EV charging provider SWTCH Energy has added a new feature within its SWTCH Cortex intelligent charging platform that lets drivers start a charging session with a single smartphone tap—even when a cellular signal is unavailable.
Underground garages and remote commercial sites are notorious dead zones for cellular connectivity, SWTCH explains. For EV drivers, this can result in a frustrating gap between pulling up to a charger and getting a charge started.
The new SWTCH Tap feature is designed to eliminate that gap. The technology uses NFC to identify the charger and the driver’s account instantly—bypassing menus, app downloads and cloud handshakes.
When both the charger and the driver’s phone are online, the tap provides a one-click start—no QR codes, no looking up station IDs, and no waiting for a signal. If a driver has no cellular signal on their phone, the charger recognizes their SWTCH account via NFC and authenticates the session locally. Even in the case of a complete network outage, the system can authorize the charging session using local intelligence—via SWTCH Nexus edge computing or cached user IDs on the charger itself.
SWTCH’s approach uses a standard OCPP framework to cache user data locally, so the charger retains the ability to authenticate sessions even when entirely disconnected from the cloud. Transaction data syncs automatically once connectivity is restored.
“The biggest hurdle to a great driver experience is often the connectivity burden at the site,” said Carter Li, CEO of SWTCH. “With SWTCH Tap, we’ve streamlined the process to a single tap while ensuring the charger works every time, regardless of network status. By utilizing local authorization and UID caching, the charger can make decisions in real time without waiting for a cloud handshake.”
Source: SWTCH
