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Saft Awarded Li-Ion Battery Contract for Diesel-Electric Hybrid Combat Vehicle

22 May 2006

BAE Systems has awarded Saft a $2-million multi-year contract to design and supply lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery modules for hybrid-electric military vehicles—the Future Combat System (FCS) Manned Ground Vehicles (MGVs).

Saft will supply its VL-V Li-ion battery technology for the NLOS-C (Non-Line-of-Sight Cannon) vehicle scheduled to be fielded by 2008, featuring integrated battery monitoring and status electronics as well as a breakthrough thermal management system.

The battery’s ability to withstand extreme temperatures is critical to hybrid military vehicle automotive applications.

This is a significant contract award for Saft. The experience and knowledge gained over the past five years supporting earlier Armored Demonstration Vehicles gave us a sound foundation on which to base our proposed program.
—Jim Miller, Saft High Voltage Battery Module Program manager

The current concept of the NLOS-C vehicle is a self-propelled diesel-electric hybrid, 18.1-ton (24-ton at full combat capacity) 155mm cannon with a crew of two. The vehicle is expected to have a maximum speed of 90 kph (56 mph) on a road, 56 kph (35 mph) off-road, with a range of 30 km (19 miles).

Saft earlier this year launched a new joint venture with Johnson Controls to supply advanced-technology batteries for current- and future-generation hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs) and electric vehicles (EVs) at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. (Earlier post.)

BAE’s HybriDrive system powers the Orion VII diesel-electric hybrid buses. (Earlier post.)

Posted on 22 May 2006 in Batteries, Hybrids | Permalink | Comments (10)

Comments

30Km/19 mile projectile range? I thought the XM2001 Crusader had a range of 40Km. The NLOS-C vehicle system was supposed to replace the XM 2001. Then again, it is nice to see the military start to devote resources for fuel efficiency. Hybrid systems may save fuel costs, and improve stealth (thermal, acoustic):
_
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ground/rst-v.htm
http://globalsecurity.insightful.com/search/jsp/docQuery.jsp?docId=186464&sid=6#HL

Posted by: allen zheng | 23 May 2006 at 07:45 AM

Can effective Lithium-Ion battery systems, for millitary hybrid vehicles, be developed for as little as $2 million? If so, what are the major car manufacturers and other major battery manufacturers waiting for? Are they deliberately holding back?

Posted by: Harvey D. | 23 May 2006 at 09:08 AM

____Vested interests, egos, bureaucratic inertia, fear of risks, and fear of change/failure make the Detroit 3 prone to be behind the curve. Another thing is that the systems and subsystems in this military vehicle have been developed in one way or another conceptually or prototypically. Thus there is less cost, because it is more of a integrating job than a from scratch job.
_
____However, I do agree, at this point there is enough technology that could be licensed, or open-sourced for high efficiency vehicles/hybrids. For the additional cost of marketing research, safety, and aesthetics an effective moderate cost vehicle can be developed. Perhaps a small company with a wealthy sponsor like Ferrari, Porsche, Lotus, or Lamborghini could do this by making an efficient (75mpg @ 75mph) and fast, (120-210 mph max) car with an excellent safety rating and non-exorbitant price.

Posted by: allen zheng | 23 May 2006 at 06:46 PM

GM had their electric car (Insight?) about 15 yrs ago but appeared to let it dribble away, primarily because the battery tech. just wasn't there yet.
I'm not pro-military but they do deserve kudos for pushing the envelop with new tech. Just with Detroit would see it the same way. Japan is going to grab the prize right out from their hands again, and we end up with 30,000 more layoffs.

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