The proposed facilities at its new Mobility Research Centre (MRC) in Takwe will include the ADAS Smart City test Track, Cylinder Test Facilities & Certification Centre, Hydrogen Test Facility, and a High Energy Impact Test (HEIT) Facility. This High Energy Impact Test Facility (ISO 17025 Accredited) will be the first of its kind in India / Asia. Also, MRC will be the first of its kind in the country to enable cylinder manufacturers to test products indigenously to support Aatmanirbhar Bharat. An Advanced Battery Safety Testing Facility is also being established at ARAI’s Chakan center to ensure the safety of Electric Vehicles in India as per the futuristic standards.

ARAI, in the recent past, has undertaken various R&D projects in the domain of Electric Vehicles, Autonomous Driving, and Engine Development. Some of these projects prominently include:

AC/ DC Charging Station, LEV AC Charge Point, Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System (AVAS), Battery Management Systems, Drive-by-wire Platform, 600 hp Engine, Seat Validation, BS-VI HCV CNG Engines for Heavy Duty Application, Lightweight Aluminium Extrusion Profiles, Dummy Kinematics Assessment based on Ergonomics (i.e. SIZE India – Indian Anthropometry Database), Hydrogen PEM based Electric 3W for Range Extension, Battery Management System (BMS) Training Trainer Kit, Diesel Engines for Tractor Application.

ARAI has established an Alternate Fuel Centre to cater to alternative fuels like Methanol, Hydrogen, HCNG, DME, Ethanol, LNG, Bio-CNG, Biodiesel, Bio-CNG, Diesel-CNG in addition to CNG and LPG.

Speaking on the account, Dr. Reji Mathai, Director, ARAI said, “We at ARAI are in constant endeavour to address the growing requirements of the automotive industry. The transformation has been the essence of ARAI’s Progress. Apart from Automotive, ARAI is also diversifying and offering its services to the Aerospace and Railway sectors. ARAI offers various platforms such as TechNovuss (Technology Innovation Platform), ARAI-AMTIF – a Section 8 company of ARAI, along with a Technical Support Cell for providing service support to MSMEs and Startups. Skill Development is one of the prime objectives of ARAI; through ARAI Academy, we conduct various programs for students and industry professionals. We try to disseminate the research knowledge through our flagship event SIAT. Initiatives like Mobility Hackathons and BAJA are also vital tools for us to promote innovation.”

ARAI is committed to Creating and facilitating SAFE, SUSTAINABLE, and SMART Mobility Solutions. To ensure our commitment towards a green planet, ARAI is also taking care of its surroundings and environment through various sustainability initiatives.

V.A. Pankhawala – Senior Deputy Director, A.A. Badusha – Senior Deputy Director, Dr. N.H. Walke – Senior Deputy Director and A.A. Deshpande – Senior Deputy Director were present on the occasion.

The post ARAI’s Role in Shaping the Indian Mobility Landscape on Annual Day 2024 appeared first on NRI News.

MUMBAI: The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) has certified Škoda Auto India’s 1.0 TSI engine to be E20 compliant. This marks Škoda among the first few OEMs to receive E20 compliance from an official body.

Speaking on the certification, Petr Janeba, Brand Director, Škoda Auto India, said: “Along with making cars that lead in driving dynamics and safety, efficiency, and sustainability have also been at the center of our product and production practices. TSI technology has been time-tested and proven for efficiency and emissions while being effectively powered. We have evolved and adapted this technology to various updates in standards and policies across the globe. The 1.0 TSI especially, with its 3-cylinder turbo configuration tuned for power and efficiency is a versatile powertrain, and the E20 certification is a testament to this. We are confident of a similar outcome when the 1.5 TSI is tested, later this year.”

The certification

The 1.0 TSI is now among the first few engines in India to receive an E20 certification by an official body. The 1.0 TSI powers the Kushaq SUV and Slavia sedan in Škoda Auto India’s line-up. The engine is mated to a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic. The 1.5 TSI powering these two cars is also undergoing tests. The results of this are tentatively slated for Q4 2024. The Indian government has made it mandatory for all cars from April 1, 2025, to be E20 compliant. The E20 fuel blend consists of 20% ethanol – made from renewable sources like corn, sugarcane, or biomass — and 80% petrol. This reduces the amount of fossil fuel per liter and emissions.

The engine

The 1.0 TSI makes 85kW of power (115ps) and 178Nm of torque and is mated to a six-speed automatic or a six-speed manual. While the engine is available across variants in the Kushaq and the Slavia, the E20-compliant engine made its debut in the recently introduced Kushaq Onyx AT and will eventually make it to every 1.0 TSI Škoda to roll off the production line from Chakan, Pune.

The post ARAI Certifies Škoda Auto India Vehicles E20 Compliant appeared first on NRI News.

The 18th edition of the three-day flagship biennial event ‘Symposium on International Automotive Technology (SIAT) 2024’ organized by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) concluded today. SIAT 2024 was held at the Pune International Exhibition and Convention Centre (PIECC) – Moshi, PCMC from 23rd to 25th January 2024.

Dr. Reji Mathai; Director of ARAI,  Vikram Shinde; Sr. Deputy Director and Convener at SIAT 2024, were among the dignitaries present on the dais.

