Wireless EV Charging, A Rapidly Growing Solution for Electric Emergency Vehicles

Jul 27

Electrification of nearly every type of vehicle is going strong around the globe and the United States. A vital vehicle type among those vehicles is emergency vehicles. First responders in emergencies are typically one of three categories; police, fire, and emergency medical technicians (EMTs).

Police departments, EMT companies and fire departments are implementing EVs

Because of the need to respond to emergencies quickly, emergency vehicles must be fast, reliable, and fully fueled at all times. Many emergency vehicle fleets across the U.S. and across the globe have been converted to electric.

Electrification of police vehicles

Police vehicles can consist of highway patrol, cruisers, vans and trucks. Forward-thinking police departments across the United States have electrified all these vehicle types. The departments are enjoying significant cost savings, while saving the environment at the same time. MotorBiscuit reported the following vehicles being used as police vehicles: Chevrolet Blazer EV PPV, Tesla Model 3, Ford Mustang Mach-E GT, Ford F-150 Lightning Pro SSV, and a Chevrolet Bolt SSV Package.

According to the June 2022 Community Policing Dispatch by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office), “As gasoline prices rise, an increasing number of police departments are adding electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) to their fleets. Though purchasing an EV or HEV would seem to be a “no-brainer” for both financial and environmental reasons, there are pros and cons for doing so, most of which are related to their intended use.” The cons are primarily situations where the vehicles run day and night and do not have sufficient time to recharge.

The Hyattsville, Maryland Police Department (HPD) operates a fleet of vehicles, including a fully electric 2017 Chevrolet Bolt and three Ford hybrids. In addition to the fuel savings the department enjoys, EVs such as the Bolt and the Ford HEVs require less maintenance. HPD’s Lieutenant Nemser estimated the savings on brake replacements and oil changes have been about $600 annually.

Nemser said about the hybrids: “Since 2017, the only thing we’ve replaced is the 12-volt battery, the one that runs the accessories. We’ve also rotated the tires. Overall, we’ve saved about 75 percent on energy and maintenance costs.”

Fire departments around the world are going electric

The fire truck is the largest and most expensive type of emergency vehicle and must be ready to always respond, within a moment’s notice. Fire departments also use sedans and trucks for other purposes, such as fire prevention and investigation. Fire trucks and other fire department vehicles are among those being electrified.

In May 2022, Electrek reported what was believed to be the first electric fire truck put into use in North America, the Rosenbauer RTX. Rosenbauer, based in Austria, built the truck. It was purchased by The Los Angeles, California City Fire Department (LAFD). In the video below, the City of Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley announced that LAFD Station 82 in Hollywood, CA would use the Rosenbauer RTX electric fire truck. Crowley was joined by industry and community leaders at the LAFD Museum in Hollywood when making the announcement.

EMT fleets are electrifying

Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) are typically the first to be called during a medical emergency. Their ambulances, similar to fire and police vehicles, must always be ready to respond quickly. EMT vehicles are typically vans. EMT company fleets can also include other vehicles, such as sedans and trucks.

In June 2022, EVMagz reported that a Lightning eMotors ZEV3, based on the Ford T350HD chassis, was the first emergency response vehicle of its kind to be registered in the US. DocGo, a leading healthcare provider in the United States, purchased the vehicle to use as an EMT vehicle, and promoted the vehicle with "America's First All Electric Ambulance" painted on the sides.

"Our 'Zero Emission' initiative shows how DocGo is revolutionizing the delivery of mobile medical care, and building a better company for our patients, for our service providers, for our customers, and for the planet. We are relentless in our efforts to innovate in providing care," said DocGo CEO and founder, Stan Vashovsky.

InductEV, the wireless EV charging leader

InductEV is the wireless EV charging leader and is well-known and respected in the wireless EV charging industry. Wireless is a superior solution to plugged charging for emergency electric vehicle fleets for many reasons. Those include safety, better economics, and better convenience.

John F. Rizzo, Chief Strategy Officer at InductEV said: “The bulk of vehicles in use by first responders are in dense urban areas where land is scarce, rapid response means saved lives. As vehicles used in emergency response electrify, the charging solution must meet the needs in these areas. Wireless charging takes up no additional space, charges at extremely high rates of speed and does not have cables that break or chargers that get knocked over by vehicles. We expect rapid growth in this segment.”

Plugging high-power cables can be worrisome. Many emergency workers are uncomfortable with this, as it is a recent technology. Wireless EV charging removes this fear. Cords and cables degrade over time and can become unsafe. Most firehouses and depots for police vehicles are in dense, urban areas where there is no room for wired chargers and no extra room to charge vehicles. They need to be charged when they are awaiting a call in the garage or parking lot with no extra room or real estate.

Wireless EV charging by InductEV offers better economic returns. Wireless charging has a distinct return on investment, total cost of ownership and operating expense advantage over wired charging. With wireless charging, operating expenses are reduced by nearly 50% annually, and total cost of ownership is about 30% lower.

Convenience is a significant problem for work vehicles of all kinds. Wireless EV charging begins within seconds of stopping the vehicle on the charging pad. There are no cords to plug or unplug. Wireless EV charging makes a much more efficient system for emergency vehicles to use.

How do electric emergency vehicles charge wirelessly?

Magnetic induction and coils are used in wireless EV charging for all kinds of electric vehicles, including electric emergency vehicles. One benefit to wireless EV charging is that drivers do not have to get in and out of the vehicles to plug in and charge. Vehicles can begin charging within seconds after stopping on top of the charging pad. Magnetic induction sends power from the charging pad to a receiver on the underside of the vehicle, called a vehicle assembly (VA).

Vehicles that charge wirelessly include a display in the dash of the vehicles, which indicates power delivery progress and alignment to the charging system. Charging is handled automatically and autonomously without the need for a driver to plug in a charging cord. The only action required by the driver is to align the vehicle on top of the charging pad and put it in park. The rest of the wireless EV charging process is handled with software, wireless communications, and wireless charging.

In police parking yards, or firehouses where firetrucks and EMT vehicles are parked in between interventions, wireless charging pads, installed in the floors of the firehouse, or the parking yards of police stations, enable charging with no additional real estate other than what already exists.

Wireless EV charging is efficient and works in any weather conditions

A common misconception among fleet managers is that wireless EV charging is less efficient than plugged EV charging. This is not true; in fact, the efficiency rates are the same as fast DC chargers. Wireless EV charging works through rain, ice, or snow at any outdoor temperature. These are significant benefits to any electric emergency vehicle fleet.

Written by Bill Pierce, Publisher EVinfo.net

JP Maxwell