Elaphe News

[john-trotter]

Great bits of insight. Now makes me need to go back to an earlier question on wheel material. Maybe a light, forged, alloy wheel would be useful to offset a bit of the in-wheel motor weight.

[kerbe2705]

@John Trotter All Aptera iterations are currently rolling on aluminum alloys with 195/45 R16 rubber.

[ROMAD]

I wish they would post the clip where he discusses the Aptera.

[Markus]

Who “he”?

In case you mean the interviewer, here you go:

Unfortuntely, all his interviews seem to be pretty shallow and only cut out segments of a longer conversation.

[ROMAD]

No. Gorazd Gotovac. This is what was in the 53 minute podcast:

Gorazd joined Episode 113 of the Future of Mobility podcast to discuss topics including:

– The potential of in-wheel motors

– Why distributed drive EVs haven’t taken off at-scale yet

– How Elaphe’s technology overcome the typical challenges associated with in-wheel motors

– Elaphe’s partnerships with Aptera and Lightyear

– Innovator’s Dilemma and Crossing the Chasm

The 3 minute YT video just covered the first item. I want to see the clip of him discussing #4

[Biker]

Chris chimes in at about 1:55 of this video – there’s also an interesting render of the power distribution within the Apetra.

Elaphe story – YouTube

[Mike-Mars]

I’m not 100% sure, but I think the power distribution animation is based on Alpha/Beta? I spotted a couple of things, firstly the cables are routed on a different arm compared to the Delta CGI, and is that the battery which angles upwards behind the seats (or maybe a firewall?)

• This reply was modified 10 months, 2 weeks ago by  Michael Marsden.

[Biker]

Yes, Alpha based animation and that battery configuration is for the 1,000 mi version.

[bruce-mengler]

New tech shown at CES by Elaphe.

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1138475_racing-tech-may-bring-efficient-in-wheel-motors-into-more-evs?

[jesthorbjorn]

Perhaps we will learn the extent to which this is relevant tomorrow?

[Mike-Mars]

The article says that they are 800v inverters, but Aptera’s power system is below 400v (Elaphe lists 300v for the M700 motor). So not relevant, I would presume (unless they are overspecifying)?

• This reply was modified 10 months, 2 weeks ago by  Michael Marsden.
• This reply was modified 10 months, 2 weeks ago by  Gabriel Kemeny.

[trevor-anderson]

Talking a couple different things here:

Inverters: all inverters have an effective range for power conversion; they list the maximum because in the world of racing higher voltage means skinnier cables because less amperage. I am sure there is a wide operating range of these inverters and I am sure Aptera’s entire battery voltage range is well above the minimum voltage of the inverter.

Battery voltage: tesla’s have battery voltages 350-375 (based on a quick google) so I would not expect a higher voltage for Aptera. Since its such a small battery pack they arent going to go nuts with charging speed since it will be comparatively fast.

traction motors: Its been said that Apter will have one inverter per powered wheel (two inverters for two front motors, additional inverter for rear motor); which take DC and convert it to multiphase AC . This implies there is a different set of inverters that charge the battery; their are inverters that can be used as traction inverters as well as battery charging but it looks like Aptera will ship with traction inverters and a separate charge inverter.

[kerbe2705]

@Trevor Anderson Yes, there are two different kinds of inverter at play: The inverters for the motors convert DC to AC and also vary the frequency of the current to control the speed of the motor – this is why they’re frequently called “motor controller” instead of inverters. The inverter used for L1 and L2 charging converts AC to DC, period, unless the vehicle has V2L or V2G capability, in which case it also does the exact opposite.

[kerbe2705]

Here’s a video about their current work..

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=775518680224339

[john-malcom]

Kerbe2705. Thanks for posting this. Unsprung weight is a periodic concern about Aptera because of the use of the Elaphe wheel motors. It is good to see that they continue to analyze and engineer refinements to address the mediation of this issue. I think that between Aptera and Elaphe it will not be an issue on LEs or other produciton Apterae inspite of the deleted segment in the simulation video showing a reaction attributed to unsprung weight.

[Biker]

For those that can’t see the above video at FB, here’s the same one at Youtube:

SYS2WHEEL project – innovating solutions for future BEVs to serve CO2-free city transport – YouTube

[Biker]

Elaphe will host a webinar on 3/28 at 9AM PST – to sign up go to:

Webinar on Functional Safety (FuSa) – Elaphe (in-wheel.com)

[Biker]

The Functional Safety Webinar recording can be found on Youtube at:

Elaphe Webinar on Functional Safety – YouTube