LeviCar / PROACCTIVE / Lulue Newsletter # 163  (Wed. 2021/01/06 18:19)
Welcome to issue # 163 of the LeviCar / PROACCTIVE / Lulue Newsletter.

This issue covers updates and changes for three of my websites, since January 3 (that date 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 Item: (other than events)

IEEE – The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Sub‑block for IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Society — Updated Links
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#IEEE



New Events on the websites:

IEEE VTS Motor Vehicles Challenge 2021   M, March 15
http://www.LeviCar.com/#MVC
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#MVC
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#MVC

InterTraffic China   Th‑Sa, June 17‑19
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#InterTraffic-China
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#InterTraffic-China

(CIVS) Cooperative Interactive Vehicles Summer School 2021   Su‑W, August 1‑4
http://www.LeviCar.com/#CIVS
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#CIVS
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#CIVS

The IEEE Vehicular Power and Propulsion 2021 (VPPC 2021)   M‑Th, October 25‑28
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#VPPC
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#VPPC

InterTraffic Istanbul   2022 Autumn
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#InterTraffic-Istanbul
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#InterTraffic-Istanbul



Revised Events on the websites:

eVision – Accelerating Fleet Electrification   Tu‑W, February 2‑3 — Changed Links
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#eVision
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#eVision

Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Technologies Symposium — CANCELLED
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#HybridEV
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#HybridEV

Smart Cities Connect Spring Conference & Expo   Tu‑W, April 13‑14 — Corrected End Date
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#SmartCities
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#SmartCities

IEEE 93rd Vehicular Technology Conference   VTC2021-Spring 2021   Su‑W, April 25‑28 — Extended deadlines for Recent-Result and Workshop Papers
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#VTC-Spring
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#VTC-Spring

32nd IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium – IV2021   Su‑Th, July 11‑15 — Added “Workshop Day”; Corrected due dates
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#IV2021
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#IV2021

Connected and Autonomous Vehicles   Tu‑Th, November 2‑4 — Postponed
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#CAV-2021
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#CAV-2021

InterTraffic Amsterdam   Tu‑F, 2022 March 29 to April 1 — Postponed and Links Changed
http://www.PROACCTIVE.info/#InterTraffic-Amsterdam
http://www.LeviCar.com/LULUE.php#InterTraffic-Amsterdam




Events with due dates within the next ten days (until Sat., January 16):
Advanced Automotive Battery Conference – Europe
 • Call for Posters due  Wed, Jan. 6 (soft deadline, for Late Consideration)
2021 IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference and Expo (ITEC)   Call for Papets, plus Exhibitors’ info:  Abstracts/digests due Fri, Jan. 8 (re‑extended)
IEEE 93rd Vehicular Technology Conference   VTC2021-Spring 2021   Call for Recent-Result Papers:  Oral or poster presentation with Proceedings Paper, or Demo with Short Paper, due Sun, Jan. 10 (extended)
 • Call for Workshop Papers:  Five-page Paper, due Sun, Jan. 10 (extended)
ITS World Congress 2021   Call for Contributions due Mon, Jan. 11
Green Transportation Summit and Expo   Call for Session and Speaker Proposals due Fri, Jan. 15 (re‑extended)



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

Survey Articles from Forbes:
Forbes Transportation Awards 2020:  The Lucid Air Promises to Outperform Tesla’s Best
Forbes Favorites 2020:  The Year’s Best Transportation Stories

Batteries:
QuantumScape’s Solid State Batteries have Significant Technical Hurdles to Overcome
New Lithium Metal Batteries ‘Build Themselves’   [Includes video (2:25).]
Chemistry tweaks make for rechargeable zinc-air batteries
New class of cobalt-free cathodes could enhance energy density of next-gen lithium-ion batteries
Brexit deal forces UK carmakers to develop domestic battery supply chain
Nio teases 150-kwh battery, next-gen battery swapping for flagship sedan

EV Charging:
State (Massachusetts) provides $4M for electric vehicle charging locations
Bel Power Solutions announces bi-directional on-board charger   [Includes video (1:28).]