The database ‘ARAI – MARG 2.0’ i.e., Measurement and Analysis of Road Geometry an initiative by ARAI, was released at the hands of the dignitaries at the event. Prizes for stalls exhibited, research papers, and special poster competitions for students were also given during the event.

“While providing sustainable options for the auto industry, the primary goal should be the nation’s well-being. Safety-sensitive approaches should be adopted while manufacturing any product. The emphasis should be on the reduction of imports while promoting the production of alternative fuels. As a result, we have to build a holistic ecosystem along with an integrated approach for sustainable alternatives,” Dr Saravanan further added.

He also highlighted the importance of skilled manpower, and how organizations like ARAI should conduct training programs for creating such skilled manpower.

Speaking on the occasion Dr Reji Mathai said, “During SIAT 2024, technical experts shared recent developments in the automotive sector from topics such as E-mobility, Simulation & Modelling, Emission Measurement & Control Technology, Advanced Vehicle Dynamics, Active and Passive Safety, Noise, Vibration & Harshness (NVH), Hydrogen Fuel Cell and Hydrogen I.C. Engine, Testing & Evaluation, Structural Reliability, Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), Alternative Fuels, ITS & Regulation, Tyre Technology and Materials & Manufacturing. I am glad that this led to a much-anticipated discussion on future technologies. I hope that it must have given everyone an idea of how the technology could hold up as we chase the zero emissions goal shortly.“

SIAT 2024, had technical deliberations with over 210 technical papers and keynotes on futuristic topics by global experts. The selected papers were published in the form of Symposium Proceedings along with the release of a Technical Reference Bulletin containing technical articles, case studies, products, and service information.

The symposium witnessed a gathering of over 1500 automotive technocrats.  Technical experts from 9 countries were present and discussed their research work in 48 technical sessions (8 parallel sessions). In addition, there were 3 plenary sessions and a panel discussion on the theme of SIAT 2024- ‘Transformation Towards Progressive Mobility’.

SIAT Expo 2024 served as an ideal platform for global players in the automotive domain to exhibit their products, technologies, innovations, and services through stalls. “The SIAT EXPO24 showcased 170 companies across the globe, at 340 stalls. This edition of SIAT also featured a Futuristic Technology Pavilion, a Medium Small Scale and Start-up Pavilion (MSSSP) along with a Live Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) demonstration area. Vikram Shinde expressed a vote of thanks.  

The post Holistic Approach Needed To Transform the Auto Industry – Dr N Saravanan- 18th Edition of the ‘Symposium on International Automotive Technology (SIAT) 2024’ organized by ARAI concluded appeared first on NRI News.

PUNE: In a bid to provide solutions to the futuristic needs of the automotive sector, the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) has developed some futuristic solutions and has showcased the same in the ongoing Symposium on International Automotive Technology (SIAT) 2024 at Pune International Exhibition and ConventionCentre (PIECC), Moshi. The Expo is on till January 25th. The prominent features are the showcase of fast charging systems for electric heavy commercial vehicles like trucks and buses, specially made battery management systems for skilling and training purposes, and the hydrogen pavilion.

The world is looking at alternate fuels for the energy needs of vehicles and electric vehicles are steadily gaining popularity. Batteries are one of the most important parts of these e-vehicles and so is the battery management system. Considering the training needs of skilled manpower which will be required to cater to the development and service needs of electric vehicles ARAI academy has introduced a specially designed Battery Management System Trainer (BMST) which is ideally suited for the budding engineers and technocrats for understanding the overall functioning of the battery and its various parts, informed Sanjay Patil from the ARAI Academy. This BMST will have special features like monitoring Individual Cells, Temperature, Pack Level Current, CAN Communication Data, and Real-Time Display. It can be applied in Education and Training, BMS Development, Student Projects, and Hands-on Experience for Industry Professionals.

While the use of electric vehicles is growing, an effective option for fast charging of the vehicle is of paramount importance. Going forward, heavy commercial vehicles like trucks and buses will also be electric ones. Thus, to cater to the need for charging these big vehicles, ARAI is in the advanced stages of developing the Overhead Automated Charging Device (OHACD). These charges of about 600KW capacity would charge the vehicle from 0 to 80% in just 25 minutes. The time taken by the current 100KW charger to charge the passenger car is about 3 – 4 hours. The OHACD technology will be introduced to the market in the next one to one and a half years, stated Abhijit Mulay, Deputy Director of ARAI.

S. S. Thipse, Senior Deputy Director of ARAI said that Hydrogen is a clean fuel and is the fuel of the future. So, ARAI has showcased the latest technology in hydrogen vehicles through a specially dedicated pavilion at the SIAT 2024 Expo. The latest in hydrogen fuel technology is displayed at this pavilion including the H2 Fuel Cell Bus, H2 IC Engine, H2 Type4 Cylinder, H2 Fuel Kit, and H2 ICE Truck. ARAI is developing the testing and certification model for hydrogen-powered vehicles and their components. It is also in the advanced stages of developing a hydrogen-powered engine which will be BSVI-compliant.

The post ARAI Showcases Futuristic Technologies for The Automotive Sector appeared first on NRI News.