Source: TWIKE press release from 05.04.2023
The individual wires of the wiring harness of a current mid-range car laid end to end cover a distance of around eight kilometers. In a classic combustion engine, control units, sensors and actuators work electrically and communicate electronically with each other. Without their efficient networking, even a largely mechanical petrol engine can no longer work today and even elementary safety and comfort systems fail. Even if leading manufacturers in the field of e-mobility have already succeeded in significantly reducing the physical dimensions of a wiring harness, the electrics and electronics form the core of the entire technology in vehicles with purely electric drives.
In the development of the TWIKE 5, as with its predecessors, electrics and electronics are high on the list of tasks to be completed before the prototype is finished and ready for series production. The underlying EE architecture of the TWIKE 5 comprises the power electronics including the drive motor and battery, the 12-volt on-board electrical system, the wiring harness and all components of the control electronics, such as relays and program-executing controllers. In principle, the EE architecture includes all current-carrying components of the TWIKE 5.
“If electricity flows through a component or it has a plug, the colleagues in our development team from the electrics and electronics department are responsible,” explains Bernd Werner, the electrical engineering specialist at TWIKE GmbH in Rosenthal.
Thanks to the dedicated and enthusiastic efforts of everyone involved, more than 95% of the EE architecture has been completed so far. Confirmations for the use of mating connectors on the wiring harness side are still essentially missing for full completion. Impressive efforts are being made for each individual component. This includes the fundamental examination of the suitability of hardware offered by external suppliers. If this is the case, long-term availability in the required quantities must also be guaranteed. Furthermore, the detailed technical specifications of the manufacturer must be available for use. They form an important basis for the work of the developers at EDAG Engineering GmbH in Fulda. As a service provider, the experienced automotive developer has been supporting the fortunes of the innovative electric vehicle since the development of the TWIKE 4.
“The expertise of our partners at EDAG was already invaluable in the development of the pure vehicle concept TWIKE 4,” explains Martin Möscheid, Managing Director of TWIKE GmbH. “We are confident that together we will also successfully drive forward and complete the development process for TWIKE 5.”
Those responsible are pursuing a three-pronged strategy for the procurement of potential components for the completion of the TWIKE 5. At least three samples will be procured. One component will be used to expand the test bench, a test stand that is used in the Fulda e-laboratory to test the product properties and their interaction. After electrical commissioning, a second sample is used in conjunction with mechanical components to complete the first prototype of the TWIKE 5. The third sample is used for practice assembly and is part of the planning of all processes required later in pre-assembly and final assembly.
“In this exciting phase, important decisions are being made for the future of TWIKE 5,” explains Möscheid. “Many processes are running in parallel and in direct coordination. What we achieve here will have a long-term impact on the success of the TWIKE 5, which is why we are literally under power every day.”
