National Hybrid Propulsion Platform

The development of alternate propulsion technologies, especially hybrid electric vehicle technologies, is imperative for the advancement of energy conservation and environmentally friendly applications.

Hybrid-passenger cars and buses are selling well in the United States and Japan. Some Indian manufacturers are trying to acquire and develop indigenous hybrid vehicle technology capabilities, but have not produced hybrid vehicles on a commercial basis yet. However,
The major challenges in introducing the hybrid electric vehicle technology by Indian manufacturers include the lack of domestic technical capabilities to develop and produce key hybrid components and integrate these sub-systems into a complete vehicle.
Determination of the requirements for electric powertrain components and optimization of the entire system is an important aspect for the success of the hybrid electric vehicles. In the early development phase simulation of the overall drive system helps in the optimization of electric drive concepts for automotive applications. This further needs to be validated through actual field trials of reasonable fleet size for each vehicle category, to provide feedback to the OEMs, component manufacturers and technology developers regarding design, specification and system performance.
Another confounding factor is that the international firms like Toyota and Honda hold many of the relevant patents for key components. The lack of Indian intellectual property in this area may turn out to be a major constraint because without their own technology, the Indian auto Industry must pay for the intellectual property or purchase foreign components.
It is also important to develop an understanding and awareness about hybrids among the Indian consumers. Introduction of this new technology will certainly have to face people’s concerns about the maturity of the technology and the availability and adequacy of after-sales service. The inherent advantage of the future savings due to higher fuel economy that the hybrid vehicles offer need to be established in the minds of the consumers.
Penetration of the automobile market requires variety in product offerings in the hybrid category to attract consumer interest because they may have specific needs that cannot be met with one or two types of product offerings.
It is required to develop the capability of manufacturing key components to specification of hybrid electric vehicles among Indian component manufacturers. Unless component manufacturers are involved in the hybrid electric vehicle component developments for a development and fleet demonstration project of significant size, they may be may be reluctant to invest in producing hybrid components because the production volume is so small and there are no economies of scale at this time. Development and trial runs of a fleet of hybrid electric vehicles of different categories will help in future standardization of the parts and components resulting in greater economies of scale for the component manufacturers.
Demonstration fleet operation can help in greater consumer exposure to hybrids.

Although several major vehicle manufacturers have started developing hybrid electric vehicle concepts, much more R&D efforts are required to build a sustainable hybrid electric vehicle marketplace. In order to achieve this, the development of the following key enablers will be requisite:

Hybrid electric vehicles are most effective in stop and go driving. The electric drive system is used to manage the load and engine operation is maintained in high efficiency region, and this leads to both better fuel economy and lower CO2 emissions. Through the use of hybrid electric IC engine configuration, the engine can be down sized. The performance of the vehicle is also improved through finer step transmissions ratios, better torque management, eliminates engine idle and recovers the kinetic energy through regenerative braking.

According to the transportation needs and the function of assisted electric propulsion, a full range of options have to be developed in India including Mild Hybrid and Full Hybrids. Through the proposed National Hybrid Propulsion Platform, it is expected to implement the necessary multipronged approach uniting the resources of government, academia, automotive manufacturers, and energy providers has the potential to generate adequate technology know how for mass introduction of hybrid electric vehicles.