AURORA, ON—LG Electronics and Magna International Inc. have formed a joint venture to manufacture e-motors, inverters, on-board chargers and related e-drive systems to support the growing global shift toward vehicle electrification. LG Magna e-Powertrain will combine Magna’s strength in electric powertrain systems and world-class automotive manufacturing with LG’s expertise in component development for e-motors and inverters.
“The joint venture will enable [our] two companies to continue to grow [our] electric power train product offerings by leveraging existing technologies, engineering capabilities and global footprints,” says Swamy Kotagiri, president of Magna. “The market for e-motors, inverters and electric drive systems is expected to have significant growth between now and 2030, and the JV will target this fast-growing global market with a world-class portfolio.
“LG will help accelerate [our] time to market and scale of manufacturing for electrification components, while software and systems integration are competencies that [we] bring to this venture,” explains Kotagiri. “This JV will allow customers to select from a portfolio of reliable components through to integration of an entire electrified powertrain.
“This partnership fully aligns with our strategy of being at the forefront of electrification and supporting automakers with a diverse and world-class portfolio,” claims Kotagiri. “By combining our strengths, we expect to gain investment efficiency and speed to market with synergies to achieve more, all while continuing to capitalize on the acceleration of the electrified power train market.”
By John Doe, Contributing writer
LG, Magna Form Joint Venture to Focus on EV Power Trains
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CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA—Proterra has begun assembling battery packs inside its factory here that produces electric buses. Batteries manufactured at the facility will feature Proterra’s redesigned modules with next-generation cells developed with LG Energy Solution.
“The new battery packs will improve on [our] industry-leading energy systems with greater energy storage capacity and higher power density to enable increased range and faster charge times,” says Jack Allen, CEO of Proterra. “The colocated battery line is designed to optimize space and demonstrates [our] ability to bring state-of-the-art battery production directly to commercial vehicle OEMs.
“[Our] new Proterra ZX5 can now be equipped with 675-kilowatts of energy, the most energy storage of any 40-foot electric bus available in the market today,” claims Allen.
“[Our] technology advancements enable efficient production in a small footprint and [our] transit bus business benefits from colocation of battery production,” adds Allen. “[The assembly] line was established within a year and showcases [our] ability to design and deploy a modular and capital efficient manufacturing process for optimal electric vehicle manufacturing.”
In addition to its transit bus business, Proterra provides EV technology and expertise to other medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicle manufacturers. Customers include companies such as Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. and Thomas Built Buses Inc., which produce electric delivery vans and school buses, respectively.
By John Doe, Contributing writer
Proterra Opens Battery Assembly Line in Southern California
Amazon Subsidiary Unveils Autonomous Urban Taxi
FOSTER CITY, CA—Zoox, a subsidiary of Amazon, has unveiled its much-anticipated autonomous vehicle. The electric robotaxi is designed to operate in dense urban environments. It features bidirectional driving capabilities and four-wheel steering that enables the vehicle to maneuver through compact spaces and change directions without the need to reverse.
Zoox claims that the mint green-colored EV is equipped with more than 100 new safety innovations that don’t exist in conventional vehicles. “These include a novel airbag system for bidirectional vehicles and carriage seating that envelops passengers—the equivalent of five-star crash safety protections for all four seats,” says Jesse Levinson, chief technology officer.
“The unique sensor architecture combines cameras, radar and LiDAR to obtain an unrivaled 270-degree field of view from all four corners of the vehicle, eliminating typical blind spots and allowing the vehicle to consistently track objects next to, and behind it—including pedestrians, cyclists and other road users,” explains Levinson.
The robotaxi, which is capable of operating at speeds up to 75 mph in both directions, is currently being tested in Las Vegas and San Francisco. The vehicles are being assembled at a factory in Fremont, CA, that has a capacity to mass-produce up to 15,000 units annually.
Lucid Builds New EV Factory in Arizona
CASA GRANDE, AZ—Lucid Motor has completed construction of its new assembly plant here, which it claims is the “first greenfield, dedicated electric vehicle factory to be built in North America.” The company’s first model, the Lucid Air sedan, is due to roll off the line early next year.
Lucid claims that it is using “innovative production processes and state-of-the-art equipment” in the new factory, which it has dubbed AMP-1 (Advanced Manufacturing Plant).
“The Lucid manufacturing system embraces advanced processes, such as an aircraft-inspired riveted and bonded monocoque body structure replacing spot welds, which endows Lucid Air with state-of-the-art structural efficiency,” says Peter Rawlinson, CEO of Lucid Motors.
According to Rawlinson, the plant will be capable of an initial production capacity of 30,000 units annually. “A total of four phases are planned through 2028, taking the square footage of the factory from its current 999,000 square feet to 5.1 million square feet,” he explains. “In its final form, AMP-1’s manufacturing capacity will be up to 400,000 units per year.”
