9 stunning innovations that will transform electric driving

Today we find it important that our electric vehicles can charge quickly. Car brands like to boast that their latest model charges from 20 to 80 percent in half an hour. But if it were up to the Israel-based company StoreDot, that could soon be even faster. The startup is working on a technology that will allow batteries to fully charge in just 5 minutes. Once this battery is developed and integrated into cars, it should enable us to charge a car almost as fast as if we were refueling.

Did you know there are street lamps that have been converted into charging stations? Five years ago, German startup Ubitricity came up with the idea of equipping lampposts with a charging cable. Since the power supply was already present, this would be a great way to quickly provide electricity. The United Kingdom immediately jumped on the bandwagon. Today there are thousands of lampposts in London and Berlin alone where EV drivers can charge their cars. The solution is particularly interesting in cities where not many people have access to a private charging station.

Why use a charging station when you can simply change the battery? Chinese car manufacturer Nio not only wants to compete with Tesla in terms of cars, they also aim to go the extra mile from a technological perspective. Nio uses so-called ‘Swapping Stations’ where electric vehicles can drive into a box and have their empty battery replaced in just three minutes. The concept is already very popular in China. Now that Nio has entered the European market, we can also expect this new technology here.

It has been clear for some time that robots will take over our routine work in the future. But now Volkswagen is also investigating whether robots can help us charge our car. A mobile charging robot could be activated via an app, after which it would operate and charge the vehicle autonomously. With a trailer as mobile energy storage, the robot could even charge multiple vehicles simultaneously. It sounds nice, but for now it’s still distant future.

Who says you need a charging station to charge the car? If you could charge while driving, that would save you a lot of effort and above all time. In Sweden, experiments are in full swing. They have opened up a 2km stretch of freeway with a special rail inside the road surface. When you drive an EV, the car makes contact with the rail and can recharge while driving thanks to a contact arm. Korea and China are also testing this concept.

Everyone is familiar with the emergency telephones along highways. Since the rise of smartphones, apps and mobile internet, these devices have become obsolete. So what could be more sustainable than recycling them? In the Netherlands, emergency telephones are removed, and then converted and given a second life as a charging station.

A charging station that can save lives: in Delft, the Netherlands, an automatic external defibrillator (AED) was linked to a charging station. Because charging stations are scattered all over the city, they could be the perfect solution for the shortage of good AED locations. In this way, charging stations not only provide energy, they even save lives. Win-win!

Today we no longer need a cable to charge our smartphone. We place it on a panel and then the magic happens. In Stockholm, this principle is being tested in cars. By installing a charging panel in parking lots and also equipping EVs, a magnetic field would be created when the car is parked. And thus the car would be able to charge without a cable.

Ever heard of Lightyear? This new Dutch car brand is developing an EV with solar panels built into the bodywork. Soon the Lightyear 0 is coming to the market. It will be a long family car with five square meters of solar panel. You still need to charge the car, but the panels should provide enough power for the daily commute. And there is more good news, because soon you can find the Lightyear cars exclusively in our leasing offer!

EV technology is developing at lightning speed. What’s more, driving an electric car is tax-friendly, pleasant and comfortable. At LeasePlan, we love it! Want to know more about electric driving? Here you can read more.