New SAE International Book Offers Key Insights on Megatrends Affecting Automotive Industry for Next 20 Years

WARRENDALE, Pa., Aug. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The current rapid rate of innovation in the automotive industry is mainly fueled by the need to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions, increase use of electronics and global development. A new book from SAE International, "Automotive 2030--North America," delves into these megatrends to arm decision-makers with information that will help them remain competitive in the North American automotive market for the next 20 years.

The first chapter summarizes key developments in vehicle technologies and the next three chapters show trends and predict the future of technologies that have been around since the beginning of the automotive age--internal combustion engines, transmissions, vehicle bodies, and materials. With continued uncertainty about fuel prices and availability, engineers will refine these technologies to deliver better fuel economy. A new array of technical developments is resulting from gasoline-electric hybrids, and these are discussed in chapter five. Mild hybrid technologies, such as electric motors assisting starts coupled with idle-stop technologies, will likely become standard in all new cars.

Chapters six, seven and eight delve into the second mega-trend--alternative sources of fuel. These chapters examine electric battery vehicles, electric plug-ins and range-extended vehicles, and fuel cells that use pure hydrogen.

The other mega-trend examined is the emergence of the smart car. Newer affordable sensors including imaging, sonar, and radar coupled with cheap and powerful computers should enable affordable autonomous driving by 2030. However, outside of transferring control in the case of imminent danger, human drivers are reluctant to transfer control to a robotic car. Adding communication infrastructure elements to create a smart environment, while elegant technically, requires more investment than the U.S. can probably make before 2030. The most we might expect is a mandate for vehicle-to-vehicle communication devices motivated by safety concerns.

Book Details

• Published: August 2011
• Pages: 166
• Binding: Softbound
• Product Status: Available
• eBook Formats:  pdf, epub, prc
• Product Code: T-127
• ISBN: 978-0-7680-5727-0
• Price: $99.00, SAE Member: $79.20-$89.10

This book is written for executives, decision-makers, managers, and academics who need a long-range view of the trends that will be influencing the automotive market in North America for the next 20 years.

With over 20 years of experience in technology development, research, and management, author Bruce Morey offers a unique forward-looking perspective on critical topics such as:

• Key vehicle technology development
• Improving fuel economy through powertrain, transmissions, vehicle bodies, and materials
• Electric battery vehicles, plug-in electric vehicles, extended-range vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cells
• Smart car technology including sensors and communication devices

His 16 years in the defense industry exposed to him a number of forward-looking methodologies, including scenario planning and contingency planning. His six years in automotive product development at Ford Motor Company gave him an inside look at the day-to-day challenges and pressures of delivering quality vehicles that customers want to buy, at an affordable price to both customer and company. Since becoming a journalist, his published articles have covered everything from solar energy to lean manufacturing, as well as automotive engineering and product development.

For more information, including free front and back matter, or to order Automotive 2030--North America, visit: http://books.sae.org/book-t-127 . To request an electronic review copy of the book, email [email protected] . Forward published reviews to Shawn Andreassi at [email protected] or SAE International, 400 Commonwealth Dr., Warrendale PA, 15096-0001, to receive a print copy of the book or another equivalent SAE International book

SAE International is a global association of more than 128,000 engineers and related technical experts in the aerospace, automotive and commercial-vehicle industries. SAE International's core competencies are life-long learning and voluntary consensus standards development. SAE International's charitable arm is the SAE Foundation, which supports many programs, including A World In Motion® and the Collegiate Design Series.

- www.sae.org -

Contact: Shawn Andreassi of SAE International, 1-724-772-8522 or [email protected]

SOURCE SAE International