I realize that automakers are investing in battery technology, but with numbers like $26,000 for a 40kWh battery it seems that this is where the bulk of R&D money needs to be spent.
What are the major cost drivers? The battery technology, MFG technology or volume?
I like to think I can be objective in my purchasing decisions making conscious environmental choices. But I am not likely to buy an electic car when I can buy a fairly nice second car for what the battery of the first costs.
Interesting post, Chuck. As you well note, there is thread of consistency here: Auto makers looking to appeal to the mass market (i.e., want lower cost) go for the smaller, less expensive batteries while the higher-end models go for the gusto with big, albeit, very pricey batteries to support their all-electric designs.
I'm wondering, though, if those companies opting for the smaller, less expensive batteries will ultimately jeopardize their offerings because consumers won't see the value as a whole in what they're expecting from an EV, even a hybrid EV. If battery size is inevitably going to go up and the prices accordingly, isn't this strategy just prolonging the inevitable and setting the wrong expectation?
UK-based Plastic Logic and French company ISORG have created what the pair tout as a first in flexible printed electronics: a large area, conformable, organic image sensor printed on plastic.
For 3D printing to make the jump from rapid prototyping to manufacturing, engineers will need to find easier ways to move products from their CAD screens to their printers.
Gigabit and PoE are two networking technologies moving ahead in tandem as industrial users power remote Ethernet devices such as IP security cameras at 1,000 Mbps over existing CAT5 cable.
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For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
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