A timeline of hybrid technology from 1665 - 2004.
Does the Aptera futuristic three-wheeled vehicle have a chance to succeed in the real-world market? Or is it destined to become another visionary, but entirely impractical vehicle, much like Buckminster Fuller’s 1933 three-wheeled Dymaxion Car? In recent days, it appears that the visionary reach of Aptera's founders may have exceeded their grasp.
Paice LLC, a small Florida-based hybrid car technology company that won a patent infringement case against Toyota in 2005, has now brought a related case to the International Trade Commission. The ITC has the power to ban all Toyota hybrids from the United States. Will Toyota hybrids really get banned from the US? Does Paice's Dr. Alex Severinsky deserve more compensation for his hybrid inventions? To find out, HybridCars.com spoke with Michael Murphy, a N.C.-based intellectual property lawyer and former electrical engineer, with a deep understanding of both patent law and hybrid electrical systems.
Happy Birthday, Hybrids! You may not have known it, but March 2 is the 100th anniversary of the granting of the first US patent for what was called the “Mixed Drive for Autovehicles.” Henri Pieper, a German-born inventor and gunmaker in Belgium, submitted his application on November 23, 1905—and was granted a US patent on March 2, 1909.
If you were to visualize the most enthusiastic supporter of the much-touted Chevrolet Volt—someone who rallies thousands on its behalf, who blogs daily, whose influence and prestige garners invites to speak with top GM brass—what would that person look like? Probably not Lyle Dennis, a mild-mannered suburban neurologist from New Jersey.
The size, shape, and primary attributes of a 2018 model American car will bear little resemblance to today's vehicles. The most visible signs of a car revolution already in the works can be seen today in the shift from large SUVs and trucks to small cars—and the growing popularity of gas-electric hybrids. But there's something more transformative at play. By 2018, the American love affair with the car will become platonic.
General Motors can’t catch a break with its green car plans. As hybrids steadily gained market share in the first half of this decade, the company stayed out of the game. When GM finally stepped forward, it did so with all of the passion of a CPA—all numbers and no guts. Finally, GM executives threw all caution to the wind and conceived the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid—an inspiring vision of what a vehicle could be at the beginning of the post-petroleum age. Unfortunately, GM might have missed the mark again—this time completing tossing out the business planning that it over-applied in the past.
When Jim Press was the top executive for Toyota USA, he said that the Japanese government never directly aided the company in the development of the Toyota Prius. Now, as president of Chrysler, he says that the Prius had 100 percent government backing. Why would Mr. Press flip-flop?
The Toyota Prius will be celebrating its 10th anniversary later this year. Looking back to the birth of the Prius, the engineers behind the vehicle were apprehensive about being able to achieve what appeared to be an impossible goal. But that task may be child’s play compared to the next 10 years for the Prius.
David Hermance, Toyota's executive engineer for advanced technology vehicles, died Saturday, Nov. 25, when the airplane he was piloting crashed into the Pacific Ocean. Hermance was widely regarded as Toyota's hybrid guru in North American. In a 2004 interview for HybridCars.com, Hermance said, "I'd like to leave the planet a little better than I found it."
