Allison Transmission on Friday announced an agreement to develop new power systems for the Army’s heavier class of missile-launcher trucks.
The Indianapolis-based automatic transmission maker and its partner, Leonardo DRS, will produce On-Board Vehicle Power systems for the Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck, a 44-ton vehicle produced by Oshkosh Corp.
The companies will integrate a generator within an Allison 4500 Specialty Series transmission and install the system in the same configuration as other HEMTT vehicles. As a result, the trucks will not need to be equipped with an external or trailer generator to meet the power needs of increasingly sophisticated weapons systems.
The new system would provide improved agility and fuel efficiency, and company officials added it would also meet Pentagon directives to be able to quickly begin operations from remote, forward locations.
“The electrical loads on vehicles have increased dramatically,” said Allison defense programs vice president and Major General (Ret.) Dana Pittard. “It’s getting more and more difficult to produce that level of power with an engine-driven generator/alternator.”
The onboard generator can produce up to 120 kW of power when stationary and up to 55 kW on the move — technology that could also power emergency shelters or, if daisy-chained, keep vital infrastructure online during natural disasters.
The companies expect to complete the first new transmission in 2020, and officials said they are exploring the use of On-Board Vehicle Power throughout the full range of military vehicles.
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