Coulomb Technologies announced it will provide nearly 5,000 home and public charging stations for electric vehicles in nine US regions.
The $37 million ChargePoint America program is a strategic partnership with Ford (NYSE: F), Chevrolet and smart USA. It is supported by a $15 million grant of Recovery Act funds through the Transportation Electrification Initiative administered by
the Department of Energy.
It will deploy charging stations in Austin, Texas, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York, Orlando, Fla., Sacramento, Calif., the San Jose/San Francisco Bay Area, Redmond, Wash., and Washington DC. Installations will begin immediately.
More than 1000 new public charging stations will be installed by
December 2010, adding to the existing ChargePoint Network. The remaining
stations will be installed by September 2011.
Coulomb is working to build networked charging stations worldwide. The company said it shipped more than 700 units to 130 customers in 2009.
In support of the ChargePoint America program, three automakers have committed to deliver electric vehicles in designated US regions. The Chevrolet Volt, the Ford Transit Connect Electric and Ford Focus Electric through the “Ford Blue Oval ChargePoint Program”, and the smart fortwo electric drive will be introduced along with this program.
ChargePoint America will offer both home and public charging stations to individuals and businesses. Businesses interested in receiving public charging stations should visit the ChargePoint America web site and sign up by completing the application form. Individuals interested in purchasing an EV can sign up at www.chargepointamerica.com to receive more information about qualifying to receive a home charging station. Additionally, the ChargePoint America web site provides a way to suggest public locations for charging stations.
ChargePoint Network stations are network-enabled, capable of reporting energy usage and communicating over the network with Software Application Services and Network Support Services to activate capabilities such as:
- Providing open access for all drivers using any standards-based RFID card
- Generating revenue for station owners to offset electricity and maintenance costs
- Sending SMS or Email notifications to drivers for charging complete or interruptions in charging
- Controlling access to eliminate energy theft and to enhance safety
- Integrating with the utility Smart Grid for demand side management and preferred pricing
Charging stations owners can set their own prices for charging through the Flex Billing™ system. The Flex Billing system enables station owners to set pricing as a function of time of day, calendar date, and driver–much like a parking meter. Those same stations can also be configured to provide "free" access to EV drivers.
Coulomb’s ChargePoint® Network, is open to all drivers of plug-in vehicles and provides authentication, management, and real-time control for the networked electric vehicle charging stations. The network of electric vehicle charging stations is accessible to all plug-in drivers by making a toll free call to the 24/7 number on each charging station, or signing up for a ChargePoint Network monthly access plan and obtaining a ChargePass™ smart card. Other future payment options include using any smart (RFID) credit/debit card to authorize a session or using a standard credit or debit card at a remote payment station (RPS) to pay for charging sessions.
Loading...