| Remote Hybrid Helper Could Turn Any Car into a Hybrid |
| Written by Benjamin Jones | ||
| Monday, 28 April 2008 | ||
|
For truckers, hills and mountains are a colossal waste of energy. It requires quite a bit of effort to haul a full load up a hill, only to take more effort trying to slow the truck down on the other side. With all that kinetic energy going into the truck’s brakes, you’d be right to think there is a neat way to capitalize on the situation. The Remote Hybrid Helper is a new system that would attach itself to the back of the trailer to help it up hills, and capture braking energy on the way back down. With its own batteries and electric motors, the pusher would assist the trailer up the hill and then use massive battery packs to capture energy generated by "falling" down the hill. The neatest thing about this concept, however, is that the remote hybrid helper (RHH) is not just a box that you’re expected to tow around behind your truck forever. The RHH will actually drive itself around, tracking down trucks that need assistance, coupling with them, giving a helpful push, then regen-braking down the hill before finding another victim. One could imagine these things flying up and down mountain passes, linking up with trucks on either side all day long. Certainly a weird idea to conceptualize, but something that would work incredibly well to cut down on emissions and improve efficiency in trucking. Via AutoBlogGreen
Comments
(6)
Sort of like...
written by Keith_Indy , April 29, 2008
powered trailers
written by DTM , April 29, 2008
I had often thought that most large pickups were owned for the occasional heavy load or trailer pull. one solution is to rent the big truck if you only need it a couple of times a year. If that big horse trailer had its own hybrid drive it could be pulled by a smaller truck. You see the savings all the time when you don't have the big load.
That's one way to do it
written by Anon Thinker , April 29, 2008
Or just give the big rigs their own hybrid power much like today's hybrid cars do it. It would certainly be worth the extra 300 lbs of batteries since those diesel engines don't care if they're hauling 5,000 or 25,000 lbs. An increase of 3-4 MPG would give them a huge advantage.
n/a
written by jason , April 29, 2008
Or, you could just stop shipping goods by trucks. The best long-term solution is to use electric trains, powered by nuclear power plants. The trucks can still be used for local deliveries. Unfortunately, we'll have to close a lot of Stucky's and force the lot lizards to find a new area to peddle their wares.
Mr.
written by Michael , April 30, 2008
It seems really elaborate and expensive.
Why not have a modified SanFran type cablecar system that lets a vehicle latch onto a moving cable. The trucks going downhill could help pull the ones uphill. Any excess energy can be pumped onto the grid with no expensive batteries necessary. Even without batteries, using electricity from a power plant would be less polluting than a truck or car engine. A really crazy variation would be to have a series of electromagnets under the road, and by switching them on and off in sequence it would make a magnetic wave that would pull all magnetic things up the hill.
...
written by John L. , May 01, 2008
This concept has been used for over a hundred years by railroads with helper engines for steep grades. Fortunately, the trains ran on their own right of way (paid for and maintained by the railroads) and automobile drivers didn't have to worry if the remote hybrids could be used without adding safety issues.
Also, how do you charge a truck for the assist? Maybe remote billing for those wanting the service. They could sign up in advance. Might be a better idea would be hybrid trucks if a way could be found to do that without adding more length or weight to these already-oversize vehicles. They might be diesel-electrics with large batteries and straight electric drive, no transmissions. | ||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
Science, technology gadgets and...baby seals. We're in a bit of an eco-mess, but we've got the brains to lick any problem. And that's why EcoGeek.org publishes up to ten stories daily about innovations that are saving the planet.
And if that sounds interesting to you, then congratulations, you're an EcoGeek.
As a biker, I see hills as a bit of an enemy. On the way up, it's certainly less than fun. On the way down, well, it can be exciting, but not necessarily safe. But it would certainly be worse if I weighed several dozen tons...
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Interesting solution to the problem.