The automotive industry is entering a world of clean energy. Each chooses his own way to a bright future: Volkswagen creates the fastest racing electric cars, Musk rivets his Tesla furiously, and Mercedes masters the mass production of electric buses. The Swedes decided to go their own way and recently presented to the public an autonomous electric logging truck capable of transporting 16 tons of logs.
The presentation of the electric tractor T-log was held at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The development of this project is engaged in the Swedish company Einride.
The dream of any Swedish logger
Last year, Einride has already introduced the concept of an unmanned electric truck T-pod, which should go to the Swedish highway by 2020. The T-log timber truck is very similar to its “elder brother”, only its body is replaced with a special platform for transportation of logs. Outwardly, it looks somewhat more powerful than the T-pod, in addition, the creators taught the machine to perform specific tasks.
If we talk about the autopilot of a timber truck, then according to the SAE classification, it has the fourth level of autonomy, that is, it can move independently under predetermined conditions.
T-log capacity is 16 tons, the car is equipped with a 300 kWh battery, which allows it to travel 193 km.
T-log does not have a cabin at all; it is controlled remotely via the controller. Moreover, the operator is able to coordinate the work of several vehicles in the communication coverage area at once.
Robert Falk, the head of Einride, believes that the cab is one of the most expensive structural elements of any truck. Failure to significantly reduce the cost of the machine. And of course, with remote control of several timber trucks at once, you can save a great deal on the driver’s salary.
