Tesla has revealed exactly how its Magic Dock, a game-changing new EV charging accessory, works in a new patent filing.
The Magic Dock has been one of the most interesting new products introduced by Tesla in a long time.
The charging accessory is basically a seamless charge adapter from NACS to CCS, or NACS to J1772, camouflaging as a receptor for a charge connector.
The charging station looks normal and can be used normally by Tesla EV owners, but if an owner of a non-Tesla electric vehicle wants to use it, they simply have to unlock the Magic Dock and it automatically attaches to the connector to become a CCS adapter.
It is as seamless as a charging adapter experience has gotten to date.
The new product is going to be critical to Tesla opening its charging network to electric vehicles from other manufacturers.
It is being deployed at Supercharger stations in North America and through the newly launched Tesla Universal Wall Connector.
Now we get all the details of Tesla’s Magic Dock to a new patent filing that the automaker has filed with patent authorities.
Tesla describes the Magic Dock’s protocol in the patent’s abstract:
An aspect is directed to an adapter for EV supply equipment (EVSE), the EVSE having a EVSE connector for charging a PEV (plug-in electric vehicle), the EVSE connector providing a first connector corresponding to a first charging protocol. The adapter comprising a body, a first coupling disposed on the body and configured to engage the first connector, a second coupling disposed on the body and corresponding to a second charging protocol, the body converting the first charging protocol to the second charging protocol, and a lock configured to maintain the body in a locked configuration to the EVSE connector or to the EVSE. The lock allowing the adapter to switch between being locked to the EVSE connector or to the EVSE.
Here are some of the patent drawings explaining the mechanism behind the Tesla Magic Dock:
In the same application, Tesla also included a bunch of images of the version of the Magic Dock featured on its Universal Wall connector:
What do you think of Tesla’s Magic Dock as a product? Does it shows that Tesla can still innovate?