Here's a look at some things to come:
I just got my June 6th edition of design news magazine. They had an article by Raser Technologies( http://www.rasertech.com/ ) where they put their electric motor in a Formula Race car to demonstrate it's capabilities. It's enough hype to drool over.
The big claim is that they don't loose efficiency like standard induction motors when they're operated beyond their torque range. Only 3-4% drop in efficiency at 4x their torque range as opposed to ~60% drop normally. It's also significantly cheaper to build one of these than the permanent magnet engines ( like Toyota uses ).
They aren't letting much out of the bag because their waiting for their 20+ patents applications to come through.
BTW, This is the engine that the US Army is putting into their next generation Hummer.
Here is the comparison with the Prius engine:
Prius (Toyota)
-----------------------------------
Motor type: Permanent Magnet
Torque: 400 Nm ( 295 ft-lbs )
Dimensions: 205 x 320 ( est. )
Volume: 16.5 L ( est. )
Torque Density: 24.3 Nm/L
Weight: ( not published )
Cooling: Liquid
Symetron P2 (Raser Tech)
-----------------------------------
Motor type: AC Induction
Torque: 570 Nm ( 420 ft-lbs )
Dimensions: 205 x 320
Volume: 16.5 L
Torque Density: 35 Nm/L
Weight: 67 kg
Cooling: Air
Power:
179 kW (240 HP) @3000 rpm
373 kW (500 HP) @6250 rpm
I just got my June 6th edition of design news magazine. They had an article by Raser Technologies( http://www.rasertech.com/ ) where they put their electric motor in a Formula Race car to demonstrate it's capabilities. It's enough hype to drool over.
The big claim is that they don't loose efficiency like standard induction motors when they're operated beyond their torque range. Only 3-4% drop in efficiency at 4x their torque range as opposed to ~60% drop normally. It's also significantly cheaper to build one of these than the permanent magnet engines ( like Toyota uses ).
They aren't letting much out of the bag because their waiting for their 20+ patents applications to come through.
BTW, This is the engine that the US Army is putting into their next generation Hummer.
Here is the comparison with the Prius engine:
Prius (Toyota)
-----------------------------------
Motor type: Permanent Magnet
Torque: 400 Nm ( 295 ft-lbs )
Dimensions: 205 x 320 ( est. )
Volume: 16.5 L ( est. )
Torque Density: 24.3 Nm/L
Weight: ( not published )
Cooling: Liquid
Symetron P2 (Raser Tech)
-----------------------------------
Motor type: AC Induction
Torque: 570 Nm ( 420 ft-lbs )
Dimensions: 205 x 320
Volume: 16.5 L
Torque Density: 35 Nm/L
Weight: 67 kg
Cooling: Air
Power:
179 kW (240 HP) @3000 rpm
373 kW (500 HP) @6250 rpm