| Industry | Manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 January 1967  |
| Headquarters | , U.S. |
| Products | Motor engines |
UQM Technologies Inc was an American manufacturer of electrical motors, generators, motor controllers, fuel cell compressor systems and hybrid systems for passenger and commercial vehicles. Established in 1967 as Unique Mobility Inc, UQM was based in Longmont, Colorado. UQM's products were sold direct to original equipment manufacturers (OEM).
The company was involved in the late 1970s Unique Mobility Electrek vehicle, a 2-door 2+2 seater made of fibreglass-reinforced plastic and powered by 16 six-volt batteries. The Electrek featured regenerative braking and could reach a claimed maximum speed of 75 mph and an urban driving range of 75 miles. [1]
Given its contribution to the application of hybrid electric propulsion to small military boats, UQM received a $70,000 Phase I contract which was awarded by the Office of Naval Research from the U.S. Navy, in 2003. [2]
UQM provided PowerPhase propulsion systems for Zenith Motors shuttles, RegenNautics marine applications, Hino Motors electric city buses and Proterra electric composite buses, among others [3] and has been used by several concept cars such as the Audi A1 e-tron and Rolls-Royce 102EX Electric Phantom. The PowerPhase Pro system entered production in October 2011. The German company Ruf Automobile modified a Porsche 911 into an electric version called eRuf Model A, using UQM's 150kW PowerPhase motor. [4]
In 2008, Boeing made aviation history by achieving the first crewed flight of a fuel-cell-powered aircraft which used a UQM motor. [5]
In 2010, UQM received a visit from vice-president Joe Biden to promote the $45 million of Stimulus Act money the company received. [6]
An auxiliary power unit (APU) is a device on a vehicle that provides energy for functions other than propulsion. They are commonly found on large aircraft and naval ships as well as some large land vehicles. Aircraft APUs generally produce 115 V AC voltage at 400 Hz, to run the electrical systems of the aircraft; others can produce 28 V DC voltage. APUs can provide power through single or three-phase systems.
A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.
A hydrogen vehicle is a vehicle that uses hydrogen fuel for motive power. Hydrogen vehicles include hydrogen-fueled space rockets, as well as ships and aircraft. Power is generated by converting the chemical energy of hydrogen to mechanical energy, either by reacting hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell to power electric motors or, less commonly, by burning hydrogen in an internal combustion engine.
An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery. EVs include, but are not limited to, road and rail vehicles, surface and underwater vessels, electric aircraft and electric spacecraft. For road vehicles, together with other emerging automotive technologies such as autonomous driving, connected vehicles and shared mobility, EVs form a future mobility vision called Connected, Autonomous, Shared and Electric (CASE) Mobility.
The Hyundai Motor Group is a South Korean chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.
A fuel cell vehicle (FCV) or fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) is an electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell, sometimes in combination with a small battery or supercapacitor, to power its onboard electric motor. Fuel cells in vehicles generate electricity generally using oxygen from the air and compressed hydrogen. Most fuel cell vehicles are classified as zero-emissions vehicles that emit only water and heat. As compared with internal combustion vehicles, hydrogen vehicles centralize pollutants at the site of the hydrogen production, where hydrogen is typically derived from reformed natural gas. Transporting and storing hydrogen may also create pollutants.
A solar vehicle or solar electric vehicle is an electric vehicle powered completely or significantly by direct solar energy. Usually, photovoltaic (PV) cells contained in solar panels convert the sun's energy directly into electric energy. The term "solar vehicle" usually implies that solar energy is used to power all or part of a vehicle's propulsion. Solar power may be also used to provide power for communications or controls or other auxiliary functions.
Safran S.A. is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures aircraft engines, rocket engines as well as various aerospace and defense-related equipment or their components. It was formed by a merger between SNECMA and the defense electronics specialist SAGEM in 2005. Safran's acquisition of Zodiac Aerospace in 2018 significantly expanded its aeronautical activities.
The FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies (FCVT) was a national Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy program developing more energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly highway transportation technologies to enable the United States to use less petroleum. Run by Michael Berube, it had long-term aims to develop "leap-frog" technologies to provide Americans with greater freedom of mobility and energy security, lower costs, and reduce environmental impacts.
An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity. Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights. Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, the most common being batteries. Most have electric motors driving propellers or turbines.
WEG is a Brazilian company, operating worldwide in the electric engineering, power and automation technology areas. Headquartered in Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil, the company produces electric motors, generators, transformers, drives and coatings. WEG has operations in around 100 countries, with approximately 31,000 employees (2014).
Hybrid vehicle drivetrains transmit power to the driving wheels for hybrid vehicles. A hybrid vehicle has multiple forms of motive power.
A battery electric vehicle (BEV), pure electric vehicle, only-electric vehicle, fully electric vehicle or all-electric vehicle is a type of electric vehicle (EV) that exclusively uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs, with no secondary source of propulsion. BEVs use electric motors and motor controllers instead of internal combustion engines (ICEs) for propulsion. They derive all power from battery packs and thus have no internal combustion engine, fuel cell, or fuel tank. BEVs include – but are not limited to – motorcycles, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, railcars, watercraft, forklifts, buses, trucks, and cars.
The eRuf Model A is a late-2000s all-electric concept sports car built by German automobile manufacturer Ruf Automobile. The car was powered by a UQM Technologies propulsion system. The car has a top speed of 225 km/h (140 mph) and was capable of producing 150 kW of power and 479 lb⋅ft (649 N⋅m) of torque. Estimated range per charge was 250–320 km (155–199 mi), depending on performance level, using iron-phosphate, lithium-ion batteries built by Axeon plc of Great Britain. During coasting the engine works as a generator producing electricity to charge the batteries.
Intelligent Energy is a fuel cell engineering company focused on the development and commercialisation of its proton-exchange membrane fuel cell technologies for a range of markets including automotive, stationary power and UAVs. It is headquartered in the UK, with offices and representation in the US, Japan, South Korea, and China.
Hydrogenics is a developer and manufacturer of hydrogen generation and fuel cell products based on water electrolysis and proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology. Hydrogenics is divided into two business units: OnSite Generation and Power Systems. Onsite Generation is headquartered in Oevel, Belgium and had 73 full-time employees as of December 2013. Power Systems is based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, with a satellite facility in Gladbeck, Germany. It had 62 full-time employees as of December 2013. Hydrogenics maintains operations in Belgium, Canada and Germany with satellite offices in the United States, Indonesia, Malaysia and Russia.
A hybrid electric aircraft is an aircraft with a hybrid electric powertrain. As the energy density of lithium-ion batteries is much lower than aviation fuel, a hybrid electric powertrain may effectively increase flight range compared to pure electric aircraft. By May 2018, there were over 30 hybrid electric aircraft projects, and short-haul hybrid-electric airliners were envisioned from 2032.
An electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is a variety of VTOL aircraft that uses electric power to hover, take off, and land vertically. This technology came about thanks to major advances in electric propulsion and the growing need for new vehicles for urban air mobility. Examples are being developed by aircraft companies such as Boeing, Airbus, Embraer, Honda, Toyota, Hyundai, Overair, and NASA.
The Proterra EcoRide BE35 is a 35 foot (11 m) fast-charge battery electric bus that seats 38 with a total passenger capacity of 60 in its composite low floor body. Foothill Transit was the first transit agency to operate the buses in revenue service, starting in September 2010. It is the first 30 ft (9 m) or larger, heavy-duty all-electric bus ever to complete federally required durability, reliability and safety testing at the Bus Research and Testing Center in Altoona, Pennsylvania. The 12yr/500,000 mi (800,000 km) STURAA test was completed on March 5, 2012.