Eco-business / Social Venture

August 3, 2005

 

Hino Motors Develops Hybrid Truck with Contactless Power Transfer System

Keywords: Climate Change Eco-business / Social Venture Government Manufacturing industry 

Hino Motors, Ltd. of Japan has developed a next-generation parallel-hybrid (diesel/electric) IPT heavy-duty truck which can be powered solely by an electric motor, as well as by an internal combustion engine. This is a concept model equipped with IPT (Inductive Power Transfer), a large contactless power transfer system. The truck is one of the vehicles developed under the Next-generation Low-emission Vehicle Development Project promoted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. The new truck attracted attention when exhibited at the ministry's booth in the Tokyo Motor Show held in November 2004.

The IPT system allows electric power to be transferred from a power supply coil embedded just below the road surface to an on-board coil installed at the bottom of a vehicle, without any mechanical contact. A vehicle with the IPT system can recharge its battery while stopped directly above the embedded coil. With the battery charged for about 15 minutes, the vehicle can cover a distance of 10 to 15 kilometers.

Compared to typical parallel-hybrid vehicles, the newly developed truck has achieved a further reduction in exhaust gases because the truck, with smaller engine displacement, is more dependent on the electric motor. Furthermore, due to the adoption of the one-way clutch mechanism, the truck can be powered solely by electricity when starting and accelerating. This also reduces exhaust emissions significantly.

The company is placing high expectations on further development of the technology, saying "If it is commercialized, the advent of full-fledged, eco-friendly commercial vehicles which run almost entirely on electricity will be on the horizon."



Posted: 2005/08/03 02:16:50 PM
Japanese version

 

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