Future Ford EVs Could Use Charging Cords With LED Lighting

Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for charging cords with LED lighting that may be used in future Ford EVs, Ford Authority has learned.

The patent was filed on August 22^nd, 2023, published on February 27^th, 2025, and assigned serial number 0065738.

The Ford Authority Take

Ford has been working on developing better EV chargers and EV charging cables for some time now, all with an eye toward improving reliability and increasing the speed at which future all-electric vehicles can charge. A few years ago, the automaker filed a patent for a new type of EV charging cable that could provide significantly more charging output than existing units, in fact. Now, this newly published patent presents us with an idea for charging cords with LED lighting that may be used in future Ford EVs, too.

This particular concept applies to EV chargers that offer owners bi-directional charging capability, meaning that EVs can both be charged with those units, as well as provide power back to something like a home or the power grid when needed. As Ford points out in this patent filing, there are times when chargers may experience issues and vehicles may stop receiving power, and in certain cases, owners may be unaware of such a development – which could be a problem.

As such, the automaker proposes a rather simple solution that involves incorporating an active LED lighting strip into the charger itself, which would illuminate in different colors based on the charging status. The light could also pulse or use animations for that same purpose, all of which is aimed at making it easy to tell the status of a charging session at a quick glance.

“Submitting patent applications is a normal part of any strong business as the process protects new ideas and helps us build a robust portfolio of intellectual property,” Ford said in a statement. “The ideas described within a patent application should not be viewed as an indication of our business or product plans. No matter what the patent application outlines, we will always put the customer first in the decision-making behind the development and marketing of new products and services.”