GoHub Highlights

• The GoHub will ‘power communities’ to make EV charging and access to energy more inclusive, accessible and sustainable
• Shared access to Go powerbanks on-street in residential areas or off-street in any location such as supermarkets, shopping centres and destination hubs
• Infrastructure that works in any location, rural and urban, to accelerate the deployment of public charging, particularly disadvantaged and underrepresented communities
• Three times faster and cheaper to install than comparative on-street charging and designed to fit into a single parking space
• Fully modular design enables GoHubs to be customised to the needs of the local community and location with a range of community, energy and mobility options
• Features more than 100kWh of second-life batteries to store clean energy, recharging Go powerbanks and providing balancing services to the grid
• With the GoHub, ZipCharge is uniquely positioned as the world’s first “energy point operator” providing energy-as-a-service in a future decentralised energy network
• ZipCharge targets global deployment of 100,000 GoHubs by 2030 to support EV charging, local grid resiliency and energy democracy

ZipCharge, on Earth Day revealed the GoHub, the world’s first portable EV charging infrastructure for shared, public use. The GoHub is a revolution in public charging provision, providing a community-based solution that can be installed anywhere, at a much lower cost and at a much faster rate, while enabling any parking space to be a charging spot.

The ability to roll-out Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure at speed is essential to allow national and local governments to deploy it at a faster rate where it is needed the most to support mass EV adoption. EV owners will now have the choice to purchase the Go outright, on subscription or rent one through the GoHub.

The GoHub hosts multiple ZipCharge Go EV powerbanks to address the need for convenient, flexible, and low-cost energy. It is a secure way of housing, recharging, and providing access to the ZipCharge Go so that anyone can access a portable powerbank at the lowest cost. The GoHub is modular and flexible in size, suitable for a diverse number of locations, including on-street, in car parks, at work and in private environments.

 ZipCharge Co-founder, Jonathan Carrier “We intend to establish the world’s first vertically integrated ‘energy point operator’ (EPO) to serve hundreds of millions of people around the world so everyone can access convenient and low-cost energy. The ZipCharge Go and the GoHub enable the storage of clean energy, which can then be distributed for a multitude of uses from charging an EV to powering equipment.

“We predict our portable powerbanks will outsell fixed home chargers by 2030, in the same way mobile phones overtook landlines. That’s because the Go can be used for more than charging EV charging, it’s a portable energy storage device for personal energy management. We have the bold ambition to deploy 100,000 GoHubs globally by 2030 to support EV charging, local grid resiliency and energy democracy.”

 ZipCharge Co-founder, Richie Sibal “The Go and the GoHub are integral components of our future energy platform, one that combines hardware, software and distributed energy storage in the home and our public energy points to provide a wide range of energy services for our customers. We will use technology to solve the inequality that exists around access to charging and energy by placing a ZipCharge Go unit within five minutes’ walk of where people live and park.”

 Designed for modularity and expandability

In its base form, the GoHub comes in two variants; a single sided unit houses five ZipCharge Go portable powerbanks, or a double-sided GoHub with ten. Both fit comfortably into a regular parking space. It can also be sited on the pavement or close to where power already exists. All GoHubs can be intelligently reconfigured, expanded and connected together with minimal investment, growing in tandem with the adoption of electric vehicles.

Take the charger to the vehicle wherever you park

Through the GoHub, ZipCharge Go powerbanks will be available to rent 24 hours a day with the option to pre-reserve a Go in the app. As the user approaches the correct bay door of the GoHub automatically opens. They then easily pull out the charger from its dock inside the GoHub, wheel it to the vehicle and plug-it in. Once finished, the user is notified on their smart phone, they collect the Go and return it to the bay allocated via the app.

Transparent pricing to charge for daily driving needs

Anytime access will allow anyone to use a Go powerbank for a simple to understand fee: £1, €1 or $1 for a 4kWh charge with no connection fee. This simple and transparent pricing allows everyone to know what their daily driving will cost. ZipCharge aims to provide lower prices per kWh compared to fixed AC charging given the integrated Energy Storage System in the GoHub allows ZipCharge to take cleaner, cheaper electricity overnight.

