HEINZMANN and PERM: Pioneers of electric mobility

Press article HEINZMANN (november, 2010)

Heinzmann GmbH & Co. KG and Perm Motor GmbH, as part of the Heinzmann Group, have for years been leading the way when it comes to electric mobility.

Motor technology

Highly dynamic brushless synchronous motors with high power density are developed and produced by HEINZMANN and have proven successful as wheel hub motors and centre drives in electric vehicles, as well as hybrid drives. Image 1 shows a typical PERM disc rotor motor with the permanent magnet rotor and two stators, here as an axial flow machine and a good example of a very compact motor with low axial extension. These motors, characterised by an efficiency of over 90 %, are currently available at up to 30 kW continuous operation. For mobile applications, intermediate circuit voltage for the motors typically ranges from 24 to 96 V.

Hybrid machines, which can be used as both motors and generators, are a particular specialty of HEINZMANN and often used in mobile machinery. As permanently excited synchronous motors with radial magnetic flux, they have been designed for the standard flanges of combustion engines and are suitable for insertion in the flywheel housing. Image 2 shows two parallel hybrids from HEINZMANN, shown with a CUMMINS diesel engine and a VW industrial engine. This image also shows the evolution of electric machinery: The electric machine to the left of the picture has a concentrated single-tooth winding and thus a minimised axial machine length. The example on the right represents an earlier stage of development with distributed winding and axially protruding winding heads. Hybrid machines with a power range of up to 60 kW are available on the market today, generally preferred with a 400 V intermediate circuit voltage. (There are, however, also versions with 80 V.) They boast a broad operating range and over 90 % efficiency including the control system.

HEINZMANN has also made a name for itself with drive systems for electric bikes (also known as pedelecs). The classic HEINZMANN wheel hub motor is still considered one of the strongest motors in this field. This is just one of the reasons why these motors have been almost exclusively used for the electric bikes of Germany‘s national postal service, Deutsche Post, or for three wheelers. HEINZMANN presented the gearless wheel hub motor and the blanketed mid-mounted motor as the new drive concepts during EUROBIKE 2010.

PERM motor applications: PERM motors can be found in a variety of electric vehicles, some of which are already in series production or still at the prototype stage. Image 3 shows an example of the “Kenguru”, the first ever electrically powered vehicle designed for wheelchair users. The car is directly driven from the wheelchair, which can be loaded onto and secured in the vehicle. This saves the driver the time and effort usually required for switching from the wheelchair to the driving seat and vice versa.

The LOREMO EV Roadster (image 4) is an example of an impressively designed electric vehicle. With a nominal output (continuous load) of 18 kW, this model promises unadulterated driving pleasure with full torque at the lowest of speeds and a temporary overloading of the motor allowed.

In the USA, BRAMMO has succeeded in launching two electric motorbikes on the market. The first production models in the world, the bestselling „ENERTIA“ and the „EMPULSE“ (pictured in image 5), are fitted with PERM drive motors. Even go-carts with PERM drives have achieved production status these days, enjoying increasing popularity as yet another indoor entertainment option.

HEINZMANN motor applications

HEINZMANN motors are to be found in the hybrid drives of mobile machinery and in light electric vehicles.

The „12 MTX hybrid“ excavator (image 6) from MECALAC made its extremely successful debut at INTERMAT 2009 in Paris, complete with the CUMMINS-HEINZMANN hybrid drive (parallel hybrid, see image 2). The machine won both the „Gold Award“ and the „Environment Award“, the two highest accolades awarded just the once during this international trade fair for construction machinery.

Heinzmann GmbH & Co. KG is involved in several research projects and customer projects which look at hybrid applications in the various mobile machines and road vehicles. Also included here are the related fields of range extenders, variable speed generators and vehicle electrification of auxiliary power units such as pumps, cooling fans and air-conditioning compressors, as well as the traction drive as a wheel hub motor (image 7).

At the lower end of the power spectrum with 250 W are the drives for light electric vehicles, typical examples of which are shown in image 8.

At EUROBIKE 2010, HEINZMANN presented the gearless wheel hub motor and the blanketed mid-mounted motor as the new bicycle drive concepts, along with innovative control systems such as the Bluetooth wireless connection for Smartphones with the HEINZMANN APP and the position sensors for increased drive support during ascent, to name just a few. DirectPower, the gearless wheel hub motor with full torque, generally facilitates regeneration and can be installed without a problem in standard frames as a front or rear wheel motor. In contrast, the new PedPower mid-mounted motor requires a special frame but does also allow the entire drive unit to be concealed behind the chain cover, 12 Ah battery included. Image 9 shows a customer-specific PedPower design for a pedelec from the EWS Schönau electric power company, regarded in Germany as the “rebel” among the energy suppliers due to its fierce promotion of local electric mobility.

Summary

Since the takeover of Perm Motor GmbH at the start of 2008, the Heinzmann Group has increasingly focussed on the concept of electric mobility, with its product spectrum ranging from the 250 W pedelec motor to the 30 kW wheel hub and auxiliary motors to the maximum 60 kW hybrid applications. The company has proven itself to be a reliable and competent partner for development projects with the most varied of e-mobility requirements in both the private and industrial sector.