AirShip Technologies Group

Don't Tell Us We Can't Change The World!

The Green Agenda

The transportation sector of most industrialized economies is one of the largest producers of air quality pollutants.  In order to improve the air quality in many regions with high population density, the amount of pollution caused by the auto must be reduced.   Reduction in other areas will not produce a large enough benefit to off set the pollution caused by the automobile. While air quality has continued to improve in the U.S. and cars are getting cleaner, in some areas it is still unhealthy.  Even with the cars getting cleaner, the world is buying more cars, cars that pollute more and we are driving them more each year.  Therefore cars are putting more pollutants into the air.  When we compare the emissions from alternative fuels, clearly, electric is the least polluting and using electric vehicles also saves oil. 

While it is traditional to believe that cars will improve incrementally in gas mileage performance, it is a realistic approach that seemingly grows very slowly.  Overall the US car market averages 23.6 miles per gallon.  The AirShip's Green Agenda challenges this approach to incremental improvement and sets its sights on deep change or dramatic improvement in alternative propulsion.  Today's worldwide car fleets are doing the best they can with alternative fuels and hybrids, but they are tied to the basic vehicle architecture we've seen for the past 100 years.  The basic vehicle configuration remains the same with an internal combustion engine and the emergence of various fuel alternatives delivering power to the vehicle's tires.  Seating configurations remain the same and conform to a vehicle dynamic that prevents out of the box thinking on what vehicle transportation can be.  These factors create tough conditions for automobile makers to make dramatic improvements.  For we see little overall vehicle architecture change from the Model-T of the past to vehicle footprints of today.  The turn of the century may have ushered in the internal combustion engine, but gradually we are moving society and the world to hybrid electrics and pure electric vehicles. 

In the Green Ecology times of today, business as usual no longer suffices.   The world is looking for deep change in how we develop our transportation vehicles, organize our development teams and push our thinking on the 100+ mile per gallon threshold.  For the world is saying "let's go"  and "What's taking us so long?"  Getting 40, 60 or 80 miles of current EVs, can't be the only way to get to a performance boost demanded by the world.  Yet as many automakers and drivers have learned to our chagrin, vehicle transformation is very hard to pull off.  AirShipTG's Green Agenda is focused on making vehicle transformation succeed by creating a compelling vision for the vehicle of the future and by building enthusiasm at all levels of the organization.  We plan to master the complexities of powering vehicles by maglev spherical induction motors by developing drive trains that adapt and are self-supporting through regenerative drive mated to  Lithium-ion Battery Packs a new visionary architecture for magnetic induction coils built into the wheel base.  AirShipTG wants to ignite a worldwide culture for sustainable transportation that can power a vehicle to 400 miles on one full electric charge. And then we will realize the promise -- to mass produce these spherical induction motors for auto and long haul maglev electric trucks.

AirShipTG will use clean technology components from the original AirShip Ground Transit Concept Vehicle and create track sphere-enabled maglev spherical induction motors in a Delorean ATG production vehicle.

   AirShip Ground Transit Concept Vehicle

Dual Lithium-ion Battery Packs.   Introducing Lithium-ion batteries provides the AirShip with a robust and rechargeable power plant.  Using hydraulic lifts, we stack the Lithium-ion packs for ease of service and distributed air cooling.  A battery-to-cooling fan design is absolutely necessary for more efficient cooling.  With cooling and dual stack Lithium-ion batteries, the target miles-traveled range on one full electric charge is 240 miles, more than competitive for the field of electric and hybrid electric vehicles.  Additionally, the charge time is 8 to 10 hours for a full electric recharge from home or the office.  With the addition of track sphere regenerative drive, we gain 160 miles for a total of 400 miles on one full charge.

In the original AirShip ground transit vehicle design, it makes use of helium bags strategically located within the body of the vehicle that lift the weight of much of the vehicle off the 24 ball bearings used to hold the first Track Sphere design.  The AirShip concept vehicle was not designed to leave the ground, but it has helium lift bags strategically placed. Because the AirShip Ground Transit concept vehicle's Track Sphere drivetrain created more friction than typical vehicle cylinder wheels, the SIM (Spherical Induction Motor maglev track sphere) was designed to eliminate friction while powering the track sphere totally different for the Delorean ATG production vehicle.

