Page 16 - Industrial Technology February 2020

MACHINE BUILDING

MILITARY INNOVATIONS

MOTORS AND GEARED MOTORS

A NEW PROJECT LOOKING TO SHAPE THE UK’S FUTURE
COMBAT VEHICLE FLEET IS EMBRACING A DEVELOPMENT IN
ELECTRIC MOTORS – THE HUB DRIVE DEVELOPED BY QINETIQ expertise of our engineers, scientists and
many employees who have, themselves,
he Defence Science and Technology Laboratory gear will integrate with Qinetiq’s in-wheel served on the front line. This knowledge has
DSTL recently announced investment of £3.2m electric hub drive technology and the two enabled us to develop solutions, such as our electric
in a new research project to explore the latest combined will deliver significant benefits in hub drive technology, which can truly change the way
Tvehicle technologies to boost the performance of armoured vehicle design. The solutions will enable we operate on the battlefield and enable the use of power-
UK future ground combat vehicles. The project, led by platforms with significant increases in operational and demanding payloads, bringing added benefits to capability
Qinetiq, will focus on innovative solutions for ground tactical mobility along with survivability and fuel efficiency and the wider mission.”
vehicle mobility, exploiting the potential provided by benefits. In addition, the studies will explore controls for active
electric drive systems. suspension – looking at electric and hydraulic options;
The aim of this project is to assess which of the latest Electric propulsion system advanced tyre technologies, benefits for vehicle design,
technologies can be applied to future ground combat As part of an electric propulsion system, in-wheel hub terrain scanning and sensing, use of optical and light
vehicles, and how those technologies would integrate with drives replace the main transmission and ‘drop-boxes’, detection and ranging (LiDAR) with other sensor
current systems. This enables UK Defence to invest into differentials, and drive shafts with compact and extremely systems – such as RADAR – with an integrated control
the right technology in a focused and assured way, high-powered electric motors contained completely within system, using advanced data processing/fusion techniques
reducing the risk and saving potentially millions of the wheel rim. As part of a series hybrid-electric coupled with the application of novel materials.
pounds. powertrain, this approach opens up dramatic new design The first phase of the programme, one year in
In particular, the project will investigate advanced possibilities that increase performance and improve safety duration, will focus on studies, concepts and modelling;
running gear solutions for wheeled manned and and survivability of military vehicles. followed by a second, two-year phase of prototyping and
autonomous vehicles to close the gap between the A spokesperson from Qinetiq said: “Qinetiq has testing on a mobile test rig, validating the benefits in a
mobility of wheeled and tracked vehicles. The running supported UK Defence for decades – channelling the practical environment.

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