Then, we saw that in India, in smaller cities (like the one our college was situated in) there are mostly more than 2 people riding a two wheeler. I mean that's even the case with all other forms of ground travel, be it cars, trains or buses, everything is overloaded! But then that's what made us calculate that if a 100cc engine can carry 4 to 5 adults (around 350 kgs) then we could surely use that engine in our car.
But that wasn't enough, we had to make it better. So, I did some research on hybrid cars, their different configurations, on the basic level. Here's what I presented as an abstract to my college:
ABSTRACT
Low Cost Hybrid Car
Introduction
With
petroleum fuel prices rising every month, the need to find an alternative fuel
or the need to conserve fuel is on a rise. The solution to this problem is
already in the market, but, it is way too costly for a common man to buy for
his daily conveyance. This project is an attempt to lower the cost of small
hybrid cars which certainly don’t exist in the Indian automobile market. The
main use of such a car would be in the cities with heavy traffic.
The
following block diagram is a brief illustration:
 |
| Separated Axle Configuration - The suggested outline of the project |
Overview
A
hybrid vehicle is a vehicle that uses two or more distinct power sources to
move the vehicle. The term most commonly refers to hybrid electric vehicles
(HEVs), which combine an internal combustion engine and one or more electric
motors.
We
are here attempting to use a separated axle configuration, as shown in the
figure, in which either the front or the rear axle that is, a pair of wheels is
connected to an internal combustion (IC) engine and the other axle is connected
to electric motors along with a battery. Each wheel can be connected to a
separate motor here.
In
addition to this a switching mechanism will be provide to change between the
two modes of driving. When the vehicle will be running on the IC engine, the
battery for the electric drive will get charged with an indicator showing the
charge levels.
Applications
This
project can open a new window for the production of low cost hybrid four
wheelers in India. The main use of this automobile would be the in-city drive
for not very long distances and high speeds as the charge supplied from the
battery would be limited.
Also,
this would help in reducing environmental pollution in heavily populated areas
and would serve as a small family car for small cities where distances are not
that long, thus saving a considerable amount of fuel.
References
Hybrid
concept: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybrid_vehicle
Car
frame Structures: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars
Technical
details: Hybrid Electric Vehicles: Control, Design, and Applications by
Prof. Chris Mi, Department of Electrical
and Computer Engineering, University of Michigan -
Dearborn
