By mmillikin WiTricity, the industry pioneer in wireless power transfer (WPT), has acquired from Qualcomm Incorporated and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. certain technology platform and IP assets, which will bring more than 1,500 patents and patent applications related to wireless charging that WiTricity will own or control. Through the transaction, Qualcomm Incorporated will become a minority…
By mmillikin A novel ruthenium-based catalyst developed by researchers at UC Santa Cruz (UCSC) has shown markedly better performance than commercial platinum catalysts in alkaline water electrolysis for hydrogen production. The catalyst is a nanostructured composite material composed of carbon nanowires with ruthenium atoms bonded to nitrogen and carbon to form active sites within the…
By mmillikin by Michael Sivak. This article is the latest publication in a series examining recent changes in various aspects of motorization in the United States. The focus here is on distance driven per person and per household, as opposed to the absolute distance driven (which depends, in part, on the continuously increasing size of…
By mmillikin Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has become majority stakeholder of XALT Energy, a Midland, Mich.-based global developer and manufacturer of lithium-ion technology solutions targeted for heavy-duty mobility applications. In March 2018, Freudenberg announced it had acquired a 31% ownership stake in XALT Energy through a multi-million dollar investment in its operations. (Earlier post.) Now, increasing…
By mmillikin FreeWire Technologies, a pioneer in flexible mobile power and EV charging technology (earlier post), will demonstrate its Mobi Gen and Mobi EV Charger units at DistribuTECH in partnership with Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), the nation’s sixth-largest utility. SMUD is testing the units for deployment within Sacramento. Mobi EV Chargers are suited for…
By mmillikin by Michael Sivak. In a 2011 article, Brandon Schoettle and I showed that the proportion of young Americans aged 16 to 39 years with a driver’s license decreased substantially from 1983 to 2008. (In contrast, the proportion of older persons with a driver’s license increased during the same period.) This article reports on…
By mmillikin Volkswagen has equipped its natural gas models of the Polo TGI and Golf TGI with a third natural gas tank made of specially coated, high-strength steel. The Golf’s tank has a volume of 23 liters and increases the total CNG tank volume to 115 liters, or 17.3 kg respectively, which offers a range…
By mmillikin Customers of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand in Germany are once again placing more orders for diesel vehicles. In 2018, the share of incoming orders for vehicles equipped with the latest diesel technology as a proportion of the overall vehicle portfolio was 43% compared to 39% in 2017. Demand for diesel cars was…
By mmillikin Electrify America is restoring full capacity to its entire network after its high-powered charging cables cleared extensive testing from the cable manufacturer, HUBER+SUHNER. At HUBER+SUHNER’s recommendation, Electrify America shut down many of the high-powered CCS chargers (150kW – 350kW) in its network on Friday while the company and HUBER+SUHNER investigated a potential safety…
By mmillikin Swedish car makers NEVS AB and Koenigsegg AB are forming a strategic partnership, enabling the development of parallel vehicle models in slightly higher volumes with emphasis on electrification, as well as strengthening growth opportunities in the hypercar segment. NEVS is investing €150 million, thereby taking a 20% minority stake in Koenigsegg’s parent company….
By mmillikin BP’s venturing business, BP Ventures, has invested in PowerShare, an integrated hardware and software solutions provider for electric vehicle (EV) charging in China. The investment is part of PowerShare’s Series A round, which was led by BP Ventures and draws support from DETONG Capital Partners, a leading private equity firm in China. PowerShare…
By mmillikin BorgWarner is introducing a fully integrated e-axle—iDM—that packages a transmission, electric motor featuring BorgWarner’s efficient bar-wound stator solution and specially developed power electronics. The company already has the iDM’s forerunner—the electric drive module (eDM)— in serial production. The iDM product family is available in three different versions (iDM XS, iDM S, iDM M)…
By mmillikin The Volkswagen Group is investing US$10 million in the US-based startup Forge Nano Inc. with a view to reinforcing its specialist knowledge in the field of battery research. Forge Nano, formerly PneumatiCoat Technologies, is investigating processes for scaling atomic layer deposition (ALD) to create new core-shell materials, especially for battery applications, (earlier post)…
By mmillikin Mercedes-Benz Cars will build a battery factory at the site in Jawor, Poland, and thus extend its global battery production network to nine factories. We will electrify the complete portfolio until 2022 and will be able to offer in each segment various electrified alternatives to our customers. This includes more than ten pure…
By mmillikin Toyota Motor Corporation and Panasonic Corporation have concluded a business-integration contract and a joint-venture contract toward the establishment of a new joint venture related to the automotive prismatic battery business by the end of 2020 (pending approval from the competition-law authorities in the countries and regions concerned). Toyota will hold 51% of the…