Diesel Hybrid Electric Drivetrain Developed for Military Applications
Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide, Inc. has introduced a fuel efficient, high performance diesel hybrid electric powertrain, “Q-Force,” after six years of development. This advanced, proprietary 4-wheel drivetrain can be configured for specialized military as well as commercial applications.
The first application of Quantum Q-Force is in a JP-8 fuel compatible diesel engine-based, battery dominant, series-hybrid electric military Alternative Mobility Vehicle (AMV). A number of pre-production prototypes that incorporate Q-Force have been successfully developed and built for testing and evaluation by selected commands to assess mission suitability, supportability, performance objectives, and guidance on final vehicle configuration.
In one configuration, the diesel engine produces 75 horsepower, the electric motor, 133 horsepower, and the powertrain yields 5,463 foot-pounds of torque after gear reduction. Features of Q-Force include:
Sophisticated System Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, incorporating Quantum‟s proprietary algorithms
Hybrid control system that minimizes battery size through optimized charge controls and regenerative braking
Optimized engine operation/calibration and generator performance
Advanced traction motor/transmission system
Alan P. Niedzwiecki, President and CEO of Quantum said: “Our innovative diesel hybrid electric all-wheel drive system provides high performance, acceleration and extended range, resulting in significant advantages for the U.S. Army in communications, surveillance, targeting, and reconnaissance missions. We believe that Quantum’s Q-Force drivetrain is also very well-suited for commercial applications including homeland security, border patrol, park service operations, and light-duty automobiles.”
In 2008 Quantum introduced a gasoline plug-in-hybrid electric drive known as „Q-Drive‟ in the Fisker KARMA 4-door sports sedan. Fisker Automotive, a „Green American‟ car company co-founded in 2007 by Quantum and Henrik Fisker, was recently selected by the U.S. Department of Energy for a low interest loan of $528.7 million, under the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Loan Program.
About Quantum:
Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide, Inc., a fully integrated alternative energy company, is a leader in the development and production of advanced propulsion systems, energy storage technologies, and alternative fuel vehicles.
Diesel Hybrid Electric Drivetrain Developed for Military Applications
Showing posts with label Diesel Hybrids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Diesel Hybrids. Show all posts
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Customizing electric cars for cost-effective urban commuting
The vehicle is part of a new research project, ChargeCar, headed by Illah Nourbakhsh, associate professor of robotics. The project is exploring how electric vehicles can be customized to cost-effectively meet an individual's specific commuting needs and how an electric vehicle's efficiency can be boosted and its battery life extended by using artificial intelligence to manage power.
"Most electric cars today are being designed with top-down engineering to match the performance of gas-powered cars," Nourbakhsh said. "Our goal is to revolutionize urban commuting by taking a different approach -- by first analyzing the needs, conditions and habits of the daily commutes of actual people and then using this 'commute ecology' to develop electric vehicles suited to each unique commute." The researchers calculate that a typical Pittsburgh commuter might save 80 percent of energy costs by switching from a gas car to an electric car.
ChargeCar isn't developing new vehicles, but rather a knowledge base that can be used to convert gas-powered vehicles using existing technology. The researchers are working with Pittsburgh mechanics to develop community-level expertise in vehicle conversion, as well as a set of conversion "recipes."
Key to the project is a vehicle architecture called smart power management, which uses artificial intelligence to manage the flow of power between conventional electric car batteries and a device called a supercapacitor. Supercapacitors are electrochemical capacitors with unusually high energy density and have typically been used to start locomotives, tanks and diesel trucks. Because it can store and rapidly release large amounts of electrical power, a supercapacitor can serve as a buffer between the battery pack and the vehicle's electric motors, improving the vehicle's responsiveness while reducing the charge/discharge cycling that shortens battery life.
"Many people have talked about using supercapacitors as buffers on a battery, but we also will use artificial intelligence to manage how power is discharged and stored," Nourbakhsh said. "Based on a driver's route and habits, the smart power management system will decide whether to draw power for the electric motors from the batteries or the supercapacitor and decide where to store electricity produced by the regenerative braking system as the car slows down or goes down a hill."
Determining the optimal means of managing power will be one of ChargeCar's primary goals. The researchers calculate that an intelligent electric car controller could recapture 48 percent of the energy during braking and that a supercapacitor could reduce 56 percent of the load on the batteries and reduce heating of the batteries -- which shortens battery life -- by 53 percent.
"The number one cost of electric vehicle ownership is the batteries," Nourbakhsh said. "Smart power management will save money initially because it pairs a low-cost battery pack with a small supercapacitor. And it will continue to save money by increasing efficiency and extending battery life." By customizing each vehicle to the owner's specific commute, ChargeCar will save money for some owners by allowing them to purchase the minimum number of batteries necessary.
The converted Scion xB will serve as a test bed for developing smart power management techniques, measuring battery lifetimes and refining conversion techniques.
