Not long ago, the BMW Group released a demonstration video of the automatic charging robot, allowing the industry to focus on automatic charging again.
With new energyCarCharging technology has always been the focus of attention in the automotive and energy industries. Behind automatic charging, the intelligent future of the charging industry is shining into reality. When smart cars shuttle freely, how to achieve “fully automatic charging” has always been an industry problem, so automatic charging is also considered the last piece of the puzzle of intelligent driving.
Gasgoo learned that BMW, Zeekr,Huaweiand other enterprises have entered the game, and charging industry enterprises such as Teleidian, Star Charging, Zhida Technology, etc. have made relevant deployments. In the eyes of industry insiders, 2025 is the first year for charging robots to begin to be rapidly applied.
BMW, Zeekr, Huawei and other car companies have entered the game
Previously, the video released by the BMW Group showed in detail how the BMW automatic charging robot sweeps away charging anxiety.
When the vehicle is parked in the automatic charging space, the BMW automatic charging robot will accurately locate the charging port, automatically complete the path planning, insert the gun and start charging, and automatically pull out the gun and reset it after the charging is completed. It takes only a few tens of seconds for the robot to start and complete the gun.
With BMW appointment charging, automatic locking, plug and charge and other functions, it eliminates many operations such as scanning the user’s code, plugging and unplugging the charging gun, and settlement, achieving the whole process of charging without user intervention, providing a smarter, more comfortable and safer charging experience.
Image source: BMW Group
In response to this move, many consumers have praised and said, “Technology is changing the lives of future BMW users”, “With an automatic charging robot, it is a bit of a feeling of being a ‘dumping shopkeeper'”, “This design is particularly user-friendly, and the current charging grab is really difficult to plug in, and it feels particularly heavy”……
Gasgoo learned that the BMW automatic charging robot has recently completed the proof of concept and will be put into application in a timely manner in combination with the future market state. Through AI empowerment, automatic charging can complete the entire charging process without user intervention.
In addition to BMW, companies such as Zeekr and Huawei have also entered the game, and charging robots are expected to gradually change people’s lives.
In January this year, Huawei released a video showing that the intelligent driving system of the Zunjie S800 guides the vehicle to automatically drive into the parking space, and then a charging robot completes the charging of the gun. As early as 2024, ZEEKR 001 released a video of the interaction between automatic parking technology and automatic charging robots.
For car companies, the layout of automatic charging robots is nothing more than the following reasons: one is to solve the charging problem, the second is to comply with the trend of automotive intelligence, the third is to expand business areas and profit points, and the fourth is to enhance brand image and competitiveness. It can be seen that automatic charging robots are not only a breakthrough in technology, but also an innovation in the industry, which will reshape the interaction between people, vehicles and piles.
In line with the trend of intelligence, the charging industry has been deployed
At present, it has high-end driving assistance functionsNew energy vehiclesIt is accelerating its sinking to the mainstream market. According to IDC data, the penetration rate of new cars that meet the L2 standard in China’s passenger car market will increase from 52.1% in 2023 to 59.7% in 2024, and the proportion of new cars that meet this standard in the mid-to-high-end model market of more than 100,000 yuan will be close to 70%.
In the context of the continuous evolution of intelligence, intelligent charging is also accelerating to break through the boundaries of technology. In various scenarios such as highway service areas, unmanned parking lots, and smart communities, the whole chain automation of driving, parking and energy replenishment is gradually being realized: after the user arrives at the destination, the vehicle can independently plan the path to the charging area, rely on the high-precision positioning system to complete the parking position, and realize the whole process of automatic plugging and unplugging of the gun, status monitoring and safety protection through intelligent charging equipment, and the new ecology of deep integration of autonomous driving and unmanned charging has begun to take shape.
In addition to car companies, the charging industry has achieved a lot of results for automatic charging robots. At this year’s Shanghai Auto Show, Star Charging officially released the “Armstrong Automatic Robotic Arm Charging System”. Subsequently, on May 20, Zhida Technology also released the world’s new generation of snake-shaped automatic charging robot – Spirit Snake SmartLink.
Image credit: Star Charging
It is reported that the Zhida serpentine flexible arm innovatively adopts the rope-driven flexible arm structure, which is the first in the world, with outstanding advantages such as low cost, strong environmental adaptability, precise insertion and unplugging, safety and reliability, and Lingsnake SmartLink is the sixth generation product of the Zhida snake-shaped flexible arm automatic charging robot.
At present, Zhida Technology has sounded the clarion call to enter the Middle East market with its self-developed automatic charging robot, becoming the first technology company to realize the full link of automatic charging hardware and system solutions in the Middle East.
Image source: Zhida Technology
In addition, withElectric vehicleCommercial vehicles that can drive autonomously in closed scenarios and passenger cars with automatic parking functions are becoming more and more automated in some areas. Automatic charging robot products suitable for these scenarios have also become more and more mature.
In June this year, the group standard “Electric Vehicle Bottom Contact Automatic Charging System Part 1: General Requirements” compiled by the China Electricity Federation and led by Teleidian has been launched, which has become a milestone event to promote the standardization and development of intelligent energy replenishment systems.