What is the best way to recharge buses? - 5/25/2010

ultracapacitor-electric-bus A bus that only needs to be charged for 5 minutes through an overhead electric charging device at bus stops to run for 20 city blocks in China – is this the answer we have been looking for?

The first electrical trolley bus was invented in Germany in 1882. Over 125 years later, Electric Vehicle (EV) technology has indeed come a long way and EVs have become integrated into the fibre of people’s lives, especially when it comes to public transport. Various countries like Canada, USA, Germany, UK, Russia and India have been using electric buses and/or trains for a number of years now.

Taking public transport is great for energy saving. However, for some engineers this wasn’t quite enough and they’ve designed a bus that’s even more environmentally friendly. Check out this video on Ultra Capacitor Zero Emissions Transit Bus which has a very novel way of recharging.

Could it be that this bus will be the success story of EV applications and strengthen the case for battery-and-capacitor operated EVs by being more cost-effective? Or will it be yet another stepping stone in the long and colourful journey of the automotive industry? Only time will tell.

For now, this novel idea has gotten rid of the troublesome overhead power lines that cities like Vancouver base their electric bus system on by charging the onboard ultra capacitors at bus stops. This bus only needs to be charged for 5 minutes to run for 20 city blocks, and has a back-up battery that is good to go for 50 miles at a stretch. Is this bus the best application for EVs or are there ways to improve it further?

By the way, Foton China will be talking about commercial vehicles and buses in the Forum in August.

Comments (0)

Honda does not believe in electric vehicles? - 5/24/2010

Honda has come out to the open and said that it does not believe in the concept of electric vehicles, according to a report by Bloomberg. Honda’s R&D President Tomohiko Kawanabe told the news agency that the company lacks confidence in the electric vehicle business.

“It’s questionable whether consumers will accept the annoyances of limited driving range and having to spend time charging them,” he added. This is a total opposite from Nissan’s CEO Carlos Ghosn is saying. Ghosn believes that electric vehicles will make up 10% of the global car market by the year 2020.

“We are definitely conducting research on electric cars,” Kawanabe said, “but I can’t say I can wholeheartedly recommend them,” concluded Kawanabe. The company will focus on expanding its gasoline-electric hybrid model range and on improving its pure gasoline engines while it plans to sell electric cars in the US just to help meet California emissions rules which is where the EV-N Concept may come into play. The EV-N is an all electric super mini concept that was unveiled last September.

Comments (0)

Electric Car Projects Have the Most Buzz for Green Investors - 5/23/2010

electric car

Investors' bullishness over the electric car business is showing no signs of abating. On Wednesday, a startup electric carmaker CODA Automotive said it has bagged $58 million in venture capital for the launch of its first vehicle.

The company is one of several startups that have received hefty private backing for developing electric cars, batteries and car-charging technologies. In fact, venture capital investments for transportation technology overtook solar during the first quarter of this year, according to research firm Cleantech Group.

CODA, based in Santa Monica, Calif., is designing a four-door sedan that it plans to bring to the American market later this year. The company hasn't settled on a final sticker price but hopes to sell it in the low $30,000 range, which would take into account incentives such as a federal tax credit of up to $7,500 for buying alternative-fuel vehicles.

Many CarmakersHave Electric Dreams

CODA joins a lot of established and startup carmakers set to introduce electric or plug-in electric hybrid cars over the next year. The sharp climb of oil prices a few years back and the success of Toyota's (TM) Prius demonstrated a demand for more energy-efficient cars.

Recent changes in federal and state policies to curb tailpipe emissions have forced carmakers to spend money on developing vehicles that guzzle less gas, or not at all. Last year, the federal government allocated $2.4 billion in grants to 48 projects to research and manufacture batteries, electric motors and power electronics, as well as to carry out charging network field trials. Big winners in the grant program include General Motors, Johnson Controls (JCI) and A123 Systems (AONE).

GM plans to launch its first plug-in hybrid car, the Chevy Volt, toward the end of this year. The carmaker announced yesterday it'll launch a smart phone app that allows Volt owners to remotely control certain features of their cars, such as scheduling battery charging, checking battery-charge levels and starting the car.

Ford (F) is working on a similar app for its electric cars, including the electric Focus, scheduled for launch in 2011. The carmaker has also teamed up with Microsoft (MSFT) to create an Internet-based service that will allow car owners to decide when is the best (and cheapest) time to charge their cars.

Nissan (NSANY), meanwhile, is introducing the electric Leaf this December. Other carmakers rolling out new electric or plug-in hybrid models in 2010 and 2011 include Tesla Motors and Fisker Automotive.

