China3D printingNet, June 28, in a three-year contract with British electric motor manufacturer Protean Electric, Local Motors has agreed to order thousands of Protean wheel drive motors, with a transaction value of US$7.3 million. These systems will be installed on Local Motors’ Olli 2.0 automatic shuttles, 80% of which will be 3D printed.
Although the original Olli released in 2016 was developed by Local Motors and IBM, the Olli 2.0 released in 2019 is powered by Robotic Research’s AutoDrive, which is an “autonomous kit” that “allows vehicles to operate in diverse mixed traffic Think, perceive and navigate the environment.” Although only 30% of the first Olli was 3D printed, 80% of its successors were 3D printed using Cincinnati’s large-area additive manufacturing system. The company also stated that the polymer used to build Olli’s body is 100% recycled.
Rendering of a Protean hub motor. Image courtesy of Protean Electric.
The motor of the system has also been replaced. Olli 1.0 is equipped with axle motors, while newer models rely on Protean’s hub motors. In-wheel motors are designed to increase passenger space while increasing the vehicle’s mileage and reliability. An obvious benefit of this initiative is that Olli 2.0 can install two wheelchairs in the vehicle, which can also be turned away.
Vikrant Aggarwal, President of Local Motors, said: “Now Olli has deployed on-site around the world, which has truly changed the way we look at traffic and provides a smart, safe and sustainable choice for travel. Promoting the widespread adoption of electric self-driving cars One of the keys is to provide a superior passenger experience, and ProteanDrive in-wheel motors play a huge role in this experience, providing smooth, quiet and reliable driving, while allowing us to optimize vehicle design to better solve real-world use cases .”
The financial motivation for this new transaction may come in part from Local Motors’ latest round of $15 million in funding, which was received in the fall of 2020. The company is currently promoting its autonomous vehicle (AV) platform globally. For example, in June, it established a partnership with software developer door2door to prepare Olli 2.0 for further use throughout Europe. This is after Germany is preparing to pass legislation to use certain self-driving cars on public roads.
Protean is an interesting company that was founded in 2008 and was acquired by Saab’s successor company NEVS (Swedish National Electric Vehicle) in 2019. NEVS is again owned by Evergrande Group, the second largest real estate developer in China. However, according to an interview with electrive.com, although Local Motors hopes to do business in China, the company has not sold in China so far.
Olli 2.0, mainly a 3D printed autonomous electric shuttle. Image courtesy of local car company.
Protean pointed out that the demand for battery electric vehicles is increasing. BloombergNEF said it will increase from 3% of global car sales in 2020 to 28% in 2030 and 58% in 2040. The company also pointed out that 17% of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) come from road transportation. Although the electrification of vehicles is essential to avoid the worst effects of global warming, our socio-economic infrastructure may need to undergo more significant changes to prevent the world’s temperature from exceeding the pre-industrial temperature of 1.5°C. For example, there may not be enough lithium or cobalt to meet the demand for these vehicles.
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