Many distances can be comfortably covered in cities by bike, on foot and by public transport. However, if you need to transport large or heavy goods, your own car often seems indispensable.
the „UrbANT“ research project, is an acronym which describes the development of an urban, automated, user-oriented transport platform. Ten research institutions and industrial partners from Germany are designing, manufacturing and testing three electrically powered micromobiles that can travel on sidewalks at up to 6 km / h. On the one hand, the UrbANT will allow large and heavy goods to be transported comfortably on foot while interacting safely, reliably and intuitively with users and following them automatically. On the other hand, the UrbANT will move autonomously in order to get orders independently or to function as an autonomous delivery system on the last mile. Three different add-on modules enable the transport of a wide variety of goods, from parcels to bulky suitcases to groceries, while the vehicles communicate with users and passers-by using a newly developed HMI system.
Acting as a project partner, BE-Power company is responsible for the energy supply of the UrbANT.
The highlights of the system are as follows:
-
24V / 70Ah result in an energy content of 1.7kWh, which is accommodated in a space of just 5.7 liters (volumetric energy density thus 310Whl-1); This was made possible by using the high-performance cell INR-21700M50A from the manufacturer and Li-ion pioneer E-One Moli in the new 21700 design and clever management of space.
- Cutting-edge BMS (battery management system) is a system in a decentralized design, that consists of an analog front end, high-performance controller and semiconductor switchgear.
- Industrial standard CANopen interface for secure communication and transmission of all relevant battery data with and to the vehicle control computer.
In addition to the configuration of the cell stack with optimized energy content for maximum operating time of the UrbANT, the main focus was on the development of an intelligent BMS with all the currently required features of such a system (e.g. RTC, operating data memory, bootloader, cycle counter, SafeEnergiemanagement, ServiceTool software etc.).
The administration of an unrestricted series connection of battery cells is a spin-off of the created topology in a decentralized design. Thus, batteries can theoretically be implemented in any voltage level (currently up to 360S, corresponds to approx. 1,300V).
The use of the semiconductor switching mechanism eliminates the holding currents of conventional relays, the current directions for charging and discharging can be switched selectively. The pre-charging branch, current measurement, short-circuit current detection and safety monitoring for disconnection in the event of overload are also integrated in this module .
The pictures show the battery in the closed and open state of the stainless steel housing, the connection side with the Stäubli multi-function plug and the user interface of the BE Power company‘s Service Tool.
By acting as a project partner in a research project, BE-POWER company is developing the energy supply for the innovative "UrbANT" micromobile - an urban, automated and user-oriented transport platform.
Many distances can be comfortably covered in cities by bike, on foot and by public transport. However, if you need to transport large or heavy goods, your own car often seems indispensable.
the „UrbANT“ research project, is an acronym which describes the development of an urban, automated, user-oriented transport platform. Ten research institutions and industrial partners from Germany are designing, manufacturing and testing three electrically powered micromobiles that can travel on sidewalks at up to 6 km / h. On the one hand, the UrbANT will allow large and heavy goods to be transported comfortably on foot while interacting safely, reliably and intuitively with users and following them automatically. On the other hand, the UrbANT will move autonomously in order to get orders independently or to function as an autonomous delivery system on the last mile. Three different add-on modules enable the transport of a wide variety of goods, from parcels to bulky suitcases to groceries, while the vehicles communicate with users and passers-by using a newly developed HMI system.
Acting as a project partner, BE-Power company is responsible for the energy supply of the UrbANT.
The highlights of the system are as follows:
-
24V / 70Ah result in an energy content of 1.7kWh, which is accommodated in a space of just 5.7 liters (volumetric energy density thus 310Whl-1); This was made possible by using the high-performance cell INR-21700M50A from the manufacturer and Li-ion pioneer E-One Moli in the new 21700 design and clever management of space.
- Cutting-edge BMS (battery management system) is a system in a decentralized design, that consists of an analog front end, high-performance controller and semiconductor switchgear.
- Industrial standard CANopen interface for secure communication and transmission of all relevant battery data with and to the vehicle control computer.
In addition to the configuration of the cell stack with optimized energy content for maximum operating time of the UrbANT, the main focus was on the development of an intelligent BMS with all the currently required features of such a system (e.g. RTC, operating data memory, bootloader, cycle counter, SafeEnergiemanagement, ServiceTool software etc.).
The administration of an unrestricted series connection of battery cells is a spin-off of the created topology in a decentralized design. Thus, batteries can theoretically be implemented in any voltage level (currently up to 360S, corresponds to approx. 1,300V).
The use of the semiconductor switching mechanism eliminates the holding currents of conventional relays, the current directions for charging and discharging can be switched selectively. The pre-charging branch, current measurement, short-circuit current detection and safety monitoring for disconnection in the event of overload are also integrated in this module .
The pictures show the battery in the closed and open state of the stainless steel housing, the connection side with the Stäubli multi-function plug and the user interface of the BE Power company‘s Service Tool.
