ZipCharge’s portable Electric Vehicle (EV) charger, the Go, is now advancing to validation prototype (VP) stage with designs released for manufacture and hardware testing well underway. The Go, which is the size of a suitcase and is fully portable, offers the possibility of home charging to anyone who can’t currently plug-in at their house.
The UK-based company says the new product is on track to deliver the first models to customers early in 2023.
The ZipCharge portable charging platform combines hardware, software, machine learning and innovative ownership models to make EV charging more affordable.
It can also reduce costs by utilising the charger as a local energy storage device to provide flexibility for the grid through the ZipCharge intelligent energy management system.
Simple charging from a domestic plug provides up to 20 – 40 miles of range at Level 2 (7.2kW).
The company says it takes approximately 30 – 60 minutes to charge the vehicle depending on the battery capacity, vehicle efficiency etc.
ZipCharge Co-founder, Richie Sibal, says: “Achieving this key milestone in the development of the portable EV charger is a major achievement by our small and dedicated team of expert automotive engineers. Drawing on the team’s 170 years of experience in designing automotive electronic systems, including EV control systems, battery modules, power electronics, electrical architectures, functional safety and wiring systems, combined with significant expertise in CAD modelling and design has enabled us to progress from the drawing board to design release in under nine months.”
ZipCharge Co-founder, Jonathan Carrier, adds: “Since our launch at COP26 in November last year, ZipCharge has received an unprecedented level of interest from potential customers around the world. They immediately see the benefit of the Go portable charger to deliver low cost, convenient charging anywhere they park. We expect to confirm final pricing later this year in Q4 2022 as part of the pre-order process. Our mission is to democratise EV charging, which means the ZipCharge Go will be competitively priced and comparable to the purchase and full installation cost of a fixed home charger.”
ZipCharge is also building in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into its software stack, to learn user charging patterns, to make schedule recommendations and optimise charging to save money and reduce the load on the grid.
