The Accelera PowerDrive 7000 and its electric components.


PowerDrive 7000 system powertrain controller, said Omkar Harshe, Accelera’s digital engineering leader. “On an electric vehicle, we have different components like transient motors and batteries and accessory control- lers. And then we have a supervisory controller that pulls all of that together and actually provides the power management for the vehicle,” he explained, adding that the guiding principle stemmed from experience of the Cummins engine business unit. And similar to engines, Harshe said OTA updates require


no human intervention aside from initiating them within the fleet management portal. He continued that once the Accelera software package update is available, it identifies a safe state, or when the vehicle is no longer in operation. After the fleet owner approves the update, the software self-initiates the update and the vehicle shuts down at the conclusion of the update, which takes about five minutes. “The point is, we don’t want downtime for our custom-


ers,” said Harshe. “The process is made efficient in a way where it just happens, when things are set, when all condi- tions are met. It happens really quickly, and as soon as it’s done, the fleet manager on our portal gets a notification that on this vehicle the update is completed.”


54 School Transportation News • JULY 2024 Harshe added the company’s guiding principles for


remote diagnostics are also the same for zero-emissions vehicles. An Accelera spokeswoman said OTA updates for the


Blue Bird Vision Electric are currently being pilot tested by multiple Florida school districts and in Quebec. At IC Bus, Stok said OnCommand Connection also


offers insights for electric vehicle performance and utilization. “It provides information about trips, battery status, charging efficiency, and remote diagnostics,” she added. “Specifically for the Electric CE Series, OTA updates are part of the product roadmap.” Meanwhile, the Daimler spokesperson said the manu-


facturer “is constantly looking to enhance offerings and expand the capabilities of Detroit Connect Virtual Tech- nician.” The spokesperson declined to share specifics but added, “I can assure you that providing advanced OTA updates and remote diagnostics remains a priority for us, and we’re committed to delivering innovative solu- tions that meet the needs of our customers.” ●


Ryan Gray contributed to this report.


PHOTO COURTESY OF ACCELERA


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