BMW to Launch Solar Carport

By Karin Sun on 7 May 2014
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201404_P90148957-zoom-origBMW announced plans to launch a solar-powered carport designed to allow drivers to charge their cars with electricity generated from solar energy. The new carport, designed by BMW Group DesignworksUSA, will be presented at the international media launch of the BMW i8 in Los Angeles this week.

Designed for use with BMW i electric cars in particular, the carport will be constructed mainly from bamboo and carbon elements, and will include durable glass-on-glass solar modules to generate electricity.

The carport will also feature the BMW i Wallbox Pro, a device mounted on the wall of the carport that records and allocates solar energy. The device displays the amount of solar energy generated and the respective proportions of solar and grid power. If the carport generates more energy than needed to charge the vehicle, the Wallbox Pro could allocate the surplus energy for domestic use.

The solar carport is the latest in BMW’s line of environmentally friendly products. The company currently has the BMW i3 electric car model on the market and will launch the BMW i8 hybrid sports car model in the near future.

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