Future aero walmart trucks
 

https://www.facebook.com/theblaze/po...52253985286499

See link in following post!

Nice find! For the Lazy:
See the Futuristic Concept Truck Walmart Wants to Use to Maximize Efficiency on the Road | TheBlaze.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTTgxqZqTaA

To skip facebook: See the Futuristic Concept Truck Walmart Wants to Use to Maximize Efficiency on the Road | TheBlaze.com

Looks cool.

Thanks guys....I was on my cell at the time....

this is actually really cool, I just don't want to know how much one of those trucks costs when it's brand new!:eek:

Awesome despite most of the air resistance being drag at the rear end of truck which I don't see being addressed.

The design is beautiful though.

The semi-truck design I've worked on for fun over the years looks somewhat similar. It however lacks the center seating position and has a middle neck part where twin radiators sit.

I'm not sure how the micro turbine of the Walmart truck regulates it's engine heat. There might be air drawn up from the road like a Corvette, I don't see that part yet.

While looking for more information I found this ECS design which is closer to my own concept.

7 Concept Trucks of the Future
7 Concept Trucks of the Future | CDLLife
http://cdllife.com/wp-content/upload...2.57.08-PM.png

I thought turbines were fuel thirsty, has there been a recent break-through in this department which I'm not aware of?

.................................................. ...

EDIT: My old design collecting dust

Also posted here:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...d-19523-3.html

Industrial Design pictures by kach22i - Photobucket
http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x...22i-truck1.jpg
http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x...22i-truck2.jpg
http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x...22i-truck3.jpg

Very sexy truck below...................
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014...y-on-the-road/
http://www.theblaze.com/wp-content/u...AM-620x421.png

I read somewhere that after years of exporting jobs/work Walmart is bring some jobs back here for a change. I wonder the root cause for all of then sudden progressiveness. Did some old person step down form power in the last couple of years?

We had discussed Walmart's plan before on here. The truck is interesting, although are the trucks going into production with all of those windows? I guess that it is okay, if they are tinted.

Nice how they start with the BulletTruck. I also like the Peterbuilt Sentinal, although it does not seem as advanced. Four of the rest are still CGI, though, and the Freightliner does not seem that impressive. I watched the video, but without the sound, because people bother me. :)

I'd hate to be stopped behind one of those at a light, look out for rollbacks. Sorry, had to. This should be where the most research is done due to the huge quantities of fuel truck use as a whole. The down side is, if fuel costs go down too much, there goes whats left of train market.

Even if you decreased the fuel costs of tractor-trailers, you'd still have to worry about the congestion of all the rigs on the roads. Intermodal traffic is booming on railroads right now not only due to fuel costs but because some roads are getting too congested to efficiently move freight.

And then, railroads are always looking for whatever ways they can to be more fuel efficient as well.

Looks a lot like the design from "The Highwayman" 1987:
Hemmings Find of the Day: the truck from TV’s “The Highwayman” | Hemmings Daily

...but it has a hidden helicopter the driver could use when he wanted to get around during loading/unloading.

...only question is, where was "Sheriff Buford T. Justice"?

It is a serial hybrid ... hmmm. No idling required. Maybe no shifting, either; given it is driven by an electric motor.

It is interesting, their choice of power plant.
 

It may be their "final design" more than the first production step but the choice of a gas turbine is interesting. But, choosing a serial hybrid does allow you to be agnostic towards your choice of power plant and does allow phasing in. The fist aero-unit may have an advanced diesel as the power plant allowing immediate production. A variety of fuels also can be used such as CNG or DME. The gas turbine is becoming more fuel efficient but would need more work to be competitive with current diesel tech. However, the power to weight ratio advantage of a turbine allows you to de-rate it's performance with fuel economy and emissions in mind with the ability to boost performance when needed.

As pointed out, the aerodynamic advantage may not be as great for this design as many may think as the large vortex drag behind the cargo box is not addressed. But, it is the next logical step to dealing with market needs and government mandates.

Green Car Congress: Obama directs EPA and DOT to develop and issue next phase of fuel efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles by March 2016

"Progressiveness"? That has nothing to do with anything. This is Walmart, I'm sure it is strictly a financial decision. Labor costs in China have been shooting up quickly, so they are probably finding that the risks are not worth the cost savings for certain products.

If you factor in "progressiveness" and the push for dramatic increases in minimum wages (Currently pushing for $15/hr in WA state) you can bet the jobs will be heading back to China and other developing countries or eliminated by automation where possible.

