A hybrid conventional drive/electric car has been built that does not use batteries, a motor, or controls. In the purely electric mode, it is pulled by an independently suspended tractor plate that is lowered to within 5/16ths of an inch of a set of buried, switched, linear induction motors. These motors are turned on when the vehicle is approaching, and operate with pulse population modulation at a speed commanded by the driver through an infrared link connected to a computer. Prototype speeds of 38.62 km/h for a 906 kg vehicle are contemplated. The motors ultimately can provide speeds necessary for freeway driving, but also must be able to bear the vertical loads associated with lane-changing and non-compatible traffic rolling over the motors.
The top level system requirements are discussed in a general manner. Pictures of the motor, tractor, and vehicle, etc. are shown. Figures are presented of the force requirements, material sensitivity, motor slip characteristics, 3-D motor force characteristics, gap characteristics, and power verses force characteristics. Electromagnetic field measurements inside the car are discussed. Although far from production, this full size prototype shows a radical approach to solving the well known problems associated with battery driven electric vehicles.