Constructing the inaugural U.S. highway segment equipped to charge electric vehicles of all sizes while in motion

Construction is underway in Indiana for a groundbreaking project that aims to develop wireless charging for electric vehicles traveling at highway speeds. Purdue University engineers, in collaboration with the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT), have started work on a quarter-mile test bed on U.S. Highway 231/U.S. Highway 52 in West Lafayette.

The project involves testing a patent-pending system designed by Purdue engineers to provide power to heavy-duty electric trucks while they are in motion on the highway. The goal is to enable electric vehicles, ranging from tractor-trailers to passenger cars, to wirelessly charge while driving.

The initiative has garnered attention from Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, who highlighted the significance of the project at the COP27 United Nations environmental conference in Egypt. The project involves a partnership with Indiana-based company Cummins Inc., which will provide an electric truck for a pilot program set to begin next year.

The development of electrified highways for trucks is seen as a crucial step in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making electric vehicles more economically feasible for freight transportation. The technology being developed by Purdue engineers involves transmitter coils installed in specially dedicated lanes underneath normal concrete pavement, which will send power to receiver coils attached to the underside of vehicles.

The project is part of a larger effort by Purdue University and its partners to advance the field of electrified transportation. The research has the potential to shape the future of EV charging on highways and could lead to the widespread adoption of wireless charging technology for electric vehicles.