China Connection

With the latest round of funding, CODA has raised more than $125 million. The company plans to use the money not only for launching its first car, but also making lithium-ion batteries for powering the vehicles. Its investors include Aeris Capital, EDB Investments, Countyline and Angeleno Group.

The carmaker has also formed a joint venture, called Lio Energy Systems, with Chinese company Lishen Power Battery. CODA plans to manufacturer the chasis and batteries in China to take advantage of its cheap labor and deliver 14,000 cars by the end of 2011. Most of the car components would be assembled in China. Coda wants to do the final assembly in California and is looking for a location for the factory.

Despite the new round of funding, Coda is competing against companies, including fellow startups such as Tesla and Fisker, that have received far more private funding and no shortage of media coverage to tout their spiffy models.

See full article from DailyFinance:http://srph.it/bcOwyK

Comments (0)

Toyota To Invest $50M In Tesla Electric Car Plant - 5/23/2010

by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, left, and Calif. Gov., Arnold Schwarzenegger, right, shake hands as Tesla CEO Elon Musk looks on during a news conference at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

From left, Calif. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk pose in front of a Tesla Model S at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

Calif. Gov., Arnold Schwarzenegger, left, and Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda chat at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

Calif. Gov., Arnold Schwarzenegger, left, and Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda laugh at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, right, shakes hands with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, during a news conference at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

From left, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and Calif. Gov., Arnold Schwarzenegger laugh during a news conference at Tesla headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., Thursday, May 20, 2010. Tesla will partner with Toyota Motors Corp. to build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

LOS ANGELES May 21, 2010, 01:08 am ET

The heads of Tesla Motors Inc. and Toyota Motors Corp. surprised the auto world Thursday by announcing a partnership to develop and build electric cars at a recently shuttered auto plant in the San Francisco Bay area.

Akio Toyoda, CEO of the world's largest automaker, said Toyota will invest $50 million in Tesla when the company begins selling stock to the public, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk said his company will purchase the New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. factory, known as Nummi, in Fremont where the Model S electric sedan will be built.

"We're going to create electric cars together," Musk told a news conference at Tesla's office in Palo Alto. "It's a great honor to work with a company like Toyota, one of the automobile leaders of the world and one I've personally long admired."

Toyoda flew in from Japan to make the announcement a day after both companies finalized the deals.

"I spent time at Nummi and learned much about working in America there, so I feel a sense of attachment (to the plant)," Toyoda said. He also said in a statement that through the venture, Toyota hopes to learn from Tesla's "challenging spirit, quick decision-making and flexibility."

Analysts said the partnership enhances the credibility of Tesla, a Silicon Valley startup just a few years ago, and boosts Toyota's image after being fined a record $16.4 million for its slow response to an accelerator pedal recall.

"Many had doubted (Tesla's) ability to deliver on all its promises, but Toyota must have conducted substantial due diligence before making this investment," said John O'Dell, senior editor for car adviser Edmunds' GreenCarAdvisor.com.

The news stunned city officials from Downey, who expected to vote Thursday on a lease deal allowing Tesla to rent 20 acres of city property south of Los Angeles. Downey spent months courting the automaker to locate its factory there, and officials said they were certain of clinching a deal after meeting with Musk recently.

"Tesla has been extremely disingenuous in their dealing with Downey, and I now have new appreciation as to why America is fed up with many large corporations," Downey Councilman Mario Guerra said. "This last-minute betrayal is even more shocking because (Downey) was hours away from signing the lease with Tesla that would have been an economic boon for the city."

Downey had offered to waive $6.9 million in rent in hopes that the plant could create up to 1,200 jobs and revitalize its reputation as Southern California's high-tech hub.

Musk said there was no effort to mislead Downey officials, adding that parts of the deal with Toyota were only resolved Wednesday.

"We weren't sure could a deal be put together, could Tesla afford Nummi," Musk said. "These were question marks that that were only resolved yesterday."

Tesla, which currently makes a two-seater electric sports car costing $109,000, said its goal is to produce increasingly affordable electric cars. It has been scouting for a site to build the Model S, which is scheduled to go on sale in 2012.

The Model S is slated to sell for $49,900, including federal tax credits, and is designed to travel as far as 300 miles on a three- to five-hour charge.

The Nummi plant, established in 1984 as a joint venture between General Motors Co. and Toyota, employed 4,700 workers. GM made the Pontiac Vibe there but withdrew from the alliance last year after filing for bankruptcy protection.

Toyota made the Corolla sedan and Tacoma pickup at the plant but said in August that without GM, it could not sustain the factory. The last of nearly 8 million vehicles that moved through the sprawling facility rolled off the lot last month.

The fate of the plant had been unclear. At its closure, plant executives said some employees would stay on while they try to sell off equipment and clean up. Executives also said the plant would try to find a buyer and work with city and state officials to identify the best new use for the site.

