A bright idea by
Ampère. The Montpellier company has developed a recharging system for electric cars called
Smart T’Z. The solution’s advantage is that it connects directly to the electrical architecture already in place in homes and other buildings.
“Our solution was designed to also hook up a charging terminal directly to a building’s low-voltage electrical panel, notably that used to provide electricity for common areas, elevators, outdoor lighting, and ventilation systems,” explains Philippe Dupuy, founder of the company.
Philippe Dupuy is one of the sector’s top specialists. With an electrical engineering degree from ISIM (now
Polytech Montpellier), he was first in charge of the automobile power electronics department at Renault’s
Technocentre in Guyancourt, France, and then worked for 10 years managing electric vehicle projects for the same manufacturer.
Founded in October 2020,
Ampère has developed an unprecedented solution that is based on a single connection, called the bus, and wall-boxes designed to both distribute electricity and protect the system, notably thanks to the circuit-breaker mechanism integrated in each unit.
“Our solution supports power for up to ten vehicles at a time on a single line for common connections, and up to 100 with a dedicated connection. Competing solutions require a specific connection for each car,” highlights Philippe Dupuy.
With twenty employees, including about fifteen engineers and high-level R&D technicians, the company has also designed a connector that integrates child safety features. Ampère plans to start selling its solution by this coming summer. The company is in the process of setting up its production lines in a facility located in the city’s temporary
workshop space in the Millénaire district.
“Assistance provided by Montpellier Métropole’s Business Establishment Department has been extraordinary. First, they found and gave us access to a location that meets our exact needs. Then, Serm-SA3M modernized the facility so that we could set up our production lines,” says Philippe Dupuy.
This type of solution fits in perfectly with local authorities’ plans to develop a
Smart City that supports new use cases.
