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#3 (EN): Sprint, Sprint, Sprint.

Have a nice Sunday! Six years ago, on January 16th, the GmbH of Sono Motors was founded, and soon after. , the first crowdfunding campaign was launched on indiegogo. Happy birthday. What is the state of the vehicle now?

Fortunately, the Sprint Report KW 50.21 was published on Friday night, the last one from 2021. The Sprint Report is so long that the other parts of the little unofficial Sunday news are shorter today. So just development, development, development, a bit of news - and fun fact.

+++ HIGHLIGHT: SPRINT REPORT +++

There is some exciting information in the report 50.21 - here is a breakdown, the complete report is linked at the end. Please note, the report has dozens of pages, I could just pick a few lines.

Highlight: eCall sourcing decision finalized: DONE

Finally. The eCall is required by law, the supplier of the box has been found. In 2023 there are also some additional requirements. In total, you need over 30 little safety helpers - from the "black box" in case of an accident, to emergency braking systems. I know some don't like this at all, but it comes from the overarching initiative to reduce traffic fatalities to zero by 2050 and that, I think, is a goal everyone can agree on.

Lowlight: Lack of map data - "ADAS (Advanced driver-assistance systems) supplier has informed us that we cannot be GSR compliant with camera only solution so we will need map data". GSR is the "General Safety Regulation". The problem is: To support the driver, the car needs to know what kind of road it is on (highway, country road,...) and also have information about speed limits. Onboard cameras still have a problem when turning, for example, many signs with speed information are seen by the camera very quickly, but only one is the right one. T

o be on the safe side, there are maps with exactly this information. The problem with these maps is that they cost money and have to be stored in every car. And you have to update them, otherwise it happens what everyone knows, who has a sign recognition in the car - sometimes it is not correct. The root cause is often the stored map material. Maps of this kind in the car have a long tradition and more use than you think: In diesel vehicles, for example, the particulate filter must be "burned free" regularly (every 500-1000 km), the soot turns to ash. If you drive long distances, this happens automatically.

The problem is with cars that often only drive short distances, here the process must be actively triggered. Newer diesel vehicles use the map material to control the "regeneration" (that's what the manufacturers call it), you don't want to emit the soot in the play street but as “inconspicuously” as possible on country roads or highways.

Now you know why BMW, VW and Daimler bought HERE from Nokia in 2016 for almost three billion euros. They didn't want to have to buy the data from a third party (Google, for example) for each car. But you also need the information for the e-car for safety, and OpenStreetMap is nowhere near accurate enough here, nor does it have all the data you need. With money, anything is possible, but Sono has to put its money where its mouth is. Besides Here and Google, TomTom automotive is also doing well in the map business.

https://www.spiegel.de/auto/aktuell/bmw-audi-daimler-weshalb-der-kartendienst-here-so-wertvoll-ist-a-1085921.html

Door inner panel > simulation KO for PP T30 5x elongation

PP T30 is polypropylene for vehicle construction, among other things for the door inner panel, dashboards or the center console. Plastics. Simulating elongation is always good.

Solar body panels > concept confirmation shows need for improvements shaping PV label to body panel

It sounds like more needs to be done in some areas to fully integrate the photovoltaic modules into the body.

Towing Capability vs Target IN REVIEW

Towing load - we are all curious to see what comes out in the end.

SCCM: Supplier still not defined

We've been through this before: The supplier for the steering column is still missing. At the next YouTube Live this question will get a wildcard and will be asked in any case.

Highlight: SVC3 manufacturing location decision

The remark "Highlight" is good at this point, as "Lowlight" I would have had to worry. And "Decision" means that you have at least two options to choose from. Everything else has to be explained by Sono.

Solar body panel concept > potential effect on SVC3 vehicle appearance (thermal expansion & PVL shaping)

This fits with above, PV and body must remain one unit even with temperature changes. On the Renault Cactus, the wavy sides were a design element against parking bumps, but "bloated" (or more benevolently "six-pack") is not a target characteristic of the Sion.

Solar body panel concept > potential effect on SVC3 vehicle appearance (thermal expansion & PVL shaping)

This fits with above, PV and body must remain one unit even with temperature changes. In the Renault Cactus, the wavy sides were a design element against parking bumps, but "bloated" (or more benevolently "six-pack") is not a target characteristic of the Sion. To prevent that from happening with the Sion, there are revised elements and they may require a slightly different styling on the outside. I'm collecting ideas for community questions, maybe a video of the injection molding fabrication sometime in the future?

