- The technological centre will boost, along with Vectia and ABB, within the same work group, the exhibition of the exploitation of 100% electric buses through in-service fast charging that guarantees the interoperability with other manufacturers.
The automotive sector seeks technologically advanced solutions enabling to replace current combustion engines by more healthy and environmentally friendly systems. In this context, the development of electric power drives has become an effective alternative to private vehicles, buses and lorries.
With the aim of contributing to this electrification, IK4-IKERLAN participates in the European project called Assured. The objective of this project is to develop a new generation of high power chargers (up to 600 kW) for different manufacturers of heavy vehicles.
At the same time, the initiative will create the required standards and regulations to facilitate the integration and interoperability of these systems of super-fast recharge by the manufacturers and operators.
The project, starting this October with a duration of four years, is framed within the H2020 Programme of the European Commission, and shall have a budget of EUR 18.7 million
Assured, led by Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), will bring together more than 40 benchmark companies and entities of the standing of Vectia, Iveco, Volvo, MAN, Irizar, Siemens or Alstom, among others.
Under Assured, IK4-IKERLAN will focus on the analysis and assessment of the main factors that affect the proper function of storage systems (especially in lithium-ion batteries), such as the wear and tear affecting batteries in the course of their useful life or their performance reported in high power operating regimes.
In addition, the technology centre of Arrasate-Mondragón will design strategies for energy management, in order to maximize efficiency during charging and operation of vehicles, increase their autonomy and contribute to environmental sustainability in the cities.
To prove the solutions in real environments, IK4-IKERLAN will share the work group with Vectia (Grupo CAF), the electric buses manufacturer and the ABB engineering company, with the purpose of showing the exploitation of 100% electric buses with super-fast recharge (less than 5 minutes) that will have an autonomy range of 10km between charging stations.
“This collaboration represents a key step forward in our commitment to progress in technologies that allow us to offer global solutions for a more sustainable urban transportation,” claims Javier Ramos, Technical Director of Vectia Mobility, SL.
The project will also assess 10 chargers. Specifically, the new solutions will be installed in six buses for city buses, three lorries (two waste collectors and a delivery lorry) and a light vehicle, which will be put into circulation in various European cities.
The experience of IK4-IKERLAN
The technological centre has an extensive track record in systems of energy storage based on in lithium-ion, as well as in the development of algorithms of health and the estimation of battery lifetime. He has also worked on systems of recharge and its effect on the life of the batteries.
Specifically, the technological centre has been investigating the different challenges raised within the Assured Project for years, such as enhanced management strategies, operating costs minimization or useful life extension of storage systems.
In this regard, IK4-IKERLAN has worked with companies in the sector of mobility, such as CAF, and electric companies, such as Iberdrola Renovables, among others.
“These initiatives allow us to keep building knowledge in the storage systems, power electronics and energy management environments together with the main manufacturers and suppliers of the sector in Europe, to implement them afterwards in projects with our clients,” concludes Mir.
About IK4-IKERLAN
IKERLAN is a leading centre for technology transfer and for providing competitive value to companies due, among other things, to the expertise of its researchers. It offers comprehensive solutions by combining different fields of technology. This is possible owing to its high level of specialisation in three main areas: Electronics, information and communication technology (EICT), Energy and power electronics and Advanced manufacturing. In 2017, AENOR, has certified IK4-IKERLAN’s comprehensive management system based on the referenced regulations UNE-EN ISO 9001:2015 and UNE 166002:2014. It currently has a staff of approximately 300 people.
About Vectia
Vectia, a subsidiary of Grupo CAF, is the only company in Spain that fully focuses its business model on the development of urban transport solutions based on electromobility. In the development of its platforms, the brand has capitalized all the experience and all the technological and innovation capacity that Grupo CAF has accumulated throughout the years in the railway industry. That is why it offers its client different solutions connected with the development of infrastructure and transport systems; own-technology and contrasted as guarantee and differential value in electric traction; energy accumulation systems; development of on-line charging points and maintenance of specific systems or feasibility studies, electrification and civil work, among others.