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GM Dual-Charging Patent Provides EV Flexibility
GM wants to be able to double up 400-volt charging stations for 800-volt EVs
1 Min Read
Image courtesy of General Motors Co.
Today’s EV charging network overwhelmingly operates at 400 volts, while an increasing number of EVs have 800-volt electronics that can exploit the faster charging possible at this higher voltage.
General Motors has filed a patent that will let the new generation of high-voltage vehicles accelerate their charging on 400-volt charging stations by tapping two of them at one time.
The Audi e-tron EVs have two ports, but they are on opposite sides of the car and are there for ease of connecting to the nearest one. But connecting to one of these automatically disables the one on the other side of the car, so the e-tron cannot exploit two charging stations at once.
The GM system can not only use two low-voltage charging stations at once, it can also use one high-voltage charger and one low-voltage charger at the same time. In this case, the high-voltage charger does all of the work charging the batteries, while the low-voltage station can power the vehicle’s accessory loads.
GM's dual-charging patent diagram.
About the Author
Dan’s coverage of the auto industry over three decades has taken him to the racetracks, automotive engineering centers, vehicle simulators, wind tunnels, and crash-test labs of the world.
A member of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year jury, Dan also contributes car reviews to Popular Science magazine, serves on the International Engine of the Year jury, and has judged the collegiate Formula SAE competition.
Dan is a winner of the International Motor Press Association's Ken Purdy Award for automotive writing, as well as the National Motorsports Press Association's award for magazine writing and the Washington Automotive Press Association's Golden Quill award.
Dan, testing the 2025 Aston Martin Vanquish. ANDY MORGAN/ASTON MARTIN
He has held a Sports Car Club of America racing license since 1991, is an SCCA National race winner, two-time SCCA Runoffs competitor in Formula F, and an Old Dominion Region Driver of the Year award winner. Co-drove a Ford Focus 1.0-liter EcoBoost to 16 Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-accredited world speed records over distances from just under 1km to over 4,104km at the CERAM test circuit in Mortefontaine, France.
He was also a longtime contributor to the Society of Automotive Engineers' Automotive Engineering International magazine.
He specializes in analyzing technical developments, particularly in the areas of motorsports, efficiency, and safety.
He has been published in The New York Times, NBC News, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, The Washington Post, Hagerty, AutoTrader.com, Maxim, RaceCar Engineering, AutoWeek, Virginia Living, and others.
Dan has authored books on the Honda S2000 and Dodge Viper sports cars and contributed automotive content to the consumer finance book, Fight For Your Money.
He is a member and past president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers.
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