Wouldn't it be nice to get in the car, drop your iPhone or BlackBerry into the center console and have it automatically recharge? General Motors Co. says it can make that happen.
The auto maker on Thursday expects to announce plans to install a device called the Powermat, developed by an Israeli technology company of the same name, in certain vehicles by mid-2012. A user could simply place a mobile device equipped with a special adaptor on the mat and it would deliver a wireless charge through so-called induction technology, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Powermat already sells an in-car charger that plugs into the vehicle's cigarette lighter and one for home use. The GM mats would be the first to be integrated into a car interior.
GM plans to show off the gadget in a Chevrolet Volt electric car at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
For years, tech companies and auto makers have sought ways to eliminate power charging cables through inductive technology. Duracell, for instance, offers the similar Mygrid system.
But many products have been too bulky or expensive to take off.
The popularity of power-sucking BlackBerrys, iPhones and other devices has increased demand for the technology.
Ford Motor Co. said Wednesday it is researching ways to get the feature in its vehicles but has nothing planned in the product pipeline.
GM would obtain the device though a partnership with Powermat, which garnered attention in tech circles recently for developing a charging pad that some tech experts say has more potential than predecessors.
GM had hoped to include a charging mat in the first Volts, which went on sale last month. But doing so proved too difficult for the auto maker, which narrowly managed to keep a promise made in 2006 to put the Volt on sale in 2010.
GM's venture-capital arm, GM Ventures, will invest $5 million in Neve Ilan, Israel-based Powermat. The $5 million will be converted into equity in Powermat and GM will have exclusive rights to use the device for the first year.
Launched last year with $100 million, GM Ventures has invested in three companies, including Powermat, and is close to a deal with a fourth, said GM Ventures President John Lauckner. He said hundreds of companies have sought investments from GM.
"It's a competitive advantage for GM's core business," he said. "There is also a need to balance that with generating enough of a financial gain with the investments so that it makes sense."
Mr. Lauckner said he expects GM to sell "hundreds of thousands" of the charging devices in the next year.
