Cummins Inc. has been awarded a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a Class 6 commercial plug-in hybrid electric vehicle that can reduce fuel consumption by at least 50 percent over conventional Class 6 vehicles. Typical examples include school buses or single axle work trucks.

Cummins is partnering with PACCAR on the project, and the full team includes representatives from The Ohio State University, National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory.

With the company’s expertise in internal combustion engines and related products, Cummins researchers will optimize the powertrain by selecting the engine with the best architecture to use as an electric commercial vehicle range extender, using the engine to manage the charge level of the all-electric drive battery pack. The range extender will be integrated, using advanced vehicle controls, with the electrified powertrain and other applicable technologies.

Ultimately, the researchers aim to demonstrate improved fuel consumption and state-of-the-art drivability and performance regardless of environmental conditions.

“The close integration and control of the electrified powertrain with an appropriately selected engine is critically important to developing a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle system,” said Wayne Eckerle, vice president, research and technology, Cummins Inc. “We believe that through the team’s efforts we can soon make these innovations commercially available, which has the potential to translate into substantial savings annually per vehicle, helping our customers and the environment.”