A solar cover providing protection and increased range

The project

A solar cover providing protection and increased range

The International Automobile Festival was held at the Invalides center in Paris between January 29 and February 2, 2020. This event brings together all the developments in the automotive world: concept cars, innovations, prototypes, etc.

Accompanied by its partners Gazelle Tech and ACPV, ARMOR presented a concept electric car with solar cover.

A notable feature of the vehicle exhibited in Paris is its retractable photovoltaic protective cover, invented and patented by ACPV. With the drive motor installed in the car's rear fender, the cover can be easily rolled out and back again without human intervention.

From the technical point of view, the cover is composed of a stain-resistant fabric in order to minimize water consumption when cleaning the vehicle, with 9 ASCA^{^®} solar module covering a total surface area of 4m².

The modules provide supplementary power to the vehicle and increase its range (up to an additional 15km per day with a target of 30km per day within 3 years, based on 8 hours’ outside exposure of the vehicle per day).

The Gazelle, a lightweight and low energy consumption car

Manufactured in Bordeaux at the Gazelle Tech plant, this new Gazelle (the name given to the car) is the electric version of the combustion engine concept already exhibited last year at RIVES 2019 in Alès

Just like the combustion engine version, this vehicle has a self-supporting chassis made of composites. This innovative and patented technology called Aerocell^® makes the car extremely lightweight. It only weighs 650-700 kg, compared to around double for a comparable 5-seater vehicle.

The minimized weight significantly improves the car's energy consumption, an improvement of some 40% compared to an equivalent model. The Gazelle therefore has a range of 180km at only 4 hours charging using the domestic power supply.