Compiled / Zhu Lin
Edited / Tu Yanping
Design / Leather
Source: Forbes, SparkCharge, by Greg Gardner, SparkCharge Staff
Today's electric cars are like mobile phones, not only in software, but also in hardware. Batteries are a vital component of both electric cars and mobile phones, and once the battery is exhausted, it will make it difficult for you to move.
What if you accidentally run out of battery while you're out and can't find a place to recharge? For mobile phones, mobile charging treasures are now popular, you can carry your own, even if not, there will be mobile power stations in the mall to provide paid rental.
And the car? Its battery can be much larger and heavier, you can't carry a spare battery or a mobile power supply, then, now there is a "takeaway" charging service, which just provides a mobile charging treasure type of power supply.
SparkCharge, a startup based in Somerville, Massachusetts, is considered to be "Hungry" or "Meituan Takeaway" in the field of electric vehicle charging.
Although the Russo-Ukrainian war led to a rapid rise in gasoline prices, the demand for public charging stations in much of the United States was becoming increasingly apparent before the surge in demand for electric vehicles became visible to the naked eye.
Growing electric vehicle owners are battling the slow charging speed of home charging piles. In addition to this, many people are still learning how to balance daily driving with vehicle endurance.
SparkCharge's services are currently available in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Jose, Los Angeles, and Dallas.
Josh Aviv, CEO and co-founder of SparkCharge, said: "If electric car owners had to spend twenty or thirty minutes waiting at a public charging station in a fixed location, the freedom they wanted simply could not be achieved. ”
How to use the car "charging treasure"?
SparkCharge's technology is built on lithium-ion battery modules called "Roadies, which can be transported to where drivers want to charge them. The service is subscription-based and accessible through the company's app called "Currently." A service car will come to the designated location and start charging the car, adding about a mile per minute.
It doesn't seem like any additional time savings, but the idea of the service is that evict owners can use the app when they know they have to wait somewhere, such as during a dentist appointment, a haircut appointment, or a business meeting.
"In most cities, there's a pizzeria in every block, but people still use apps to order takeout, just to save time." "We'll continue to choose this convenience because it gives us time to do other things," Aviv said. ”
Here's how SparkCharge works.
Download the "Currently" app and create an account. Users must provide their billing information, as well as the make, model, and year of their electric vehicle. SparkCharge also requires the vehicle's license plate number and information about the state of the vehicle's registration.
The cost of the subscription varies depending on the model and the number of times the driver uses the service. Generally speaking, a subscription costs $25 per month and renews automatically. In addition, there are shipping costs of $6 to $10 per service.
Customers don't have to be present during the charging process, but if they want to see how the system works, they can also meet with SparkCharge's charging staff.
Currently, each charge provides a vehicle with up to 50 miles of range and no more than 80% of the full charge.
Most EV owners pay for the charging system in their homes, where they charge every night. Still, Aviv said, more than 60 percent of SparkCharge's electricity is delivered to vehicles parked at homes, apartments or dormitories.
Apartments often lack charging piles, and even if they are equipped, they are often not enough in terms of quantity. If there are five times more electric cars in an apartment than charging piles, then most vehicles cannot be charged every night.
There is also a limitation for car owners.
There are two basic types of plug-in charging piles in the United States – 20-volt Class 1 charging piles and 240 volt Class 2 fast charging piles. Many countries already run on a 240-volt grid and only need a basic cable adapter to quickly charge their cars.
The United States uses a 120-volt grid. This means that fully charging the car can take more than an overnight. To improve performance, both voltage and cost increase. Level 2 charging requires special sockets, which may be found on dryer plugs in the laundry room or in some garages.
Future plans for SparkCharge
In early March, SparkCharge and Kia USA announced a program that would offer consumers who buy or rent Kia electric cars in San Francisco, San Jose or Los Angeles for a two-month free service that can be charged up to three times a month.
SparkCharge manufactures the "Roadie" charging module at a factory in Buffalo, New York.
The charger unit weighs 51 pounds and has a maximum output of 20 kWh. Each battery weighs 73 pounds and stores about 3.5 kWh of charge.
SparkCharge sells kits with three to five battery modules to roadside assistance suppliers, energy companies with large fleets of electric vehicles, insurance companies and car rental companies.
So far, Aviv and his team have raised nearly $20 million through several rounds of fundraising. Investors included Mark Cuban and Lori Greiner, who got involved after Aviv and SparkCharge CTO Christopher Ellis presented it to cnBC show Shark Tank.
Avif said: "We are now on track to achieve 1 million miles this year. "That's a pretty big leap forward from the 100,000 miles they delivered by launch in mid-2021 and the end of 2022."
SparkCharge plans to launch Roads in 10 to 15 new cities by early 2024. Their ultimate goal is to make charging as easy and fast as refueling.
"We're getting ready for an upgrade," Aviv said, "and it's going to increase our speed to increase our range by 15 to 20 miles per minute." ”