A Rationale for Electric Drive Trains for Heavy-Duty Vehicles

This paper summarizes a study of the applicability of electric drive trains to heavy-duty vehicles, with emphasis on military use. Presently used power transmission systems are compared with electrical systems considering design, performance, and maintenance factors. The comparison is supplemented by a cost-effectiveness analysis using mining, manufacturing, and military vehicle data. It is concluded that feasibility of electric propulsion systems for heavy-duty applications has been well established; that d-c systems are cost effective, and a-c systems are potentially cost effective; further, that the time is ripe for development programs on a-c drives to reach operational availability in the late seventies.