[EVDL] Controller or Motor Problem?
Hello everyone, I've owned a long-time conversion for the last 7 years or so. It is a medium performance conversion with ThunderSky cells (still going!), Kelly KDHD Series Controller and ADC FB1-4001-A series DC motor. You can see its history at: www.evalbum.com/2778 I'm having a performance problem with the car at low speeds, and trying to figure out whether it's the motor or the controller. The symptoms are: - Very sluggish acceleration at low motor speeds. - Almost no voltage droop from the batteries while having the sluggish acceleration (Low battery amps, as expected). - Better acceleration at motor speeds above 3000 rpm. - Good battery amps (60-70A) when driving at highway speeds. Normal performance when operating at battery voltage. If I can get to highway speeds, the car does fine, but starting out in 1st gear to get started is excruciating. I think my 0-60 time is probably 50-60 seconds. Without a clutch, it takes about 5 seconds between shifts for the motor to spin down the 1000 rpm to match the transmission. A little less if I abuse the synchros. >From this, I'm sure that my amps, at low voltage, when the motor is turning slowly, are limited for some reason. I'm not sure if the controller isn't providing the amps, or the motor isn't drawing them. The controller is supposedly rated for 1000A, but it's never done that. However, it always had enough before to accelerate a little better than the original gas car. I did check the brushes and they were in sad shape. The ADC motor has 4 pairs of brushes, on two windings. On one winding, the left side on both brushes was mostly shot. On one brush, the copper braids were completely gone. On the second brush, the copper braids were nearly gone, just a few strands of copper left. The brushes have been replaced, shaped and run-in for about 20 hours now. I'm running the motor at about 1500 rpm with no load (transmission connected but out of gear). Performance is a little better, but still not right. I still have another problem. My thoughts: - Is it possible that the brushes aren't full seated yet? Could that cause this kind of problem? - What can I do to put an artificial load on the controller to see how many motor amps it's providing? - I don't have instrumentation on the motor amps right now. Is there an easy way to do that? - Is there an easy way to provide power to the motor while under load and the car is moving? I would have to go to a shop to have the motor pulled to test it outside the car. - Any other motor checks I should do? Any other thoughts anyone has? Any suggestions on the tests above to isolate the problem? Thanks in advance for any help. Mike ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
Re: [EVDL] OT Toyota admits 'Elon Musk is right'> that fcvs are incredibly dumb
anaka, the chief engineer in charge of Toyota’s > > Mirai, admitted to Reuters this week that plug-in cars make more sense: > > > > “Elon Musk is right – it’s better to charge the electric car directly > > by > > plugging in,” > > > > But Toyota chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada adds that they don’t see the two > > technologies competing and that they are not giving up on hydrogen (yet): > > > > “We don’t really see an adversary ‘zero-sum’ relationship between the > > EV > > (electric vehicle) and the hydrogen car. We’re not about to give up on > > hydrogen electric fuel-cell technology at all.” > > > > They want to keep pushing the Mirai, which has been a poor performer. > They > > only managed to sell a few as compliance cars in California despite the > > generous incentives. > > > > Electrek’s Take > > > > He is not wrong that the two technologies don’t compete. They don’t > compete > > in the minds of potential customers, but they compete for investments > from > > automakers and those investments lead to further development and > production > > for one or the other. > > > > It becomes clear when you look at automakers who have been heavily > > investing > > in hydrogen cars, like Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai, and see that they have > > become laggers in the EV space. > > > > The sooner they give up on hydrogen, at least for passenger cars, the > > sooner > > they will be able to divert those billions of dollars in investments into > > battery-electric vehicles. I say passenger cars because Toyota is also > > working on hydrogen trucks, which make better economic sense. > > > > But for passenger cars, it makes no sense based on efficiency and > > economics, > > which makes it hard to understand why some automakers are still pushing > so > > hard for it ... > > [© electrek.co] > > > > > > > > http://www.news18.com/news/auto/hydrogen-fuel-cell-car- > > push-dumb-toyota-makes-a-case-for-the-mirai-1558347.html > > Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Car Push 'Dumb'? Toyota Makes a Case For The Mirai > > October 26, 2017 ... which usually goes to waste when unused, and > > electricity generated by solar and ... “Elon Musk is right - it's better > to > > charge the electric car directly by plugging in,” ... > > > > > > > > > > For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: > > http://evdl.org/archive/ > > > > > > {brucedp.neocities.org} > > > > -- > > Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ > > ___ > > UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub > > http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org > > Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/ > > group/NEDRA) > > > > > > > -- > Michael E. Ross > (919) 585-6737 Land > (19) 901-2805 Cell and Text > (919) 576-0824 <https://www.google.com/voice/b/0?pli=1#phones> Tablet, > Google Phone and Text > -- next part -- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/ > attachments/20171029/3a086242/attachment.html> > ___ > UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub > http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org > Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/ > group/NEDRA) > > -- Larry Gales -- next part -- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20171029/17f5210e/attachment.html> ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
Re: [EVDL] OT Toyota admits 'Elon Musk is right'> that fcvs are incredibly dumb
l a few as compliance cars in California despite the > generous incentives. > > Electrek’s Take > > He is not wrong that the two technologies don’t compete. They don’t compete > in the minds of potential customers, but they compete for investments from > automakers and those investments lead to further development and production > for one or the other. > > It becomes clear when you look at automakers who have been heavily > investing > in hydrogen cars, like Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai, and see that they have > become laggers in the EV space. > > The sooner they give up on hydrogen, at least for passenger cars, the > sooner > they will be able to divert those billions of dollars in investments into > battery-electric vehicles. I say passenger cars because Toyota is also > working on hydrogen trucks, which make better economic sense. > > But for passenger cars, it makes no sense based on efficiency and > economics, > which makes it hard to understand why some automakers are still pushing so > hard for it ... > [© electrek.co] > > > > http://www.news18.com/news/auto/hydrogen-fuel-cell-car- > push-dumb-toyota-makes-a-case-for-the-mirai-1558347.html > Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Car Push 'Dumb'? Toyota Makes a Case For The Mirai > October 26, 2017 ... which usually goes to waste when unused, and > electricity generated by solar and ... “Elon Musk is right - it's better to > charge the electric car directly by plugging in,” ... > > > > > For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: > http://evdl.org/archive/ > > > {brucedp.neocities.org} > > -- > Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ > ___ > UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub > http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org > Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/ > group/NEDRA) > > -- Michael E. Ross (919) 585-6737 Land (19) 901-2805 Cell and Text (919) 576-0824 <https://www.google.com/voice/b/0?pli=1#phones> Tablet, Google Phone and Text -- next part -- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20171029/3a086242/attachment.html> ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
Re: [EVDL] EVLN: VW (pr-maschine) wants to make an EV from a WWII-Nazi military vehicle (v)
Some nice conversions of the VW Thing (modern version of the Kubelwagen): https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tnEDfltpr-4 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4J8ySRmSk_4 I loved the one I had but a bit drafty in New England winters, had to scrape windshield frost on the inside while driving sometimes (did not have the original heater unit which burned gasoline). -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
[EVDL] EVLN: EV-newswire posts for 20171028
http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-Please-build-the-Adorable-Retro-Modern-Sports-EV-HMC-S2000-Concept-v-tp4688409.html EVLN: (Please build the Adorable Retro Modern Sports EV)> HMC S2000 Concept (v) ... screens built into the door panels showing footage from the external cameras ... With this being a sports car, we would rather do all the driving ourselves without the computers, cameras, sensors, and whatnot getting in the way ... http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-Former-coal-baron-Flannery-s-PV-Train-an-affordable-public-au-transport-solution-tp4688408.html EVLN: Former coal-baron Flannery's PV Train> an affordable public.au transport solution World-first "solar train" about to be launched in Byron Bay ... ... including Kokam batteries and flexible panels supplied by solar pioneer ... “There was fair bit of community resistance to the idea of a diesel ice train” ... http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-e-commerce-relies-expects-fast-cheap-low-wage-army-of-Mr-Yang-e-delivery-men-tp4688407.html EVLN: e-commerce relies& expects fast& cheap low-wage army of Mr Yang e-delivery men Logistics need a shake-up YANG MING loads packages into his red e-tricycle from a lorry delivery station in Beijing ... he then carries the parcels for the last stretch of the journey ... impatient shoppers ... concentrate deliveries to central pickup points rather than to customers’ homes ... + http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/OT-Toyota-admits-Elon-Musk-is-right-that-fcvs-are-incredibly-dumb-tp4688406.html