Dedicated-Alternator Fan Drive for Light-Truck Engine Cooling

An electric engine-cooling fan system has been developed for light-truck applications. It employs a dedicated alternator to provide the power required to cool these vehicles under trailer-tow conditions. It provides superior idle cooling, and reduced fan noise compared to a conventional clutch-driven fan system. This paper describes a prototype system that was installed in a sport-utility vehicle, and compares its performance to that of a conventional clutch-driven system