MTA 2021 winner Best Use of Technology

Greg Ward, commercial business unit director of Bridgestone (third right), hands over the trophy to the RAC and Original ADS team with host Alexander Armstrong (far left)

Charge Pod was designed and developed by Original ADS at the request of the RAC to provide flat or severely charge-depleted EVs with a roadside power boost so they can be driven to the nearest charging point rather than recovered on a flatbed truck.

It is a lightweight, compact mobile electrical boost system that offers a 100% duty cycle, and allows the RAC to provide the same ‘out of fuel’ service as it would to traditional internal combustion engine vehicles.

The dimensions of the Charge Pod box are 390mm x 252mm x 185mm and the combined weight of all components is just 35kg. The system never runs out of power and can be incorporated onto standard fleet vehicles.

Four components make up the system – an engine mount kit, a generator, an RPM controller and the charge box. Charge Pod has been designed to supply an EV with a full 7.5kW of power, which requires a 10kW generator. However, ordinary 10kW generators on the market are far too big and heavy for this application. This new permanent magnet generator weighs just 9kg, making it

the lightest, most compact 10kW generator the world has ever seen.

Prior to Charge Pod, the only option for an EV that had run out of charge was to be lifted onto a flatbed recovery vehicle and driven to a static charging station. But the CO2 emissions involved are up to 30 times higher than when a standard patrol vehicle is sent to assist. This means Charge Pod has also significantly reduced the carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions of the RAC’s fleet.

Our judges agreed that Charge Pod represents a ground-breaking solution for drivers. One said it “provides an effective tool to assist customers and will be good for membership numbers”.

Another said the product “challenges normal boundaries – it’s so simple and it solves such a big problem”.

"It means a lot that a non-corporate company - a small to medium enterprise - actually gets recognised for the development work that gets put it in. We all want to be green and environmentally conscious but the likes of the RAC need to provide that service and they can’t do it with batteries. They aren’t small, they aren’t lightweight and they take up too much space. Charge Pod combats all those problems – it’s small, lightweight and provides the power"

Lauren Saxton, commercial director, Original ADS