The arrival of electric trucks in Europe takes time. So, in an attempt to accelerate the electrification of road transport, Trailer Dynamics, DB Schenker and CATL have teamed up to develop a battery swap solution for electric heavy-duty vehicles. Enough to recharge them in less than 5 minutes.
Trailer Dynamics has already developed an electrified trailer to assist the tractor. The e-Trailer has its own electric motor and battery. Already in the test phase on European roads, the trailer from Trailer Dynamics will be used for battery swap tests.
Battery swapping, a solution to lack of autonomy?
With the help of the Chinese company CATL, Trailer Dynamics will work on the possibility of exchanging the e-Trailer battery. Thanks to this standard exchange, the project consists of having the trailer arrive, with an empty battery, at a station to quickly replace the battery with a charged one.
The exchange time is estimated at just 5 minutes, less time than it takes to fill the huge diesel tank of a thermal tractor. This is even faster than the 1,000 kW charge offered by MAN.
Trailer Dynamics is currently presenting a prototype with a swappable battery at the IAA Transportation 2024 trade fair in Hanover.
A network of exchange stations to be created
While the idea of changing the battery allows for a reduction in charging time and a reduction in the load on the electricity grid, another challenge for this project is the infrastructure. Currently, there is no such station that allows a battery to be exchanged on a heavy-duty (electric) trailer.
This is where the third company in this association comes in: DB Schenker, which was tasked with finding suitable locations in Europe to test the exchange stations.
Wolfgang Janda, Executive Vice President of DB Schenker Europe, said: “This project represents a clear commitment from DB Schenker to a low-emission and efficient transport sector in Europe.” DB Schenker is keen to provide battery swappable implementations. However, the relevance of battery swapping versus fast charging will only be assessed through field trials.
Let’s point out that this type of technology already exists for electric cars, at Nio in Europe. This allows you to fill up in less than 3 minutes. We had tried it in Germany and were amazed by the functionality.
