Automotive

New Products

Mahle Powertrain and Allotrope Energy unveil battery technology that allows ultra-fast charging

Mahle Powertrain and Allotrope Energy have unveiled a new battery technology which they say offers ultra-fast recharging and good power density. By combining supercapacitors with traditional lithium-ion batteries, the lithium-carbon technology enables a full charge to be delivered in a similar time to refuelling an IC-engined vehicle. In addition, the lithium-carbon cells do not use […]

Web exclusive

New motor architecture could be a game-changer

At a time when EV manufacturers are eager for efficiency gains of 2-3% in their powertrains, any new technology capable of providing 10% or more would transform the state of competition among vehicle OEMs (writes Rory Jackson). With an eye towards enabling that, US company ePropelled has developed and patented a new type of electric […]

Web exclusive

Eco Charger quad adapted for military use

Electric quadricycle all-terrain vehicle (ATV) developer Eco Charger has teamed up with military vehicle specialist Supacat to adapt the former’s top-of-the-range 4WD model for military use; it displayed an example at the 2021 Defence Systems & Equipment International (DSEI) event in London. Eco Charger COO Jon Hourihan speaks exclusively with Peter Donaldson about the electrification […]

New Products

New online calibration tool enables access to test benches and test vehicles via web browsers

VEMAC has developed an online calibration tool (OCT) that allows full remote access to its integrated calibration and data logging functions. The OCT can be connected to a test bench, test vehicle or measurement system via CAN or Ethernet. It can be accessed via any web browser, eliminating the need for software licences. The user […]

Focus on...

Battery Safety

The EV battery industry offers a variety of ways to minimise the hazards they can pose, as Peter Donaldson explains. Proximity to large amounts of energy has always presented hazards, but people have mostly learned to live with them and enjoy its benefits....

Digest

Riversimple Rasa

Rather than go all-out on the technology, this EV has been conceived with reusable components – and the circular economy – in mind. Rory Jackson reports. End-to-end sustainability is a troublesome target for EV engineers to track. Reducing vehicle emissions at the point of use is easy enough, but reducing the emissions...

New Products

Bosch does away with the ‘charging brick’

Bosch has unveiled what it says is the world’s first electric car charging cable with integrated technology for flexible recharging without a control box. It also does away with the usual ‘charging brick’ – the bulky in-cable control box – when charging at a 230 V power socket. That allows the cable to weigh less […]

Deep Insight

NVH

Peter Donaldson reports on the tools and methods for optimising the acoustic environment in EVs. Of all the disciplines required for developing cars, psychoacoustics isn’t one that readily springs to mind. However, this science of the relationships between aural stimuli and the responses they produce in people informs the branch...

Deep Insight

Skateboard platforms

Against the backdrop of a boom in skateboard platforms for EV designs, Nick Flaherty looks at the approaches taken by some of their suppliers. Changing the wheelbase of a traditional car or truck design by 6 or 7 in creates a ripple effect whereby half the transmission shaft has to be redesigned, changing the centre of gravity and the requirements for the suspension. That means a whole new vehicle design is needed...

New Products

Lanxess launches hollow-profile hybrid technology

Chemicals company Lanxess is launching a hollow-profile hybrid technology. With it, metallic hollow profiles can be made functional on conventional injection moulding machines using plastic compounds. The result is plastic-metal composite components that have far greater torsional stiffness and strength than could be achieved with previous hollow-profile technologies. Potential applications in the automotive industry include […]
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