Thirty projects have been successful in receiving grant funding from the Niche Vehicle Network competitions, collectively supported by Innovate UK, the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) and the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC).
Winning projects include: the development of clean, extended-range tyres for electric vehicles made from advanced natural materials; design of a carbon composite motorcycle frame with minimal component count and optimised shape for strength, stiffness and space envelope; development of a novel low-cost, 3-wheeled, multi-passenger, electric vehicle platform. Other winners were: production of prototype titanium brake callipers, via a low-cost, high-efficiency manufacturing process; design, development, prototyping and testing of a novel and innovative high specific output 48v electric machine and energy storage system; development of an autonomous road sweeper using the latest sensor and mapping technology; design validation and manufacturing process development of air bearings, to deliver oil-free turbochargers.
All the projects will receive 50 per cent of their project costs and will cover the balance of the project costs with their own resources. All are collaborative between at least three UK-based companies active in the low carbon vehicle technology sector.
Further details of all successful projects can be found on the Niche Vehicle Network <%$Linker:
The winners securing a share of a recent US$5 million (£3.9 million) investment for low carbon development and demonstration projects in the niche vehicle sector have been announced at LCV 2017.
