Heavy Duty Trucking, November 2018

IAA COMMERCIAL VEHICLES SHOWseat to a concurrently emerging technology electrification or electromobility as you often hear it referred to in Europe which has clearly moved on from conceptual and R D phases and is now charged up and sitting on the launch pad It seemed like every OEM and Tier 1 powertrain supplier at the show from Dana to Eaton to Meritor to Cummins was showing electric trucks or components and systems designed to work in them either in production or in a pre production design and validation phase Thermo King worked with European commercial vehicle rental company Northgate to create a zero emission and zero noise refrigerated van and test it in real world operation Wabco showed off an electric trailer prototype Continental even showed off a tire designed for MANs electric truck the CitE If the IAA show floor was any indication 2019 will be a seminal year for the advent of electric trucks and buses on a global scale This technology is unlikely to be a flash in the pan given the massive amount of interest and money flowing in from China alone Governments in China and Europe are pushing for electrification and other alternatives to the internal combustion engine in dense and polluted urban areas Electric buses many on display in Hannover are already on the road in many places proving out technology that will help pave the way for electric trucks IAA 2018 was vibrant and brimming with well electricity with all the new products companies and technologies set to test the waters in the coming 12 to 24 months All that noted here are some of the other major news stories and announcements that caught our eye during IAA 2018 Cummins electric hybrid utility truck Diesel Electric Cummins told attendees at the IAA show they could do both whenever they wished with its new suite of PowerDrive plug in electric powertrain systems Cummins CEO Tom Linbarger said this is a natural evolution as the company continues to expand its portfolio of low emissions and fuel efficient power solutions which includes clean diesel near zero natural gas and fully electric powertrain solutions Cummins PowerDrive system was fitted onto a Kenworth T370 vocational truck on display at its booth The truck can run on pure electric pure diesel or hybrid power depending on system needs and driver preferences Linebarger said PowerDrive replaces conventional transmissions switching in real time between two hybrid and two pure elecHDT NOVEMBER 2018 78 WWW TRUCKINGINFO COM ity progress with a dazzling array of electric vehicles from vans to buses to heavy trucks driving silently into the hangar accompanied by dramatic music and lighting And in a press conference the next day Mercedes Benz Vans unveiled a concept autonomous all electric van The company called its Vision Urbanetic autonomous driving platform a revolutionary mobility concept for urban areas and promised to develop real world autonomous electric vans in the near future The Vision Urbanetic mobility concept is based on an autonomous electrically powered driving platform that can carry different interchangeable bodies for people moving or goods transportation Electrics come alive Much of the talk about autonomous vehicles that has dominated trucking trade shows for the past several years took a back Electric vehicles that were shown as a concept at the last IAA two years ago now were available for real world test drives Autonomous and advanced driver assistance technologies were showcased in many displays including this one from Wabco Safety systems that can detect bicyclists coming up alongside a vehicle are a big plus in urban areas and were displayed by Volvo Daimler and others Dont be looking for a Class 8 Ford in the U S this ones destined for Turkey and surrounding regions PHOTO DEBORAH LOCKRIDGE PHOTO IAA PHOTO IAA PHOTO DEBORAH LOCKRIDGE