Fridge unit will operate from electric vehicle battery
9th July 2022
FRANCE: Carrier Transicold is to unveil Pulsor eCool, a refrigeration unit operating directly from the high voltage DC current generated by the batteries powering an electric light commercial vehicle.
The new unit, an all-new version of its established all-electric Pulsor system, will be launched at IAA Transportation 2022 at Hannover in September.
Carrier Transicold’s original Pulsor system, released in 2012, was the first LCV unit to harness the electrification potential of the company’s E-Drive technology. In a vehicle with an internal combustion engine, the legacy system requires a generator to run on electric power. The new Pulsor eCool, however, has been adapted to use the high voltage DC current from an electric vehicle’s own battery system.
Carrier says the new solution will deliver enhanced sustainability to customers choosing to operate a modern, electric urban delivery fleet.
“The design of the original Pulsor unit and its use of E-Drive meant we were ready and prepared for the challenges posed by vehicle electrification,” said Victor Calvo, Carrier Transicold’s VP and general manager.
“The development of the Pulsor eCool means we can operate the refrigeration unit without the need of an additional battery pack or a voltage converter. It delivers a sustainable, cost-effective and powerful plug-and-play solution.”
The use of Carrier Transicold’s E-Drive technology – first developed for the Vector trailer units in 1999 – allows for rapid temperature pull-down and high refrigeration capacity through electric power. The setup removes the traditional mechanical transmissions found in belt-driven refrigeration systems and instead transforms the engine power into electricity to drive a variable speed compressor, reducing the risk of refrigerant leaks and making it ideally suited to operate with batteries.
To ensure optimal temperature-control performance, with limited impact on operator autonomy, Carrier Transicold is working to create an innovative real-time management system, with the Pulsor eCool unit able to use live vehicle data to ensure optimal temperature management.
Carrier Transicold says it is also working on additional dedicated applications and functionality designed to better anticipate user needs and relay refrigeration data to the driver. This will allow the system to adapt proactively to vehicle needs in real-time to deliver even more sustainability gains.
