Eva
Electric Taxi
TUM
CREATE has unveiled its electric taxi prototype, codenamed EVA, at the 43rd
Tokyo Motor Show today. It displayED at Booth 8 in West Hall 4 of the Tokyo Big
Sight from 22 November to 1 December 2013.
EVA
serves as a platform to showcase the results of the innovations and
developments at TUM CREATE, a joint research programme by Technische
Universität München (TUM) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
A
key highlight is the car's super-fast charging system. It is designed to be
recharged in just 15 minutes to cover a realistic range of 200 km (based on
Singapore driving patterns), which will be an industry benchmark. Other
features found on EVA include the extensive use of lightweight materials and
energy-saving solutions such as individualized overhead air-conditioning.
Professor
Dr. Wolfgang A. Herrmann, President of Technische Universität München, said,
"This new electric taxi for tropical mega cities, developed and
constructed by two leading universities, highlights the successful
collaboration of TUM and NTU. The scientific and technological breakthroughs
are based on a spirit of mutual trust and understanding. For more than ten
years, Technische Universität München has been operating its branch TUM Asia in
Singapore, which has a current enrolment of 380 students and produced hundreds
alumni. It is a great joy for me to see that our untiring joint efforts,
supported by the National Research Foundation, have borne fruits now."
Professor
Bertil Andersson, NTU's President, said the technological innovations developed
for EVA is a great demonstration of how two of the world's top engineering
universities can successfully collaborate to combine their expertise and
knowledge to solve the tough challenges of today.
"NTU's
deep expertise in energy technologies, such as battery systems, wireless
charging, and materials science, in combination with TUM's strengths in
automotive and electromobility, gave our research team a strong platform in
which to design and build EVA on," Prof Andersson added. "A robust
and energy-efficient electric taxi for use in real world conditions is
testimony of our strengths in engineering and how we apply it to make a
difference. It is also a reminder to the world that it is essential for all of
us to play a part for our environment and such R&D efforts are an
investment towards a more sustainable future for everyone."
Transportation
companies around the world typically re-purpose passenger cars as taxis.
However, the challenge of current electric vehicles is the extremely limited
range and long recharge times (up to 8 hours), making them impractical as
taxis. TUM CREATE aims to address these issues, as well as the unique
challenges posed by the heat and humidity in tropical megacities, through its
research and development. Unlike temperate climates, passenger cooling and
battery pack heat management are issues specific to tropical and equatorial
regions.
As
a form of public transportation, introducing e-taxis into the local taxi fleets
has a high leveraging effect to decrease carbon emissions.
"While
taxis account for less than 3% of the vehicle population in Singapore, they
contribute to 15% of the total distance travelled," explains Principal
Investigator Dr. Daniel Gleyzes. "The average two- shift taxi covers over
500 km a day."
EVA
was designed from the ground-up as an e-taxi and is a result of
interdisciplinary research in the areas of energy storage, battery charging,
thermal management, and lightweight materials and design.
TUM
CREATE is funded by the Campus for Research Excellence And Technological
Enterprise (CREATE) programme under the National Research Foundation (NRF), an
agency of Singapore's Prime Minister's Office.
This
project milestone marks the first time that a Singapore-based organization is
participating and presenting a vehicle in the 59-year history of Asia's most
important automotive tradeshow.
