Electronics and Semiconductors

Video: Park and charge tech unifies public EV charging issues

09 December 2021

The automotive industry is amid perhaps its greatest transition in its history, moving from gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles to automotive OEMs pledging to sell primarily electric models by 2030.

This means that many more electric vehicles (EVs) will be on the roads in the next decade as the transition ramps up. In fact, by 2026, EV charging sessions are forecast to exceed 1.5 billion, according to Juniper Research. This will require many more EV charging stations and networks than exist today to meet this demand.

Parkopedia, an EV charging startup, has developed a new method to help this transition with the launch of its “Park and Charge” technology that combines parking and charging into one service.

The service will allow EV owners to be able to find, authorize, pay and manage charging sessions and parking from one place inside their vehicles. Parking and charging are inherently an interconnected experience to begin with. A car must be parked to charge.

Parkopedia has 70 million parking spaces available in its database and the Park and Charge service allows automakers a way to resolve current issues with public charge such as:

  • Finding an EV charger including those inside indoor facilities without GPS.
  • Enabling in-vehicle EV charger activation, regardless of service provider.
  • Enabling in-vehicle EV charging payments, regardless of provider.

Growing EV sales

EV sales in the top three automotive markets — China, the U.S. and Europe — have increased by 160% in the first half of 2021 to 2.6 million units. This is about 26% of new sales of the global automotive market.

According to some estimates, 70% of drivers are now considering an EV as their next vehicle and 250 new EVs will be introduced by automakers in the next two years.

Additionally, the $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act in the U.S. will accelerate the adoption of EVs and help establish an EV charging infrastructure. The goal is to build 500,000 chargers nationwide by 2030, potentially tripling the number of charging stations available across the country.

Using existing technology

Park and Charge is supported by existing technologies from Parkopedia such as parking data, indoor mapping services and payment platforms into one user interface.

Live traffic and parking data is becoming a standard driver requirement for connected vehicles. Parkopedia’s technology will use its library of 70 million parking spaces across 15,000 cities and 89 countries. The data collection technology includes software, computer vision, artificial intelligence and gives modeling research to be able to predict parking space and EV charger availability, regardless of the existing infrastructure.

In-car parking payments were introduced by Parkopedia in 2014 in partnership with Volvo and the payment is like pay-at-the-pump fueling or tolling fees. The platform that was used originally for just parking can now be used for EV charging, which the company said solves current complex pricing structures currently in place.

To contact the author of this article, email PBrown@globalspec.com


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