MOEV and Gardena Transit Are Enabling Electrification of Fleets

LOS ANGELES, October 20, 2021 (Newswire.com) - Backed by a $3.3 million grant from the California Energy Commission (CEC), the software startup MOEV (pronounced "move") is implementing a system that automatically manages the recharging of battery electric buses at the City of Gardena's GTrans to minimize the electric bill, improve operational efficiency, reduce operator and driver stress, and extend the buses' battery life. Moreover, the system maximizes the use of energy from solar panels at the transit agency and helps improve grid resilience.

The system is powered by software that resides on the Internet Cloud and employs Artificial Intelligence (AI) to optimize the timing, power levels and sequence for charging the buses, integrating real-time data such as a battery's state of charge, weather forecasts, the driving patterns and needs of the transit agency, and the current energy price from the electric grid.  Since grid prices vary depending on the demand, the computer system limits grid charging to periods of low demand by shaping and shifting the electric-vehicle charging profiles.

MOEV's system also uses its AI to predict each vehicle's energy requirements based on continuous monitoring of its weight, speed, driving route and schedule, traffic, the ambient air temperature and the grade of the route. A machine-learning algorithm controls the charging of the electric buses to achieve the economic, operational and sustainability goals of the fleet operator.

GTrans is providing the testbed for the project. Since 2016, GTrans has invested substantially in converting its fossil fuel buses to a battery-powered zero-emission propulsion system. Six of those buses will participate in the initial phase of the MOEV project, and this number will be increased to 13 over the 3 ½ years of the project.

"GTrans is excited to work with MOEV as we plan to convert our entire 58-bus fleet to zero-emission buses by 2035," says MOEV's partner and GTrans' Director of Transportation Ernie Crespo. "We look forward to integrating this smart technology into our system and are thankful for this investment by the CEC."

MOEV's co-founder Dr. Rajit Gadh, who has pioneered research in electric transportation and smart grids as a professor of engineering at UCLA for over a decade, says, "When it comes to the future of electric transportation, charging infrastructure is probably the most challenging component. MOEV's advanced AI technology continuously learns from data on electric charging and operations of a specific fleet operator and uses machine learning on the data gathered to customize an optimized charging strategy to remove stress and minimize cost."

About MOEV: MOEV is an artificial intelligence (AI) software startup whose machine-learning technology focuses on satisfying the rapidly growing need for infrastructure to support electric vehicle charging. MOEV is a startup spun out of research at the School of Engineering at UCLA. MOEV will be showcasing its system at the CTA conference in Sacramento, California, and the APTA Expo in Orlando, Florida. For more information, visit https://www.moevinc.com/.

About GTrans: GTrans serves nearly three million annual boarding customers in the City of Gardena and in portions of the surrounding cities of Compton, El Segundo, Harbor City, Hawthorne, Los Angeles, Redondo Beach and Torrance. GTrans provides fixed-route bus service with a fleet of 56 buses across six routes, and Gardena Special Transit service for residents with disabilities and senior citizens in Gardena, Hawthorne, and the unincorporated Alondra Park and Del Air areas of Los Angeles County in the South Bay. For more information, visit www.ridegtrans.com.

For further information:

Contact Kay Kidjekouchian, [email protected], Phone: +1 (470) 765 6638

Source: MOEV Inc.