Inclusive features to power communities and enable electric mobility

The GoHub has been conceived with every community in mind, integrating a range of optional technologies including rainwater harvesting, Wi-Fi hotspot, mobile device charging, a green living roof and renewable energy generation, including innovative wind turbines suitable for both urban and rural environments developed by Flower Turbines in the Netherlands. The GoHub can also provide sustainable charging solutions for other forms of mobility with an optional micromobility docking station for eScooters and eBikes that integrates with any provider.

 A circular approach to integrated second life battery storage

The GoHubs re-use end-of-life batteries from the ZipCharge Go as the integrated Energy Storage System. This presents a genuine circular approach to extending battery life and usability, while also lowering cost. The integrated ESS in the GoHubs provide resiliency to the local grid by charging the Go chargers at times of peak grid demand, feeding the portable chargers at time of peak energy demand, reducing grid dependence and building resiliency.

Improving the business case for public AC charging

The GoHubs will be three times cheaper and three times faster to install versus fixed on street level 2 chargers, transforming the payback period for AC public charging from 8-10 years to less than two. This would allow the government and public funding support to install more chargers in more locations. They can also be placed where the grid can best cope with the extra load, as well as being far less disruptive to the streetscape.

GoHubs will come with a suite of technology support. They will all be networked to the ZipCharge cloud and back-office with energy management and remote monitoring software to ensure operational safety and optimise charging costs and energy use.

The ZipCharge Go

Engineered to the same standards as automotive electronics systems, the lightweight ZipCharge Go power bank is the size of a compact wheeled suitcase which can be charged in a GoHub, at home or elsewhere using a standard domestic plug at a lower cost per kWh of electricity when compared to public on-street charging.

Using the retractable handle, users then wheel it to wherever they’ve parked their EV and plug it into the charging port. The port locks the charging cable in, securing the charger with the vehicle. ZipCharge Go provides up to 20 miles (32km)* of range, providing sufficient range for the average daily commute (in UK/EU), in a little over 30 mins and can then be neatly stored in the trunk / boot, or at home. ZipCharge Go can be used in all normal weather conditions like a normal fixed charge point.

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• ZipCharge Go advances to prototype stage, on track to ship to customers in early 2023
• Portable electric vehicle charger – a power bank on wheels – enables EV drivers to charge wherever they park
• Engineering of the ZipCharge Go is following automotive industry standards and rigorous product development process
• Gateway milestone passed: design released to suppliers to procure components for validation prototype build
• Testing of key system components – battery cells, bespoke bi-directional AC-DC converter, communications systems – and user ergonomic evaluation

ZipCharge, the pioneer in portable everyday EV charging, today announces a major milestone of its game-changing portable Electric Vehicle (EV) charger, the Go. The revolutionary product is now advancing to validation prototype (VP) stage with designs released for manufacture and hardware testing well underway.

The Go removes a common barrier to EV ownership – by bringing the possibility of home charging to anyone who can’t currently plug-in at their house. In the UK alone, 8.5 million or 40% of car-owning households are without designated or off-street parking. Elsewhere, this figure reaches 60% for example in Italy, Spain, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea and in major cities in the USA, China and India.

Automotive industry development process and standards

ZipCharge is developing the Go using the same rigorous engineering processes as major car manufacturers. It is building several iterations of prototypes from validation through to pre-production, all of which will undergo an extensive testing regime. The company’s engineers are currently at advanced stages of lab testing the portable EV charger’s key system components, including the NMC lithium-ion battery cells and the ZipCharge-designed bi-directional AC-DC converter. This is to evaluate thermal behaviour, charging performance, safety, durability and full functionality to ensure a seamless and safe ownership experience for everyday charging.

The bespoke compact and lightweight bi-directional AC-DC converter utilises the latest high efficiency Silicon Carbide (SiC) semiconductors found in modern electric vehicles. When coupled with ZipCharge’s innovative software it will enable the Go to be charged at home, using a standard single phase supply in just over one hour. It can then be connected to an EV wherever it is parked and deliver 20 to 40 miles of range in around 30-60 minutes**, depending on the capacity of the Go charger.