 

Regenerative Drive.   The Delorean ATG's Track Sphere Assembly contains a Hub of electromagnets, each with its own coordinates..  To continuously hold and levitate the sphere, the hub is concave around most of the magnetic spherical wheel.  The lower 5 inches of the hub is exposed in order for the spherical wheel to make contact with the ground.  The rubber-covered spherical wheel is composed of  core magnets with the outer sphere North designated and the inner sphere South designated.   Throughout the hub contains a horizontal layer of wire coils that serves to generate electricity as the sphere's core magnets spin by each coil.   

The Delorean ATG’s weight is equally distributed across each of the Track Sphere assemblies, even though the vehicle's front track spheres are 21 inches in diameter and the rear ones are 24 inches.  This is primarily due to the original Delorean tire mounting configuration and vehicle front to back balance.  The vehicle's track spheres can be recharged by low cost main electricity plug-in from regular home or alternative locations while at rest.   This reduces any concern about battery capacity limits or how to recharge. 

During vehicle operation when Lithium-ion battery levels would normally fall, the track sphere makes use of its competitive advantage -- its frictionless, free moving spherical wheel uses regenerative drive.  This enables sustained highway speeds and an overall top end speed target of 125 to135 mph.

Regenerative drive includes forward driving, braking and maneuvering.

 

Solar Fabric.  Solar Fabric serves as AirShip's exterior covering source for the Delorean ATG window louvers and is considered green house gas friendly.  Thin-film photovoltaic (PV) materials and modules are used to generate electrical power to help propel the vehicle's onboard electronics. Thin film photovoltaic power offers unique advantages over earlier solar cell product generations and other comparable technologies in the marketplace.  For example, some manufacturers of solar fabric are creating it in large roll formats at the module level using proprietary monolithic laser-patterned cell integration processes that enable individual solar cells to be interconnected during production. Innovations like this eliminate time-intensive cell-to-cell connections and assembly operations required with other technologies to build up modules. Modules are produced on durable, light weight plastic in contrast to first generation products on metal foils that were developed over a decade ago. The plastic substrate materials result in extremely high specific power levels, compactness and flexibility that enable the products to be configured into a wide variety of rolls, foldable packs, or traditional module formats.  The roll formats allow for direct integration into the external skin surface of the AirShip's window louvers, significantly reducing the number of modules required for a typical application.

Hybrid Competitors

 

Tesla Roadster.  With an initial 2008 run of 600-plus cars now set to begin production late this year, the Tesla has attracted unprecedented interest in E.V.’s thanks to its sexy looks, its blistering acceleration (0 to 60 m.p.h. in less than four seconds) and a driving range that was just revised upward to 245 miles.   The Silicon Valley start-up has benefited from tens of millions of development dollars from Elon Musk, the PayPal founder who is Tesla’s chief executive and is developing his own space program; backers include Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google.

 

The Tesla has provoked a worldwide outpouring of fait accompli press coverage: the technology will put Detroit’s dinosaurs out of business, it is said, and render the internal combustion engine obsolete. Yet that would be a tall order for a company with no experience in the brutal auto business, one that has yet to build its first production car, open its first showroom or build its first service facility.

 

In August 2007, a co-founder, Martin Eberhard, was shunted aside for a new interim chief executive, and the start of production was delayed for about four months. Yet company executives said that their desire to deliver a top-quality car is the only reason for the delay. To alleviate concerns, Tesla has allowed some buyers to test-drive pre-production models and post unedited comments on the company’s Web site:  (teslamotors.com).

 

The first to emphasize that the $100,000 British-built roadster aims to prove the fun and feasibility of E.V.’s, not solve the transportation issues of average Americans. But Tesla is developing a second E.V. (its code name is White Star), a generously sized, $50,000-$70,000 sport sedan. Starting in 2010, Tesla plans to make 10,000 White Stars at a new plant in Albuquerque.  Certainly, the celebrity-friendly Roadster is a marketing smash. But the White Star will be the real test of Tesla’s technology and long-term prospects.

 

Zap-X.  The company name, Zap, sounds like something from a Batman comic. (It stands for Zero Air Pollution.) But if the project gets off the ground, the Zap-X would be one super powered E.V., with a claimed top speed of 155 m.p.h. and a 350-mile range. While the car has been derided by skeptics as “vaporware” that will never see production, the Zap-X would be based on the APX concept car by Lotus, which is also building the Tesla at its Hethel, England, factory.  The five-passenger aluminum-intensive crossover would use high-tech electric hub motors at all four wheels, delivering 644 horsepower to the ground from a lithium-ion battery pack. The hub motors would eliminate the need for transmission, axles and conventional brakes, opening up space beneath the floor for a giant battery pack.

