There are applications of photovoltaic cells to charge the batteries of naval and air vehicles. But these applications for the automobile industry are very limited, mainly because of the small area that photovoltaic cells can occupy in an electric vehicle. in actality it is more prudent to invest time and resources in making more efficient and durable batteries for the electric car industry.
I must admit that I do not know the work you are mentioning, but I believe that it is a great idea for vehicle recharging . This application can give a relatively small amount of energy, which of course is not sufficient to meet the energy needs for continuous movement of a vehicle.