The Go is the first element of a planned global portable EV charging platform that combines hardware, software, and innovative ownership models to bring affordable, practical EV charging to more people in more places. In the near future ZipCharge’s portable EV powerbanks will create an intelligent energy management platform that provides flexibility and resilience for the national power grid.

Realising that widespread EV adoption would be hampered by the inability to charge near or at home, ZipCharge co-founders Richie Sibal and Jonathan Carrier identified and developed a solution. Using their decades of experience in automotive electronics systems engineering and product development gained at cutting-edge businesses including McLaren Automotive, Jaguar Land Rover, Lotus, Gordon Murray Group and LEVC – their answer is the Go. Now well into the development phase ZipCharge is on track to deliver the first models to customers early in 2023.

ZipCharge Co-founder Richie Sibal comments: “Achieving this key milestone in the development of the portable EV charger is a major achievement by our small and dedicated team of expert automotive engineers. Drawing on the team’s 170 years of experience in designing automotive electronic systems, including EV control systems, battery modules, power electronics, electrical architectures, functional safety and wiring systems, combined with significant expertise in CAD modelling and design has enabled us to progress from the drawing board to design release in under nine months”.

A digital ecosystem for portable EV charging

In tandem with hardware testing, the ZipCharge engineering team is also developing bespoke control software and a dedicated mobile application that will allow users to optimise the operation of the portable EV powerbank. This incorporates a suite of security features, including user authentication and the ability to remotely monitor, track and disable the Go charger from their mobile phone, anywhere, thanks to built in 2G/4G connectivity.

Huge attention is being paid paid to the user experience (UX) design and user interface (UI) between the hardware and software, with the aim of making charging with the Go as simple and intuitive as possible. The diverse needs of personal customers and fleet users are considered, to schedule charging, track usage and cost to charge, regardless if they have access to one Go charger or several hundred, the power pack is always ready when required.

This amount of control will generate significant operational and cost benefits for fleet managers who will be able to equip their fleets of electric cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) with portable chargers, enabling them to charge wherever they park. For fleets, charging with the Go adds range and means drivers don’t have to deviate their route to find the nearest charger. Back at the depot, fleet vehicles will no longer have to be repositioned use the fixed chargers. With the ZipCharge Go, the charger comes to them.

The mobile app is just the first component of a broader digital eco-system for the ZipCharge Go.  The company is developing software tools that provide the user with intelligent control of charging and energy management, efficiently and at the lowest cost. This includes dedicated data dashboards for fleets to manage a suite of Go chargers, optimise deployment, monitor charging history while using the power of data to make intelligent recommendations that reduce operating costs and improve the total cost of ownership equation.

ZipCharge is also building in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into its software stack, to learn user charging patterns, to make schedule recommendations and optimise charging to save money and reduce the load on the grid.

ZipCharge Co-founder Jonathan Carrier comments: “Since our launch at COP26 in November last year, ZipCharge has received an unprecedented level of interest from potential customers around the world. They immediately see the benefit of the Go portable charger to deliver low cost, convenient charging anywhere they park.

“We’re already in advanced discussions with a number of large corporate fleets and listening to their requirements, along with product suggestions from our enthusiastic prospective customer base. This feedback is invaluable as part of ongoing development of our hardware and software, such as novel operating controls, safety features, and auxiliary power generation. We are committed to launching a truly ground-breaking product in the Go, one that meets the needs of a range of customer groups, and how they would like to use the Go. This includes private individuals, fleets and end-destinations, such as hotels, retail complexes, supermarkets and leisure activities – all locations where the ZipCharge Go can provide flexible, convenient and low-cost charging for everyone, anywhere they park.

“We expect to confirm final pricing later this year in Q4 2022 as part of the pre-order process. Our mission is to democratise EV charging, which means the  ZipCharge Go will be competitively priced and comparable to the purchase and full installation cost of a fixed home charger.”

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