Electric and electric hybrid vehicle technology: a survey

In urban areas, due to their beneficial effect on environment, electric and hybrid vehicles are an important factor for improvement of traffic and more particular for a healthier environment. We are quite rapidly reaching the end of the cheap oil era; this could happen around 2010 and is nowadays probably indicated by the steadily growing oil price. Therefore the need for alternative energy source is growing and the price competition of alternatives against oil is becoming more and more realistic. Electric and electric hybrid vehicles are offering the best possibility for the use of new energy sources, because electricity can result from a transformation with high efficiency of these sources and is always used with the highest possible efficiency in systems with electric drives or components. Some basic considerations about electric and hybrid vehicles today and in a mid and long-term perspective, are presented together with the infrastructure developments. The structures and performances of EVs and HEVs are discussed. Batteries and other energy sources, traction motors, and power electronics for drives, chargers and DC/DC converters are then discussed. Chargers and charging infrastructure, conductive and inductive charging, energy consumption and the EV/HEV market are also discussed