#2 (EN) Name Search, CES 22, Energy Harvesting
Have a nice Sunday. And already we have week 2 in 2022. Last week - many users on Twitter & Facebook asked for pictures the SVC3. The answer from Sono was that "soon" an update will be published. January 6th was a “bridge day” in Bavaria, so a lot of people took the first week off. So there is not a lot of updates right now.
+++ NAME SEARCH +++
This year some prototypes have to be built, currently there is (again) a name search for the next vehicles being built. Anyone an submit suggestions. I know - you are more interested in the development status and when the prototypes will be available, but that's all the news right now. No new sprint report either.
Here are the links for votes - if anyone wants to comment. Currently leading is "Hurry & Up", "Solaris and Sirius", "Atréju and Fuchur":
https://twitter.com/SonoMotors/status/1478761130793357314
https://www.facebook.com/sonomotors/photos/a.306946649502287/1728077694055835/
+++ COMMUNITY INSIGHTS +++
If little news comes from Sono, we just snoop a bit on the website. There are some PDFs that are not linked, but still downloadable - might be interesting:
PDF - 850 km without recharging: "If you only drive 850 km in 6 weeks, charging once is enough, the rest comes via the sun":
https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/5111/sono-motors-potential-range.pdf
PDF - Color: It's been a long time, but the color is (and remains) black (2017 vote):
https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/7510/sono-motors-surveys-results-color-sion-de.pdf
PDF - Biographies: Here are the biographies of the management:
https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/5082/sono-motors-key-roles-biographies-en.pdf
There is quite a bit more. If you like to snoop by yourself, a first start is with a Google search, just enter: "site:sonomotors.com filetype:pdf".
+++ CES 2022 +++
This time last year, Sono digital was at CES with unveiling the "Solar Truck" prototype and provide. details on solar integration.
This year, CES will have to do without Sono. Just a quick look across the pond:
Solar on every remote control: nearly 100 million batteries from remotes are thrown away every year. Samsung's new Eco Remote is not only made of recycled plastic and has solar cells on the back - it also no longer has a battery in it, just a capacitor. Which is charged with solar cells in the remote control - and the small energy from the house WLAN, even at night. The solar cells are specially optimized for the light in the house. From "Energy Harvesting" we will hear still much in the near future. The whole thing has always existed (automatic watches; the calculators with solar) - but throwing it away was just always cheaper.
https://www.theverge.com/2022/1/2/22860390/samsung-eco-remote-2022-solar-rf-harvesting-charging
Daimler discovers more and more the love for the sun: the latest "Vision Concept" of the brand has a solar roof with ultra-thin cells on the roof (supplied by Fraunhofer ISE) and gets up to 1000 km range from a battery under 100 kWh - thanks to an incredible CW value of only 0.17. And a limit of 140 km/h top speed. If and how the car will come, unclear. The prototype has road approval.
https://www.tagesschau.de/wirtschaft/technologie/daimler-1000-km-batterie-101.html
BMW is showing less interest in solar cells on cars at CES but on color change: By hand-applying thousands of tiny e-Ink pigment foils to an iX, the car can change color between black and white. and becomes - the "iX Flow." Why? Because you can. An environmental aspect can be found then, in summer the white car is cooler, in winter a black one absorbs more heat.
If you want to reminisce - here's a look back at Sono's news at CES last year:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhlHJ9FA7q0 (2021)
+++ PRESS +++
Tesla competitors are coming: "Three little-known EV stocks investors should have on their radar" writes Finanzen.net. Spoiler, Sono is in! Not an investment recommendation. Not a recommendation to buy. Just a hint. Thanks @Wolfgang.
+++ THREE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS OFF THE GRID: UPDATE +++
Three of the six nuclear power plants in Germany were taken off the grid at the turn of the year, which was already discussed in the previous newsletter.
And as already written there, technical problems or even blackouts did not occur. The graph also shows that nuclear power is almost irrelevant in Germany and that the missing MW could easily be compensated by renewable energy sources wind and solar. Of course, there will be times when fossil power is still required, but for now its working.
+++ JOBS +++
With the turn of the year also came new vehicle safety requirements; newly homologated vehicles from this year onwards must include an accident data recorder, emergency braking assistance systems and emergency lane departure warning systems - to name just a few.
Many wonder if Sono has that on its radar. It was already clear with the shifting of the SOP to 2023 what this would be required in terms of additional functions.
An engineer is now being sought to test the functions in the new prototypes:
https://sonomotors.com/de/career/job/?id=523318
2023 also requires to add the duty to protect against cyber attacks into the specifications. The job was already advertised and seems to be taken, the job ad is gone.
+++ FUN FACT +++
There is a trend to operate small devices without battery again and to generate the energy elsewhere. "Energy harvesting" is the keyword. Some still know the automatic wristwatches that wind themselves up by the movement of the arm.
The Swiss among us are familiar with Jaeger-LeCoultre's "Atmos" watch - it draws the mechanical energy to wind the mainspring from the smallest temperature fluctuations. A change in temperature of one degree is enough to keep it running for about 48 hours. The "Atmos" is the official state gift from Switzerland and will run for several hundred years. So far, 750,000 have been built, and all (!) Atmos watches in the world combined require less than one watt to operate - that's how efficient the watch is.
Legendary comedian Kenneth Williams was a guest on the BBC in 1981 and explained the principle of generating energy via temperature differences in less than two minutes. Nerd to nerd.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=397487677692686 (Facebook, good video quality)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkL35M9sQIY (for those without Facebook)
The Sion also does "energy harvesting" and generates some energy for driving via solar.
I certainly hope we can get new videos of the new prototypes being built or testbeds as soon as possible, and of live energy harvesting from the Sion, once during the day.
Stay healthy.