Electric Cars:
Review: 2020 BMW X3 Hybrid – A Plug Gets Added to the Popular SAV
Tesla caps a winning year with record production and delivery numbers   (Also pertains to “Business”.)
What does the year 2021 hold for electric cars?   (Includes podcast.)
Porsche Taycan delivers electric luxury and performance
Ford Mustang Mach-E:  Green Car Reports’ Best Car to Buy 2021
Chinese-built Tesla Model 3 ranks high in quality survey
Mazda MX-30 EV is US-bound with rotary range extender, company confirms
Report:  Acura EV to be made in Tennessee, alongside Cadillac Lyriq
Apple partner Foxconn helps revive EV startup Byton   (Also pertains to “Business”.)

Electric Trucks:
European truck-makers pledge to phase out internal combustion vehicles by 2040
Fisker electric pickup:  Super-efficient “radical” truck coming in late 2023?

Hydrogen-Fuel-Cell Vehicles:
Scottish hydrogen train to debut at Glasgow’s COP26
Green sky thinking:  The Rise of Hydrogen Flight   (Also pertains to “Electric Aircraft”.)

Self-Driving Cars, Trucks, and Delivery Robots:
Meet the startup that acquired Uber’s self-driving car technology
Interesting Challenges of Designing Driver Assist Systems
Waymo CEO:  Launching a self-driving car is harder than launching a rocket

Self-Driving Off-Road Machinery:
U.S. Army overseeing development of a family of unmanned battle tanks armed with light and heavy weapons
DARPA asks industry for machine autonomy algorithms to enable unmanned vehicles to operate at manned speeds
Monarch Tractor launches fully electric autonomous tractor   [Includes video (8:59).]

Self-“Driving” Boats:
Robotic Paddlewheeler Skims Debris from Swimming Pools   [Includes video (1:30).]

Sensors / AI Training for Self-Driving Vehicles:
Micro mirror gives autonomous vehicles vision upgrade
Like Tesla Autopilot, Fisker driver assistance tech won’t use Lidar

Business:
Byron Wien’s “10 Surprises also rans” include TSLA buying a major auto company
Ford, GM Upgrade Hundreds of Temp Workers
Elon Musk Could Become Richest Person By the End of This Week   [Includes video (9:58) which I did not review.]

Electric Bicycles, Motorcycles, and Scooters:
Nox ebikes go 2 for 1 with swappable all-in-one electric drive   [Includes video (2:04).]

Electric Aircraft:
EHang begins aerial sightseeing trial at south China real estate project   [Includes video (1:44).]

Autonomous Aircraft:
U.S. to allow small drones to fly over people and at night
NASA asks industry for machine autonomy technologies to enable nationwide unmanned air cargo operations

Electric Buses and other mass-transit (but not rail):
The Million-Mile Zero Emissions Club
New York governor announces initiatives to electrify transit buses, boosting access to clean transportation
State of New York announces transit and school bus electrification initiatives
JTRAN (Jackson, MS) welcomes new hybrid buses, kicks off transit study   (Quote from article:  “… the single statistical variable to align with generational poverty isn’t education, but commute times and the ability of people within a community to get to and from the places they want to go.”)

OPINION:
Comment:  sustainable fuels should be at heart of low carbon transport plans   (I don’t agree with this, but Sapsford’s opinion does raise some good points.)

Governmental Affairs:
Central Ohio adds cloud-based traffic management solution from Waycare   (Also pertains to “Self-Driving Cars, Trucks, and Delivery Robots”.)
USDOT awards US$49.6m in grants for 10 ITS projects across the USA
SANDAG awarded $9.29M for advancing connectivity project

Miscellaneous:
Mario Cuomo Bridge:  an ITS hotbed
Toyotas Woven City Aims to Push the Boundaries of Smart Mobility
Ford Study Shows Blockchain, Dynamic Geofencing and Plug-In Hybrid Vans Can Help Improve Urban Air Quality   (Also pertains to “Electric Trucks”.)


OLD NEWS:
The Definition of Obsession?  10 years with a Citroën C6 (part 1)


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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