×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

What motors used in these electric cars?

What motors used in these electric cars?

What motors used in these electric cars?

(OP)
I'm sure many of you guys have heard of the Tesla Roadster ( http://www.teslamotors.com/ ), the electric sports car.  There is also this other company that is making Shelby Cobras and new Mustangs with full electric motors.  I can't seem to find any information on who manufactures these motors.  I was wondering if anyone had any info?

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Tesla's motor is from a company called AC Propulsion, founded by Cocconi, who worked on the EV1 and the SunRaycer, from memory.

 

Cheers

Greg Locock

SIG:Please see FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Brusa and Siemens are also making some very nice AC motors specifically for automotive use.  Check out http://www.metricmind.com/

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Kollmorgen, G.E., and Swiger have been in the traction motor game for quite a number of years.  

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Siemens sold out to Continental so check their site.
Denso is another palce to look.

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

SilverBullet86,

I don't know about the company that you mentioned, but most home EV builders are using DC motors instead of AC motors like the Tesla. The most common for homebrew EVs that I've seen are series wound from Advanced DC.
 

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Teslamotors produces their own motor. They probably don't sell - if that's what you wanted.

http://www.teslamotors.com/blog2/?p=30

Fast forward once more to 2003: Tesla Motors's Power Electronics Module (PEM), in turn, uses a similar kind of variable frequency, IGBT inverter, based on what we learned from our friends Al Cocconi and the rest of the team at AC Propulsion, as well as from what JB and I had learned in our own careers as electrical engineers. Over the last 3 years, this PEM has been refined and improved by Tesla's team of electrical, firmware, and manufacturing engineers.

At the same time, Tesla's motor engineering team developed our own custom 3-phase AC induction motor – based on Tesla's patents, based on the EV-1 motor, based on the AC Propulsion motor. Like Tesla's motors, the EV-1 motor, and the AC Propulsion motor, ours gets its incredible efficiency largely due to its copper rotor.

We've studied the EV-1 motor carefully. The technique they used to construct their copper rotor was not great, resulting in suboptimal efficiency, and (I suspect) low manufacturing yield.

We have studied AC Propulsion's rotor manufacturing technique. Their process creates a motor with much better efficiency. But there is quite a bit of hand labor and tweekmanship in the process, and it would not work for the production volumes we forecast at Tesla.

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Unless I am mistaken the state of the art is Ac reluctance.  Some modern Locomotives and light rail use it again unless I am mistaken.  I know some recent fuel cell demonstrator busses use ac reluctance type motors.

RE: What motors used in these electric cars?

Actually, all Hybrids (Honda, Toyota etc.) have DC brushless motors with permanent magnets. They offer higher peak efficiencies, but are less efficient at low loads. They also offer lots of torque per power.

Teslamotors is an exception with its 3-phase AC induction motor (an asynchronous motor with a squirrel cage rotor).
No need for permanent magnets and high efficiency over a wider range - although with lower peak efficiencies.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources