EV-Charging Solar ‘Trees’ May Soon Be Sprouting Up Near You

Think of an electric vehicle (EV) charger, and a bulky, boxy device usually comes to mind. Not with London-based SolarBotanic’s latest prototype, which features charging stations in the form of a “solar tree.” 

Claiming to feature the world’s first 3D leaf-shaped photovoltaic nanotechnology, the tree-shaped gadget makes use of thin-film solar cells to generate up to five kilowatts of energy. 

According to Electrek, the company collaborated on the innovation with Co-Innovate, a business support firm backed by Brunel University London, the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Coventry, and the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre’s Design and Prototyping Group.

As such, Sheffield University will be the first to test out the solar trees, which comprise a specially-designed artificial intelligence energy storage and management system (EMS) that harvests and releases the power. 

The first-generation solar trees are expected to sprout up in early 2023, with the company planning for it to be mass-produced affordably in the future over the following three years. 

[via Interesting Engineering and Electrek, cover image via SolarBotanic]