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Joseph Ambrosio, Odyne Corporation

September 7, 2007 @ 12:00 am EDT


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The presentation today by Dan DeMeo of Odyne Corporation was outstanding,
both in content and presentation.

The topic today was, creating the systems needed to use hybrid technology on
larger vehicles. Odyne has approached the advancement of Hybrid on the concept
of modular construction vs whole vehicle manufacture. Many of the components of
their system are off-the-shelf technology. By using heavy duty electric motors
that were built by GE and used by the elevator industry for decades, Odyne has
adapted them for use in buses and trucks. These are high voltage units that
operate off DC battery power. The vehicles also have small internal combustion
engines that are used to recharge the batteries and they operate at more or less
constant speeds without the need to accelerate. The internal combustion engine
is 1/3 the size that would be otherwise needed.

The applications that are most advantages are heavy vehicles that make many
stops and starts, such as garbage trucks and buses. Fuel costs are reduced
dramatically. We have seen this demonstrated in  passenger vehicles. Now we have
the technology modified to work in larger vehicles.

The electric motors have much higher performance features at low speed than
do conventional engines. The  vehicles also have the capacity to recapture
the braking energy of the vehicle and drastically reduce brake wear.

There is a very healthy return on investment too, according to Mr. DeMeo,
making this technology attractive in the pursuit of cleaner air, as well
as better operating economics.

I found that the most exciting part of Odyne’s efforts is that the technology
can be used in old equipment as well as newly manufactured units. They refitted
an old garbage truck that was destined to the salvage yard, replaced the
operating power train, painted it and put it back on the road. It works better
and more efficiently than a brand new non-hybrid truck of similar size.

Website Photographs were provided by John Rigrod of Hammer Magazine and Craig Plunkett of CEDX Corporation.