Electricity, we are told, is fantastic. As a supplement perhaps, for hybrid models which would retain the power and character befitting a thermal engine which would no longer fear, with the electricity ally, the wrath of anti-pollution standards. An idea combining business with pleasure that BMW is developing for its S 1000 RR missile. The proof…
A patent application entitled “ motorcycle with a supercharged internal combustion engine » revealed that BMW developed a sports car based on the S 1000 RR equipped with an electric motor compressor.
The idea of electric compressors is not new. With an electric motor powerful enough to drive the compressor, this is an approach that offers potential advantages over engine-driven compressors used on the Kawasaki H2, and turbochargers driven by exhaust gases.
Like an engine-driven supercharger, an electric supercharger does not create obstructions in the exhaust system like a turbocharger does, and it avoids the problem of turbo response time under acceleration.
Compared to a mechanically driven compressor, which continuously reduces motor power, the electric compressor relies on a small but powerful battery or even super capacitor technology, which can be charged when maximum performance is not needed. This means that when the throttle is wide open and the supercharged engine is running at full throttle, it is not absorbing any engine power.
The patent of BMW suggests the system could be a way to avoid the need for increasingly higher engine speeds, which is the traditional way to get more power from a small naturally aspirated engine. These high speeds pose particular problems for reducing emissions.
BMW will he really make a S 1000 RR with electric compressor? It's a little early to be sure, but in 2015 the firm patented the idea of a S 1000 RR with carbon fiber frame, officially launched 18 months later in the form of the HP4 Race.
The document illustrates the system (above). It shows that the compressor (28), driven by an electric motor (24), pushes air into the combustion chamber (11) via an intercooler (18).
