Evolution of electric cars

Evolution of electric cars

Admin Enggsolution | 2020-09-15
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The history of the electric car is much longer than you might think. In this article, we take a whistle-stop tour of the evolution of the EV.To understand the history of the electric car, it's useful to put it into context with the development of personal vehicles in general. 

On the eve of the 20th Century, the predominant form of transport was still the horse. But as people's incomes increased and available technologies advanced, some were beginning to experiment with newer forms of transport.

Electric cars, or EVs for short, work through the use of an electric motor instead of an internal combustion engine, like gasoline-powered cars. In most cases, EVs make use of a large traction battery pack to power the motor. This battery pack is charged by being plugged into a specially designed charging station or outlet at the users' home.

 

 

As EVs run on electricity, they have no exhaust and do not contain parts like the fuel pump, fuel line, carburetor, and fuel tank, which are needed in gasoline-powered cars.

In general, electric vehicles consist of a series of basic components. These include, but are not limited to, the following: 

1. Battery (all-electric auxiliary): In most electric drive vehicles, the auxiliary battery provides electricity for start-up and to power vehicle accessories like the clock. This is not to be confused with the main traction battery pack.

2. Charge port: The stored energy in a battery cannot last forever and it needs to be recharged from time to time. This is where the charge port comes into play. It allows the EV to be connected to an external power supply.

3. DC/DC converter: Typically, the traction battery pack will have a higher voltage than many other components in the car. This device converts the higher-voltage DC into lower-voltage DC for safe use.

4. Electric traction motor: Since the electric vehicle is expected to actually move at some point, a means is needed to convert electricity into rotational force to move the wheels. This is where the traction motor comes in. Some vehicles also have energy regeneration functions at the wheels, too to recoup some of the lost energy.

5. Onboard charger: As electricity from external sources is typically AC, this device converts it into DC for use in charging the battery. It is also used to monitor battery characteristics such as voltage, current, temperature, and state of charge while charging the pack

6. Power electronics controller: This device actively manages the flow of electrical energy delivered to the battery and controls the speed of the electric traction motor (not to mention the torque it generates). 

7. Thermal cooling system: This system maintains the proper operating temperature range of the engine, electric motor, power electronics, and other components.

8. Traction battery pack: This is the "fuel tank" of the electric vehicle and is the source of all electricity used to run most of the other components in the vehicle.

9. Electrical transmission: This device transfers mechanical power from the traction motor in order to drive the EVs wheels. 

Tesla Motors produced its very first electric car, the Roadster, in 2008. This vehicle was a revolution in the modern age of the electric vehicle and featured cutting-edge battery technology and an electric powertrain.

The original Roadster was a battery electric vehicle (BEV) and was the first highway-legal, serial production, all-electric car to ever use a lithium-ion battery as a power source. It is also the first all-electric car capable of traveling more than 320 kilometers per charge.

It could also reach an incredible top speed of 200 km/h

And, it can now add a very unique epithet to its already impressive list - the first production car to ever be launched into space. In February 2018, it served as a dummy payload for the Falcon Heavy test flight. A mannequin dressed in a spacesuit, dubbed 'Starman', occupied the driver's seat

Between its production years (2008-2012), more than 2,450 Roadsters were sold in over 30 countries around the world

 

 

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