Chuck, that's a really good point about EVs. One of the reasons carbon composites are becoming popular in aircraft is their non-conductivity, which is useful for planes flying through electrical storms, for example. That does seem like an obvious benefit for EVs. Regarding what happens to the motors when they are impacted, good question. The company's description: http://www.sim-drive.com/english/technology/index.html#Shimizu_In_wheel_Motor-Drive sounds like the frame may have been made extra-rugged to accommodate this.
Rob, I think you're right. Several automakers are introducing newer technologies, such as plastics and recycled materials, into their EV lines first. That appears to be partly to test out these technologies on lower-volume product runs to get the kinks out before committing to mass manufacturing, but also to help with the weight problem caused by batteries.
I don't remember where I read it -- might have been Design News, or Aviation Week, but some years ago someone built a motor in nosewheel system to let airliners push back from the gate without needing a tug. As I recall, part of the puzzle there was to get enough torque and low enough RPM with reasonable drive electronics, and the answer to that involved having an unusually large number of poles.
It seems like it would be great in town or for low speed commuting, but highway speeds would require overcoming some large gyroscopic effects. I'd like to see some specs on the steering control system.
I think that was the main problem in the original design of 100 years ago wasn't it?
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.
New versions of BASF's Ecovio line are both compostable and designed for either injection molding or thermoforming. These combinations are becoming more common for the single-use bioplastics used in food service and food packaging applications, but are still not widely available.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
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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