Automotive News Canada - September 2024 - 12

12
* SEPTEMBER 2024
EVs in the classroom for hire education
University students
push technology
in an international
competition that
directly connects
them to the future
of the auto industry
By DAVID KENNEDY
TORONTO BUREAU CHIEF
THERE'S A PAIR OF NEWgeneration
electric motors wired
to the Cadillac Lyriq's front and
rear axles while the factory propulsion
unit is on a pallet gathering
dust. The crossover parked
inside the McMaster Automotive
Resource Centre (MARC) is
unlike any in a dealership.
The Lyriq is being reengineered
as part of the EcoCAR EV
Challenge, one in a series of automotive
industry research and collaboration
projects under way
at the Hamilton, Ont., campus
that are giving students hands-on
experience and a foot in the door
at automakers and parts manufacturers.
" We
don't do research for the
sake of research. Every single
project is sponsored by a company,
or we want to commercialize
ourselves, " said Ali Emadi, a professor
of engineering at McMaster
University as well as CEO of
Enedym Inc., a university spinoff
commercializing new-generation
electric motors.
Emadi is the lead faculty advisWe
don't do
research for the
sake of
research. Every
single project is
sponsored by a
company,
or we want to
commercialize
ourselves. "
Ali Emadi
Professor of engineering,
McMaster University
and CEO, Enedym Inc.
er for the McMaster EcoCAR
team, which is midway through
the latest four-year iteration of
the collegiate engineering challenge.
The long-running competition
is sponsored by the U.S.
Department of Energy, General
Motors and MathWorks, a U.S.
company specializing in mathematical
computing software.
NO SMALL TASK
The aim is to integrate
next-generation components and
connected technologies into EVs
while keeping the vehicles energy-efficient
and customer-centric.
To give students direct exposure
to a real-world operating
environment, all aspects of the
In an effort to win the EcoCAR EV Challenge, about 150 McMaster
University students are reengineering a Cadillac Lyriq with electric
motors that don't use rare-earth materials, eliminating a choke
point in the EV supply chain. PHOTO: McMASTER UNIVERSITY
program follow the GM vehicle
development process, Emadi said.
The Lyriq was provided by GM.
At GM's Desert Proving
Ground in Arizona in May,
McMaster took third place in the
second year of the challenge. It's
one of 13 university and college
teams competing and one of two
from outside the United States.
The team has about 150 students,
roughly 20 of whom are
master's and Ph.D. candidates.
The bulk of both the undergraduQuarter-Page
CANADA Auto News Ad for SEPT., OCT., NOV., 2024 publication - (Due AUG. 20)
Knowing How To Handle 'PRICE' Is Critical
Check out Joe's online course
" How To Handle PRICE " on JVTN®
How To Handle
'PRICE'
Your team will develop
skills to handle tough price
questions, close more deals,
and learn to negotiate with a
better set of tools...
CALL US TODAY (888) 700-9454
JoeVerde.com/CA36
Joe Verde Sales & Management Training, Inc.
031924
SC 13120
ate and grad students are in electrical,
computer or mechanical
engineering. The project is primarily
an extracurricular activity
and in rare instances can be tied
to coursework, Emadi said.
The propulsion system - what
Emadi described as the " beating
heart " of every EV - is one of
the key focuses for McMaster.
After stripping out the Lyriq's
standard three-in-one system
consisting of the motor, power
electronics and gearbox, the team
integrated two new propulsion
units.
To turn the rear axle, the students
opted for a switched reluctance
motor from Enedym. The
front axle uses an induction
motor with silicon-carbide power
electronics from American Axle
and Manufacturing in Detroit.
Unlike the Lyriq's factory
motor, both next-generation preproduction
components do not
use rare-earth magnets, skirting
a current supply chain choke
point.
The permanent magnets can
make up about 40 per cent of the
overall cost of the EV motors,
Emadi said. And most of the
rare-earth materials come from
China, putting the security and
environmental credentials of the
supply chain at risk, he added.
By integrating two novel propulsion
systems in McMaster's
Lyriq, the team aimed to " push
the limits " of the competition,
Emadi said.
Another focuses include
autonomous technology and driver
monitoring. Cadillac's Super
Cruise hands-free system is classified
as Level 2. The McMaster
team added sensors such as cameras
and lidars to bring the Lyriq
up to Level 3, which provides
broader self-driving capability.
Integrating such technology presents
another challenge, Emadi
said, as the Lyriq has a long list
of cybersecurity features.
While the McMaster team's
reengineered Lyriq runs and
drives, it's not optimized, and the
final two years of the EcoCAR
challenge will involve fine-tuning.
To improve on the team's
third-place finish for the most
recent academic year, McMaster
is also adding resources to make
a run for the top spot, Emadi
said.
FROM SCHOOL TO WORK
The hands-on experience
comes with tangible results.
McMaster has participated
in three iterations of EcoCAR
over the past 10 years, leading to
dozens of student hires " directly
out of the program, " Emadi
said. Many students, he said, go
to GM Canada. Others find their
way to other automakers or they
pursue master's or doctoral studies.
While
the university maintains
close links to GM through
EcoCAR, corporate-research
projects are conducted for other
automakers and parts suppliers,
including Ford and Stellantis.
McMaster's " critical mass " of
faculty, staff engineers and students
creates a " one-stop shop "
that allows companies to tackle
large-scale projects that most
other schools don't have capacity
to handle, Emadi said. - ANC
By integrating two novel propulsion systems instead of one in
McMaster University's Cadillac Lyriq, the team aimed to " push
the limits " of the competition, said Ali Emadi, professor of
engineering and CEO of Enedym Inc.
PHOTO: DAVID KENNEDY
https://www.joeverde.com/Video-Joe-Verde-Automotive-News-7.html?sc=13120
Automotive News Canada - September 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Canada - September 2024
