What Is A Hybrid Vehicle?

Hybrid vehicles are quickly growing in popularity due to various advantages. People have been looking for ways to help minimize costs and pollution and hybrids have shown to be quite promising in the days to come. There are a few guidelines to be considered to fully describe a hybrid vehicle including its early development and modern innovations.

A Brief Description

A hybrid vehicle or HV is a means of transportation using two or more different sources of power for propulsion. With the known available power sources like electricity, gasoline and the like, hybrid vehicles incorporates a combination of these with the intent of becoming more cost-effective, convenient and ecological. Examples of other power sources would be air and internal combustion engines, fuel cells, battery storage systems and even manual propulsion.

Mopeds and electric bicycles are some of the earliest forms of hybrid incorporating both manual propulsion and electric power or internal combustion engine to successfully run. The model incorporated a series hybrid bicycle as well which leads to generator power after the pedals have been manually rotated. The result would be electricity providing enough power to a motor without the need of chains that traditional bicycles have.

There are also hybrid vehicles in bigger forms like power trains using a combination of diesel, electric or hydraulic motor. Heat engines will start to power electric generators or a hydraulic pump in order to support multiple electric or hydraulic motors.

The use of wires and pipes are also more efficient since it saves more energy compared to several mechanical elements needing more powerful sources for energy. Electric trains have evolved with the discovery of dual modes which shift between diesel and electric power as well as dual voltage capabilities so that the train can run on various rail systems.

Drive train Variations

Parallel hybrid systems are the most common available today which combines an internal combustion engine or ICE and an electric motor that connects to a mechanical transmission. Some designs use a motor and an electrical generator in a single unit. A battery pack with high voltage is used to store energy and power. The two power sources are mechanically coupled. Parallel hybrids can be described according to the balance of various parts in producing power for movement. Usually, the ICE is more dominant while the electric runs after some assistance.

Series hybrids are also called REEV or Range-Extended Electric Vehicles which have a design more reminiscent to a BEV or battery electric vehicle. The combustion engine powers an electric generator in a series hybrid system rather than the wheels. The generator powers an electric motor while also charging the battery.

High amounts of power cause the motor to get electricity from the batteries and generator. There is no mechanical connection between the wheels and the combustion engine, making it run more efficiently. However, the power coming from the engine needs to run through the electric motor and generator first making it less efficient on long trips.

Combined hybrid vehicles incorporate both the traits of parallel and series hybrids. Power-split devices are used in order to create a link between the engine and the wheels mechanically or electrically. The main feature is the decoupling of the power provided by the engine or other sources from the power required by the driver.

Hybridization Categories

A full hybrid vehicle is one that can run on solely the engine, batteries or a mix of both. Some cars can be propelled solely through battery power which then uses the gasoline engine when running at higher speeds or greater distances.

There is a split power path wherein mechanical and electrical power can be interconverted through a connection between the engine and motor. There may be various modes at which the hybrid engine is running or gaining power from such as cruise mode, electric vehicle mode, battery mode, power boost mode and negative split mode.

A mild hybrid vehicle has large starter motors so that the engine immediately shuts down whenever the vehicle is braking, at a full stop or coasting. Restart is also relatively easy while accessories can still run with the engine off through electrical power. The large motor starts the engine allowing it to run at operational speeds before any fuel injection occurs.

Other types are power assist hybrid and plug-in hybrid. Power assist hybrids primarily use the engine while incorporating an electric motor for further assistance. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles or PHEV can be simply plugged into an outlet for recharging. The amount of energy stored determines the distance and performance capacity of the vehicle.
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