Paultran: Audi Developing Regenerative Damper Technology
Think energy regeneration, and usually innovations in the powertrain come to mind. With a prototype named “eROT,” Audi has applied the same principles to the chassis, or more specifically, the dampers of a vehicle, in order to recuperate energy transferred through the vehicle’s chassis as it encounters undulations and imperfections along the road surface.
“Every pothole, every bump, every curve induces kinetic energy in the car. Today’s dampers absorb this energy, which is lost in the form of heat,” said Dr. Ing. Stefan Knirsch, board member for technical development at Audi AG.
“With the new electromechanical damper system in the 48-volt electrical system, we put this energy to use. It also presents us and our customers with entirely new possibilities for adjusting the suspension,” he adds.
USA Today: Tesla Owner in China Blames Autopilot for Crash
The owner of a Tesla Motors Model S sedan in China reportedly said his vehicle crashed into a car on the side of the road while the vehicle's Autopilot system was engaged, but the automaker said the driver was using the system improperly.
Luo Zhen, 33, of Beijing told Reuters that his vehicle collided with a parked car on the left side of a highway, damaging both vehicles but injuring no one. He criticized Tesla salespeople for allegedly describing the vehicle as "self-driving."
"The impression they give everyone is that this is self-driving, this isn't assisted driving," he told Reuters.
Fast CoExist: This Very, Very Detailed Chart Shows How All the Energy in the U.S. Is Used
Saul Griffith likes numbers. The serial entrepreneur and MacArthur genius once calculated the carbon footprint of every single action in his life -- from buying underwear to paying taxes. Now he and a group of colleagues at Otherlab, his San Francisco-based company, have mapped out something else in obsessive detail: all of the energy used in America.
"I think we may be the first three or four people to read every footnote in every energy agency document ever produced," Griffith said at a recent talk when he presented the new flowchart -- which is still in a somewhat rough iteration -- at an event run by Reinvent, a company that brings innovators together to talk about how to reshape the world.
Morning Consult: Trump Adviser Not Sweating Consequences of Promised Coal Boom
One of Donald Trump’s top economic advisers on Wednesday said Trump can and should revive the coal industry if he’s elected president. But when asked how that would contribute to climate change, he offered several conflicting answers.
Stephen Moore, the chief economist for the Heritage Foundation, founder of the Club for Growth and adviser to Trump, said Trump isn’t being bombastic when he promises to revive the coal industry.
“I think he understates it,” Moore said in an interview with Morning Consult.
Guardian: Solar and Wind 'Cheaper Than New Nuclear' by the Time Hinkley Is Built
The government expects solar and wind power to be cheaper than new nuclear power by the time Hinkley Point C is completed, its own projections show.
Theresa May’s government last month made a surprise decision to delay a deal on Hinkley, prompting a renewed look at what alternatives could power Britain if ministers this autumn fail to back new reactors in Somerset.
An unpublished report by the energy department shows that it expects onshore wind power and large-scale solar to cost around £50 to £75 per megawatt-hour of power generated in 2025. New nuclear is anticipated to be around £85 to £125/MWh, in line with the guaranteed price of £92.50/MWh that the government has offered Hinkley’s developer, EDF.