AC propulsion

AC Propulsion, Inc.
legal form	Incorporated
founding	1992
Seat	San Dimas , California , USA
Branch	Automotive industry
Website	www.acpropulsion.com

AC propulsion tzero

Battery pack of the AC-Propulsion tzero, lithium-ion accumulators

AC Propulsion tzero battery pack, lead-gel battery

AC Propulsion, Inc. ( Engl. A lternating c urrent propulsion "AC drive") is a company in San Dimas , California , USA , which is primarily electric drives developed for vehicles and manufacturing. The company was founded on March 27, 1992 by Alan Cocconi. Alan Cocconi previously developed and built the drive and solar system for the GM SunRaycer, which won the World Solar Challenge for solar vehicles in Australia in 1987 , and later the control system for the GM Impact electric car , which was later developed into the GM EV1 .

description

The prototype, test car and technology demonstrator AC Propulsion tzero, built as a sports car, became known . Individual cars were marketed as AC Propulsion from 1997 or 1999 to 2003 .

The most important product is the AC-150, presented in 1994, a drive train with a 150 kW electric motor (approx. 200 hp).

The company also offers a Toyota Scion xB electric car conversion , the AC Propulsion eBox, and helps other automobile manufacturers develop and test electric and hybrid drives . AC Propulsion supplied the necessary technology for the version of the Mini with electric drive developed by BMW , which was tested from 2008.

application

Toyota Scion - Conversion AC Propulsion eBox

BMW Mini-E as an AC Propulsion conversion

Vehicles that are or were driven with technology or licensed technology from AC Propulsion:

• AC Propulsion tzero
• AC Propulsion eBox
• Peraves Monotracer MT-E 150 ( Ecomobile )
• Volvo 3CC
• Venturi Fétish
• Courreges EXE
• Courreges ZOOOP (with lithium polymer battery )
• Wrightspeed X1 (based on the Ariel Atom )
• Tesla Roadster (Tesla had licensed technology from AC Propulsion)
• Mini E
• GAC Trumpchi GS 5 BEV

Vehicle-to-grid strategy

In order to equip electric vehicles for the so-called vehicle-to-grid strategy, a bidirectional grid power connection is offered for the second generation of the AC-150. The basic idea is that the batteries of electric cars store much more electrical energy than they need for their everyday operation. Since cars are moved on average for less than two hours a day, car batteries can generate excess electricity, e.g. B. can be saved by wind turbines at night and connected back to the grid during the day while they are parking.

Range extension with generator trailer

ACP backtracking genset trailer

In addition to pure electric cars, AC Propulsion builds trailers as prototypes in which a motorcycle engine and a generator generate electricity, with the aim of providing the necessary electricity for long-distance trips that go beyond the battery range of an electric car. Such generator trailers are referred to in English as genset trailers . The smooth operation of these motors, which is possible because they recharge the accumulator and do not have to immediately follow the changing demands of driving, should achieve low consumption and favorable emissions.

Competing concepts

• Mindset AG pursued another concept of not always having to drag the combustion engine along to extend the range , which wanted to make the combustion engine easy to remove . However, development was largely stopped in 2009.
• In the Opel Twin , the entire electric drive module could be exchanged for a conventional drive module with a combustion engine.
• The company Better Place aimed to expand an exchange infrastructure for accumulators.
• A comparable manufacturer of drive trains for e-cars, who also converts the bodies of series vehicles to electric cars using its own technology, is the German company e-Wolf .

Web links

Commons : AC Propulsion  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• AC Propulsion website

Individual evidence

1. ↑ opencorporates (English, accessed April 22, 2017)
2. ↑ About AC Propulsion ( Memento of December 17, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) (English) Retrieved on May 10, 2015.
3. ^ Company History ( Memento of March 2, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (English) Retrieved on May 10, 2015.
4. ↑ d'Auto (Dutch, accessed April 22, 2017)
5. ↑ Allcarindex (English, accessed April 22, 2017)
6. ↑ AC Propulsion Provides Power for 500 New Electric Vehicles ( Memento from December 19, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) (English) Retrieved on May 10, 2015.
7. ↑ "Technical data of the Peraves Monotracer MTE-150" ( Memento from April 23, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), manufacturer homepage, April 3, 2013.
8. ↑ AC Propulsion Introduces Real-World Emission Measurement ( Memento of October 18, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) The emissions of a gasoline engine optimized to run at a constant RPM are far below those of conventional vehicles. (English) Retrieved May 10, 2015.
9. ↑ Page no longer available , search in web archives: Half-year report 2009  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Mindset Holding, September 22, 2009 (especially page 8, chapter "Continuation"). Accessed May 10, 2015.  
10. ↑ "Money problems: Power struggles shake the mindset" ( Memento from February 21, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), Neue Luzerner Zeitung , zisch.ch, February 16, 2010, accessed on May 10, 2015.
11. ↑ Page no longer available , search in web archives: "Electric cars: Mindset writes deep red numbers" , Luzerner Zeitung, zisch.ch, April 1, 2010, accessed on May 10, 2015.