Electric cars are considered to still have a big weakness in terms of charging which takes up to hours. In China there is technology that can counteract this where cars can change batteries in a very short time. Besides that, it's also cheap.
The actual duration of charging an electric car battery varies, depending on the capacity of the battery and the power of the electric current used. But in general, charging electric car batteries does take a long time, especially when compared to refueling like an internal combustion vehicle.
For this reason, the population of electric vehicles is still very minimal - although in terms of cost per km, electric cars are more economical in the pocket.
Complaints about the long duration of charging electric batteries may now be resolved in China. Using a battery change system, an electric car that runs out of power can regain its power in just two minutes.
This electric battery replacement system has been carried out by BAIC electric taxi. In a video posted on Twitter, a taxi can be seen entering a kind of battery replacement workshop.
The battery in the car is then replaced with a charged one with the help of a robot. The battery installation process takes about 45 seconds. If the battery is removed for the same duration, then the entire electric car battery swap process is completed in less than two minutes.
Interestingly, the electric car battery swap shop for taxis is cheap. Quoted from Jalopnik, the cost of a battery swap is only US$7.
My taxi in Hebei ski country just pulled off for two-minute battery change by robot. A fresh battery lasts 150km in winter, says driver. He pays 45yuan ($7) for a fresh battery. Impressive system, all the more for being totally workaday, not exotic. Future here now for China EVs. pic.twitter.com/l8DkUtW2pA
— David Rennie 任大伟 (@DSORennie) December 22, 2021
From a single charge, the electric car is said to be able to go up to 152 km. The distance can be said to be good enough for a taxi to be used.
The electric car battery exchange facility in the video above is in Hebei City. On a larger scale, electric car battery exchange facilities are widespread in China.
China's electric car manufacturer, Nio, claims that it currently has 700 battery replacement locations across China. The number is targeted to increase to 4,000 units by the end of 2025.
The swappable battery feature seems to be the main attraction for Nio in marketing its products. Since they first introduced the electric battery exchange facility, until the end of 2021 there have been 4 million battery exchange services they have carried out.
Tesla, as the number one electric car brand in the world, decided not to use a battery replacement system in its products. Elon Musk's company has explicitly stated that it refuses to use swap batteries, at least for now.
In 2013, Tesla actually raised the issue of swapping batteries instead of using a charging system. However, the battery exchange facility closed in 2016.
In a statement released, Tesla once said that the battery swap method was fraught with problems and was not suitable for large-scale use.
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