Integrated Charging and Payment System From Daimler, Hubject Ready to Go

The Plug and Charge system will eliminate the need for charging cards or smartphone apps to pay for charging your car on the go.

byDave Bartosiak|
Integrated Charging and Payment System From Daimler, Hubject Ready to Go
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The infrastructure for electric vehicles is being built out around the globe. While these large-scale investments certainly need to be made, there are other, smaller details that still need to be worked out in order to make the transition more seamless. One of those comes in the ease of charging and paying for the juice your car is getting. Daimler and Berlin-based e-mobility specialist Hubject are teaming up to simplify the process.

The current standard for public charging stations is the use of charging cards and smartphone apps. The current system has been widely criticized. Apparently, these apps and charging cards aren’t the easiest things to use. Hubject’s Plug and Charge system does not require anything to access it. The system uses an automated, secure exchange of information between the vehicle and the charging infrastructure based on the use of digital certificates.

All you need to do is hook up the car to the charging station. The authorization data is then sent from the car, verified by the station, and the charging begins. Once the process is completed, the charging process will start then the payment process is completed, all without having to swipe a card or open an app. It’s like having a gas pump that recognizes your car and automatically charges your account for how much gas it pumps.

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Hubject and Daimler say that the team’s solution is now ready for production. Speaking on the announcement Hubject CEO Christian Hahn said, “Together with Daimler, we are drawing closer to our vision: simple charging and payment for electric vehicles for everybody. Everywhere. Charging with Plug and Charge via ISO 15118 is our next step on the way towards a fully automated, customer-friendly charging experience.”

It sure looks like it’s going to be much easier to spend your money in the future. Pretty soon you won’t even have to swipe to go broke.

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