LeviCar / PROACCTIVE / Lulue Newsletter # 148  (Thu. 2020/11/19 14:32)
Welcome to issue # 148 of the LeviCar / PROACCTIVE / Lulue Newsletter.

This issue covers updates and changes for three of my websites, since November 16 (11/17 onward).

Website for the General Public, with a lot about my LeviCar project:  http://www.LeviCar.com.

Website for Innovative Transportation Professionals:  http://www.PROACCTIVE.info.

Website as a substitute for the former blog on EVWorld:  http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php.  It has the same content as the previous blog, except for some explanatory notes.  The “catch phrases” are in small type, and highlighted in yellow.

All three websites, above, are “gluten-free” (no cookies) and “caffeine-free” (no java[script], or any other script).  All of LULUE’s events are either in LeviCar.com or PROACCTIVE.info, or both.  LULUE has only upcoming events and a list of various organizations’ event calendars.

Many of the links to EV World are still on LeviCar.com, and I was able to recover them from “The Wayback Machine”.


Research Paper:  Click here to download or view my 25‑page Research Paper, The Future of MagLev: How the Magnetic‑Levitation SuperTurnpike will Revolutionize Ground Transportation (.doc format).


Contest notice: I had entered the “Create the Future” Contest for this year, and actually made Two entries, but did not win.  Details are at: http://www.LeviCar.com/#CreateFuture.
The first one is “High-Throughput End-Loaded MagLev Passenger Vehicles” (http://contest.techbriefs.com/2020/entries/automotive-transportation/10635).  The second one is “Soft-Sided Transportation Tubes (SSTTs) – an Alternative to Hyperloop” (http://contest.techbriefs.com/2020/entries/automotive-transportation/10730).
Other Contest:

NASA Langley Launches $20,000 UAV ‘Safeguard’ Competition (postponed due to COVID-19).



Newly-Added Item: (other than events)
None


Newly-Revised Items: (other than events)

StarTram — Added “Frag-Tag”
http://www.LeviCar.com/#StarTram

Dept. of Defense Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR), and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) — Deadine extended
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#IEEE-VT-Mag



New Events on the websites:

SAE Free Webinar:  Next-Gen Vehicle Architectures and the Role of HPCs (High-Performance Computers)   W, December 9, 2:00 to 3:00 pm EST
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#Next-Gen
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#Next-Gen

SAE Free Webinar:  New High-Peak Power Line Laser for Beam-Steering LiDAR   W, December 16, 9:00 to 10:00 am EST
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#High-Peak
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#High-Peak


Revised Events on the websites:

IEEE VT Magazine Special Issue — Deadine extended
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#IEEE-VT-Mag
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#IEEE-VT-Mag

2021 IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference and Expo (ITEC)   W‑F, June 23‑25 — Added Submission Page
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#ITEC
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#ITEC


Events with due dates within the next ten days (until Nov. 29):
None


IN THE NEWS  (Notice that the criteria for this is much broader than for PROACCTIVE.info):

Batteries:
Extending Next-Generation, Stable Lithium Metal Batteries   [Video (1:00).]
Ford’s Brutal F-150 Hybrid Battery Test
Vanilla (Actually, vanillin) Repurposed for Ecological Energy Storage
Batteries, Fuel Cells Powered by Spinach
The Zombies of the Battery World — Related article from Newsletter #128:  Past, present, and future of lead–acid batteries (Summary)   (Full Article – Paywalled)
The Sodium-Ion Battery Alternative
Recycling Is Coming
Lightweight Current Collectors
Banking on Batteries
Newly discovered mineral offers a blueprint for next-gen battery parts
Scientists Discover New Blue Mineral
Livent to invest in Nemaska Lithium, extends supply agreement with Tesla   (Also pertains to “Business”)
Bigger batteries vs. weight reduction:  Neither way of boosting EV range is cheap, report shows

Supercapacitors:
Skeleton Technologies raises $48.5 million to expand the competitive advantage of ultracapacitors

