Dutch engineers have developed a charging station for electric cars that uses IOTA’s Tangle technology. In other words, they built an intelligent system that charges vehicles while relying on the IOTA cryptocurrency.
An intelligent charging station
You can find this next-generation electric vehicle charging station on the Buiten campus in Arnhem, the Netherlands. The station is unique and innovative. It was designed by ElaadNL, an organization that develops a solar- and wind-powered charging infrastructure integrated with the Tangle technology of the IOTA cryptocurrency.
The system not only charges electric vehicles but also handles parking payments. One engineer explained their motivation: “We saw the potential of distributed ledger technology and asked ourselves: could we integrate it into a charging station? Could we use this technology to build a better integrated system—like a smart grid—and combine it with renewable energy?”
Crypto micro-payments
The charging station uses the Tangle protocol, which operates without miners or blocks and enables micro-payments in cryptocurrencies with no transaction fees.
Dominik Schiener, co-founder of IOTA, welcomed the development, saying the system could help popularize electric vehicles: “Charging electric vehicles is one of many applications where IOTA is an obvious choice as a protocol for machine-to-machine payments.”
Watch how the charging station works in the video below:
This station charges electric cars using solar and wind energy generated by ElaadNL while using the IOTA digital currency for micro-payments. It represents a significant innovation that could expand quickly as smart, renewable-powered charging solutions become more widespread.