Daimler to explore the electrification of select heavy duty vehicles

Daimler Trucks & Buses announced its investment in the U.S. company Proterra Inc., an electric bus company, at the 67th IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hannover, Germany.

In conjunction with the investment, Proterra and Daimler have entered into an agreement to explore the electrification of select Daimler heavy duty vehicles. The first of these efforts will be to explore potential synergies with Daimler’s Thomas Built Buses division by bringing Proterra’s battery and drivetrain technologies to the North American school bus market, the next frontier for zero-emission, commercial fleets. Similar to public transit vehicles, school buses provide mission-critical community infrastructure and offer an excellent use case for vehicle electrification, as most school buses travel a predictable distance per day that is well within the capability of Proterra’s EV technology, the company says.

"We started working on electric trucks and buses at a very early stage and we aim to set the standards here in each relevant segment," said Martin Daum, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG with responsibility for Daimler Trucks & Buses. "We expect the cooperation with Proterra to deliver additional impetus for the development of heavy-duty commercial vehicles with electric drive. In this way, we are broadening our scope in particular concerning the key technology of the battery – also with regard to North America.”

Not only since the newly concluded cooperative ventures, but for many years now, Daimler Trucks & Buses is pushing forward with electric mobility. A range of electrically powered commercial vehicles was presented this year at the Hanover Exhibition Centre. From the battery-electric eCitaro city bus to the all-electric heavy duty eActros, which is already in customers’ hands, to the E-FUSO Vision One vehicle study, which is a preview of a fully electric heavy duty truck from the E-FUSO brand.

Mercedes-Benz eCitaro

The new, all-electric Mercedes-Benz eCitaro also had its trade-fair premiere at the IAA. The new city bus achieves energy efficiency thanks to its innovative thermal management. The bus has a battery capacity of 243 kWh and space for up to 88 passengers. In just a few years, it will be able to completely replace the combustion engine with unique battery technology and fuel cells as a range extender, the company says.

The new eCitaro is an integral part of the eMobility system at Daimler Buses. This eMobility system supports transport operators with everything from in-depth advice, an intelligent charging management system and the training of their employees through to the provision of specific services.

Even before the vehicle goes into series production this autumn, orders have been received for several dozen eCitaro buses from customers in Germany and abroad, including Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, Rhein-Neckar Verkehrsverbund, Hamburger Hochbahn and customers in Norway.

Mercedes-Benz eActros

Mercedes-Benz Trucks further developed the Mercedes-Benz eActros, which had its world premiere in February this year. The first eActros was delivered in September to Hermes for use with the customer under real-life conditions. By the end of this year, the customer innovation fleet will comprise ten vehicles. Series production is planned to start in the year 2021.

Key features of the eActros include eleven battery packs inside and below the chassis, with a usable total capacity of 240 kWh. Drive comes from electric motors close to the wheel hubs with a maximum output of 2 x 126 kW. The additional weight of approximately 2.5 tons compared with conventional drive is partly offset by the increase in the permissible gross vehicle weight in the EU of one ton for trucks with alternative drive systems. The range of the eActros of around 200 kilometers covers for example a typical day’s tour in the distribution of fresh food transport to supermarkets.

The new Mercedes-Benz Actros heavy duty truck features Active Drive Assist, with which Mercedes-Benz Trucks puts partially automated driving into series production. The new Active Drive Assist can brake, accelerate and steer independently. Unlike systems that only operate at certain speeds, Active Drive Assist enables the driver to drive partially automatically in all speed ranges for the first time in a series-produced truck. New features include active lateral control and the combination of longitudinal and lateral control in all speed ranges through the fusion of radar and camera information. Active Drive Assist is based on the Proximity Control system with stop-and-go function in conjunction with Lane Keeping Assist from Mercedes-Benz. While the driver remains responsible for monitoring the traffic situation, the system significantly reduces his workload and makes an important contribution to increasing safety on the road.

The new Actros is also the first series-produced truck with MirrorCam instead of exterior mirrors. The mirror-cams are an enormous improvement for aerodynamics, safety and vehicle handling. They offer a greatly improved all-round view and consists of two cameras on the exterior of the vehicle and two 15-inch displays on the A-pillars inside the cab.

Another highlight of the new Actros is Active Brake Assist 5, the new generation of the emergency braking assistant. It supports the driver if there is the risk of an accident with a vehicle travelling ahead or a pedestrian on the road, if required with a full emergency braking. A new aspect is that Active Brake Assist 5 works with a combination of radar and camera system. This means that the system can better monitor the space in front of the vehicle and can react better to pedestrians.

Another significant element of the assistance systems of the new Actros is Sideguard-Assist, which had its world premiere two years ago. When turning right, this system helps the driver to avoid collisions with cyclists, pedestrians or stationary objects.

FUSO eCanter and E-FUSO Vision One

The all-electric light duty FUSO eCanter is also in regular use – meanwhile with various customers in major cities in North America, Europe and Asia. The light duty truck’s six batteries with a total capacity of 82.8 kWh allow a range of more than 100 kilometers, which is more than many customers require for daily deliveries in urban areas. The electric motor has an output of 129 kW and the FUSO eCanter has a payload of up to 3.5 tons, depending on body and application. The FUSO eCanter is free of local emissions and nearly silent, and is produced in Tramagal, Portugal, for approximately 30 markets in Europe and the United States. The FUSO eCanter for the Japanese market is produced at the Mitsubishi FUSO plant in Kawasaki.

The E-FUSO Vision One also provides a glimpse of the future at the IAA. It is a realistic preview of an all-electric heavy duty truck from the E-FUSO brand. The three-axle truck for distribution transport will achieve a range of up to 350 kilometers thanks to a battery capacity of 300 kWh. The separate E-FUSO product brand for electric vehicles shows how seriously FUSO is taking the topic of electric drive.

Electric school bus

In addition to the all-electric Saf-T-Liner C2 Electric Bus, also known as Jouley, which was on display at IAA, Daimler Trucks presented two completely new all-electric trucks from its US subsidiary in early June: the heavy duty eCascadia and the medium duty eM2. The first customers, Penske Truck Leasing and NFI Industries, will test 30 of these electric Freightliner vehicles starting in late 2018.