Vertically Integrated Facility for Electric Truck Manufacturing (VIFET)

This Vertically Integrated Facility for Electric Truck Manufacturing (VIFET) final report documents Transportation Power, Inc.'s research and development under this project, funded by CEC ARV-10-020 in the amount of $1,000,000. The goal of this agreement was to conduct feasibility studies to establish the economic viability of Transportation Power, Inc.'s concept of a three-stage vertically integrated facility for manufacturing electric Class 8 trucks, and to conduct performance tests to validate that certain key components are ready for commercial manufacturing. The components addressed by the latter activity include an advanced power converter and a high-capacity energy storage module using lithium batteries and an advanced battery management system. The specific objectives of this agreement were to produce the quantitative data necessary to achieve the above goals. The VIFET project sought to achieve major technology advances in to key areas: vehicle control and integration, and advanced energy storage.

The VIFET project not only made major advances in these two areas, but also achieved significant advances in the area of electric vehicle propulsion, and moderate advances in several other technology areas. The combined effect of VIFET technology advances is expected to have a transformative effect on the heavy-duty vehicle industry.