Elon Musk, speaking at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said that Tesla is in discussions with government officials in China about producing its vehicles locally, and hopes to make a specific announcement soon. Some media reported that Musk spoke of building the upcoming Model 3 in a Chinese factory within 2 years, but he later tweeted… Read more »
Search Results Found For: "Motiv"
Toshiba’s new motor control IC
Toshiba has begun mass production of a system regulator IC with monitoring function for motor control systems in electric and hybrid vehicles. The new IC (TB9042FTG) has a strengthened monitoring function to reduce potential system failures. TB9042FTG provides a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) communication function to avoid microcontroller (MCU) failures. The system regulator IC and… Read more »
Solvay’s new thermoplastic offers high voltage resistance and high temp performance
Thermoplastics supplier Solvay Specialty Polymers has expanded its Amodel AE-8900 series of products for automotive electronics applications. The new Amodel polyphthalamide (PPA) materials provide high voltage resistance and retention of dielectric properties at high temperatures. The new Amodel AE-8900 series comes in five versions, offering 30, 35, 40, 50 or 60 percent glass fiber reinforcement…. Read more »
Sendyne’s new current measurement module
Sendyne’s new SFP102MOD is a shunt-based enclosed module capable of current measurements to 375 A, with 45 µA resolution. The company’s patented Continuous Calibration technology enables ±0.25% accuracy for any current magnitude, within the operating temperature range of -40 °C to +125 °C. The new module is designed for situations that require accurate current measurements… Read more »
What does Elon Musk think of the Apple iCar?
There’s no longer any doubt that Apple is doing some electric vehicle R&D. Whether an actual iCar will eventually disrupt the dinosaurs of Detroit remains to be seen, but a Greek chorus of auto industry insiders is already warning the champions of Cupertino not to do battle with this dragon. A recent Fortune article ridiculed… Read more »
European researchers: Our new Li-sulfur battery is more energy-dense, cheaper and safer
EU-funded researchers in the LISSEN (Lithium Sulfur Superbattery Exploiting Nanotechnology) project have developed a new lithium-sulfur battery that uses lithiated silicon as the anode and a nanostructured sulfur-carbon composite as the cathode. The team says its battery offers an energy density at least three times higher than that of current lithium battery technology, as well… Read more »
Karma is Fisker is Karma: The Luxury PHEV company rebrands and continues hiring
Fisker Automotive, the maker of the star-crossed plug-in hybrid sports car called the Karma, has now changed its name to Karma Automotive. The Fisker story has been colorful, and mostly tragic, since renowned designer Henrik Fisker co-founded the company in 2007. It was involved in a lawsuit with Tesla, became an issue in the 2012… Read more »
Allied Market Research: Global market for electric motors to reach $129 billion by 2020
Electric motor sales are rapidly revving up. The global motor market will grow to $129 billion by 2020, an annual growth rate of 5.3%, according to a new report from Allied Market Research. Automotive applications account for nearly 52% of global revenue, thanks to the steadily increasing adoption of electrified vehicles. According to the report,… Read more »
BMW i3 snatches second place in September plug-in sales
US plug-in sales are still in the slow lane – once again, the monthly figure of 10,134 fell short of last year’s 10,921. The Tesla Model S grabbed the lead position, with 2,500 estimated US sales in September. The company reported delivering 11,580 total vehicles worldwide in the third quarter of 2015, a 49% increase over Q3… Read more »
Alcoa splits into two companies as auto industry demands more aluminum
Aluminum colossus Alcoa (NYSE:AA) has approved a plan to split into two independent, publicly-traded companies, referred to for now as the Upstream Company and the Value-Add Company. The transaction is to be completed in the second half of 2016. Global aluminum demand is expected to double between 2010 and 2020, driven partly by the light… Read more »