Limited range, marginal performance and high cost are the major factors impeding potential market acceptance of electric vehicles. Advancing the technology of electric vehicle powertrains-motors, controllers and transmissions will help reduce these objectionable electric vehicle characteristics. Ford Motor Company has been awarded a research and development program supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Program and managed by the NASA Lewis Research Center to develop an advanced electric vehicle powertrain which will be more energy efficient and cost effective than any known to be under development today. This paper discusses the NASA research contract, DEN 3-238, Advanced Electric Vehicle Powertrain Program, including technical characteristics of the powertrain concept being developed. The powertrain includes an ac induction motor, automatic transmission, final drive and differential integrated into a single unit mounted on the wheel axis, an electric subsystem (the ac motor, dc-ac inverter and inverter/motor controller), and a microcomputer-based vehicle control system. The electric subsystem, which includes an advanced power transistor, is being developed by general electric, a major subcontractor for the program. (A)
Abstract