OT Toyota admits 'Elon Musk is right'> that fcvs are incredibly dumb For years, Toyota has been betting on hydrogen fuel cell over battery-electric vehicles for its zero-emission vehicle strategy. It put the Japanese automaker ... Now Toyota admits that Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who called hydrogen fuel cell “incredibly dumb”, “is right,” but the company is still heavily ... http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ot-Red-Bull-s-Tacos-de-Papa-powered-F1-racer-Verstappen-got-toques-v-tp4688405.html ot Red Bull's Tacos de Papa powered F1-racer Verstappen got 'toques' (v) Max's electric vehicle Collected from the hotel in a traditional Mexican bus from the more eccentric … a mariachi band ... masked Lucha Libre wrestler ... bizarre Mexican pastime of 'toques' ... http://evdl.org/evln/ For all EVLN EV-newswire posts {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
[EVDL] EVLN: (Please build the Adorable Retro Modern Sports EV)> HMC S2000 Concept (v)
% With at least the options: 250mi range & 80kW L3 charging, like the Bolt EV % https://www.motor1.com/news/184625/honda-sports-ev-concept-debut/ Honda Sports EV Concept Is A Retro Modern Adorable Sports Car Oct 25, 2017 Adrian Padeanu [images / Honda https://icdn-8.motor1.com/images/mgl/w1XzE/s1/honda-sports-ev-concept.jpg https://icdn-8.motor1.com/images/mgl/Bn4JR/s1/honda-sports-ev-concept.jpg video https://youtu.be/sXnMo4tiDzM (TMS2017) Honda Sports EV Concept ] Please build it, Honda. If you are a fan of the Urban EV concept introduced by Honda last month in Frankfurt, there’s a very good chance you will also appreciate the Sports EV concept as it follows a similar design theme. While the showcar from IAA was envisioned as a petite electric vehicle mostly for city use, the new one takes the shape of a cutesy two-seater sports car that hopefully one day will hit the assembly line as it is simply adorable. Honda is not being very generous with details at the moment of writing, but it does say the Sports EV concept has a compact size and features artificial intelligence, so it likely boasts some sort of autonomous driving technologies. With this being a sports car, we would rather do all the driving ourselves without the computers, cameras, sensors, and whatnot getting in the way. Photos of the interior cabin are not available right now, but expect to see an expansive touchscreen dominating the dashboard in the same vein as the aforementioned Urban EV concept. The latter barely had any physical controls as most of the functions were available through the infotainment system. The electric city car also had screens built into the door panels showing footage from the external cameras. As you can see, the Sports EV concept has those cameras as well and these come to replace the traditional side mirrors. While there’s no word about a production model, let’s keep in mind Honda did hint a couple of weeks ago a different type of a sports car could join the lineup sooner or later. It doesn’t necessarily mean the showcar currently being exhibited in Tokyo will be turned into a production model, but here’s hoping something along the lines of a little EV coupe with a retro futuristic design will eventually get the stamp of approval. [© motor1.com] https://www.topgear.com/car-news/tokyo-motor-show/honda-sports-ev-concept-future-proof-s2000 The Honda Sports EV concept is a future-proof S2000 25 Oct 2017 Electric Urban EV concept gets an ace two-seater sports car sibling It's pure electric, in case it hadn't clicked yet, and based on the new dedicated EV platform that will underpin a production version of the Urban EV concept in ... https://www.topgear.com/sites/default/files/styles/fit_1960x1102/public/images/news-article/carousel/2017/10/add411fafaacc5ff9d2e557a1b0f9f2c/row_6656.jpg?itok=5Syt6THD ... https://www.autoindustriya.com/auto-industry-news/tokyo-2017-honda-revives-the-s2000-spirit-with-the-sport-ev-concept.html Tokyo 2017: Honda revives the S2000 spirit with the Sport EV Concept October 25, 2017 The future of all-electric driving is not going to be bland if Honda has something to say about it. At the Tokyo Motor Show, Honda has just revealed the Sport EV ... https://www.autoindustriya.com/images/posts/post12025_3.jpg ... https://www.autocarindia.com/car-news/honda-sports-ev-concept-revealed-at-tokyo-406351 Honda Sports EV concept revealed at Tokyo 25th Oct 2017 New concept Sports EV is a striking vehicle with a clear production intent. Honda has taken the wraps off the new Sports EV concept at the ongoing Tokyo ... Honda is keen to create a family of electric cars off the new architecture to ... https://cdni.autocarindia.com/Utils/ImageResizer.ashx?n=http%3a%2f%2fcdni.autocarindia.com%2fExtraImages%2f20171025095631_hondaSEV.jpg=578=872=1=100 ... https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/motor-shows-tokyo-motor-show/honda-urban-ev-confirmed-2019 Honda Urban EV confirmed for 2020 sales launch 25 October 2017 Honda has confirmed that a production version of the Urban EV Concept will be ... The electric car, the car maker's first for Europe, is built on a new dedicated ... https://www.autocar.co.uk/sites/autocar.co.uk/files/images/car-reviews/first-drives/legacy/honda-ev-concept-0329.jpg ... https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/hondas-tiny-sports-ev-concept-is-big-in-japan/ Honda's tiny Sports EV Concept is big in Japan October 24, 2017 Unsurprisingly, the Sports EV Concept is based on the same all-electric architecture as the Urban EV Concept — a model Honda has already confirmed for ... For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/evln/ {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
