SAE International and the US' National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have announced plans to co-host the 3rd Annual Electric Vehicle Safety Standards Summit on October 18 at Cobo Center in Detroit. The summit will be held in conjunction with SAE Convergence 2012.
It has been observed while advances in electric vehicle and hybrid technologies help to create new opportunities in how we power our vehicles, they also can present new challenges. These include safety issues, including fire and electrical hazards.
The yearly SAE event will reportedly continue the dialogue and partnerships which have been successful in modifying codes, standards and attitudes to enhance safety and support the ever-increasing fleet of electric and hybrid electric vehicles in North America. Leaders of industry, including vehicle manufacturers, governmental agencies, standards developing organisations, and first and second responders, will meet. They will discuss the codes and standards necessary to effectively address safety as it relates to electrified vehicles and their infrastructure.
Claude Harris, Director, Office of Crash Avoidance Standards, US Dept. of Transportation, will deliver the keynote address. His presentation, "EV Safety Compliance Update" will discuss the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) programme to test new electric vehicles introduced for sale in the US to ensure compliance with existing safety standards, and to provide consumers information on crash performance for these vehicles.
Also, the presentation will provide a summary of the issues highlighted in the EV safety symposium held by NHTSA in May 2012, a summary of EV field incidents investigated by NHTSA, and a brief summary of our EV research programme in progress.
The session topics will include Standards & Safety, High Voltage Battery Systems & Safety, Passenger Versus Other Vehicles and The Future. Complete programme information including agenda, registration deadlines and fees are available at http://www.sae.org/events/nevss/.
