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TR: Some think that recent innovation in lithium battery chemistry will improve performance and range with safer materials. Why is Toyota sticking with the older lithium cobalt oxide chemistry for its plug-in Prius?
MT: Battery reliability comes not only from the battery materials, but also from production know-how. So far, that chemistry gives us the highest total reliability.
TR: Will the commuter EV promised for 2012 use lithium cobalt oxide as well?
MT: Yes.
TR: Are you developing manufacturing know-how to increase the reliability of other battery chemistries?
MT: It's not our intention to always adhere to the current chemistry. Batteries must keep on evolving. Reliability is not the only important feature. We also have to reduce cost and make them smaller.
TR: You recently promised to launch a fuel-cell commercialization effort by 2015. Why stick with fuel cells given the energy intensiveness of hydrogen production?
MT: Both electricity and hydrogen can be produced from any primary energy source, so from an energy security standpoint, they are both desirable fuel. And currently, electric power produced from fossil fuels produces a lot of CO2. But you're right. We have to continue to discuss what source we use for hydrogen [to ensure its sustainability].
TR: What advice do you have for the next generation of engineers interested in transportation?
MT: They need to get "hands-on," as we say within Toyota. There are very few young people interested in mechanics now, and I'm very concerned about this. People talk about software-driven products. Software may control the hardware, but you cannot come up with a good product just by studying software. In the end, it's the hardware--the machine--that makes the product move.
The new Prius is designed so that its battery pack can be swapped out for a plug-in lithium-ion battery.
Hybrids, plug-ins, and extended-range electric cars are hitting the market. Use this interactive primer to learn how they work.
The automaker could sell cars that allow short trips fueled by electricity alone before GM does.
Manufacturing in the United States is in trouble. That's bad news not just for the country's economy but for the future of innovation.
Our list of the 50 most innovative companies, including the following:
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fiberman
186 Comments
Should Engineers Run Car Companies?
A few years ago, Richard Gadeselli, VP of Press Relations of FIAT, whose domain includes FIAT, ALFA, Lancia, Maserati and Ferrari, told me his engineers claimed that pollution control laws were the greatest thing that ever happened to automobiles and their profession. The requirements for making cars environmentally friendly required understanding the internal combustion process. That required massive investment in technology, especially computers to model the combustion process and analyze data. The engineers learned to use those computers well.
Computer analysis allowed them to better understand what went on in an engine during its operating cycles. That knowledge allowed them to not only reduce the engine’s pollution but to make it more efficient and produce more horsepower. But none of this had as big a benefit as having access to fast and cheap microprocessors that could monitor the engine in real time, controlling the flow of fuel and the timing of spark at first, then the timing of intake and exhaust valves, and even the opening and closing of the valves themselves.
Unfortunately, few engineers run auto companies. It seems accountants and lawyers have taken them over and consistently resist any attempts to change.
Bravo to Mr. Takimoto.
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lasertekk
146 Comments
Re: Should Engineers Run Car Companies?
OK, I can see this. A little finesse and precision goes a long way
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