turbines. ‘Mr Fusion’ is not something to expect anytime soon.
Jan 6th, 2011 (7:27 pm)Not to be a “Debbie Downer” on this but….
If you get this in the Volt and keep the charger “receiver” on your phone, what do you use to charge the phone in your house? work? friends house? Hotel?
Time to fork out some more $$$$$ to charge your phone wirelessly.
/no thanks.
//ok, i’ll quit now….
+3
Jan 6th, 2011 (7:52 pm)Almost every small portable device has a USB interface and charges via USB. Have we as a society gotten so damn lazy that just plugging in something to charge is too much. If that’s the case, why buy a “Plugin Car”?
If SWAIN is right and there is a USB plug in the car, man your jus wastin your $$$ on this.
/ok, I know i’m a lazy azz but c’mon…….you need to wirelessly charge????/…….REALLY?!?!?!?
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (7:56 pm)People would plug in a hair dryer, drain the battery, then curse GM that the Volt only went 5 miles on a full charge.
Jan 6th, 2011 (7:59 pm)I agree. I want to add value not toys.
There is a USB outlet in the compartment between the seats, at least I seem to recall someone posted this pic in the past.
Lose the gadgets. A car is intended to transport you from pt. A -> B.
MORE COWBELL!
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (8:22 pm)Here’s a piece of interesting news. Maybe the GenII Volt will use this new battery technology.
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-20027664-48.html
Jan 6th, 2011 (8:37 pm)1) Allowing the phone to be in a secure and accessible (to the eyes when not moving forward) location is preferable. It will also keep charged up and ready for a quick button press.
2) Don’t use your damn phones when you are driving. 3000 people are killed per year from these A-holes. Perhaps an auto shut-off to the screen and speaker when moving forward. Otherwise, a lawsuit might result.
3) A cover over the charging pad or a fabric net to secure the devices, as mentioned above.
4) Watch for phantom currents. It should shut down completely when not in use and also for different, user set, conditions (no charge when not plugged in, no charge when below X%, etc.).
5) Cover will also be handy to keep the devices out of the eyes of A-hole criminals.
Great ideas and keep them coming! GM now understands that young drivers want all the consumer electronics in their cars. Blu-ray player? Laser projection dash and video entertainment, 4G total integration, cloud computing, apps, etc. The sky is the limit and GM has got the jump, again. Go GM!
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (8:46 pm)I don’t think designing to the lowest common denominator is a recipe for success.
Jan 6th, 2011 (8:49 pm)off topic:
KillaCycle ~ New World Record
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVv0NVLFPig&feature=related
NPNS
Jan 6th, 2011 (9:44 pm)When I first read an article about this I though this is great they are going to make a huge mat that can go in your garage and charge your volt when you drive over it. Well looks like I was wrong. Its still a cool idea though.
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:21 pm)So this company invented induction charging. A concept as old as Tesla… The man, not the car company.
+1
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:55 pm)I agree 100%.
While the MAT is a great idea for those who are always running out of phone power and forget to charge in the car, the USB is amazing. If you have an iPod, Touch, iPad or iPhone you must hook it to the USB and experience the magic.
All the music in the Apple device appears as if you had transferred everything to the HHD, but it’s so much better. The Volt picks up where you last left off in the middle of the music. Playlists and Albums are in track order, something the HDD refuses to do. Best of all, the steering wheel controls and console controls access everything in the iPod. All this and charging too!
Hopefully a future MAT will access the playing of music just as the USB does today! Even better, let me keep the iPhone on my belt and charge it while sitting in the car.
Jan 6th, 2011 (10:59 pm)TheRFMan,
They are doing exactly this in Korea right now; inductive car recharging on the go on public streets. There is a large pilot program run by Hyundai using a fleet of cars operated by local government staff. I live in Seoul.
And you can see road signs alerting these drivers on which roads re-charging is not setup.
Jan 7th, 2011 (12:31 am)I hope you meant this tongue in cheek. Hair dryers require three times more juice than these inverters normally accommodate and protection circuitry is there to prevent the stupid from ruining their day.
Jan 7th, 2011 (7:52 pm)LOL at the iPhone in the picture. This thing has been around for a while, and if you read the reviews, all the negative ones are from iPhone users. iPhones have to use a special case for it to work, because it requires a compatible battery cover but iPhone doesn’t have a removable one.
For every other phone out there, this is a great idea (especially Android users… don’t deny it, we know the truth about your battery life lol
). I know I get distracted while driving a lot if I get a call and I have to worry about whether my cable is tangled, and if it is, whether it’s long enough for me to put the phone to my face.
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