A Goleta, California-based company, LaunchPoint, has released a hybrid-electric generator system.
Created by a team of engineers over a decade, the LaunchPoint HPS400 GenSet is a 40kW generator with the capacity to power large drones and flying vehicle missions that require extended ranges of flight, according to company officials.
Until now, the 40kW market has been underserved, officials noted. LaunchPoint developed the HPS400 GenSet with the goal of fulfilling this unmet demand, and sales have been swift since its release, company officials report.
The HPS400 GenSet uses LaunchPoint-patented technology, including an air-cooled alternator, lightweight aircraft engine, and a battery management system that allows for in-flight battery charging.
Other features include SmartPoint Control Software, communications to the flight controller for monitoring system status, automatic throttle control to match the bus load and share power with the battery, and fans and radiators sized to ensure sufficient engine cooling in hover and other low airflow conditions, company officials noted.
LaunchPoint is delivering the new 40kW genset, along with its 6kW hybrid-electric genset, to commercial aerospace, automotive, and air taxi companies globally. The firm has also secured more than $1.25 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Defense to develop hybrid-electric flight technology for flying cars.
It is to bad that they picked the carbureted rotax 582 when there are several fuel injected 2 cycle engines available.. ( different mfg) That burn less fuel..eg the rotax E-tec engine tech .. out board motors .. that in skidoo applications (past tech) more power was produced than the carb type and the fuel economy was similar if not better than a 4 cycle of similar hp..
My feeling is that hybrid is a dead-end technology which will disappear as soon as batteries start to approach the energy density of gasoline. Hybrid in automotive applications is quite complex, essentially being two complete power trains in the same vehicle, and it is pretty much unfixable except at the dealer$hip$. $ince the part$ and $ervice are pretty much captive, it i$ going to be expen$ive.
I’ve been offered a very clean 2011 Mercedes 400 hybrid sedan for ten grand, it was $100,000 new. “All” it needs is a battery and a controller for a paltry $15 grand more. Running, the car is worth *maybe* ten grand, the word is out, nobody wants one, and nobody except the MB dealer can get parts or work on it. It would also cost about ten grand to convert back to straight gasoline power.
I don’t need this kind of money suck in my airplane (and I walked away from the car as well).
With adequate battery power, this complexity is eliminated. Be patient . . .
Sorry to say it Mike, but it is highly unlikely that batteries will ever achieve the energy density of a liquid fuel.
Perhaps the future lies with liquid hydrogen but even then, a combustion engine may well compete with a fuel cell when it comes to power and/or energy density.
We have hybrid electric cars, so a hybrid aircraft may have some advantages.
– for a single engine a/c it can be more aerodynamic without a prop and air inlet on the nose.
– with some battery power, in case of the engine failure, there is still some electrical power to make a safe landing at an airport.
– the gas engine can operate at it’s maximum efficiency point.
– the electric drive motor[s] will have a smaller profile, again more aerodynamic.
– BUT, there is certainly a weight penalty having a generator and multiple motors
Why?