Better Place Kicks Off Global Student Design Competition

PALO ALTO, Calif.--Today, on the second anniversary of its launch, Better Place announced the commencement of a global design competition, targeting the top design and engineering schools to create the winning design for hands-free charging for electric vehicles. Better Place will ask university-level students from the top 60 global design schools as named by BusinessWeek¹ to compete for a chance to design and develop a prototype for next generation electric car charging infrastructure. Better Place will select one winning team and will invest in the winning idea so that it may be developed into a prototype, which will be showcased one year from now.

“Our heritage is grounded in working closely with universities to innovate a more affordable, more convenient electric car for mass market,” said Shai Agassi, Founder and CEO, Better Place. “Design is an inherent part of our DNA as we want to create a consumer experience with driving electric cars second to none. Our design competition invites students to create an experience where charging your electric car is ideally a completely automated system so that the consumer can enjoy the freedom of electric mobility.”

In August, Better Place won the bi-annual INDEX: Design to Improve Life Award, which awarded the company with a €100,000 prize in recognition for the design of its entire system. Better Place has decided to give back to the design community by using the award to sponsor a global, university-level, design competition. Better Place looks to continue its innovation in design and charging infrastructure, even beyond the models demonstrated at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2009 by engaging the community in designing next generation systems that make electric cars even more affordable and convenient that gas cars are today.

The design challenge, which begins today, invites BusinessWeek named global top 60 design schools to submit a proposal for their concept for hands-free charging by Dec. 2, 2009. Proposals should be concise and outline core concepts for the design. Better Place will select the ten best proposals by Jan 13, 2010, and will award €3,000 per proposal so that the ten proposals can be developed further.

Better Place will invite the ten semi-finalists to present their designs to the Better Place selection committee in April 2010. From the ten semi-finalists, Better Place will select one winning proposal by May 19, 2010, which will receive €35,000 in funding to develop a prototype of the hands-free solution to be demonstrated Oct. 29, 2010. The remaining funds will be applied towards operational and administration costs.

Rules and Requirements:

Must be named to BusinessWeek’s D Schools: The Global List
Must have faculty sponsor and/or be part of design course;
Submit proposal on or before December 2nd. Proposal can be in video or written format and must address all of the below requirements;
Better Place employees are ineligible to participate;
Service standard parking spot (street, garage, etc.);
Solution must be a hands-free charging solution;
3-phase, 32 amp charging;
Solution must operate in all weather conditions:
Cost: bill of materials not to exceed $1,000 USD.

For detailed information and a full list of terms and conditions for the design challenge, please visit: http://www.betterplace.com/handsfreechallenge

About Better Place

Better Place, the leading electric vehicle services provider, is accelerating the global transition to sustainable transportation. Better Place is building the infrastructure and intelligent network to deliver a range of services to drivers, enable widespread adoption of electric vehicles, and optimize energy use. The Better Place network addresses historical limitations to adoption by providing unlimited driving range in a convenient and accessible manner. The company works with all parts of the transportation ecosystem, including automakers, battery suppliers, energy companies, and the public sector, to create a compelling solution. Based in California and privately held, Better Place has operating companies in Israel, Denmark, and Australia. More information is available at http://www.betterplace.com.