Toyota, Honda partner on emergency power vehicle demonstrator

Tokyo, Japan – Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda R&D Co. will create a mobile power generation/output system that uses a hydrogen fuel cell-powered bus to carry dozens of portable power units, a system that could supply power to remote locations or emergency electricity following disasters.

The Moving e system will combine Toyota and Honda technologies to support disaster response by supplying electricity in an affected area, as well as in normal times for routine uses such as supplying power at an event. Through this demonstration testing, the companies will confirm the actual needs of people and verify usability of the system.

Moving e mobile will consist of:

• Toyota Charging Station fuel cell bus
• Honda Power Exporter 9000 portable external inverters that can convert vehicle energy into standard plug electricity
• Two types of Honda's portable batteries: LiB-AID E500, Honda Mobile Power Pack (MPP)
• Honda Mobile Power Pack Charge & Supply Concept charger/discharger for MPP

Portable external power output devices and portable batteries will take electricity out of the fuel cell bus, which serves as a power source, and feed electricity to electrical appliances.

Toyota Motor Co.

With double the high-pressure hydrogen fuel tanks as Toyota’s earlier FC Bus, the Charging Station can generate 454kWh of electricity – enough to power about 15 homes for a full day, based on the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s estimate of about 30kWh daily power use. In case of power outage during a disaster, the capacity enables the Moving e to supply electricity in indoor areas such as an evacuation center.

The maximum storage capacity for the bus will be limited by how far it must drive from the fueling station to where it will be used. Hydrogen used propel the bus to its location won’t be available for power generation.

The two companies will verify the effectiveness of the Moving e mobile power generation/output system through various uses by municipalities and businesses which fulfill the necessary conditions and are willing to cooperate with the testing.