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The Innovative Bidirectional AC Wallbox Is up to 70% More Affordable Than Comparable DC Wallboxes and Thus Makes Vehicle-to-Home (v2h) And Vehicle-to-Grid (v2g) Affordable
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Bidirectional Charging Enables Use of the Vehicle as a Mobile Power Plant and External Home Storage System, Thereby Becoming an Important Building Block on the Way to 100% Renewable Energy
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The Integrated Type 2 Charging Cable Allows Charging and Discharging With a Power of up to 11 kW AC
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The Community Makes the Final Decision on the Sono Wallbox’s Design
2nd September 2021 – Mobility provider Sono Motors is fulfilling the Community’s desire for an affordable wall charging station, suitable for home charging, vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and vehicle-to-home (V2H) with the first bidirectional AC wallbox on the market. This brings the company a significant step closer to its vision of a world without fossil fuels. The wallbox enables the Sion to be used as a mobile power plant and also to feed stored electricity either back into their house or into the grid itself. Homeowners with photovoltaic systems especially save a large amount of money as they are able to use more of their own electricity without having to buy an expensive home storage system. The Sono wallbox charges and discharges the Sion with up to 11 kW via the integrated Type 2 charging cable, and will save up to 70% of costs incurred by DC bidirectional wallboxes available to date. It is already possible to reserve the new wallbox free of charge, delivery is expected to take place with the Sion start of production in 2023.
“We want to drive the future of energy generation and make bidirectional charging possible for everyone”, says Laurin Hahn, CEO and founder of Sono Motors. “In combination with the Sion’s integrated solar technology, the new wallbox represents a breakthrough for bidirectional charging technology, as many homeowners can save themselves the expense of purchasing a new, costly home storage system. This is an important milestone for us on the way to 100% renewable energy”, Hahn continues.
Sono Motors makes bidirectional charging affordable
Every Sion is equipped as standard with a bidirectional charging system, the specially developed on-board charger (OBC), and becomes a mobile power plant in combination with the Sono app. In addition to powering household appliances and delivering energy to other electric cars, the innovative bidirectional Sono wallbox can also be used to supply the home with the energy stored in the Sion. In contrast to the DC wallboxes previously available, Sono Motors has deliberately opted for an AC wallbox and can thus offer a solution that is up to 70% cheaper. This is possible due to the conversion from direct to alternating current (DC/AC) taking place within the Sion itself and not the wallbox – significantly reducing costs. The final price will be announced before market launch in 2023 and will be in the low 4-digit euro range. The Sono wallbox was developed in collaboration with the German manufacturer Kostal.
A home energy management system (HEMS) controls when the Sion is charged and discharged: the wallbox communicates with the HEMS via various protocols such as EEBUS, Modbus or OCPP. A recommendation as to which HEMS are compatible with the Sono wallbox will be available shortly after its sales launch. The Sono app and Sono infotainment can also be used to set the level of the vehicle’s battery at which discharging can be terminated. This ensures that it always has enough range to cover any mobility needs.
Possible areas of application:
- Charging station for the Sion:
The Sono wallbox is capable of fully charging the Sion’s 54 kWh LFP battery in up to 5 hours, making it perfect for overnight charging and ensuring a range of up to 305 km. In addition, the Sion can be charged at fast-charging stations at a speed of up to 75 kW (DC) via the integrated CCS interface, i.e. to a charge level of 80% in around 35 minutes.
- Vehicle-to-home (v2h):
The vehicle functions as an electricity storage unit and power plant for one’s own home without feeding into the grid. So electricity from the photovoltaic system or the Sion’s solar integration can, for example, be stored in the Sion’s battery during the day and delivered to the house at night.
- Vehicle-to-grid (v2g):
The vehicle is directly and indirectly connected to the electricity via a building and the energy stored is fed back into the grid thereby. Instead of switching off wind turbines in times of energy surplus, the excess energy could be temporarily stored in the vehicle’s battery. In addition, interconnection of electric cars can be used to cushion peak loads. The planned number of over 257,000 Sion will thus become a decentralized mega-storage system and a trailblazer on the journey to 100% renewable energy.
Community Decides on the Design of the Sono Wallbox
The design of the first Sono wallbox will be decided by the Community. The reservation holders, over 14,000 in number, have a choice of three different designs. Voting via the wallbox landing page will take place until 13 September or live at the Sono House from 5 -12 September. The Sono House is a press and Community event at Sono Motors’ HQ in Munich, and will take place simultaneously with the IAA.
Sono Motors is on a mission to enable a revolutionary mobility system, where every electric vehicle is solar, shared, and independent from fossil-fuels. Today, an experienced specialist team is developing a forward-looking electric car that is suitable for daily use, the Sion. Both the Sion’s integrated solar technology and innovative mobility services will enable users to access clean mobility, harness solar energy and reduce CO2 impacts.
Sono Motors was founded in 2016 and has rapidly grown to approximately 200 employees today. The team combines a range of burgeoning global talent with industry veterans, including former employees from BMW, Nissan, Chrysler, Daimler, Audi, Mozilla, Sixt, FlixBus and mytaxi. Since its foundation, the company has raised approximately € 100M through reservations and funding. The company released its first generation Sion prototype in 2017 and has amassed 13,000 reservations with advance payments. In 2018, Sono Motors was recognized as a Solar Impulse Foundation by the Solar Impulse Foundation. In January of 2020, Sono Motors successfully closed one of the largest community crowdfunding campaigns in Europe.
Sono Motors’ Sion intends to blend disruptive technology with affordability to enable individual contribution to global sustainability. The Sono solar technology replaces traditional paint with proprietary integrated solar panels that can form to various applications. Additionally, the Sion’s solar panels can add up to 245 km or 152 mi (112 km or 70mi on average) of additional driving range per week to the car’s battery. The Sion is expected to have the lowest TCO (total cost of ownership) in its category at the start of production, which is scheduled for the first half of 2023.