Rivian shot to stardom last year with its stylish electric pickup and SUV. The R1T and R1S could give Tesla a run for its money with each boasting a top range of more than 400 miles. Now, Rivian has applied for a patent on an auxiliary battery module that could provide even more range.
The extra battery would supply power to the electric motor from the cargo area. The diagrams on the patent application show how this would work from the cargo bed of a pickup, as reported by RivianForums.com. The battery can be removed and reattached to the vehicle as needed.
When the auxiliary battery is attached, the vehicle will be able to detect it and adjust driving characteristics accordingly. It would tweak the suspension, braking, steering ratio, and other components. The auxiliary battery would include an integrated cooling system. It would share coolant with the electric vehicle’s cooling system that cools the primary battery. This would be accomplished through cooling lines in the primary powertrain and the auxiliary battery module, and with a shared heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the coolant and a refrigerant.
The two Rivian models use a “skateboard” architecture that GM pioneered back in 2002. This architecture incorporates the battery, motors, transmissions, cooling system, and front and rear suspension into a whole module that can have any type of body attached on top of it. Rivian has said the truck will arrive in late 2020, followed by the SUV in 2021.
Read the full patent application over on RivianForums.com.
Source: RivianForums.com
The post Rivian Files Patent for Removable Auxiliary Battery appeared first on Motortrend.
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