60 Second Spotlight on Rob Cherry, IAAPS
Ahead of the Net Zero Vehicle Powertrain Engineering Design and Development Technology Seminar taking place on 27 April at IAAPS we caught up with Rob Cherry to hear his thoughts on the topic.
Please briefly explain your role, involvement and experience in the field of net zero powertrain technology.
I work within the engineering team at IAAPS, where I predominantly work with our customers to test electric machines and drivelines. I am involved at all stages of development, from initial system level modelling to final component or driveline test.
What is the top challenge facing your industry at present?
Working with electric machines has required considerable training within the industry, and a significant change in approach. From a test and development perspective, electric machines have very different safety considerations than ICE, and whilst they open a lot of opportunities, they come with a new set of engineering constraints and new way of thinking.
How would you say your industry has evolved over the past two years?
We have seen a large shift in interest to electrification and alternative fuels testing, and hence we are having to react very dynamically to this – which I find very exciting.
What are the latest developments which may have an impact on future net zero powertrain technology?
Recent discussions regarding future e-fuels usage policy for on-highway vehicles.
What will you be presenting at the EIS Net Zero Vehicle Powertrain Engineering Design and Development in Technology seminar and how will this benefit participants?
Over the past few years I have been working closely with a major off-highway OEM to model a number of diesel-electric hybrid system architectures, to explore tangible benefits over more conventional diesel-hydraulic systems. I will be sharing how a very different duty cycle requires significantly different engineering solutions to on-highway vehicles.