SAE World Congress

Downspeeding, stratified charge will be keys to Ford’s next-gen EcoBoost Ford is aiming to squeeze another 25% brake thermal efficiency (BTE) out of its next-generation EcoBoost engines, using a combination of downspeeding, further downsizing, aggressive cooled EGR—and potentially using optimized stratified charge. And engineers are hopeful of BTE improvements of up to 40% in gasoline engines without excessive incremental cost. Read full story

Engine technologies to improve fuel economy for ICEs The SAE 2012 High Efficiency IC Engines Symposium session on engine technologies showed how near-term technologies are squeezing ever more fuel efficiency from standard spark ignition and compression ignition engines. Read full story

The supply-and-demand equation for rare earths Today's electrified vehicle powertrains rely on rare earth metals, but high prices and availability concerns have many industry insiders rethinking the materials usage landscape. Read full story

Super-efficient, unconventional ICEs take aim at Otto and Diesel A new wave of advanced combustion engines, including opposed-piston two-strokes, "Millerized" split-cycle types, variable-compression-ratio types, and new twists on the Wankel rotary, are under development. They're aimed at knocking traditional ICEs off their throne of dominance. Read full story

Automated optimization comes to engine combustion design Engine designers can now let computers find optimum solutions for critical performance, such as reducing emissions or increasing fuel economy with Converge CFD and Congo from Convergent Science. Read full story

Marsilli advances ‘open poles’ motor winding for hybrids According to Marsilli, a winding systems manufacturer based in Italy and an exhibitor at this year’s SAE World Congress, brushless motor design is facing a “revolution phase” as traditional needle-wound or field-coil motors have reached their maximum efficiency, being limited by the fill factor. Marsilli is advancing the open-poles motor winding concept to assist motor manufacturers in increasing motor performances and reducing material costs. Read full story

Engineer salaries up overall, SAE survey shows New SAE International salary study reveals that while employment conditions for mobility engineers have improved around the world during the past two years, changes in salary are mixed depending on where one works. Read full story

dSPACE tool enables virtual verification of ECU software in early development phases By enabling software architects to find and correct implementation errors at an earlier development stage than previously possible, the process becomes easier and much less expensive. Read full story

Jatco’s next-gen CVTs bring high ratio spreads, more efficiency The design execution of the CVT7 impressed the AEI editors to a high degree, making it one of the magazine’s 2012 Tech Award recipients for supplier innovation. Jatco engineers will have cutaways of its new CVT7 and CVT8 in booth 1024 at the 2012 SAE World Congress. Read full story