The ChargeCar project has created a national clearinghouse for commuter data at http://chargecar.org; people across the country are invited to store their commute data via GPS and upload it to the site. The site can then use the data to show individuals the energy cost of gasoline vs. electricity for their commute and also can show how much wear and tear on batteries could be saved on the commute by using a supercapacitor. The researchers will use the database to help them tailor solutions to individual commutes and they will make the database available to all electric car researchers and enthusiasts.
The ChargeCar team includes Gregg Podnar, co-principal investigator with Nourbakhsh; research engineer Josh Schapiro; senior research programmer Chris Bartley; project scientist Ben Brown; Intel Labs Pittsburgh senior researcher Jason Campbell; and students Vibhav Sreekanti, Paul Dille and Matt Duescher.
Customizing electric cars for cost-effective urban commuting
"Most electric cars today are being designed with top-down engineering to match the performance of gas-powered cars," Nourbakhsh said. "Our goal is to revolutionize urban commuting by taking a different approach -- by first analyzing the needs, conditions and habits of the daily commutes of actual people and then using this 'commute ecology' to develop electric vehicles suited to each unique commute." The researchers calculate that a typical Pittsburgh commuter might save 80 percent of energy costs by switching from a gas car to an electric car.
ChargeCar isn't developing new vehicles, but rather a knowledge base that can be used to convert gas-powered vehicles using existing technology. The researchers are working with Pittsburgh mechanics to develop community-level expertise in vehicle conversion, as well as a set of conversion "recipes."
Key to the project is a vehicle architecture called smart power management, which uses artificial intelligence to manage the flow of power between conventional electric car batteries and a device called a supercapacitor. Supercapacitors are electrochemical capacitors with unusually high energy density and have typically been used to start locomotives, tanks and diesel trucks. Because it can store and rapidly release large amounts of electrical power, a supercapacitor can serve as a buffer between the battery pack and the vehicle's electric motors, improving the vehicle's responsiveness while reducing the charge/discharge cycling that shortens battery life.
"Many people have talked about using supercapacitors as buffers on a battery, but we also will use artificial intelligence to manage how power is discharged and stored," Nourbakhsh said. "Based on a driver's route and habits, the smart power management system will decide whether to draw power for the electric motors from the batteries or the supercapacitor and decide where to store electricity produced by the regenerative braking system as the car slows down or goes down a hill."
Determining the optimal means of managing power will be one of ChargeCar's primary goals. The researchers calculate that an intelligent electric car controller could recapture 48 percent of the energy during braking and that a supercapacitor could reduce 56 percent of the load on the batteries and reduce heating of the batteries -- which shortens battery life -- by 53 percent.
"The number one cost of electric vehicle ownership is the batteries," Nourbakhsh said. "Smart power management will save money initially because it pairs a low-cost battery pack with a small supercapacitor. And it will continue to save money by increasing efficiency and extending battery life." By customizing each vehicle to the owner's specific commute, ChargeCar will save money for some owners by allowing them to purchase the minimum number of batteries necessary.
The converted Scion xB will serve as a test bed for developing smart power management techniques, measuring battery lifetimes and refining conversion techniques.
The ChargeCar project has created a national clearinghouse for commuter data at http://chargecar.org; people across the country are invited to store their commute data via GPS and upload it to the site. The site can then use the data to show individuals the energy cost of gasoline vs. electricity for their commute and also can show how much wear and tear on batteries could be saved on the commute by using a supercapacitor. The researchers will use the database to help them tailor solutions to individual commutes and they will make the database available to all electric car researchers and enthusiasts.
The ChargeCar team includes Gregg Podnar, co-principal investigator with Nourbakhsh; research engineer Josh Schapiro; senior research programmer Chris Bartley; project scientist Ben Brown; Intel Labs Pittsburgh senior researcher Jason Campbell; and students Vibhav Sreekanti, Paul Dille and Matt Duescher.
Customizing electric cars for cost-effective urban commuting
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Covert Army ops to run on diesel hybrids
The United States Army will soon use diesel hybrid electric vehicles for its quick-paced special operations including reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting.
Called clandestine extended range vehicles, the automobiles will be developed and shipped by plug-in hybrid manufacturer Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide Inc. to the United States Army's National Automotive Center under the Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center.
Meanwhile, the Special Operations Command will fund the development of the hybrid automobile.
Each of the six vehicles to be developed has a torque rating that exceeds 5,000 foot-pounds and can maintain a speed of 80 miles per hour while ascending 60 percent grades.
Moreover, its new proprietary Quantum Q-Force hybrid powertrain feature is capable of reducing fuel consumption by up to 25 percent compared with a conventional vehicle, and thus can significantly reduce carbon footprint. The feature has undergone performance and safety tests.
Alan P. Niedzwiecki, president and chief executive of Quantum, said the hybrid vehicle program will improve the military’s tactical capabilities while easing fuel burden.
Quantum Fuel Systems specializes in the development and production of advanced propulsion systems, energy storage technologies and alternative fuel vehicles. It is based in Irvine, California and its shares are traded on the Nasdaq market.
Covert Army ops to run on diesel hybrids
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