The Power Behind Rolls-Royce
My post entitled ‘Spirit of Innovation’ Stakes Claim To Be The World’s Fastest All-Electric Vehicle, was based on this press release from Rolls-Royce, which has the same title.
In the post I talk about Rolls-Royce’s experimental electric aircraft; Sprit of Innovation.
- The aircraft set a world record for electric-aircraft of 345.4 mph.
- the aircraft clocked up a maximum speed of 387.4 mph.
- The aircraft was propelled on its record breaking runs by a 400kW electric powertrain.
- Rolls-Royce worked in partnership with aviation energy storage specialist; Electroflight and automotive powertrain supplier; YASA.
For comparison, my Cessna 340A had two 230 kW engines and a maximum speed of 281 mph.
Electroflight, Evolito And YASA
YASA has this description of the company on their home page.
YASA is at the forefront of eMotor innovation and development. Our axial flux technology motors are up to 4x more powerful than those used in nearly all Electric Vehicles on the road today, whilst being around 50% smaller & lighter.
We already feature in some of the best eMotor applications across multiple sectors, and now as part of Mercedes-Benz, with sites in Oxfordshire and Welshpool, we are accelerating development of axial flux eMotors and Control Systems for of the next generation of Electric Vehicles.
Evolito has this description of the company on their About page.
Evolito was spun out in 2021 by YASA, the world-leading pioneer of automotive axial-flux electric motors acquired by Mercedes-Benz in July 2021, to exclusively commercialise YASA’s next-generation electric motor technology and IP for the rapidly-growing aerospace market. Evolito is funded by a portfolio of private investors including B-FLEXION and Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE).
Electroflight has this company story on their About page.
Founded in 2011 to address battery-electric issues in the aerospace market, we are a UK-based innovation engineering company, taking expertise from across the automotive and aerospace sectors, working with leading airframers to develop and supply next-generation battery technology.
In 2019, Electroflight, Rolls-Royce and YASA partnered to design and build the worlds fastest all-electric vehicle – The Spirit of Innovation. 3 years of dedication from the team involved integrating the full powertrain into a NXT aircraft, optimising the system to peak performance and following rigorous testing processes in an emerging market with new regulations; in 2021 the record breaking flight reached a staggering 345.5 mph!
Following the successful spinout of Evolito (YASA’s Aerospace Division) in 2021, Evolito acquired Electroflight in July 2022 to offer a fully optimised powertrain solution for the electric aerospace industry.
It appears that Mercedes-Benz now own YASA’s technology for the the automotive industry and Evolito have the aerospace technology.
Evolito’s Technology
The Evolito web site has a Technology page, which is entitled The World’s Most Advanced Electric Propulsion Solution.
- Their Axial Flux Motors are certainly a revolutionary approach.
- It looks like one of their motors has a peak power of 280 kW, a continuous power of 100 kW and weighs just 35 Kg.
There is also this page, which gives more details about the creation of the Spirit of Innovation, which has this video.
Evolito And Project Fresson
This press release from Cranfield Aerospace Solutions is entitled Cranfield Aerospace Welcomes Ground-Breaking UK Technology Innovator Onboard Project Fresson.
These paragraphs explain the link-up.
Cranfield Aerospace Solutions (CAeS) welcomes Evolito, a ground-breaking UK technology innovator onboard as the motor & inverter supplier for its hydrogen-powered aircraft demonstrator – Project Fresson.
Evolito join Reaction Engines and Ricardo as technology collaborators on Project Fresson, showcasing the UK innovation that is redefining the aviation industry.
Based in Oxfordshire, Evolito is the aerospace spin out of YASA – the world-leading pioneer of automotive axial-flux electric motors.
Producing the world’s most advanced electric propulsion system, Evolito’s motors are smaller, lighter, and typically 4 times more power dense than radial flux solutions, making them ideally suited to the emerging zero-emissions aviation markets.
Evolito’s axial-flux technology requires up to 75% less iron, less copper and fewer permanent magnets than competing radial solutions, making it lighter and more environmentally friendly.
Note.
- Project Fresson is a project to develop an electric propulsion system for Britten-Norman Islanders.
- There are 700 Islander aircraft in service.
A hydrogen propulsion system, would be useful for new aircraft and conversions.
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