Volvo Vehicles Says SuperTruck II Exceeds Effectivity Objectives

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After almost seven years of analysis and improvement, officers with Volvo Vehicles North America mentioned Oct. 10 that its gasoline environment friendly SuperTruck II considerably outperformed the freight and gasoline effectivity targets that had been put in place with its companion, the U.S. Division of Power.

Volvo plans to place the brand new truck on show for the primary time publicly at American Trucking Associations’ Administration Convention & Exhibition in Austin, Texas, Oct. 14-17.

The futuristic truck is the results of a multiyear collaborative analysis and improvement challenge performed by a number of authentic gear producers, engine maker Cummins Inc. and different trade companions beneath the SuperTruck II program co-funded by the Division of Power.

“Partnering with the DOE for the SuperTruck program supplies an thrilling alternative to push the know-how envelope to see what’s technically doable for heavy-duty transportation and which options will be scaled into manufacturing, however equally essential, which options don’t work for scaled manufacturing,” Volvo Vehicles North America President Peter Voorhoeve mentioned. “We’re extraordinarily pleased with the accomplishments of our superior engineering staff who labored on SuperTruck II. A program of this magnitude pushes the boundaries in each doable space — creativity, drawback fixing, feasibility and innovation, to which we really feel we did efficiently. A few of the applied sciences on SuperTruck 2 will most actually form the way forward for trucking and alter all the things we as soon as thought doable.”

When the @ENERGY introduced a problem, we rose to the event. Meet #VolvoSuperTruck2. A reside innovation lab designed for the long run. It’s probably the most aerodynamic tractor trailer system we now have ever constructed, with a 134% enhance in freight effectivity. https://t.co/XdqsC3UvwS pic.twitter.com/4PonsIRVgU

— Volvo Vehicles North America (@VolvoTrucksNA) October 10, 2023

As a part of the SuperTruck II program, the entire OEMs which might be taking part got the objective of demonstrating a greater than 100% enchancment in car freight effectivity. Volvo mentioned its truck exceeded that objective by 120%, which is relative to the 2009 baseline; and the truck achieved a 134% enchancment, beneath what it mentioned was the real-world demonstrator validation.

Volvo mentioned it made this enchancment by making important modifications to the truck’s aerodynamics.

Because of this, your entire tractor-trailer mixture was designed by the engineering staff to easily displace air with minimal resistance, leading to what they mentioned is a 50% decrease drag than Volvo Vehicles’ 2009 baseline.

The cab is a wedge form from entrance to again with a raked and wraparound windshield. The entrance finish of the truck is designed with what Volvo mentioned is a downsized cooling system. The aerodynamic trailer has hole fairings, skirts and a ship tail in addition to an adjustable experience peak.

Volvo changed the standard hood- and cab-mounted mirrors with a streamlined digicam monitoring system to chop drag by greater than 4%.

Volvo says the SuperTruck II is considerably lighter, with a decreased curb weight now at 27,000 kilos, for each the mixed tractor and trailer. The truck makes use of a 4×2 configuration, which isn’t widespread in america however is often seen in Europe. By using fewer axles for a similar payload, Volvo mentioned this may be utilized to a 6×2 or 6×4 setup.

The corporate says the mixture of improved aerodynamics and decreased weight together with an aluminum chassis that makes use of a light-weight optimized drive axle system with a single composite driveshaft is a major step ahead in general truck design.

Each the tractor and trailer use light-weight, smaller, low-friction 19.5-inch tires.

In one other effort to cut back power consumption, Volvo mentioned the 48-vote micro hybrid system acts as a generator that features an built-in starter, which supplies energy for the truck’s working system, driver consolation options and the all-electric HVAC system that reduces idling throughout relaxation breaks and nonetheless permits for the usage of facilities.

“The challenge staff intentionally centered on driving in real-world circumstances for testing. Information wasn’t simply gathered in a lab or on flat, empty roads with optimum circumstances and a lightweight load. As an alternative, our SuperTruck II was examined in real-world eventualities on roads with visitors and elevation modifications with a gross mixed car weight of 65,000 kilos,” continued Voorhoeve.

The SuperTruck packages had been launched by the Division of Power in an try to enhance the effectivity of heavy vans. SuperTruck I used to be launched in 2009, with Daimler Truck, Volvo Vehicles, Navistar and a joint effort between Cummins and Peterbilt comprising the 4 groups that labored on varied priorities — together with improved aerodynamics.

SuperTruck II was launched in 2016.

“That is probably the most aerodynamic and environment friendly truck Volvo has constructed so far, and we achieved a freight effectivity that demonstrates the potential for know-how improvements to be developed commercially. Our engineers have already begun implementing a number of the learnings from SuperTruck II into our future truck fashions,” Voorhoeve mentioned. “The way forward for vans is simply across the nook.”