Coordinating Autonomy and Energy Independence in Vehicles

By Dr Peter Harrop
Chairman, IDTechEx

It is a no brainer. The ultimate vehicle by land water and air is independent in performance of task and in provision of its motive power. The end game is usually electric vehicles because they are the greenest, most controllable and perform the most precise tasks in the most efficient way possible. True, we have had even greener technology since the dawn of time in the sailing boat and other mechanically energy independent vehicles. The bicycle, the surfboard and so on have followed but they tend to involve poor control and considerable human effort and safety issues. Accidents with two wheelers have not improved in decades. Where appropriate, sails and so on are being combined with electrical energy independence. However, the big story is combining autonomy in navigation and task - what we call the "autonomous vehicle (AV)"- with the electrically energy independent vehicle (EIV).

System and product integration is essential

EIV technology is more than just adding something such as a solar panel to a vehicle: in should be integrated by a product integrator. The system must be integrated too. Like plug-in electric vehicles before them, the big benefits are only enjoyed when the vehicle is designed to purpose - born electric and born EIV - and configured to task from the outset...

...Continue reading the article here