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MARSHALL (Mich.) — Eaton Corp., and BAE Systems, in an expanded partnership, demonstrated their powertrains for medium duty electric vehicles, and plan to launch a heavy duty model as early as next year.
Eaton’s Proving Grounds hosted a ride-and drive event on June 13 for fleet owners and OEMs.
In the first half of last year, a memorandum was signed by both companies to work together on a medium-duty electric vehicle. In May, the partnership expanded to include heavy duty BEVs.
The medium-duty powertrain consists of an electric motor mounted under a CL7 Freightliner and a newly developed 4-speed transmission, designed exclusively for BEVs. Tom Webb said that the system was designed to be simple, as he is director of business strategy and development, power and propulsion solution at BAE. He pointed out that, while the demonstrator uses the newly developed engine, other parts of the vehicle are standard throughout the industry.
Derek Matthews, BAE, says that “any electric vehicle we think of as a two-system vehicle.” (Amanda Smith-Teutsch for Transport Topics)
Webb said, “Consolidate and streamline.” “That’s our mantra.”
Derek Matthews, global partner manager for power and propulsion systems at BAE, said that the engineers reimagined a traditional BEV power source.
Matthews said, “We think of any electric vehicle as two systems.” Matthews said, “Accessory loads are all the air brakes, power steer, and air conditioning. Next, we will look at the main power loads.
Matthews said that BAE can eliminate many meters of high voltage cabling in most BEVs, and simplify the internal electrical system of the truck.
Webb also mentioned the multi-gear automated transmissions and direct-drive propulsion BAE has deployed around the world.
“The gearbox is very important when you are looking at the truck space. You have to make some serious grades if you want to get 70 miles per hour,” he said. Webb explained that the 4-gear transmission allows for BEV trucks to perform at or near the level of a truck powered by an internal combustion motor.
Derek Matthews, with @BAESystemsInc, discusses the capabilities and features of the new multi-speed BEV transmission. pic.twitter.com/xGnFCFDwgi — Amanda Smith-Teutsch (@ASmithTeutsch) June 14, 2024
During the drive demo, the zero-emission vehicle showed off its paces. It reached highway speeds on a test track with a fully loaded 33,000 pound truck and pulled up to a 30% incline. The truck is equipped with a feature to prevent it from rolling backwards downhill when at a standstill. It also uses regenerative technologies in order to charge the batteries while braking and coasting downhill.
Eaton offers a variety of EV charging options, from its scalable busway system to traditional wall mounted panels.
Sai Murahari demonstrated the scalability and flexibility of a charging system that plugs into a ceiling-mounted busway. The power cables are then suspended from the ceiling to allow charging of vehicles. He explained that busways had been used for decades to power high-rises, factories and other buildings. The company integrated an EV charging system into a plug-and play system that was immediately scalable.
“This avoids trenching, this avoids digging and gives a completely over-the-top EV charging solution,” Murahari stated. “You can have bus tracks laid out in your current facility and scale your charging as your fleet increases.”
Justin Hopkins, Eaton, says fleets are concerned about chargingability and affordability. (Amanda Smith-Teutsch for Transport Topics)
Justin Hopkins, product manager of ePowertrains at Eaton, stated that feedback concerns have centered around chargeability and affordability.
“Having charging capabilities is the first thing that people bring up. He said that fleets would not be comfortable adopting the technology. “The second thing is to make sure it’s cost effective.” “From a vehicle perspective, make sure it’s light enough in terms of weight to be useful.”
From a total-cost-of-operation perspective, Hopkins noted BAE will bring a “very modularized, highly integrated solution that can bring the cost down as well as the long-term maintenance.”
Matthews, from BAE, said that the trucks were designed to be modular. The battery ports and the inverters can be removed and replaced quickly in the event of a problem. This means less downtime.
Matthews said that the research teams have moved forward with further development. They are taking what they learned from the medium-duty engine and are preparing for a heavy duty model, which will debut next year.
Matthews said, “It is all built on the same architecture.” “It’s just a Class 8 solution with a 4-speed transmission hooked up to a electric machine that hasn’t gotten much bigger but can now do 80,000 pounds rather than 33,000 pounds,” Matthews said.
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