 

The chief executive of Zap, closed a long-brewing deal with China’s Youngman Automotive Group to manufacture E.V. passenger cars, buses and heavy equipment. Mr. Schneider said the alliance opens the door to bringing the Zap-X, and possibly other electric models, to the United States by about 2010 for around $60,000.

 

Chevrolet Volt.  G.M. doesn’t like the Volt to be called a plug-in hybrid, since it considers the car more of an E.V. But the concept car has a tiny gasoline engine, albeit one that’s used exclusively to pump electricity into lithium-ion batteries, not to power the wheels. And there’s definitely a cord attached, requiring eight hours to recharge from a household plug but far less with higher-voltage current.  G.M. is designing the Volt to run on electricity alone for up to 40 miles. So for more than 85 percent of American commuters, the Volt would indeed work like a pure E.V., using no gasoline and delivering up to 150 m.p.g. G.M. hopes to bring a car like the Volt to market by 2011 or 2012.

 

Think City.  The Think company illustrates the hurdles faced by E.V. makers. Founded in Norway in 1990 as Pivco Industries, the company has run out of money, gone into receivership and passed through multiple owners. Now it has been revived as Think Nordic. Yet over 17 years, it has produced little of note. Under Ford’s ownership beginning in 1999 and driven by California’s electric-vehicle mandate, the company produced 1,000 sluggish 50-mile-range Think City cars. Ford dumped the disastrous project in 2003, crushing leftover American models (as G.M. did with the EV1). Now, the company plans a second-generation two-seat Think City for Europe in 2008, powered by lithium-ion batteries provided by Tesla in a $43 million deal. The company has floated vague plans to sell the car in some American cities in 2009.

 

Beyond urban use, the new model’s performance may not satisfy Americans: the company claims a mere 110-mile driving range and top speed of only 62 m.p.h.

 

Phoenix S.U.T.  Looking like the offspring of a Honda Ridgeline and a Subaru Baja, the Phoenix S.U.T. starts life as a South Korean pickup, the Ssangyong Actyon.  Phoenix adds a tiny twist: its lithium-ion batteries are said to employ nanotechnology — in this case, incredibly small lithium-titanate particles — to deliver faster recharging, safer operation and longer life. Ssangyong will ship the pickups, minus a powertrain, to Ontario, Calif., where Phoenix will install the batteries and electronics.  Using a special high-voltage charger, Phoenix claims the truck could store enough juice in 10 minutes to cover 100 miles. (A full charge would take six or seven hours from household current.) For now, only utility companies and other fleet customers can buy one of the $45,000 sport utility trucks from the initial 500-unit run. The company plans a small public introduction in 2008.

 

Wrightspeed X1.  The racy Wrightspeed E.V. is the brainchild of Ian Wright, a New Zealander who was formerly chief engineer at Tesla. Essentially a juiced-up, lithium-ion version of the Ariel Atom tube-frame racer, the Wrightspeed is sickeningly fast. It is also stripped-down and devoid of comforts — a track car that’s nearly useless on public roads. Wright hopes to bring the X1 to market for around $120,000. But even more so than the Tesla, the only thing the Wrightspeed would solve is the need to roar into the pits for a quick fuel stop.

Electrum Spyder.

 

Another bit of California dreaming, this is a convertible E.V. from Universal Electric Vehicle of Thousand Oaks. The company, which is seeking corporate financing, claims the Electrum Spyder (estimated price: $69,900) could reach 100 m.p.h. and travel up to 150 miles on a charge of its nickel-zinc batteries. A $25,000 upgrade would add lithium-ion cells, increasing the range to 250 miles.  The company says it is taking orders for the car, with deliveries beginning 10 months after an unspecified start of production. The company said it was also designing a two-door four-passenger model with a target price below $45,000.

 

Venturi Fetish.  Consider the Venturi Fetish.  First shown at the Paris auto show in 2004, the two-seat roadster, powered by lithium-ion batteries, has a claimed top speed of 100 m.p.h. and a one-hour charging time. The Monaco-based company says it plans to build 25 Fetishes, priced at a cool $500,000 each.

 

Tango.  It looks like a car that got caught in a trash compactor. Only three inches wider than a yardstick, the Commuter Cars Corporation’s Tango is an all-electric two-seater. George Clooney, who is to get one of the first 10 Teslas sold to the general public, has reportedly bought a Tango, too.

Welcome

Recent Photos