A newly designed lease-for-hire mobile EV charging station is coming in 2023

Who needs to park near an electric outlet or search for charging stations when a robot can roll behind your vehicle and charge it?

A U.S.-based charging technology provider called EV Safe Charge has unveiled its version of this: a mobile electric vehicle charging robot, ZiGGY, according to a recent press release.

Crucially, ZiGGY can successfully remove the need for users to install pricey and complicated parking stalls that can handle EV charging, which means any place you can park will be fair game for a quick charge.

And ZiGGY has much more in store.

ZiGGY can overcome the limitations of stationary EV chargers

After charging the electric vehicles, ZiGGY is going to be able to return to its home base to recharge itself from various energy sources, such as the grid, battery storage, and solar energy.

ZiGGY will bring EV charging to parking facilities, shopping and entertainment centers, hotels, fleet operators, and property owners, providing cost-effective charging and overcoming the limitations of stationary EV chargers without needing costly electrical infrastructure. Notably, the new mobile charging station comes equipped with a digital ad server capable of creating new streams of much-needed advertising revenue, offering each facility that uses it the opportunity to display customized, potentially monetized information.

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The autonomous robot is immediately deployable and can be implemented anywhere. This also means that existing parking facilities don’t need to go under any kind of construction to fit a few ZiGGYs in.

ZiGGY was designed with the collaboration of award-winning industrial design studio Box Clever. The company also contributed to the design of the robot’s exterior, as well as the UX and brand identity.

ZiGGY could help EV users overcome driver anxiety

“Strong EV sales and emissions reduction goals are creating a more sustainable future, but EV charging infrastructure isn’t keeping up. ZiGGY is a flexible and simple solution for virtually any office, mall or apartment complex to help meet growing charging needs of its tenants and guests without expensive, time-consuming infrastructure and installation investment, if it’s even possible. In many cases, especially in older buildings, adding EV chargers isn’t an option until now," said Caradoc Ehrenhalt, Founder & CEO of EV Safe Charge and ZiGGY’s inventor, in the release.

“We created ZiGGY in response to growing demand for flexible EV charging solutions from our customers, and to help support the global transition to a cleaner, greener, all-electric mobility future,” added Ehrenhalt. “By helping drivers to overcome charging anxiety, one of the barriers to mass EV adoption, ZiGGY is enhancing the EV charging experience for everyone.”

The ZiGGY robots will also be able to be implemented for offsite charging if no infrastructure is available.

The company plans to lease ZiGGY robots under a Charging-as-a-Service (CaaS) business model, including ongoing technical support and maintenance. Following production, scheduled to start in 2023,  ZiGGY will come equipped with two large screens that can be used as informational kiosks or mobile interactive advertising services, offering additional income options for parking facility operators.

It looks like electric vehicle charging is beginning a new era with this mobile charging device.