EV Charging:
Will Fast Charging Become Tomorrow’s Gas Station?
New York to use $11 million in VW settlement funds to expand DC fast charging
Apple, ChargePoint team up on electric vehicle charging info
FIMER’s new line of residential and commercial chargers

Electric/Fuel-Cell Cars:
Tesla Cancels Its Cheapest, $35,000 Car   (Also pertains to “Business”)
Racier-looking 2021 Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell car is ready for more infrastructure

Electric/Fuel-Cell Trucks:
Lordstown Motors claims 50,000 orders for electric pickup, arriving fall 2021
Rivian R1T configurator reveals $10,000 premium for 400+ mile range in electric trucks

Electric Motors and their controllers:
Saietta secures UK research contract for Axial Flux Traction motor

Self-Driving Cars, Trucks, and Delivery Robots:
Competence in Autonomous Driving   [Video (1:33).]
NXP, Amazon partner to connect cars to cloud computing services
BMW unveils MINI electric van concept to explore what cars could look like in an autonomous future
Self-driving big rigs: More like the internet than the iPhone
TuSimple snags Goodyear Tire in latest autonomous trucking partnership
Via partners with troubled May Mobility for autonomous shuttle pilot in Arlington, TX
State DOTs Organizing for the Testing/Deployment of Autonomous Vehicles   (Also pertains to “Governmental‑Affairs”)
Elation Hypercars announces a 1,903-hp, electric gull-winged monster   [Includes short video (0:42).]

Self-“Driving” Boats:
Pentagon gets serious about unmanned surface vessels

Sensors for Self-Driving Vehicles:
Dual-radar tech could help self-driving cars see through fog   (Basically, stereoscopic “vision” but with radar)

Business:
Tesla Will Be Added to SP500 Before Dec 21
Tesla heads into 2021 with new tailwind after S&P 500 inclusion
Canoo sees its subscription-based electric van as a canvas for wraps
Huge Amounts of Money Are Pouring Into the Electric Vehicle Market
The electric car industry now has its own lobbying group
Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, utility and charging interests unite toward 100% EVs by 2030
Nikola goes on wild ride on report of GM-NKLA finalized deal
Tesla higher after Morgan Stanley points to huge ‘internet-of-cars’ upside

Electric Bicycles and Motorcycles:
Sit down for this:  Wheels starts deploying its unique style of scooters as part of Seattle sharing program
Harley-Davidson spin-off Serial 1 debuts first production ebikes   [Includes video (1:36).]

Electric Aircraft:
World record drone flights:  Hydrogen vs. battery vs. gasoline-electric   [Includes video (1:16), and has a link to a “Brutal” multi-hour (12:30:00) video.]
The flying car is here — and it could change the world

Electric Buses and other mass-transit (but not rail):
Star Charge and VinBus partner to deploy electric buses in Vietnam

Governmental Affairs:
California adds $1,500 incentive for new EVs, total state + fed incentives now up to $13.5K
California $1,500 point-of-sale rebate on EVs starts this week
UK steps up plan for EV transition, new gasoline cars banned from 2035

Miscellaneous:
Can Batteries Replace Rocket Fuel?
New motorcycle technology provides AI-driven protection for riders
Feds to (Finally) Explore Drunk Driving Prevention Tech
NASA Figured Out How Much Less We Polluted Under Lockdown
The Pandemic Has Shifted Where Scooters and Robots Fit In


Special notes:

Anyone can ask to subscribe to this newsletter by e-mail.  The form, with further information, is at this link.  Rest assured that I am not giving or selling your e-mail addresses to anyone.

The websites are updated as needed.  New and recently-revised items are indicated by small ovals on the upper-left corners of the link-blocks.  See http://www.LeviCar.com/Guide.HTML#Oval.

Please rely more on the websites for the most current information.  This newsletter may contain more detail about why things were updated or changed, or removed.  You do not need to have the newsletter to get the full benefit of the websites.

Please forward this newsletter to anyone you might think would be interested in it, and mention subscribing to this:  Click here to subscribe, (or unsubscribe, or request back issues).

Thank you for your attention.

    —  Josh Levin (Dr. Zev)

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