On Thursday Qualcomm Incorporated announced the first Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging (WEVC) trial for London in what is a UK and industry-leading initiative.  Qualcomm is collaborating with the UK Government, as well as the Mayor of London’s office and Transport for London (TfL) to deliver the trial.  Earlier in the week Qualcomm announced it had acquired substantially all of the technology and other assets of HaloIPT, a leading provider of wireless charging technology for electric road vehicles.  See my post of November 8th.

The pre-commercial trial is expected to start in early 2012 and will involve as many as 50 electric vehicles (EVs).  The trial will use Qualcomm wireless inductive power transfer technology that enables high-efficiency power transfer across a large air gap.  It is very easy to use: the driver simply parks the vehicle in the usual way and the system automatically aligns for power transfer, making parking easier and charging hassle free.

The trial, which will be based partially in Tech City, the East London cluster receiving the strong support of the Prime Minister, is planned to leverage the Tech City entrepreneurial community and encourage companies to innovate around services and applications, in order to enhance the smart EV experience.

Prime Minister David Cameron said, “This wireless charging technology is a giant leap forward for the electric car industry and I am delighted that London businesses will be among the first to benefit from the trial.”

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said, “In my quest to deliver cleaner air for the capital, I want London to be the electric car epicenter of Europe. Encouraging a massive uptake in electric driving is key to this vision of becoming a zero-emission city.”

“Qualcomm is very pleased to be participating in the London WEVC pre-commercial trial, which builds on the existing trials of electric vehicles sponsored by the Technology Strategy Board and the Office for Low Emission Vehicles in the UK,” said Andrew Gilbert, executive vice president of European Innovation Development at Qualcomm. “Wireless charging eradicates the EV plug-in cable and makes charging of electric vehicles simple and easy for drivers.”

Addison Lee, the UK’s largest minicab company, and Chargemaster plc, the leading European operator of advanced EV charging infrastructure, have also agreed to participate in the WEVC London trial.

Qualcomm is not the only high tech giant with a wireless plug-in connection.  In March Google announced a trial of a Plugless Power charging station for vehicles at its Mountain View, CA headquarters.

Since October of 2008 CleanTECH San Diego’s website has hosted a RSS Feed which archives news about cleantech companies and events in San Diego.  This month the 2200th item was posted to the list.  The accelerating flow of stories provides further evidence of San Diego’s global reputation as a cleantech cluster. 

In addition to the convenience provided by the CleanTECH San Diego’s RSS Feed, the list is of value to anyone who wishes to research the cleantech experience in San Diego.  A linear approach would be to start with the most current story and click your way back in time. 

 Using Google you can search the list in a manner which is more efficient than a general Google search.  For example, a Google search of “CleanTECH San Diego” and “solar” yields over 50,000 results.  A search limited to only the CleanTECH San Diego RSS Feed generates 59 unique stories.  This focused approach narrows the results to only those stories which are about innovative solar in San Diego.  The format for the search is: 

site:news.cleantechsandiego.org   solar

The story selection process for the RSS Feed seeks to identify all news reports which are both cleantech and San Diego with an emphasis on innovation.  To add utility, the list is screened to minimize story duplication and the inclusion of items of small consequence.  The result is a fingers-on-pulse tracking which is both timely and thorough. 

Click here to access the CleanTECH San Diego news archive and to subscribe to the RSS Feed.

The frequent references to San Diego as a global leader in clean tech are often illustrated by regional activities in solar, wind, water, smart grid and energy efficiency.  A perusal of the CleanTECH San Diego company database also reveals a mini-Mo Town of 25 ventures in the Transport Technology category.  Five of the companies have made the headlines recently.

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers is the living legend in the venture capital universe.  Their successes include Amazon.com, Compaq, Electronic Arts, Genentech, Google, Intuit, Lotus Development, Netscape, Segway, Sun Microsystems and scores of other ventures over a 37 year history.  Their lead in the launch of San Diego-based V Vehicle Company is just one piece of their huge commitment to invest in clean tech and transportation.  Kleiner Perkins is joined in their investment by the VC arm of Google and part-time San Diegan T. Boone Pickens.  Manufacturing of the yet-to-be-unveiled automobile will take place in Louisiana.  If all the Federal and state loans fall in place, the total investment will exceed $500 million.  Former Oracle executive, Frank Varasano of San Diego, is the company’s CEO.  Wrapped in product secrecy, V Vehicle’s website has a video and information about their plans to hire 1400 workers.

Carlsbad-based Aptera has a waiting list of over 4,000 early adapters who have written deposit checks for the yet-to-be-offered three-wheeled, super aero-dynamic electric vehicle.  Looking like a cross between an albino lobster and George Jetson’s commuter car, the Aptera comes with a built-in fan club that is drawn to the car’s futuristic appearance, three-digit MPG comparisons and cocktail-party-conversation features such as solar assisted climate control.  Originally funded last year for $24 million from Google, Idealab and individual investors, Aptera seeks Federal loans to accelerate their production capability.  Their quest for funds was stymied because the Aptera 2e’s design is one wheel short of the standard four.  Local Congressman Brian Bilbray is grinding through the legislative process to include “fully enclosed vehicles that are capable of carrying two adults and get at least 75 mpg.”

The recent input of over $12 million will rev-up San Diego’s Achates Power in their efforts to build the internal combustion engine equivalent of Doctor Dolittle’s pushmi-pullyu.  Their 4.2L automotive engine design is a high-efficiency two-stroke power plant which features two opposing pistons in each cylinder.  The Achates Power value proposition is an “unparalleled combination of fuel efficiency (more…)