Toyota and Hino to Run Fuel-Cell Hybrid Bus Trial Near Chubu Airport
27 February 2006
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| FHCV fuel-cell bus. Click to enlarge to see the happy molecules decorating the bus. |
Toyota and Hino (the heavy-duty vehicle subsidiary of Toyota) will put a FHCV fuel-cell hybrid bus into limited service for two weeks on a route near the Chubu Centrair International Airport near Nagoya, Japan.
Chitanoriai Company will use the FCHV-Bus to link Nagoya Railroad’s Tokoname Station, located close to the airport on a man-made island, and Chita Handa Station. The bus will make a round trip to link the two stations once a day.
The project is an element of a fuel-cell vehicle commercialization program promoted by Japan’s transport ministry.
Toyota and Hino will collect in-use data concerning the durability and fuel economy of fuel-cell vehicles. The bus to be leased to Chitanoriai is one of the FCHV-Buses used last year to transport visitors between pavilions at the 2005 World Exposition. (Earlier post.)
The companies are planning to expand the service area covered by fuel-cell buses by linking the airport with other nearby railway stations and by transporting airport users between airport facilities.
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| The layout of the fuel-cell bus. Click to enlarge. |
The FCHV bus uses twin fuel cell stacks and traction motors combined with a version of Toyota’s THS-II hybrid drive and management systems (used in the Prius).
Toyota has had this type of bus in very limited service since 2002 on select routes in Tokyo in addition to the service at the World Expo.
| Toyota-Hino FCHV-BUS2 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fuel Cell | Name | Toyota FC Stack |
| Type | PEM | |
| Output (kW) | 90 x 2 | |
| Motor | Type | Permanent magnet |
| Maximum Output (kW / HP) | 80 / 107 x 2 | |
| Maximum torque (Nm / lb-ft) | 260 / 192 x 2 | |
| Fuel | Storage | High-pressure tank |
| Maximum pressure (psi) | 5,000 | |
| Battery | Type | NiMH |
| Performance | Max range (km / miles) | 250 / 155 |
| Maximum Speed (km/h / mph) | 80 / 50 | |
seems pretty weak.
reason i say that is that toyota, during one of their huge expos a year or two ago, had multiple FCHV buses running continuous shuttle routes for a few weeks. they had also tested an FCHV bus on Tokyo's (I believe) mass transit network, i.e. on a regular scheduled route.
The bus will make a round trip to link the two stations once a day.
seriously that sounds like a joke. once a day?
Posted by: lensovet | 27 February 2006 at 11:55 PM