Wiring Harness - Catia wiring workbench now available

Time to go. Catia WHX (Electrical Wire Harness Design) is a software to design wiring harnesses and to validate them in the computer. The "one product strategy" should be especially helpful for the wiring harness, but it has to be adapted for every little thing.

E/E: Received the ADAS offer late and were not able to raise the PO before the end of the year.

The offer for ADAS came very late and could not be commissioned before the end of the year 2021. Well, 2022 then. The important thing is that there is one. Congratulations.

LoDMC strategy - what is the strategy for blending regen braking with foundation braking?

Is this a questionto us? This is why a strategy is needed for braking in an electric car: if you tap the brakes lightly, engine braking (and thus recuperation) might be sufficient. When you hit the brakes full on, you also need the normal friction brakes to do it. That - and everything in between must be defined in the "strategy". In addition, there are other maneuvers such as "braking on a slope" and "braking in a curve" that must be included in this strategy. Not an easy problem.

LoDMC is also in the lexicon "Sono - English / English Sono) https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mjv1Akzd2EfXNF08eCNOL0nMApQNIBkCS-BFzmXw7AY

Still missing (10%) and incomplete (32%) DT's from Thermal, Chassis and Closures

Thermal, Chassis and Closure must supply and complete. Just to subtly build up pressure from here, if it is not high anyway. We believe in you.

Battery: Clarify peak current capability of HV battery

Maximum current (and thus also power) of the high voltage battery. Relevant for maximum charging power, and high load while driving (at the burner with five people in the car or even with a trailer).

Battery: Finalize the length at 1680 mm

Ok, the battery will be 1.68 m long, cables and connectors are also defined... but the battery management system still needs internal and or external support, the functionalities are not defined yet.

Infotainment/NVH/Design:

Nice to read: Everything seems to continue to go well with the infotainment. No lowlights. (Three pages of highlights two pages in progress).

Also NVH (Noise, Vibration, and Harshness, details see lexicon) - (no squeaking and rattling and the AVAS (pedestrian warning system) sound package is already running - let's hear it!)) and

Design also knows no lowlights, there is not even something in progress, all switches and bezels are probably clear.

Keep it up!

Here the complete report:

https://sonomotors.com/site/assets/files/7546/sono-motors-dev-sprint-review-cw50-21-1.pdf


+++ NEWS +++

From Munich to Silicon Valley

Nice report in the "Zeit" about our heart startup. Unfortunately behind the PayWall, but we had the opportunity to read the report, here is a short summary: It tells the story from the beginning in the garage with the Twingo to going public. In principle, nothing we do not already know, but overall positive. Only serious new: It is spoken of the more than 16,000 pre-orders, which have now paid on average 2,500 € (it was once - in the F1 Filing for example - an average of 3,000 €, when there were still 14,000 orderers - understandable).  On Sonos website are currently 16,722 reservations, so there are also already some at 28,500 €. (In December there were 16,618 reservations). And yes, cancellations are deducted, I know that for sure by now.

https://www.zeit.de/mobilitaet/2022-01/sono-motors-solarmobilitaet-start-up-boerse


Next big thing?

A somewhat critical report from ecoreporter, a magazine for sustainable investments. Roughly summarized, they emphasize visions (next big thing, references to science fiction classics like "Blade Runner", ...), which, however, have nothing to do with reality yet. Therefore, they see considerable risks. But see for yourself and form your own opinion.

https://www.ecoreporter.de/artikel/sono-motors-sieht-sich-als-nächstes-großes-ding-ecoreporter-ist-skeptisch/

+++ FUN FACT +++

News from production hell at Tesla:

Setting up your own vehicle production is difficult, one reason to rely on contract manufacturers, like Sono does. A recent example from Tesla: the quality of a press tool in Grünheide does not fit. That is why Tesla has applied to be allowed to produce up to 2,000 “bodies and parts” in the factory to fix this. Fully okay.

Unfortunately, this was completely misunderstood by the press, and "2,000 parts and bodies" was turned into “2,000 full-fledged Teslas” that need to be disposed - including battery and everything and extrapolated to the list price: "Tesla must scrap e-cars for 125 million euros" says BZ. Not true.

https://www.bz-berlin.de/berlin/umland/tesla-muss-e-autos-fuer-125-millionen-euro-verschrotten

And here is the original letter from the German Federal Environment Agency. On page 4, it literally says "a use of the testing componentes produced is not permitted to be used for the production of saleable vehicles". No complete vehicles including batteries etc. will be built - and therefore also not disposed. Especially not for the retail price including VAT.
https://drive.google.com/.../17Ups_F4CNRazyziOBs9.../view

It will be interesting to see the news when the first Sions drop off the prototype assembly.

Have a great week, stay healthy!