Search:

History

The Story of the OCED

eZEhybrid Drives, Inc. was formed in 2007 and is located with its’ parent company, EBO Group, Inc., in Sharon Center, Ohio. Originally created in 1978 under the moniker of Power Transmission Technology (name changed to PT Tech in 2002 and to EBO Group in 2006), EBO Group is a 100% employee owned stock plan (ESOP) company with 75 employees. Over the course of the past 30 years, EBO Group has focused on developing customized drive components and systems for electric motor and diesel engine driven applications. Today, EBO Group is considered a world leader of critical drive components for the mining and recycling industries.

In 2007, Dave Heidenreich, Founder and Chairman of EBO Group, authored “Exponential Solar”. The book clearly shows how solar could grow to become the world’s dominant power source.Research for the tome also led to the conclusion that electricity will provide a practical solution to powering cars on a global basis. Hence, the creation of eZEhybrid Drives.

To respond to the challenges of increasing oil prices, dependence on foreign oil, and concerns for global warming, EBO Group’s latest initiatives are focused on the emerging renewable energy market and the development of new energy efficient products for the transportation industry. eZEhybrid Drives, Inc. was created with the express purpose of developing and commercializing a power dense, oil-cooled electric drive (OCED) module using a concept that was pioneered by Bowling Green State University’s Electric Vehicle Institute (EVI). The EVI has successfully demonstrated the benefits of their power dense motor technology over a period of 15 years.

The ability to use a rotor and stator from a standard high efficiency 10 hp industrial AC induction motor to achieve 160 hp peak and 80 hp continuous was especially compelling. EBO Group realized that with refinements to the EVI concept, a simpler and more cost-effective and weight-effective version would be commercially viable. In 2007, EBO Group formed a team of collaborators, the Innovative Ohio Network (ION). In addition to Bowling Green University’s EVI, other ION partners include a regional bus distributor, Transportation Equipment Sales Corp. (TESCO); a custom motor winder, Industrial Control Design and Maintenance (ICDM); a custom AC inverter supplier, Electric Motorsports, LLC (EMS); and a host of supporting manufacturing companies.

In January 2008, with EBO Group in the lead, an application for a grant from the state of Ohio’s Third Frontier Advanced Energy Program was filed. Out of the 60 applications submitted, EBO Group’s proposal was rated fourth and was awarded the full $1 million two-year grant. eZEhybrid Drives, Inc. is now leading the development process and actively collaborating with its ION partners to produce the first commercializable OCED. Motor testing began in August 2008 and the technology will be demonstrated in three vehicle prototypes during 2009. The development timeline will make the OCED commercially available in 2010.