Hybrid cars How They Operate
There are two main types of hybrid cars: series hybrid cars and
parallel hybrid cars.
Parallel hybrid cars work by using a combination of a
traditional gas engine and a high output electric motor. The
different elements of the engine start working at higher or
lower levels of output are required. If the car is being driven
carefully and accelerating at a reasonable level the electric
motor will work on its own until a greater output is needed at a
higher speed. Then the small high performances, in terms of fuel
economy that is, gas engine takes over. This is a seamless
almost unnoticeable process with a smooth transition of control
from electric to gas power. Hot Car Forum
As the acceleration is powered by the electric motor the gas
engine can be much smaller and more economical. There is no need
for a great deal of energy, merely enough to keep the car at a
steady speed, or to move the car from a mid range, around 40 mph
to a higher speed. This requires a lot less energy than the
initial movement from a standstill and consequently can be
achieved with a lower level of power.
The parallel system of using both the gas engine and electric
motor for hybrid cars means that there is less loss of power as
when the car is traveling at higher speeds. As the energy is not
required to go through the batteries and electric motor before
providing power to the car. When traveling in this mode there is
no need for the electric motor to operate and this also allows
it to be recharged by the gas engine as the vehicle is traveling
along. All ready for when the hybrid car slows and switches back
to the electric motor.
Series Hybrid Cars: a series design works by powering the
vehicle through an electric motor. The batteries supply the
power to the motor. As the power arrives at the motor through
the battery, series hybrid cars need a substantially larger
reserve of power and consequentially a greater amount of
batteries need to be carried in the car.
The motor only uses the exact amount of power required for the
task in hand. If you spend hours in a traffic jam, you may get a
little hot under the collar but your car will not be
overheating. An electric motor does not need to tick over or
idle when sitting in a jam; it will simply start turning when
you start moving. When driving hybrid cars there will be no
power (although maybe a little hair) lost even in the most
extreme of gridlocks. As the motor will not be working when the
vehicle is still, there is no need for the batteries to be
recharged until power is again being lost when the car starts to
move forward.
The large battery supply that is required for series hybrid cars
is kept supplied with energy by a generator that runs from the
main gas power unit. This only needs to operate when the
batteries are in need of extra power so for much of urban
driving there is no need for the motor to operate as only low
levels of power are required. This allows the hybrid cars engine
to run without emissions for city driving, especially if some
higher powered driving, as for highways or main routes is done,
and the consequent loss of power means that the hybrid cars
batteries are brought upon to their full power supply by the gas
motor when out of the urban environment.
There are advantages to both systems, but overall the parallel
system is the most flexible for hybrid cars as it allows for the
option of either power source to be transferred directly to
drive the car without going through another separate means of
transmission to the wheels. 647 words