Voith Turbo announced it will begin production of its patented DIWAhybrid drive system for transit buses in October. Over the last 18 months, Voith Turbo has fine-tuned and tested DIWAhybrid to better understand how the innovative drive system can best be utilized in municipal transit routes in North America. In recent multi-day real test runs, the DIWAhybrid drive system gained an average of 16 percent efficiency.
“We are very excited about the introduction of the DIWAhybrid drive system to the North American market,” said Rob Wiss, vice president of Voith Turbo’s Road Division. “By starting production of DIWAhybrid, we are able to stabilize the production process and guarantee an optimal product for our customers. The DIWAhybrid will not only benefit our customers and their riders by reducing transportation costs; it will enhance environmental sustainability by employing clean-energy technology for transit bus systems.”
Benefits of the DIWAhybrid system include:
- Use of an ultra capacitor, as opposed to a traditional battery, which will require less lifetime maintenance over its competitors. A typical battery will only last 6 years, whereas an ultra capacitor can last beyond 12 years, making the ultra capacitor better for both the bottom line and the environment.
- Design based on proven Voith Turbo drive systems
- Provides optimum capacity for buses making between two and five stops per mile, averaging between 15 and 25 mph.
- 150 kW electric motor power
- Energy storage capacity of 600 volts
- Optimized initial invest
“The DIWAhybrid system is being introduced to the market at the right time, as transit systems across North America are looking to do more with less,” said Brian Sharp, director of sales for the DIWAhybrid. “The DIWAhybrid system will save our customers money both through increased energy efficiency, as well as long term savings through decreased maintenance costs. We are looking forward to demonstrating the value and benefits of DIWAhybrid to our customers in the near future.”
Voith Turbo will use Maxwell Technologies’ Ultra capacitors in the production of DIWAhybrid, expanding on its partnership with an American company. Maxwell Technologies is supplying capacitors for Voith’s Hybrid Power-Train Development Center, which is based near San Diego, Calif. The Hybrid Power-Train Development Center will build and expand on Voith Turbo’s hybrid bus technologies
