Motor

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...

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...

In Conversation

Andrew Cross

Integral Powertrain’s CTO tells Rory Jackson how he has come to lead the company’s development of high performance consumer EV drives. One of Andrew Cross’ most prominent early memories is the engineering company his father owned and ran, designing and manufacturing polymer parts, and developing much of his own production systems and tooling...

Web exclusive

Freedom from rare earth magnets?

A good alternative to magnets made from rare earth elements such as neodymium, dysprosium and samarium – which are expensive, volatile in price and supply and polluting in their extraction – is something of a holy grail for the electrical industry in general and EVs in particular. Enter Niron Magnetics with its Clean Earth iron […]

Dossier

Irizar Group ie truck

Rory Jackson investigates the development of this electric/hybrid refuse truck, which is already operating in various European countries. Developing heavy EVs for urban applications, where regulations on emissions and noise are the strictest of any operating environment, requires a wealth of research...

Web exclusive

OxDrive joint venture unveils self-contained e-hub for farm vehicles

OEMs developing small EVs for agricultural applications, including those intended to have autonomous capabilities, want to focus their efforts on the core agricultural functions and the autonomy (writes Peter Donaldson). Typically, however, they are faced with specifying the driveline, sourcing components and integrating them, says Chris Horton of OxDrive, a joint venture between Performance Projects […]

Focus on...

Condition monitoring

Peter Donaldson examines the factors involved in keeping tabs on the health and performance of key EV components. While an EV’s most costly component is its battery, there are also many other subsystems – inverters, generators and so on – whose condition is critical to safety and efficiency. Machinery health and usage monitoring is well-established...

Digest

VIA Motors CHEMA skateboard

This hardware system puts modularity at the heart of commercial EV designs. Rory Jackson describes how it was designed and developed. For more than 10 years, Utah based VIA Motors has strived to develop technologies and system architectures for EVs to bring to fruition its vision for the next generation...

Dossier

Energica Eva Ribelle

Rory Jackson explores how this e-bike combines the efficiency for urban commuting with the performance for recreational use. Since its founding in 2014, the Energica Motor Company has sought to combine cuttingedge electrical engineering with designs that capture the ergonomics and aesthetics needed to thrive in the world...

New Products

Eviation unveils its production all-electric Alice aircraft as it prepares for inaugural flight

Eviation Aircraft, a global manufacturer of all-electric aircraft, has unveiled the design for its Alice all-electric aircraft, which is on track for first flight later this year. The production configuration defines Alice’s path to certification, and entry into service is expected in 2024. The Alice can carry nine passengers and two crew members. It is […]