Tula Technology, a propulsion efficiency company, has presented new results from tests of its Dynamic Motor Drive technology as applied to an electric vehicle.
Last year, at the SIA Powertrain 2024 International Congress in Lille, France, Tula showed off its technology in an EV that had been retrofitted with the company’s DMD software and an externally excited synchronous motor by allowing attendees to take test drives, demonstrating how Tula was able to reduce energy consumption and boost overall system efficiency.
Dynamic Motor Drive, Tula said, eliminates reliance on rare earth elements and provides more efficiency at a lower cost. When a vehicle’s torque requests are low, the DMD software directs the magnetic field of the motor to pulse at optimal efficiency.
Working with drivetrain specialist BorgWarner, Tula implemented and tested DMD on a luxury SUV that also had an engine for range extension. The SUV was equipped with internal permanent magnet motors on both the front and rear axles. When DMD was applied to the rear axle only, vehicle range increased 0.6% using the China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle, Tula said. The company said that applying DMD to both axles should increase vehicle range by 1.5%.
Given that 90% of EVs today utilize permanent magnet motors that rely on rare earth elements, this efficiency improvement can be directly translated into reduced battery size and cost, or alternatively, increased range.
“DMD is a software-only technology that improves the efficiency of electric drives at low loads by pulsing torque near peak efficiency,” Tula explained.
Fuest said the company initially focused on applying its DMD technology to battery-electric vehicles, but that it has also seen interest from makers of plug-in hybrids. According to Fuest, a number of the world’s automakers are working with Tula to implement Direct Motor Drive on their platforms.
Source: Tula Technology
