Developing these all-electric cement mixer trucks has meant blending the bespoke with the off­-the-shelf. Rory Jackson reports. The conventional cement truck is a diesel-powered vehicle that spends much of each working day at a standstill. However, whether it is having concrete...

The world’s largest contract manufacturer is offering car and truck makers an open platform for EVs (writes Nick Flaherty). Foxconn Technology has developed an electric powertrain, chassis and battery system for a range of EVs that can be made by itself, by OEM partners...

For ICE powertrain companies looking to transition into e-powertrain engineering, the construction of the new test cells poses on of the biggest cost-barrier to entry, writes Rory Jackson. High-speed dynamometers and test benches capable of measuring the performances of e-motors are inevitably pricey, and many such companies already…

A sensing and balancing chip for battery packs that can extend the range and reliability of EVs has been launched (writes Nick Flaherty). The TLE9012AQU from Infineon Technologies supports up to 12 battery cells with an accuracy of ±5.8 mV over a pack’s temperature and voltage range as well as its life cycle. This accuracy extends an EV’s range...

Researchers at the University of Exeter, in the UK, have teamed up with Supacat to develop an electric version of the 6 x 6 All-Terrain Mobility Platform, or ATMP (writes Nick Flaherty). The ATMP, first developed in the 1980s, already operates in a range of harsh terrains for military applications using a diesel engine. The conversion to an electric powertrain had to be rugged...

Researchers at the University of Bristol, in the UK, have developed a new type of electromechanical nanodevice that can be used as a non-volatile memory in high-temperature power systems in EVs and aircraft (writes Nick Flaherty). The leakage current in transistors used as electronic memory devices increases with temperature, so an electromechanical relay built on a micromachined...

Peter Donaldson reports on the latest development trends in engine control units, and the factors driving them.

While the entire powertrain of an EV is much simpler than that of a typical modern car with an internal combustion engine, the number and sophistication of the electronic control units (ECUs) distributed around road-going EVs in particular continues to grow as...

Electric solar car developer Lightyear is working with Dutch multinational Royal DSM on the technology for its solar roof (writes Nick Flaherty). The companies will integrate solar power roofs in various EVs, including cars, vans and buses...

New component measurement technologies are complementing traditional methods, and are now being integrated into EV production lines, writes Peter Donaldson.

Metrology methods and equipment used in the manufacture of EVs are no different in principle from those applied to IC- engined ones, but their powertrains are built using a different set of...

Nick Flaherty explains the different ways of protecting against EMI in EV platforms, and why it needs to be considered from the earliest stages of system design.

Essentially there are only three ways to handle electromagnetic interference (EMI) – don’t produce it, filter it out or shield from it. These options lead to a wide range of design trade-offs in e-mobility designs, from the power systems through the...