The Exeter-based firm’s new range is designed to offer optimum performance, quality and price, with the company promising that its new Axial Flux Permanent Magnet motor, which can be assembled within one hour, will be one of the lowest $ per kW motor on the market. There is also a new integrated Lithium Battery Pack Module which provides a simple, scalable plug and play power cell; and a Battery Management System that can support the full range of Lithium-ion chemistries.
Ashwoods- already know as the UK’s largest supplier of hybrid vehicles, supplying hybrid vans to the likes of the Environment Agency, Royal Mail and BT-developed the range of components as part of its continued development of its Hybrid Drive Technology. The new products were developed as part of a consortium with Citroen, Life Batt and Sevcon with grant funding support from the government-backed Technology Strategy Board.
The company believes the new range of components offers a unique combination of durability, performance and value for money – a combination that Ashwoods Global Applications Manager; Bob Beckwith explained was a market challenge that needed a solution.
“Battery Management is probably the single biggest challenge facing the Electric Vehicle (EV) and Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) market as it affects all aspects of vehicle performance,” he said.
“One of the greatest challenges that our engineers faced when developing the Hybrid Drive technology was the lack of effective battery management. There are no Battery Management Systems (BMS’s) available on the market that can effectively manage Lithium batteries on a demanding hybrid drive cycle.”
The company is now targeting the US market where Bob believes that Ashwoods Energy can break into a market that is currently dominated by larger companies.
