Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

techcrunch.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

41–50 of 97 posts

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#41

Post by toomuchtodo »

timsher wrote: post #37
lgleason wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This makes more sense....I posted another comment, but the long and short is that you would need to be able to bypass the manufacturers controller to do this, which it sounds like you are saying.

That's correct, we're not able to fast charge at these levels without approval from the OEM because of the limits they have built. We need to either be integrated inside of the vehicle, or on the charger but have the vehicles "approval" for charging at these higher rates, as at Level 3 and up it's DC to the pack.

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but this seems like a B2B/acquisition play masquerading as a B2C play; your value (if proven) is a superior battery management system (versus the OEM's or a supplier's) and charge controller for non-Tesla EVs (hinging on the battery pack instrumentation architecture).

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#42

Post by floatrock »

timsher wrote: post #29
floatrock wrote: post #20

Super skeptical here, or at least the wording is misleading as hell. > The product allows users to charge a 60kWh EV battery pack with 119 miles of range in 15 minutes as compared to 15 miles in 15 minutes today. > The technology works with off-the-shelf lithium ion batteries and existing fast charge infrastructure by integrating via a patented self-contained adapter on a car charge port First read says that they're…

Hi! I'm one of the founders at GBatteries, please let me try to clear that up. We've demonstrated 5 min to 50% charge, 10 min to 100% - I’ll edit this to include a demo that we’ve done at CES 2019, and that we’re now exhibiting at the Detroit Auto show demonstrating. [EDIT] Video here: https://youtu.be/kSLrqR4TfnU Note: Charging times can vary by ~1 minute here and there, because the algorithm is adaptive and charact…

Thanks for chiming in! Batteries and charging are complicated as is, when translated into Journalist they get even more so :)

There was a lot of concern with the first generation EV's about battery life, a lot of which the data has shown to be misguided now that the first gen's are coming off-lease. How long is the process to convince the OEMs this won't degrade their battery packs?

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#43

Post by snazz »

If this works as advertised, it’s super cool. However, my anecdotal experience suggests that things that charge faster heat up, and I know that my phone warms up significantly on with the “fast charger” it came with. Knowing that batteries are potentially very volatile and prone to exploding and leaking, how safe is this technology?

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#44

Post by SketchySeaBeast »

dexen wrote: post #34
lolc wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The other fix would be swappable batteries. But it would require a huge engineering effort.

>swappable batteries would require a huge engineering effort. Worked just fine back in 2013. The people's habits were the only obstacle: owners wanted to retain their own battery pack, instead of getting pre-owned one left by somebody else, in unknown condition. And/or drive over a weird contraption. [1] (loud music warning) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5V0vL3nnHY

I wonder why it bothers people about battery packs, but not propane tanks. They seem to have equal chances of exploding.

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#45

Post by timsher »

floatrock wrote: post #42
timsher wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hi! I'm one of the founders at GBatteries, please let me try to clear that up. We've demonstrated 5 min to 50% charge, 10 min to 100% - I’ll edit this to include a demo that we’ve done at CES 2019, and that we’re now exhibiting at the Detroit Auto show demonstrating. [EDIT] Video here: https://youtu.be/kSLrqR4TfnU Note: Charging times can vary by ~1 minute here and there, because the algorithm is adaptive and charact…

Thanks for chiming in! Batteries and charging are complicated as is, when translated into Journalist they get even more so :) There was a lot of concern with the first generation EV's about battery life, a lot of which the data has shown to be misguided now that the first gen's are coming off-lease. How long is the process to convince the OEMs this won't degrade their battery packs?

Sounds like you know the struggle :)

In the battery industry there's a saying; liar liar battery supplier. That definitely doesn't help things move fast!

Automotive OEMs do move slowly, but once they see value things definitely speed up - A lot of it has to do with being in front of the right people.

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#46

Post by timsher »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #41
timsher wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's correct, we're not able to fast charge at these levels without approval from the OEM because of the limits they have built. We need to either be integrated inside of the vehicle, or on the charger but have the vehicles "approval" for charging at these higher rates, as at Level 3 and up it's DC to the pack.

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but this seems like a B2B/acquisition play masquerading as a B2C play; your value (if proven) is a superior battery management system (versus the OEM's or a supplier's) and charge controller for non-Tesla EVs (hinging on the battery pack instrumentation architecture).

You're absolutely right; our business model is to license the technology to manufacturers (OEM, Tier 1, etc) - not B2C to anyone with an EV.

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#47

Post by sandworm101 »

floatrock wrote: post #20

Super skeptical here, or at least the wording is misleading as hell. > The product allows users to charge a 60kWh EV battery pack with 119 miles of range in 15 minutes as compared to 15 miles in 15 minutes today. > The technology works with off-the-shelf lithium ion batteries and existing fast charge infrastructure by integrating via a patented self-contained adapter on a car charge port First read says that they're…

"119 miles of range in 15 minutes" is also nowhere near as fast as an IC car "visiting the pump". It does not take 15 minutes to fill the tank on a normal car.

Short of physically swapping out batteries, charging an EC will never be as fast as pouring gasoline into a tank. Transferring that much energy that quickly over wires is ... I don't want to stand anywhere near it. Fillup time is not an are where EC should try to compete.

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#48

Post by jerrysievert »

patejam wrote: post #26
dawnerd wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can take 15 minutes+ in Oregon since we can't pump our own gas. But yeah, last road trip I got ~600 miles out of a full tank. This company has a loooong way to go if they want to compete with that.

Even in Oregon (or NJ where I'm originally from), it takes longer because of stuff outside of the actual pumping. So if for some reason you're not allowed to charge your own car, it'd just move from 15 minutes to 30 minutes. Also in NJ it definitely doesn't take more than 5 extra minutes waiting for the attendant 95% of the time.

depending on the station, and how many attendants are working, you can be up around 30 minutes. I've seen some very efficient stations that do a lot of turnaround, and some very inefficient stations that have 10 lanes of 6-8 cars per lane waiting.

that said, even at a full tank, that's only 220 miles for me, so unless I'm leaving Oregon on a trip, a 15 minute charge sounds amazing.

the good news is that I've not seen a charging station that had an attendant.

Re: GBatteries (YC W14) let you charge your car as quickly as visiting the pump

#50

Post by toomuchtodo »

timsher wrote: post #46
toomuchtodo wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but this seems like a B2B/acquisition play masquerading as a B2C play; your value (if proven) is a superior battery management system (versus the OEM's or a supplier's) and charge controller for non-Tesla EVs (hinging on the battery pack instrumentation architecture).

You're absolutely right; our business model is to license the technology to manufacturers (OEM, Tier 1, etc) - not B2C to anyone with an EV.

Awesome, hope your team is successful.
Post reply on HN