“In building this factory, we adhered to several important manufacturing philosophies, including the tenets of ‘future ready’ and ‘on time,’ together which have allowed us to effectively manage our investment and build a brand new factory from the ground up,” adds Peter Hochholdinger, vice president of manufacturing at Lucid Motors. “As we add new platforms and vehicles to our lineup, the planning that went into this facility ensures that we will always be able to keep up with growing customer demand for advanced electric vehicles.”
Monarch Tractor Can OperatE Without Farmers
LIVERMORE, CA—Monarch Tractor has unveiled what it claims is “the world’s first fully electric, driver optional, smart tractor integrated on a single platform.” The 40-hp machine is designed for basic agricultural applications such as spraying orchards and vineyards. According to the company, it is 42 percent more efficient than traditional diesel tractors.
The compact tractor features a low-torque electric motor that delivers 200 newton-meters (Nm) of torque compared to the 90 to 120 Nm of a diesel engine. It can operate with or without a driver. The machine can perform preprogrammed tasks without a driver or an operator can use Monarch’s interactive automation features, including Gesture and Shadow modes, to have the tractor follow a worker on the job.
“Traditional diesel tractors produce roughly 14 times the emissions as the average car,” says Praveen Penmetsa, CEO of Monarch Tractor. “[Our] tractor is 100 percent electric and has zero tailpipe emissions. It also serves as a 3-in-1 electrification tool operating not only as a tractor.”
Monarch Tractor will be assembling its machines in Livermore, CA, with first shipments scheduled to begin this fall. “We have a different approach to manufacturing; we have a microfactory strategy,” claims Mark Schwager, president of Monarch Tractor.
SAE Launches Autonomous Vehicle Standards Committee
WARRENDALE, PA—SAE International has formed a new committee that will develop standards for autonomous vehicles. The Cooperative Automation Driving System (CADS) Committee will focus on creating standards to improve communication between ADS-operated vehicles. The new committee will fall under SAE's Vehicle Safety System Group.
"As ADS technology advances and adoption becomes more widespread, it is critical that our roadways and surrounding infrastructure are prepared to safely and accurately support the technology," says Keith Wilson, program manager of Global Ground Vehicle Standards at SAE International. "The new CADS committee will play a critical role in optimizing our vehicles and infrastructure to share important information, which will ultimately improve safety and reduce the number of auto accidents."
The committee's work will focus on Cooperative Driving Automation (CDA), which enables equipped vehicles to communicate with other vehicles, infrastructure, cyclists and pedestrians by using machine-to-machine communication technology to enable cooperation between two or more traffic participants operating in close proximity.
“This information can be used by those entities to coordinate their respective movements, or change their state, thereby reducing the risk of collision, as well as facilitating the mobility goals of each participating entity,” explains Wilson.
World’s First High-Powered Electric Tugboat Hits the Water
GORINCHEM, Holland—Damen Shipyards Group recently launched the world’s first fully electric tugboat with a 70-ton pulling capacity at its facility in Song Cam, Vietnam. The RSD-E Tug 2513 will have a total power of 3,800 kilowatts and a top speed of 12 knots when it enters service next year in New Zealand at the Port of Auckland.
The 81-foot-long boat, dubbed Sparky, will help the port achieve its goal of becoming a zero-emission facility by 2040.
Echandia Marine in Sweden supplied an E-LTO energy storage system (ESS), an air-cooled modular design based on Toshiba LTO battery cells. The 2.8-megawatt-hour ESS was optimized for the RSD-E Tug application.
Sparky is also equipped with two Kongsberg US255 L PM FP azimuth thrusters that feature permanent magnet electric motors. The state-of-the-art thrusters were assembled at Kongsberg’s maritime facility in Rauma, Finland.
The Damen shipyard has already built several other fully electric vessels, including dredgers and ferries.
Earlier this year, the world’s first all-electric tugboat, the Zeetug built by Navtek Naval Technologies Inc., entered service in Istanbul.
New Electronic Module Safeguards Autonomous Vehicles
BERLIN—To safeguard against total failure and a potentially dangerous situation, engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration (IZM) have embarked on an R&D project dubbed HiBord. The goal is to develop an electronic disconnect device that is able to isolate any faults in vehicle electrical systems. The IZM engineers have already successfully tested a module in a BMW i3.
“In today’s electrical system architectures for automated vehicles, it is standard practice that areas affected by a fault are isolated by means of an overload protection system,” says Phillip Arnold, a research associate at Fraunhofer IZM. “This setup means that the affected component is shut down completely in the event of a fault.
“For automated and fully automated vehicles, such an approach is only viable provided there is redundancy for all components and the onboard electrical system,” notes Arnold. “That is, they are present in duplicate. This is expensive, increases weight and consumes space in onboard electrical systems.
In the HiBord project, Arnold and his IZM colleagues partnered with the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Systems and Device Technology to develop a disconnect device that shuts off faulty components in the electrical system while still safeguarding the supply of power to safety-critical components. This guarantees safe driving without the need to install a duplicate onboard electrical system.
