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Gravity releases new universal EV charging ‘Trees’ for city streets

Gravity Technologies has released a new universal on-street mounting and cable system, dubbed "DEAP Trees," for its 200kW and 500kW Distributed Energy Access Points (DEAPs).
By James Foster May 3, 2024 Read time: 2 mins
Designed for Gravity's 200kW and 500kW DEAPs, the new on-street system can be easily used by any vehicle make or model, eliminates trip hazards and facilitates rapid turnover of curbside parking spaces. Photo: Gravity Technologies

Given the scale of existing and expected public curbside charging programs, encompassing tens of thousands of parking spaces, Gravity is striving to develop a network of on-street DEAP charging more expansive than Tesla's current Supercharger network.

Gravity's engineers, in collaboration with globally renowned design firm, Rangr Studio, took up the challenge of solving all the frictions in curbside charging today. Each Gravity universal DEAP Tree has a hinged swing arm holding a cable that pivots down when charging begins, allowing it to reach the port of every make and model. When charging is completed, the arm raises automatically, and the EV connector seamlessly latches back onto the pole and out of sight. The device is operable with minimal effort and avoids the long cables, or the requirement for a user-supplied cable common to other systems, preventing tripping hazards, obstacles to accessibility and potential vandalism.

DEAP Trees require no utility upgrades to providing high-speed charging capable of providing 200 miles of range in either 13 minutes (200kW) or five minutes (500kW) accommodating multiple charging sessions per space each hour. Gravity says this is orders of magnitude faster than the 8-10 hours required for Level 2 curbside chargers, like those currently deployed in cities like New York through early pilot programs and several times the capacity of Tesla's common 72kW or 150kW Superchargers.

"Right now, American cities are choosing the curbside charging that drivers will use for decades to come. Unfortunately, many are looking to obsolete overnight Level 2 charging with cables that clutter sidewalks and that don't fit the needs of urban EV drivers,” said Moshe Cohen, founder and CEO of Gravity. “With even partial adoption by American cities, this product alone could quickly become the largest fast charging network in America, eclipsing even the Supercharger network."

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