Rail Power

[Vespers War]

Not train related, but I found this article that discusses a drop-in transmission replacement for HMMWVs that allows them to function as 30 kW generators in addition to being usable as an ordinary vehicle, with similar systems under development for "larger trucks" to function as 30-125 kW generators depending on application and configuration.

Poking around on Leonardo DRS' site, the HMMWV power generation is 30 kW at 2000 RPM and 10 kW at engine idle, both 208 Vac. The "larger trucks" would be anything using an Allison 3000 or 4000 series transmission, which would include Strykers and MRAPs.

Even though it's a recently introduced item, I don't think it would be outlandish for it to have been developed earlier.

[StainlessSteelCynic]

Originally Posted by Vespers War

Not train related, but I found this article that discusses a drop-in transmission replacement for HMMWVs that allows them to function as 30 kW generators in addition to being usable as an ordinary vehicle, with similar systems under development for "larger trucks" to function as 30-125 kW generators depending on application and configuration.

Poking around on Leonardo DRS' site, the HMMWV power generation is 30 kW at 2000 RPM and 10 kW at engine idle, both 208 Vac. The "larger trucks" would be anything using an Allison 3000 or 4000 series transmission, which would include Strykers and MRAPs.

Even though it's a recently introduced item, I don't think it would be outlandish for it to have been developed earlier.

Considering the technology has been around for decades and the idea has been in the minds of people who drive in remote locations of the world, I think it's entirely reasonable that this would have been developed much earlier.
I have a vague recollection of a website from the 2000s that mentioned this idea for people travelling in remote areas of outback Australia.
So I tend to think that these systems have been developed much earlier, just not on a commercial scale.

[Vespers War]

Originally Posted by StainlessSteelCynic

Considering the technology has been around for decades and the idea has been in the minds of people who drive in remote locations of the world, I think it's entirely reasonable that this would have been developed much earlier.
I have a vague recollection of a website from the 2000s that mentioned this idea for people travelling in remote areas of outback Australia.
So I tend to think that these systems have been developed much earlier, just not on a commercial scale.

I think integrating it into the transmission is the new idea. AFAIK, older systems were generally power take-offs that required hauling around equipment not needed by the new system, and sometimes required disabling the vehicle's mobility in order to use the power generation capability. Instead of the vehicle directly generating power, it would be connected to an external generator.