US Pinnacle Targets Asian Automotive Power Market

Before contacting Pinnacle Engine Company in the United States, the reporter has interviewed two American companies producing two-stroke engines in the country and the United States, the United States Aktis Power (achates Power) and American Eco Motors. Unlike the two companies that are currently mainly producing two-stroke diesel engines, Pinnaé„„cle produces four-stroke piston-opposed engines. Each two pistons share one cylinder barrel, greatly simplifying the structure of the engine. , and can be combined into multiple sets of opposed pistons.

Ron Hoge, chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Engines, told reporters that the Pinnacle engine has essentially improved the structure of a conventional engine and redefines the concept of an internal combustion engine. Indeed, from the data obtained from the test engine provided by Pinnacle, the biggest feature of this kind of engine is that it can increase the compression ratio to 15:1, which is 30% to 50% higher than the conventional engine fuel efficiency, and the emission is reduced by 35%. The cost is almost unchanged.

From the company's development history, this company, established in 2008, is located in Silicon Valley, California, USA. It is supported by many U.S. investment institutions including NEA. In 2007, it was helped by the famous Ricardo company. The feasibility analysis of the set-up four-stroke engine was completed in 2011 with the FEV company.

The unique combination of cylinder and valve, advanced Cleeves cycle operation (invented by the company's technical director Clegg and named after him) perfectly integrates the Auto loop. Similar to the weight of a conventional engine, the Pinnacle engine has unique advantages in variability and flexibility. It can easily change parameters such as engine size and valve timing, and it can technically realize the production and assembly of multi-cylinder machines. There is no difference with the traditional engine, reflecting Pinnacle's value proposition of combining the lowest cost and the highest fuel economy.

Speaking of differences with several American two-stroke engines, James M. Cleeves, founder, president and technical director of Pinnacle Engines, believes that the two existing two-stroke engines in the US are mainly diesel engines. They are more concerned about. Larger models such as commercial vehicles and the like require additional pumps and a large number of post-processing measures. The four-stroke structure of the Pinnacle engine determines that it can be applied to a wider range from small to large. Focusing on small and medium-sized models, it is different from the end-user target market for two-stroke engines.

Interestingly, Pinnacle Engine Corporation itself is located in the well-known Silicon Valley of the United States where electronic technology inventions and components are produced. His founder, president, and chief technology officer was originally an electronic engineer and spent 30 years in the semiconductor industry, but However, it has always had a great interest in engine and engine efficiency. Chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Engine Co., Ltd. Hong Rong is from Cummins Engine Company. He was a King Kong-type figure at Cummins. He once led companies on three continents and experienced multiple challenges such as creation, development, reorganization, and deployment. According to Hong Rong, although Pinnacle Engine Company is located in Silicon Valley, its employees also have backgrounds of engines and auto companies, and they are no less professional than other American engine companies.

From the point of view of commercial promotion, Pinnacle Engine Company has already signed a joint development and license agreement with a major Asian motorcycle company. The first Pinnacle engine in the real commercial sense will be launched in 2013. According to Hong Rong, the Pinnacle engine is suitable for various applications ranging from motorcycle engines to large-scale commercial vehicle engines. It can also be used in combination with gasoline, diesel, and various other fuels. It also has various means for adding conventional engines such as turbochargers.

At present, the Pinnacle engine has undergone preliminary verification, and various tests including durability have reached more than 1,000 hours. Its small-displacement model is particularly suitable for two-wheeled and three-wheeled models. From the business promotion plan of Pinnacle Engine Co., Ltd.: Contracted with motorcycle OEMs in 2013, Car prototype test was carried out in 2014, Contracted with auto OEMs in 2015, and commercial models for cars started in 2016... with gasoline engine and motorcycle The characteristics of the car engine as the pilot is obvious. From a current point of view, the revolutionary engine structure and simple solution of the Pinnacle engine are particularly suitable for motorcycles. In the long run, the Pinnacle engine improves fuel efficiency by 30% to 50% and has comparable cost characteristics to conventional internal combustion engines. It is determined that it may be one of the types of aircraft that will meet the requirements of global energy-saving transportation in the future.

Recently, Hong Rong together with many members of the Creede and Pinnacle Engine Company team went to China. Their main promotion targets are locked in Asia. What they value most is the Chinese market. Because for Pinnacle, Asia has the world’s largest market for second-wheel, tricycle and light commercial vehicles that are currently more suitable for their models.

Hong Rong believes that due to the maturity and improvement of traditional internal combustion engine technology and production in developed markets such as Europe and the United States, Pinnacle’s innovative technology is more suitable for emerging market countries such as China, India, and Brazil, and hopes that China’s unique entrepreneurial vision Pinnacle engines are interested, including investment and technical cooperation, license production, etc. Pinnacle's goal is to achieve its commercial production in a short time as planned. If it can be verified in the market, the innovative structure beyond this mainstream engine design will likely become the new mainstream on a global scale.