Hyliion recently acquired Gentherm's battery division, furthering its “growth plans and ongoing innovation,” the company said.
“Batteries are a critical component of any hybrid vehicle,” said Thomas Healy, founder and CEO of Hyliion.
“The acquisition provides us with control over the complete battery management supply chain from manufacturing and packaging to software development. This is a huge strategic advantage for us.”
Hyliion’s intelligent hybrid electric technology transforms any Class 8 truck into a diesel hybrid electric, lowering fuel consumption and reducing emissions. The battery system already was a critical component of Hyliion’s 6x4HE, which is designed to capture wasted energy when traveling downhill and apply the power to keep the engine operating efficiently when going uphill.
The company uses hybrid electrification to deliver fuel savings of up to 30 percent, lower emissions and instant telematics, utilizing top battery cell technologies and chemistry with proprietary packaging and battery management. The acquisition and strategic partnerships with the industry’s leading companies will allow Hyliion to take its hybrid solution a step further, the company said.
“The path to fully electrified long-haul fleets has many challenges,” Healy said. “Long haul semi-trucks average 600 miles a day. Electric semi-trucks, including Tesla's, are restricted by 300 to 500 miles on a single charge.
“Unless we re-grid the entire country to accommodate power consumption with grids as large as entire cities, a hybrid solution is the only answer that makes sense for long hauls.”
Hyliion is using Toshiba’s battery cell technology in a partnership that makes it Toshiba’s “preferred” packing and cooling partner in the US. Hyliion then packages the “high-caliber” li-ion cells and adds cooling and batter management systems for a comprehensive solution, the company said.
Hyliion also collaborated with Dana, which offers proprietary cooling technology, to improve the thermal management of the batteries.
"By cost effectively transforming any semi-truck into a hybrid electric, Hyliion is providing the trucking industry a unique opportunity to capitalize on the vehicle electrification trend,” said Darel Reed, Toshiba’s national sales manager.
“We’re proud to be part of Hyliion’s breakthrough technology and innovation, and look forward to sharing in the company’s ongoing success.”
The battery division team also joined the company. Hyliion’s new battery management solution will be sold to other companies to utilize in various other applications, it said.
“We’re thrilled to welcome our new battery team to Hyliion,” Healy said. “The battery technology they created is stellar and gives us a clear strategic advantage.”