[EVDL] EVLN: Former coal-baron Flannery's PV Train> an affordable public.au transport solution
'Wind farms cover Scotland to power Britain's EVs' http://reneweconomy.com.au/world-first-solar-train-about-to-be-launched-in-byron-bay-93544/ World-first “solar train” about to be launched in Byron Bay 27 October 2017 Giles Parkinson [images http://reneweconomy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/The-Byron-Bay-Railroad-Company-train-copy-590x332.jpg The Byron Bay Railroad Company train copy http://reneweconomy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Byron-Bay-Railroad-Companys-North-Beach-Station-looking-toward-the-Byron-Town-Centre-Station-copy-590x472.jpg Byron Bay Railroad Company's North Beach Station, looking toward the Byron Town Centre Station copy http://reneweconomy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Solar-panels-are-installed-on-the-Byron-Bay-Train-copy-590x787.jpg Solar panels are installed on the Byron Bay Train copy ] A world first solar train – featuring flexible solar panels from PV pioneer Zhengrong Shi’s new venture and a considerable amount of battery storage – is about to hit the tracks of a long disused rail line in Byron Bay, and could be in operation by the end of the year. The Byron Bay Railroad Co – a not for profit company owned by former coal baron Brian Flannery linking his Elements of Byron resort north-west of Byron with the town centre – will take delivery of the solar train in the next week or two. It will follow a tortuous two-day journey by truck (tortuous because it has to avoid low-height bridges) from Lithgow, where it has been fitted out with eArche solar panels and battery storage. The two carriage train, featuring 1960s vintage country commuter cars, was to be powered by diesel, but the owners opted for the solar and storage option after it became clear that the community didn’t want a big diesel engine chugging through the township. The train – running on a 3km section of the now disused Casino-Murwillimbah line – will feature 6.5kW of lightweight and flexible solar panels manufactured by SunMan, the first major new venture from Dr Shi since the financial collapse of Suntech a few years ago. A further 30kW of solar has been installed at the main station (pictured above), located near the Elements resort owned by Flannery and his wife Peggy. The train will carry 77kWh of Kokam batteries, about the same as a Tesla Model S. Nick Lake, from Nickel Energy, and one of the key consultants to the project, says the train will run entirely on solar power. The 20-minute wait scheduled into each hour of the timetable will be time enough to inject another 13kWh on each occasion into the battery storage, and the flexible solar panels will also charge the batteries. “There was fair bit of community resistance to the idea of a diesel train,” Lake told RenewEconomy. “So we started exploring what the options were. We looked at how much power was needed, noted it was a flat run, and that helped size the electric motors. “Once we knew the size of motors, we could work out energy demand and we came to realise we could have enough solar to match that.” The 30KW solar system on the main station roof will provide more than enough power, and will export to the grid on most days. The train will likely come into heavy use during the various festivals held in and adjacent to the Elements resort, including the Byron Writers Festival and the Byron Food and Beverage Festival. Elmofo, a Newcastle based company owned by Brett Sutherland, who is known for having converted an old Delorean car into an EV, and for racing EVs until competition authorities extended the length to force him to recharge, led the motor drive system for the train. Lake says the eArche solar panels were chosen because putting in a “canopy” style installation would not be in keeping with the look or heritage of the trains. The eArche panels are flexible, could be adapted to fit the shape of the carriage roof, and are one of the first installations of the new panels, launched by Dr Shi in March. “We’ve spent the last few months assembling the battery, putting the solar on roof, and installing the drive system in the old mine railway worksop in Lithgow,” Lake says. “The final pieces are going in today,” he said. Once in Byron Bay, the train will spend a month of testing and training and commissioning. It is expected to start passenger runs before the end of the year. A spokesperson for the Elements said the Flannerys did not wish to contribute further to the traffic congestion that Byron experiences during peak season. “Brian saw the railway line which connected the North Beach area – with the Sunrise residential community and the Byron Arts Estate – to Byron township. “He requested that the Development Director for North Byron Beach Resort Jeremy Holmes investigate reactivating the rail corridor. It soon became apparent that locals were struggling with public transport between the North Beach precinct and Byron township. “So these were the first two reasons. To alleviate traffic congestion and provide an
