Janus Electric reveals upgraded battery truck concept

Janus was the Roman god of several human undertakings, including beginnings. He was usually depicted as having two faces and so was also the god of endings.

At the battery-electric start-up Janus Electric, the company’s founders are certainly hoping that the god blesses the former, not the latter.

Janus Electric released its prototype battery-swap truck in 2020. Based on a Kenworth T403, it featured Dana electric propulsion motor and control modules, in conjunction with electric power for the air brakes and HVAC system.

The propulsion kit was housed between the chassis rails and the battery pack was swapped via clamshell opening doors where the distinctive KW grille resides in an diesel-powered truck.

This design probed problematic in two ways: it restricted the battery size that could be accommodated and it destroyed the iconic KW frontal appearance.

That prototype is still in existence, but the 2022 versions are quite different in execution. Gone are the disfiguring front doors, because new-design battery packs replace the diesel truck’s chassis-mounted side fuel tanks. The battery pack even has cab-access steps designed into it.

The new Janus Electric concept was unveiled at a fleet/press/investor event, held at Sydney’s White Bay Cruise Terminal. Given the absence of cruise liners, it proved an ideal venue, with space for Dana’s electric propulsion components and the Janus Electric presentation, plus dockside roadways for hands-on demonstration of two new Janus Electric ‘sidewinder’ prototypes.

One demo truck was bobtail, but the other was coupled to a cement bulk tanker. Quiet performance was obvious, with no fumes and passengers were impressed by the quiet cab ambience.

According to Janus Electric executives the new battery-swap concept involves robot-operated exchange kit that can do the R&R function in an estimated three minutes.

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This exchange system is intended to be housed in a purpose-designed charging station, where battery modules would be stored.

Such charging stations are envisaged to be part of an electricity grid’s modulating strategy, with the truck batteries being charged at off-peak rates and possibly able to help ‘smooth out’ spikes in local grids, by contributing power at peak times.

In an established Janus Electric system, with batteries available at convenient points, the ‘refuelling’ system is said to be more convenient than the present system of refilling fuel and AdBlue tanks.

From the truck operator’s point of view, truck operating range is claimed to be 500-600km, depending on semi-trailer mass and there’s also an expectation of high-density battery availability in coming months that will further improve operating range.

Real-world B-Double testing is being done in the near future.

Janus Electric claims that electrification will lead to a 30 per cent reduction in maintenance and operating costs over a truck’s lifetime. Operating costs are also said to be much lower: typically $0.73 per kilometre, compared with a diesel truck’s $1.20 per kilometre.

The Janus Electric battery-swap system is said to be a plus for truck owners, because the batteries can be upgraded very easily, allowing fleets to keep up with improved battery technology over time. Truck batteries are claimed to have static-battery applications after their optimal truck-powering days are over.

The approximate conversion cost for a diesel-powered truck is $150,000, which could be an option for fleets with trucks that are due for out-of-frame mechanical overhaul. Another purchasing option is a ‘glider kit’ truck that comes new off the factory line, without engine, transmission and fuel tanks.

Trucksales will follow the Janus Electric concept as it develops.