1.4　History of HEVs

Text（课文）

Surprisingly，the concept of an HEV is almost as old as the automobile itself.The primary purpose，however，was not so much to lower the fuel consumption but rather to assist the IC engine to provide an acceptable level of performance.Indeed，in the early days，IC engine engineering was less advanced than electric motor engineering.

Early hybrid vehicles were built in order to assist the weak IC engines of that time or to improve the range of EVs.They made use of the basic electric technologies that were then available.In spite of the great creativity that featured in their design，these early hybrid vehicles could no longer compete with the greatly improved gasoline engines that came into use after World War I.The gasoline engine made tremendous improvements in terms of power density，the engines became smaller and more efficient，and there was no longer a need to assist them with electric motors.The supplementary cost of having an electric motor and the hazards associated with the lead-acid batteries were key factors in the disappearance of hybrid vehicles from the market after World War I.

However，the greatest problem that these early designs had to cope with was the difficulty of controlling the electric machine.Power electronics did not become available until the mid-1960s and early electric motors were controlled by mechanical switches and resistors.They had a limited operating range incompatible with efficient operation.Only with great difficulty could they be made compatible with the operation of a hybrid vehicle.

Dr.Victor Wouk is recognized as the modern investigator of the HEV movement.In 1975，along with his colleagues，he built a parallel hybrid version of a Buick Skylark.The engine was a Mazda rotary engine，coupled to a manual transmission.It was assisted by a 15 hp separately excited DC machine，located in front of the transmission.Eight 12 V automotive batteries were used for energy storage.A top speed of 80 m/h（129 km/h）was achieved with acceleration from 0 to 60 m/h in 16 s.

The series hybrid design was revived by Dr.Ernest H.Wakefield in 1967，when working for Linear Alpha Inc.A small engine coupled to an AC generator，with an output of 3 kW，was used to keep a battery pack charged.However，the experiments were quickly stopped because of technical problems.Other approaches studied during the 1970s and the early 1980s used range extenders，similar in concept to the French Vendovelli and Priestly 1899 design.These range extenders were intended to improve the range of EVs that never reached the market.Other prototypes of hybrid vehicles were built by the Electric Auto Corporation in 1982 and by the Briggs＆Stratton Corporation in 1980.These were both parallel hybrid vehicles.

Despite the two oil crises of 1973 and 1977，and despite growing environmental concerns，no HEV made it to the market.The researchers’focus was drawn by the EV，of which many prototypes were built during the 1980s.The lack of interest in HEVs during this period may be attributed to the lack of practical power electronics，modern electric motor，and battery technologies.The 1980s witnessed a reduction in conventional IC engine-powered vehicle sizes，the introduction of catalytic converters，and the generalization of fuel injection.

The HEV concept drew great interest during the 1990s when it became clear that EVs would never achieve the objective of saving energy.The Ford Motor Corporation initiated the Ford Hybrid Electric Vehicle Challenge，which drew efforts from universities to develop hybrid versions of production automobiles.

Automobile manufacturers around the world built prototypes that achieved tremendous improvements in fuel economy over their IC engine-powered counterparts.The most significant effort in the development and commercialization of HEVs was made by Japanese manufacturers.In 1997，Toyota released the Prius sedan in Japan.Honda also released its Insight and Civic Hybrid.These vehicles are now available throughout the world.They achieve excellent figures of fuel consumption.Toyota's Prius and Honda's Insight vehicles have historical value in that they are the first hybrid vehicles commercialized in the modern era to respond to the problem of personal vehicle fuel consumption.

New words and expressions（单词和短语）

1.New words（单词）

2.Expressions（短语）

Notes to the text（难点解析）

★1.Indeed，in the early days，IC engine engineering was less advanced than electric motor engineering.事实上，早期内燃机工程技术的进步不及电机工程技术。

★2.The gasoline engine made tremendous improvements in terms of power density，the engines became smaller and more efficient，and there was no longer a need to assist them with electric motors.就功率密度而言，汽油发动机取得了惊人的进步，发动机变得更小、更有效，并且不再需要电动机予以辅助。

Exercises（练习）

◆1.Translate the following passages（expressions）into Chinese（英译汉）

（1）The HEV concept drew great interest during the 1990s when it became clear that EVs would never achieve the objective of saving energy.

（2）Toyota's Prius and Honda's Insight vehicles have historical value in that they are the first hybrid vehicles commercialized in the modern era to respond to the problem of personal vehicle fuel consumption.

◆2.Translate the following passages（expressions）into English（汉译英）

（1）油耗

（2）混合动力汽车

（3）功率密度

（4）全世界汽车制造业生产的混合动力电动汽车原型取得了巨大的进步，它们在燃油经济性方面超过了对应的内燃机汽车。

◆3.Fill in the blanks with the suitable words according to the text

The______cost of having an electric motor and the hazards______with the lead-acid batteries were key factors in the______of hybrid vehicles from the market after World War I.

◆4.Directions:Answer the following questions briefly according to the text

Can you describe briefly the history of HEVs？

Reading material（阅读材料）

Efforts in Europe are represented by the French Renault Next，a small parallel hybrid vehicle using a 750 cm3 spark-ignited engine and two electric motors.This prototype achieved 29.4 km/L（70 m/g）with the maximum speed and acceleration performance comparable to conventional vehicles.Volkswagen also built a prototype，the Chico.The base was a small EV，with a nickelmetal hydride battery pack and a three-phase induction motor.A small two-cylinder gasoline engine was used to recharge the batteries and provide additional power for high-speed cruising.