[EVDL] EVLN: e-commerce relies& expects fast& cheap low-wage army of Mr Yang e-delivery men
% Church steeples, trains& ships as e-delivery drone charge-points. That light pole your EV is charging from could also have a e-drone charge-point landing-pad at the top. % https://www.economist.com/news/special-report/21730540-surging-demand-requires-new-distribution-methods-logistics-need-shake-up Logistics need a shake-up Oct 26th 2017 [image https://cdn.static-economist.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/640-width/images/print-edition/20171028_SRP013_0.jpg (Mr Yang driving his delivery e-trike) ] Delivering the goods Surging demand requires new distribution methods YANG MING IS standing beside his red electric tricycle in a courtyard in Beijing. A former factory worker from an industrial town outside the capital, he and dozens of other men are awaiting the arrival of a lorry. As it pulls in from JD’s warehouse, the men form an assembly line to unload boxes. They reload the packages to their tricycles and are off, weaving through the traffic. JD has about 400 such delivery stations in Beijing alone. Across the country, 2.5m couriers are at the ready to shuttle packages to their final destinations. When he first started several years ago Mr Yang made about 80 deliveries a day. Now the number is closer to 130 and still rising. To a consumer, e-commerce’s rapid delivery seems like magic: a few clicks, and within an hour or two a package can land on your doorstep. Behind this, however, lies an enormous amount of investment, engineering and hard work as firms face ever-rising expectations of fast, cheap delivery. Delivery networks are likely to be strained as the volume of parcels grows. That is spurring new experiments in logistics, some mundane (picking up parcels in stores) and some apparently mad (Amazon patents for underwater warehouses). In emerging markets, e-commerce has relied on an army of delivery men with relatively low wages, such as Mr Yang. In America, points out Christian Wetherbee of Citi, a bank, the United States Postal Service has subsidised the rise of e-commerce by systematically underpricing the cost of parcel deliveries. Amazon has been a main beneficiary, sorting goods by zip code in big warehouses, then delivering them to post offices to handle the last mile of delivery. Both these things look set to change. In America, the postal service owes $34bn in defaulted worker benefits. Mail volumes are declining, which means fewer deliveries per stop, and thus even lower efficiency and more financial duress. If the post office introduces reforms, as some politicians are now asking, parcel delivery will become more costly. Labour costs are rising, too. That is no surprise in Japan, where the broader labour market is tight. But even in China, a shortage may loom: swelling parcel volumes will require 4m express delivery staff by 2020, according to Goldman Sachs. In September, BEST Inc, a logistics firm backed by Alibaba, had a disappointing initial public offering in New York, in part because investors were anxious about labour costs. Pressures on e-commerce companies to deliver cheaply will only rise, yet customers are thinly spread, making it less efficient to deliver to them than to offices or shops. Another challenge is sorting out how to deliver packages across international borders. DHL, which with FedEx and UPS forms a triumvirate of global parcel firms, estimates that 15% of all e-commerce sales already move from one country to another. By 2020 it expects that share to exceed 20% as customers seek lower prices and a broader selection. The big carriers are keen to capture that business. In 2014 FedEx bought a company called Bongo that specialises in cross-border deliveries, to help customers with duties and protect them from fraud. E-commerce firms are testing innovations that might help. Cainiao, the logistics network in which Alibaba now owns a majority stake, has built bonded warehouses where foreign manufacturers can store goods, duty-free, within China’s borders, ready to be shipped to consumers. Alibaba wants to build free-trade zones around the world to help small businesses with customs clearance, warehousing and financing. Automation may lower costs. In one of JD’s huge warehouses outside Shanghai, men still operate forklifts, but by the end of the year robots will take over. Amazon’s robots already bring packages to warehouse staff. The next frontier of warehouse automation is for robots to pick individual items and put them in bags or boxes. More than 90% of such work is still done by hand. Amazon holds a regular robotics contest for automating the process. Robotic pickers may be more broadly deployed as technology becomes cheaper and labour more expensive. Lowering delivery costs is tricky. What has been achieved so far does help, though it can seem unexciting. With the aid of machine learning, demand is predicted on the basis of past shopping patterns, weather and other inputs; that information is then used to decide which goods should be stored where.
