Dutch tech startup Rocsys has received €200,000 (£170,000) from investment fund Uniq to help test and develop a soft robotic arm and computer vision technology to enable fully automated EV charging.
The investment was announced at the opening of Rocosys’ public test facility in Delft, the Netherlands.
Computer vision technology leads the plug to the socket of the EV before the system scans the vehicle using soft robotics. The plug is then plugged in definitively.
According to Rocosys, this process should speed up plugging and unplugging and make it safer to use high voltages when charging commercial EVs.
The system can also absorb shocks, such as when a person enters or exits a car. In addition, the system can see and feel when a person holds their hand against the plug.
In this instance the soft robotic arm will immediately stop its movement, unlike other similar solutions currently in the market.
The functionality of the automatic loading solution has reportedly already been proven in a controlled lab environment.
Thus, the Uniq investment will be used for the next stage of development, which involves testing and optimising the automatic charging technology at the Green Village test facility in Delft.
