Called the HTM 3500, the new motor combines high torque with low motor speeds, fitting directly onto the propshaft of a large electric vehicle, negating the need for a separate gearbox. Capable of producing maximum torque of 3,500Nm at just 1,000rpm, it has been designed for multiple heavy duty vehicle applications, from electric buses to HGVs and mining trucks, where high torque and start/stop duty cycles are required.
Based in Norfolk, UK, Equipmake provides EV technology to automotive OEMs and specialist supercar makers, producing everything from industry-leading high-performance electric motors to power electronic systems, all the way up to complete EV drivetrains, while also operating across marine, off-highway, agriculture and aerospace.
The company has developed its own retrofit electric bus chassis – known as EBus – which allows any bus coachbuilder to become a full electric bus manufacturer almost overnight. Such is the demand from bus makers wishing to go zero emissions that Equipmake has forged partnerships with companies in Brazil, Argentina and India and grown its UK staff from 15 employees to 57 in a little over two years.
Equipmake’s new HTM 3500 motor is an integral part of the very latest iteration of the state-of-the-art EBus platform, with in-service trials of this technology beginning next Spring by Brazilian commercial vehicle manufacturer, Agrale, who will launch an electric bus first in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2021.
Ian Foley, managing director, Equipmake said: “The HTM 3500 is the perfect motor for heavy duty electric commercial vehicles such as buses, mining trucks and HGVs offering enormous amounts of torque from extremely low motor speeds. While it pushes the boundaries of conventional interior permanent magnet motor design, it does so reliably and cost-effectively and, by being direct drive, negates the need for a gearbox allowing more efficient packaging of an electric drivetrain.”
Engineered and manufactured in the UK, HTM 3500 weighs 195kg, has a diameter of 540mm, a width of 251mm and height of 607mm. It offers peak power of 298bhp and a maximum motor speed of 3,500rpm. It is available as a single or coupled unit.
Equipmake’s HTM 3500 electric motor is available now, included within the EBus platform. It can also be ordered in production runs of tens of units, right up to thousands.
Late last year, Equipmake opened an all-new factory in Snetterton, Norfolk, where the company provides the complete electric mobility solution – whatever the sector – offering the capability to design, test and manufacture everything from motors to fully electrified platforms. It also sources and supplies lithium-ion batteries, creating entire electric drivetrains for an increasingly international customer base.