[EVDL] OT Toyota admits 'Elon Musk is right'> that fcvs are incredibly dumb
https://electrek.co/2017/10/26/toyota-elon-musk-fuel-cell-hydrogen/ Toyota admits ‘Elon Musk is right’ about fuel cell, but moves forward with hydrogen anyway Oct. 26th 2017 Fred Lambert [image https://electrek.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/electric-car-vs-hydrogen-fuel-cell1-e1509049014192.jpg?quality=82=1024#038;strip=all=1600 https://electrek.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/hybrid_hydrogen_vs_electric_chart-e1461680641695.jpg?quality=82=all ] For years, Toyota has been betting on hydrogen fuel cell over battery-electric vehicles for its zero-emission vehicle strategy. It put the Japanese automaker behind in the electric transition in the industry. Now Toyota admits that Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who called hydrogen fuel cell “incredibly dumb”, “is right,” but the company is still heavily investing in the technology. Musk has often publicly commented on his dislike of hydrogen fuel cell as an energy storage system for vehicles. For most people, the physics of fuel cell vehicles make little sense compared to battery-powered vehicles. Between hydrogen production, distribution, and storage, a fuel cell vehicle ends up being just a third as efficient as a battery-powered vehicle getting its power from the same grid as the electrolysis plant making the hydrogen. The entire process is just extremely more complex than a battery-powered vehicle. The refueling speed is virtually the only advantage of a hydrogen car. You can refuel a hydrogen car in about 5 minutes while a battery-powered car can take hours to charge and even the fastest systems take over an hour. But that gap is getting closer every year and hydrogen cars can’t be refueled at home, while any electric car can charge overnight. That’s the argument that Elon Musk and most EV enthusiasts bring forward when comparing the two technologies. Surprisingly, Yoshikazu Tanaka, the chief engineer in charge of Toyota’s Mirai, admitted to Reuters this week that plug-in cars make more sense: “Elon Musk is right – it’s better to charge the electric car directly by plugging in,” But Toyota chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada adds that they don’t see the two technologies competing and that they are not giving up on hydrogen (yet): “We don’t really see an adversary ‘zero-sum’ relationship between the EV (electric vehicle) and the hydrogen car. We’re not about to give up on hydrogen electric fuel-cell technology at all.” They want to keep pushing the Mirai, which has been a poor performer. They only managed to sell a few as compliance cars in California despite the generous incentives. Electrek’s Take He is not wrong that the two technologies don’t compete. They don’t compete in the minds of potential customers, but they compete for investments from automakers and those investments lead to further development and production for one or the other. It becomes clear when you look at automakers who have been heavily investing in hydrogen cars, like Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai, and see that they have become laggers in the EV space. The sooner they give up on hydrogen, at least for passenger cars, the sooner they will be able to divert those billions of dollars in investments into battery-electric vehicles. I say passenger cars because Toyota is also working on hydrogen trucks, which make better economic sense. But for passenger cars, it makes no sense based on efficiency and economics, which makes it hard to understand why some automakers are still pushing so hard for it ... [© electrek.co] http://www.news18.com/news/auto/hydrogen-fuel-cell-car-push-dumb-toyota-makes-a-case-for-the-mirai-1558347.html Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Car Push 'Dumb'? Toyota Makes a Case For The Mirai October 26, 2017 ... which usually goes to waste when unused, and electricity generated by solar and ... “Elon Musk is right - it's better to charge the electric car directly by plugging in,” ... For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/archive/ {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
