New electric race bike for the TT
Norton provide support to students for IOM TT electric superbike project
Norton have provided expertise, data and a brand new superbike frame to students at WMG, part of the University of Warwick, to help them in their research into electric motorcycles. WMG are electric vehicle experts, with some of their most recent work involving Triumph’s upcoming TE-1 electric prototype. There are 13 students involved in the project, made up of first to final year students, who have been assisted by fellow academic, engineers and researchers at WMG. They have also been given input and technical guidance by Norton’s own engineers on how best to adapt the frame for their electric superbike. The result of their work is the development of a complete electric powertrain, which when combined with the frame has enabled them to build a TT-capable machine they have dubbed the ‘Frontier’. The drive designed to work in the Norton frame is rated at 201bhp with a mammoth 295lb.ft of torque. The team say that the performance is roughly inline with what you would expect from a modern 1000cc superbike.
The motor itself is powered by an ‘immersion-cooled’ battery pack, which is a first of its kind used in a motorcycle. The battery has a capacity of 16kWh, with the students saying clever heat management should enable them to maximise the range while also allowing for the sudden current peaks required of an electric race bike. The cooling system also allows them to keep the batteries at a more efficient operating temperature, including pre-setting the temperature of the dielectric fluid ahead of a race depending on the requirements of the track. It also allows them to stabilise the temperatures during a charge cycle, delivering a charge time of 0-80% of just over half an hour.
“The overall goal has always been around learning and enhancing our engineering experience,” says Aman Surana, Chief Engineer of the Warwick Moto team. “We have gained practical experience in our research that is required to deliver a realworld project, along with balancing considerations such as tight budgets and deadlines, while learning logistics and everything around delivering an industry project.” The students have accomplished all this work in just seven months.
‘We’re thrilled to support the project’ DR ROBERT HENTSCHEL, NORTON
“We are thrilled to be able to support the engineers of the future, who are developing tomorrow’s technology today, on the basis of a Norton frame,” says Dr Robert Hentschel, CEO of Norton Motorcycles. “Our support by means of donation of the frame is just the beginning.”