CREDIT: PROTEAN ELECTRIC
Protean Electric, a world leader of in-wheel motor (IWM) technology for passenger cars, light commercial vehicles (LCVs), and future transport solutions, announces the production launch of its ProteanDrive Generation 5 (‘Gen 5’) IWM. Protean’s new generation of IWM offers an industrialiszd product with enhanced performance, scalability, and affordability, marking a significant advancement in the field.
Engineered, tested, and produced by UK-headquartered Protean Electric, the ‘Gen 5’ ProteanDrive Pd18 IWM offers strong performance and a fully integrated inverter, all housed inside an 18-inch wheel package, suitable for all automotive and mobility applications. Production commenced in Q3 2023 and since then shipments have been dispatched to OEMs and mobility trailblazers worldwide from Protean’s advanced manufacturing facility in Tianjin, China. Underscoring Protean’s position as an industry leader, this production launch and associated IATF 16949 certification further demonstrate full-scale industrialization of the most mature and advanced IWM product available on a global scale today.
This leading, certified IWM from Protean allows vehicle manufacturers to improve their products – offering a superior customer experience through enhanced vehicle space and ergonomics, efficiency, safety, and performance – all delivering improved margin and market share for OEMs. As the technology matures and cost reduces, these benefits are proven to drive progressively more vehicle manufacturers toward large-scale adoption of IWMs.
Andrew Whitehead, chief executive officer of Protean Electric, says, “In-wheel motors are a critical component to the future of the electric vehicle industry. The availability of an industrialized Pd18 positions Protean Electric at the forefront of the market. This technology will allow vehicle manufacturers to adopt in-wheel motors at scale and at an affordable price, as they seek to differentiate their product offering in an increasingly crowded electric vehicle market.”
Protean’s Gen 5 Pd18 has been designed, fully validated, and manufactured to meet the highest automotive industry standards, and can be configured to a range of wheel sizes, torque, and power capabilities. Offering integrated and separate inverters, 400V lead products are available today, with 800V products by the end of 2024. Protean received its IATF 16949 certificate earlier this year, and Pd18 has been granted R85 homologation. Gen5 Pd18 is already in use by lead customers as part of BEDEO’s Reborn Electric retrofit solution alongside ConMet’s Preset Plus Electric Hub zero-emission refrigerated trailer solution.