Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new type of inverter that offers superior efficiency in a smaller and lighter package than current models. Conventional inverters rely on components made of silicon. The NC State team has developed an inverter using off-the-shelf components made of the wide-bandgap semiconductor material silicon carbide (SiC). “Our… Read more »
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Rare earth element-free motor debuts in Honda Freed
Honda was an early electrification innovator, but the disappointing career of its Insight Hybrid apparently killed the company’s interest in electrons. However, there are signs of a turnaround – the hybrid version of Honda’s Odyssey minivan, launched in Japan in February, now accounts for 70% of Odyssey sales. Now Nikkei Asian Review reports that Honda… Read more »
WattZilla designs its high-power charging stations to be the first and last EVSE you buy
One size serves all. When interviewing the founders of technology startups, we often hear a common narrative as they recount the inception of the company. They go shopping for a product, find the available options lacking and then ask themselves, “Why doesn’t a better solution exist?” That’s Frank Gangi’s story. He bought a Tesla Model… Read more »
Arbin’s new battery testing equipment offers a glimpse into the future with ultra-high precision
Arbin accelerates testing of production Li-ion cells with ultra-high precision equipment. Automakers are a notoriously conservative bunch. They go to great lengths to test and validate new designs before putting them into production vehicles. And, thanks to their cautious ways, today’s vehicles are more reliable than ever. Recently, however, the addition of advanced Li-ion battery… Read more »
Insights into EV ownership from Norway
Anyone needing data on how electric drivers use their vehicles would be well-advised to look to Norway, the world’s undisputed EV capital. As of May, there were over 105,000 plug-in vehicles registered in the country. A recent survey of 8,000 vehicle owners by the Norwegian Institute of Transport Economics found a number of insights that… Read more »
The inevitability of electric buses
Electric transit buses enter the fast-follower market stage as the leaders work to remove the last barriers to adoption. Q&A with Proterra’s Ryan Popple and ABB’s Daan Nap on the state of the market and charging standards in North America and Europe. With each passing year, more decision makers are realizing that city buses are an… Read more »
Rimac Automobili invents the Croatian auto industry
Detroit is gradually losing its position as the epicenter of the auto industry. Nowadays, news of cutting-edge developments is more likely to come from Silicon Valley, Europe or China. The Eastern European nation of Croatia is pretty far from the centers of automotive power, but it’s here that a highly innovative firm called Rimac Automobili… Read more »
Is Tesla’s Autopilot 2.0 hardware already creeping into production vehicles?
The recent tragedy involving an Autopilot-equipped Model S has focused the world’s attention on the rapidly advancing field of vehicle autonomy. It’s widely assumed that Tesla is hard at work revamping Autopilot to make it better and safer. But in fact, the Disruptors of Detroit have been incrementally improving their autonomy technology on a continuous… Read more »
Battery500 consortium aims to develop 500 Wh/kg battery pack
One of the Obama Administration’s recently announced initiatives to promote EV adoption is the Battery500 consortium, which will be led by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and includes several other national laboratories and universities. The group will receive up to $10 million a year over five years from the DOE. The goal of Battery500 is… Read more »
Nissan: There will be more EV charging stations in the UK than petrol stations by 2020
As EV adoption accelerates, some parts of the world already have more charging facilities than gas stations, including Japan and Manhattan. Now Nissan is predicting that the UK will follow suit by 2020. The maker of the LEAF (and a tireless promoter and financer of public charging stations) forecasts that in 2020 there will be… Read more »
