At its National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Michigan, EPA played a significant role in pioneering hydraulic hybrid technology and partnered with Parker and Autocar in the early testing of these vehicles.

Hydraulic hybrid technology represents a breakthrough in efforts to reduce fuel use and pollution from these vehicles. With the benefits of this technology, we believe these trucks will play a key role in creating a cleaner environment for these communities.

—Margo T. Oge, Director of EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality

In the RunWise system, an onboard controller coordinates pumps, hydrostatic motors and accumulators to power the vehicle when in hydrostatic mode during start-and-stop operation while collecting refuse. Instead of solely using power from the engine, accumulated energy from the vehicle’s braking system is stored and used to power the truck each time it accelerates. As the truck reaches highway speed, the PDU transfers from hydrostatic drive to mechanical drive to maximize operational efficiency.

RunWise also features an innovative cradle design for packaging mechanical, hydraulic, and electrical components to facilitate installation, testing, and servicing.

The RunWise advanced hybrid drive technology performed so well in South Florida field trials last summer that the communities of Hialeah, Miami-Dade County, and the City of Miami chose to upgrade their refuse collection fleets and purchase a total of 11 Autocar E3 trucks with the new RunWise technology.

RunWise features proprietary software that allows for seamless shifting and smoother braking, improving drivability. During a full month of testing in South Florida, the RunWise system registered a 42% reduction in fuel consumption, which is equivalent to nearly double the miles per gallon. On an annual basis, the technology reduces each truck’s carbon footprint by more than 38 tons along routes with frequent stops. In addition, the technology extends the brake life for each truck by up to 8 times depending on the duty cycle, resulting in dramatically reduced maintenance costs.

With annual sales of $10 billion in fiscal year 2010, Parker Hannifin is the world’s leading diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies and systems, providing precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of mobile, industrial and aerospace markets.