The University of Tokyo, Nippon Seiko Co., Ltd. (NSK), and Bridgestone Co., Ltd. jointly announced on August 1 that it aims to commercialize wireless power feeding while driving to an in-wheel motor mounted on an electric vehicle (EV).

NSK and Bridgestone are in the research project for the Future Society Creation Project of the Science and Technology Promotion Organization (JST) developed by the Fujimoto Laboratory, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo Joined from last year as a joint research institute. This time, we reached an agreement on basic patents and jointly aimed to commercialize wireless power supply while driving.

This project aims to create innovative technologies based on completely new concepts and science to create a "low carbon society" that suppresses carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The research group of Associate Professor Hiroshi Fujimoto, Graduate School of Emerging Science, The University of Tokyo, proposed and adopted as a research theme of “realization of low-carbon society that is a global scale issue” area from 2017 to 2022 .

Of the 1.19 billion tons of CO2 emissions in Japan, the emissions from automobiles account for 15%, and in Europe, there are plans to control the CO2 emissions from automobiles in 2020. Based on the trend, automakers around the world are promoting the development and diffusion of electrification (EV), but there is concern about the shortage of battery supply in the near future. In this project, we are developing technology to secure the cruising distance of the EV with less battery load by supplying power directly from the road surface while driving / stopping the motor placed in the wheel. This makes it possible to reduce the weight of the EV as well as eliminate the concern of the battery supply shortage.

In this research project, the University of Tokyo will be in charge of planning and improving the wireless power supply concept for the in-wheel motor, and research and development of basic technology. NSK will take charge of developing an in-wheel motor with excellent mountability by utilizing the technology accumulated up to now, and promote examination on social implementation of power supply infrastructure while driving. Bridgestone will be responsible for the development of tire technology to achieve efficient power transmission to the in-wheel motor at the time of power supply, utilizing the knowledge of organic materials that do not inhibit power supply and the technology of tire development.

In the future, in the project, design, trial manufacture, evaluation of the in-wheel motor and manufacture of mounted vehicles will be carried out, evaluation will be carried out on vehicles including tires by 2022, and knowledge of various fields possessed by other organizations Aim to shift to the demonstration phase in 2025 while incorporating it.

The three parties also agreed to open basic patents related to the project, and developed an intellectual property system that enables companies and groups approved by the project steering committee to use the entitled technology free of charge. Do. This promotes research and development through open innovation, not just within the framework of current collaborative research. Through this initiative, we will contribute to the realization of a sustainable mobility society by fusing technologies in various fields while promoting open innovation.