"I read somewhere that after years of exporting jobs/work Walmart is bring some jobs back here for a change. I wonder the root cause for all of then sudden progressiveness. Did some old person step down form power in the last couple of years?"

A little off topic but can't let a false claim go unanswered......:thumbup:
1. Walmart is a retail store. Not a manufacturer.
2. all employess live within say 10 miles of where they work.....how do you 'export' a retail job???????
3. having stores overseas is not 'exporting' jobs

While I don't 'pretend' to understand engineering.....
I do understand business models very well.
I can assure you that Sam Walton dying did not change the culture of how Walmart works.
Maybe you can site some facts.....

Uh, maybe the *original* intent was WalMart 'trucking' meets Google's 'drone' helocopter delivery methods?!?!?

Before this gets political and people that I respect highly start insulting each other, let me get a head start!

You don't frighten us, English pig dogs. Go and boil your bottoms, you sons of a silly person. I blow my nose at you, so-called "Arthur King," you and all your silly English K-nig-hts.

I don't want to talk to you no more, you empty headed animal food trough wiper. I fart in your general direction. Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries.

You don't frighten us with your silly knees-bent running around advancing behavior!

No, now go away or I shall taunt you a second time.

I thought that it was interesting that when I arrived in Germany they told us the local Walmart had gone out of business.

I do not like Walmart and I try to not shop at, but as I believe that I commented before, they are doing more to save fuel than almost anyone else, and others will follow their example.

I saw a 60-minutes or equal (PBS, Dateline, 20/20) program years ago which explored how Walmart went to China decades ago and set up their supply chain.

This included establishing exclusive contracts and operating agreements in partnership to get products and goods made just for them. They financed the plants being built by guaranteeing their orders, providing substantial deposits and embedding themselves with the provincial governments which are in control of everything.

Walmart undercuts the competition by being more than just a retailer, they contract in such a way so they are also in essence a producer. Walmart rewrote the book when it comes to doing business with/in China and have reaped the rewards. As a result not only were they able to provide many goods at lower prices, but also at higher profits resulting in the loss of many American jobs.

This is where the irony of the situation with the some of the latest news reports comes full bloom.

Wal-Mart attempts 'made in America' push
Wal-Mart attempts 'made in America' push
It not like suddenly Walmart cares about it's corporate image, but to me it does seem like suddenly they are actually doing something about it.

The most likely reason for the change in my mind is a change in leadership.

Sure cost in China are rising, the writing is on the wall. And sure protest groups are raising public awareness to the point it may be getting uncomfortable at times. However as in the past, Walmart is getting a jump on some future trends (like Aero-Trucks).

Wal-Mart attempts 'made in America' push
Maybe the board of directors just hired a different Public Relations firm, a different supplier and manufacturing consultant...........I'm sure Forbes, the Economist or PBS will be doing a feature story on this if they haven't already.

That's the nugget right there. Walmart is heavily invested and locked into in a country with rising costs. As this progresses, room is created for a competitor in a lower cost country. Sad, but there's always room at the bottom.

This will encourage walmart to innovate on other fronts, such as the logistics side. This advantage too can be copied, and will provide some positive spill over domestically.

I wonder how much the carbon fiber trailer weighs vs. conventional?

The article says it saves about 4000 pounds.

The turbine shown in the video is a Capstone unit. It will be interesting to hear more about the battery pack and the electric drivetrain.

Edit: someone on CleanMPG found some more information:

http://www.examiner.com/article/walm...-trailer-truck

Will there be enough fuel saved to cover the cost of a at least 2 sides of 53' carbon fiber per truck?

The concept is of course the ultimate expression of "what if" and "why not", but as usual production models will surely be less glamorous.

I suspect something like fiberglass, aluminum or a composite like Monopan could easily be an affordable substitution for carbon fiber.

MonoPan :: The Future in Material Technology

Neil (and Rustylugnut), thank you for providing all of the hybrid information, I missed this on my first skimming of the article.

For a comparable, although I'm not sure how close, I offer this quote below.

MonoPan :: About MonoPan®
You will want a trailer material which will not show/telegraph interior dents, creases, and scratches. Some impact strength from blows caused by loading will also be favorable.

A double wall composite or honeycomb makes a great deal of sense to me.

I don't see where the CF trailer is listed as having a foam core, if it's a single skin with nothing else it's still going to need some hard points or frame I suspect.

I just came across a video about this Semi on weather.com of all things! Was going to make a thread about it but, I guess someone already caught it.

I think it's a really neat design although I am a little skeptical about a carbon fiber trailer (mainly because of cost). The cab looks really nice.