Selection of a Non-Primary Power Source for a Combat Vehicle
Abstract
The United States Army is committed to maintaining its current fleet of combat vehicles for the next several decades with continued upgrades to increase both mission capability and survivability. Near term modifications have been identified to include Spin Out technologies from the Future Combat System (FCS) and mission specific upgrades resulting from current operations; all will result in a significant increases in electrical power consumption. TARDEC?s Mobility group is engaged with the Program Executive Office (PEO)/Program Managers Office to capture the full extent of the electrical power generation and usage today as well as the future. Efforts are underway to baseline the current power consumption (based on analytical and user data), gather all information on existing power related projects being conducted in each individual PM Office and recognize the planned upgrade needs as found in the vehicle modernization plans. Having gathered this information, an approach to managing the supply of non-primary power and its usage will be developed and implemented on the vehicle systems to ensure the mission capability of the vehicle will meet its needs today as well as have the capability to meet future needs. The approach must take into account improving the efficiency of the total system as well as the traditional supply and demand methodology. This paper will address the process used to baseline the power consumption of the vehicles during both normal and reduced power modes, proper methods of gathering data on existing and future vehicle upgrades, determining the role of the Non-primary Power Source (NPS) on a vehicle and finally how to choose an appropriate NPS based on need, usage and affordability.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADA574273
Entities
People
- Steven P. Herbert
Organizations
- United States Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center