Musk would not disclose what Tesla paid for the factory. It bought only a parcel of the sprawling Nummi plant.

He said there is a lot of potential for long-term growth and that he sees the partnership eventually generating about 10,000 jobs between suppliers and factory workers.

He said Tesla already has started hiring former Nummi employees and plans to add workers at a rate of about 50 a month. Nummi was a union shop, and Musk said Tesla was "neutral" on any possible guild organization - it would neither encourage or fight such an effort.

Comments (0)

Honda UX-3 - 4/8/2010

The Honda UX-3 is a bizarre contraption which rivals previous efforts like the Segway to become the next lightweight personal mobility solution.

The UX-3 is still at a prototype stage at the moment, but Honda intends to continue research and development of the vehicle to test the marketability and efficiency of the design. The UX-s features Honda’s omni-directional driving wheel system which enables smooth front, backward and side to side movements. This driving wheel system comprises of many smaller motor controlled wheels which help the vehicle travel side to side, but when in line make a much larger wheel which propels the vehicle forwards and backwards. These drive systems can work simultaneously to help the vehicle travel diagonally in any direction.

Anthropometrically the Honda UX-3 places the user at eye level with other walking pedestrians keeping a level hierarchy when in conversation. To move the vehicle in a particular direction the user just has to lean to his/her desired side. The vehicle miraculously manages to balance itself using the same sensor technology that powers Honda’s popular ASIMO robot. The product weights less than 10KG and utilises a lithium ion battery which should power the device for approximately 1 hour of operation.

Purpose and market appreciation aside, the industrial design from an aesthetic perspective is truly beautiful. It has a real space-age-look in finish and form. It is an object that has been designed in a real 3d manner with every orthographic viewing angle offering something visually interesting and dynamic. In future iterations of this design more work should be placed in some kind of handle for the user to grasp onto. Even the beautiful young girl in the marketing photos looks somewhat jittery in balance and there is a sense of awkwardness in where she places her hands.

Comments (0)

Europe finds electric vehicle religion - 4/2/2010

European makers are out to prove they can dominate the battery car field

Image: Michael Macht, President and CEO of Porsche

AP

Michael Macht, President and CEO of Porsche, presents the Porsche 918 Spyder Concept car, which has hybrid and electric drive technology, in Geneva.

By Paul A. Eisenstein

msnbc.com contributor

updated 8:39 a.m. ET March 31, 2010

The crowds began swelling long before the news conference was set to begin at the Porsche stand earlier this month at the Geneva Motor Show. A few early birds were there simply to get a good seat, but most had been drawn by word of a top secret project the sports car maker was intending to unveil.

When all the covers were lifted, there sat the 918 Spyder Concept, an elegant, if aggressive-looking, 2-seat convertible supercar. True to form, the 918 prototype promised blisteringly fast performance, launching from 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds and hitting a top speed of 198 mph.

There’s another number that’s equally impressive, if less in line with the Porsche image, however: the convertible concept, suggested CEO Michael Macht, could deliver an estimated 78 miles per gallon.

“This way, you can go very fast and it still would be socially acceptable,” Macht explained as he sat inside the 918 Spyder.

It was a sign, if you will, that European automakers are throwing some of their resources into electric-powered vehicles, after hitching most of their horsepower to diesel.

Under the skin, the sports car featured a 500-horsepower V8 mounted midship and mated to a 218-horsepower electric motor drawing power from a large lithium-ion battery pack. Like the more mundane Chevrolet Volt, the system can be plugged into an everyday electric socket — or a high-speed charger — permitting the 918 prototype to be used as a commuter car, running on batteries alone, or switched to high performance mode using battery and gas power combined.

While officially still a show car, Macht confirmed Porsche is actively working on the 918’s underlying technology. The Spyder itself could go into production as early as 2013, but even if it doesn’t make the cut, the plug-in hybrid powertrain is all but certain to show up in some other Porsche model, such as the classic 911 sports car or the Boxster roadster.

And if and when it does, it would become the second hybrid system from Porsche. Sitting alongside the 918 Spyder, on the Geneva stand, Porsche previewed a more conventional gas-electric version of its second-generation Cayenne sport-utility vehicle, which is due to market for the 2011 model-year.

While Porsche may have stolen the show with its various hybrid models, it had plenty of company at Geneva’s PALExpo convention center.

Until recently, European makers seemed oblivious of the push for electric propulsion. Seeing hybrids and other battery cars as a Japanese technology, makers like Mercedes-Benz and BMW were determined to fight back with their own high-mileage alternative, the diesel.

Suddenly, there’s a shift in strategy, and while European makers aren’t walking away from diesel, they’re determined to prove that they can dominate the battery car field too.