By Richard Mandel

A Dutch company, E-traction, has participated in a collaboration to produce a city bus that boasts fuel savings of up to 60%, with emissions down to only a fraction of the soot and carbon dioxide an ordinary bus would blow out of its tailpipe. In addition, the test bus requires no adaptation, its drivers need no extra training and there’ll be no discomfort for passengers. A diesel engine, however, will not be the bus’s motive power. Propulsion will instead come from two SM500/2 "in-wheel" electric motors, which are configured like a normal electric motor turned inside out, with the stator at the core and the rotor a ring running on the outside of the stator. Power comes from a battery pack installed in a steel drawer under the bus. A small, diesel-powered generator, built into what used to be the bus’s engine bay, continuously charges the whole battery pack with the assistance of regenerative braking. Because charging the batteries is all it needs to do, the tiny engine isn’t changing gears or revving up and down as the bus moves, so it can run continuously at a speed of 1700 revs per minute, the most efficient rev count. The vehicle’s primary structure is made of aluminum and composite materials for reduced weight.

E-traction,  
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Specifically engineered for the photovoltaic industry, the SOLARLOK interconnection system has silver-plated, copper alloy contacts rated at 25A. The connectors achieve an IP67 environmental seal rating when mated, with a contact resistance of 1 mW or less. The company also produces SOLARLOK junction boxes, which feature internal quick disconnects to aid assembly and termination to photovoltaic panels. Two styles with IP65 ratings are available to accommodate serial or parallel interconnection arrangements. Custom boxes can be provided, configured with necessary diodes, plugs, jumpers, etc.

Tyco Electronics, 
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In response to concerns about the environmental impact of lead solder finishes and coatings in electronic components, Fairchild Semiconductor has initiated conversion of all products to lead-free packages, a process it expects to meet by June 2004. The primary Pb-free finish used by this company is pure matte tin, which provides stable plating compatible with existing tin-lead solder processes. It is also compatible with Pb-free board assembly processes, such as those using SnAgCu solders. The re-packaged devices will meet or exceed the requirements of the joint IPC/JEDEC standard J-STD-020B, are compliant with EU requirements which will take effect in 2005, and meet additional conditions delineated by key customers.

Fairchild Semiconductor,
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A team from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s Chemistry and Materials Science Directorate and the Center for Microtechnology Engineering demonstrated a dime-sized, 0.5W fuel cell for potential inclusion on a circuit board, for power applications such as unattended sensor systems and consumer products. The device converts methanol into hydrogen, which is then used to power a thin-film fuel cell. The conversion of 50 ml of 67% methanol in water presently yields 27 hours of "talk time" on a cell phone. The diagram depicting a 25 mm2 system on a circuit shows, from the bottom of the stack, a replaceable fuel cartridge for instant recharging, a microfluidic fuel processor (shown under magnification in the second photo), and the thin film fuel cell.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory,
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