A stretch of road in downtown Detroit can now wirelessly charge electric vehicle

[boB]

Sort of like solar freakin' roadways  but, different.  We'll see...

https://www.ibew.org/media-center/Articles/24Daily/2403/240212_EVChargingRoad/fbclid/IwAR2EgkQprSnB9CE2o2SdZoDTF8D-FnDjbQQQuf5dOxxZHergG2jsllbkkDg

Probably fairly inefficient if the vehicle is far above the coil.
 

[shapirus]

I have a great idea: there can be powered wires hanging above the roads, and cars would have spring-loaded rods on the top that could make contact with those wires. This way they could charge while moving with the highest efficiency possible, and that would be much cheaper than anything wireless.

Has anyone patented it yet?

[jbb]

Ooh, ooh! That’s a great idea; an electric vehicle which doesn’t need a big expensive battery. We could put some metal rails in the road for the ground return!

In fact, rolling resistance of a steel wheel on a steel rail is much better than rubber tyre on asphalt road. So how about we take a bus and run it along the rails?

Ideally, it would be nice to separate such a means of transport from the regular roading network. With such a separation we could schedule regular services and avoid traffic jams from overloaded roads.

[jbb]

Good news / bad news. I did some research and found out that this ‘bus on steel rails’ business was developed in the 19th century.

Good news: we know it works!
Bad news: no juicy patents for us.

[radiolistener]

If you want to charge your electric car on the way, you can use petroleum or diesel AC alternator.

[tegan]

i  do know this is a joke/meme but charging a tesla with a generator is more fuel efficient then driving the wheel directly im pretty sure since it runs it effectively curve without stop and start.

[shapirus]

i  do know this is a joke/meme but charging a tesla with a generator is more fuel efficient then driving the wheel directly im pretty sure since it runs it effectively curve without stop and start.

Yes, also because you can run the engine at its highest-efficiency RPM, and there is much less mechanical losses. Electromechanical drivetrain is widely used in larger vehicles: locomotives, quarry trucks etc.

[nctnico]

Electromechanical drivetrain is widely used in larger vehicles: locomotives, quarry trucks etc.

That is not done for efficiency as the conversion losses are quite high. Torque to pull away is easier to control with an electric motor. With a direct drive system, you'd need a clutch and for a train that clutch will need to be huge.