[EVDL] ot Red Bull's Tacos de Papa powered F1-racer Verstappen got 'toques' (v)
% ?Shocks the closest Max is going to get to driving Formula E? (no EVs in this pr piece) % http://www.redbullracing.com/article/maxs-electric-vehicle Max's electric vehicle 27.10.17 [video flash images https://image1.redbull.com/rbx00498/0001/2/600/445/ia_busridemaxmexico17.jpg https://image1.redbull.com/rbx00498/0001/2/600/445/ia_busridemaxmexico172.jpg ] The daily commute can be a bit humdrum, even if your office is a 900hp open-wheel racing car – but Max Verstappen avoided the shuttle run this morning and came to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez with a very different kind of transfer. Collected from the hotel in a traditional Mexican bus from the more eccentric end of the vintage scale, Max managed to cram in as many cultural stereotypes as possible on his trip to the circuit. First up was breakfast, courtesy of a taco vendor (Max had potato tacos). After that masked Lucha Libre wrestler Místico hopped on board for a chat. Next up was the fairly bizarre Mexican pastime of 'toques' [an electric-shock drinking game]. Since the dawn of the hybrid era, F1 teams have gone to great lengths to avoid electrocution, but apparently in Mexico City it's evolved into a party game. Max was asked to grip two metal paddles attached to a 'shock box' and have electrical current passed through his body. Then everyone else was encouraged – mostly by Max – to have a go as well. Max described the experience as "Weird and a little scary – but OK once it started." After that the bus stopped to pick up – of course – a mariachi band, and the now very crowded machine headed for the track with the band playing and Max singing along, having at some point acquired a sombrero. Once at the circuit, the band serenaded him all the way into hospitality, accompanied by a sizeable percentage of F1's photographers and cameramen. "That was pretty interesting," said Max, arriving at the track about 45 minutes after leaving the hotel. "I don't think I could do that commute every day – but it'd be good for special occasions. Today I was pretty hungry and wanted some music, so it worked out pretty well!" [© 2017 Red Bull] ... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen is a Belgian-Dutch racing driver who competes under the Dutch flag in Formula One with Red Bull Racing ... ... [dated] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3019323/Last-night-real-buzz-shocking-drinking-game-seeing-surge-Mexican-bars-party-goers-electrocuted-scream.html Drinking game in Mexican bars where party-goers are electrocuted ... Mar 31, 2015 - The shocking drinking game in Mexican bars - where party-goers are electrocuted until they scream Low cost: The 'shock box' only requires eight AA batteries ... http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/03/31/08/272134D20578-0-image-a-1_1427788775977.jpg www.ilovevegan.com/vegan-potato-tacos-tacos-de-papa/ Vegan Potato Tacos (Tacos de Papa) May 5, 2017 - This post is sponsored by The Little Potato Company. Vegan Potato Tacos (Tacos de Papa) This recipe has overhauled ... ... https://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Tacos-de-Papa-Potato-Tacos Potato Tacos (Tacos de Papa) Recipe May 8, 2011 - These hearty tacos de papa are stuffed with cumin-spiced potatoes and fried until they're crunchy ... ... http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/crispy-potato-rajas-tacos-recipe-2014882 Crispy Potato Rajas Tacos (Tacos de Rajas con papas ... Receta de rajas de chile poblano) ... Potatoes and Green Chile Tacos www.rickbayless.com/recipe/soft-taco-filling-potatoes-and-green-chiles/ ... http://mexicanfoodjournal.com/potato-and-chorizo-tacos/ Potato and Chorizo Tacos (Tacos de Chorizo y Papa) Easy chorizo and potato tacos topped with salsa verde just like at the taco stand. They are salty, greasy and spicy in the very best way ... For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/archive/ {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ ___ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)