Increased Maneuverability of Electric Vehicles on the Bases of a Block-Modular Design 2006-01-0144

The operation of electric vehicles in urban conditions, especially in limited spaces, frequently imposes increased requirements on maneuverability. For electric vehicles operating on roads up to 30-40 km/hour, one of the most practical methods of increasing maneuverability is the use of completely independent drawing mono-blocks. These blocks are self-contained units each consisting of a draw wheel, electric motor, power supply, storage battery, and an electronic power converter. The blocks allow the vehicle to rotate 360 degrees around center axis, turn at any radius, and move in any direction, including straight to the left and to the right. The authors have developed and patented an increased maneuverability electro-cycle vehicle which consists of two mechanically connected block modules. In addition to increased maneuverability, such a design also increases reliability-failure of one block module does not prevent vehicle operation. Design flexibility is afforded with the opportunity to create vehicles of varying configurations and increased capacity with three, four, and up to n modules. Operational testing of the developed prototype electro-cycle in the field has confirmed its functionalities. Finally, the authors have offered a simple method definition of power capacity of the traction storage battery.