Continental develops Frontal Impact Safety System for the EcoCarrier Electric Truck

Continental, the international automotive supplier, is equipping the electrically powered EcoCarrier light truck with a passive safety system. The vehicle is manufactured by EcoCraft and is already available on the European market; by the end of 2011, its specification will include an airbag system and three-point belts. To date, airbags have not been a legal requirement for this vehicle category and are, therefore, rarely installed. As a result of our development, the electric truck now meets safety standards for head-on collisions comparable to those of passenger cars, said Dr. Gunnar Jürgens, Managing Director of Continental Safety Engineering, Continental's vehicle safety development experts based in Alzenau. This is an important contribution by Continental to the passive safety of drivers and occupants of electric vehicles, added Jürgens

Safety for every vehicle occupant
Continental is supplying the airbag electronics and adapting the software to the EcoCarrier light truck. The front-seat passenger airbag for the three-seater truck is bigger than the usual car airbag because it is designed for two passengers sitting next to each other on the front seat bench; so, in the event of an accident, both front-seat passengers are protected. Another part of the development work was designing the front-seat passenger airbag deployment flap on the instrument panel. Continental is also equipping the EcoCarrier with an additional three-point safety belt for the inner front passenger seat which has so far only been provided with a lap belt. The vehicle safety development centre provides development and testing processes to meet the special requirements of electric vehicles. The close collaboration between systems development and simulation staff at the centre's own test facilities means that vehicle safety systems can be developed and tested quickly and effectively to meet the needs of electric vehicles. In addition to ensuring optimum airbag deployment and testing its ability to cope with extreme sizes of vehicle occupant, another central feature of Continental's development work in Alzenau is investigating the behavior of the EcoCarrier's basic structure.

Together with Volkswagen Sarajevo, EcoCraft Automotive manufactures small, electrically-powered EcoCarrier vans, licensed for use on public roads; two variants are available as low-cost delivery and logistics solutions – producing no smog or fine dust emissions – for tradesmen, official agencies, airports, postal and courier services and, in particular, local government use. 300 of these environmentally friendly light electric trucks are already on the road in Europe, emitting no CO2 and powered entirely by electricity. The light truck generates 15 kilowatt of power, can drive at up to 75 kilometers per hour and has a range of approximately 80 kilometers.