Electromobility Solutions for Cities and Regions / ELMOs

Objective

ELMOS universal goal is to promote more sustainable transport through the development of electromobility solutions for cities and regions. The project aims at delivering concepts for a better exchange of electromobility knowledge at regional and EU level, concepts for new business models and for cross-border field tests which should lead to an improved standardisation in electromobility technology and to new insights in applied science. The project therefore, contributes to enhance the regional capacities for a fostering of the sustainable transport-related economy. 
More precisely, Electrification of mobility means the embedding of electric vehicles in a wider urban mobility concept using intermodality with public transport and new usage models of private cars such as car sharing, leasing models, transport-on-demand models and intelligent urban freight. Following this definition electromobility in urban environments requires cross-disciplinary solutions, intelligent digital networks and grid-steering systems as well as a charging infrastructure in cities and regions that eases the take-up of new technologies and concepts. 
This will lead to a paradigm shift in mobility and infrastructure use, focusing on a combination of public and private transport steered by intelligent information systems and telematics. Urban mobility in ELMOS sense exceeds the mere city borders towards wider conurbations and functional urban areas, likewise transport networks nowadays go far beyond cities and cover the wider metropolitan area. The market uptake of electromobility strongly depends on four dimensions:

• Reliable technologies and appropriate (public) charging infrastructure,
• Competitive total cost of ownership (TCO) respectively cost of usage,
• Supportive policy framework (incentives to buy and/or use electric vehicles), and
• Consumer acceptance expressed in new usage patterns.

The overall goals of this project are structured accordingly:
II. Paradigm Shift: From Ownership to Usage
Development of concepts for future business models able to create new mobility patterns in urban environments.

III. Cross-border Field Tests
Design of cross-border field tests to demonstrate state-of-the-art in technology and infrastructure, to identify further research needs and to analyse acceptance by users.

IV. Joint Action Plan
Elaboration and adoption of a cross-border action plan to strengthen the research and knowledge base and contributing to competitiveness of European «mobility industries».

Approach

Taking these goals into account leads to an integrated research, technological development and innovation (RTDI) circle as depicted in figure 1, which summarises the BASIC CONCEPT OF ELMOS. The circle consists of five elements:
I. Problem areas to be addressed by 
II. Technologies, concepts and solutions to be developed through the optimisation of research
infrastructures and the interplay of the three electromobility-constituent sectors automotive, renewable energy and ICT which help
III. Cities and regions to establish holistic mobility concepts including provision of infrastructure and incentives which in turn fertilises
IV. Market uptake based on cross-border field tests, early adopters and citizens readiness which ideally lead to
V. Socio-economic benefits in terms of economic growth, regions’ competitiveness and quality of life.

Figure 1: Multilevel RTDI Circle for Electromobility in Cities and Regions

The regional state of play for electromobility research and economy and especially the composition of the consortium follow this logic of a mobility paradigm shift and the necessary cross innovation by conceiving European clusters from three value chains«Information and Communication Technologies», «Automotive» and «Renewable Energy». As regards research-driven clusters’ maturity, the clusters in Alsace/Franche-Comté (France), Stuttgart Region (Germany) and Greater Berne (Switzerland) are well established with a long history dating back to the early 1990s. The clusters in West Transdanubia (Hungary) and Slovenia are in an emergent state with less developed research infrastructures and are involved from the project start as EU-mentoring regions.
Figure 2: Participating Regions and Sectors Involved

Huge innovation potential resides in new business models, which will be elaborated on in the project within the goal of developing Concepts for Future Business Models. Innovative infrastructure solutions of charging and plug-in spots will lead to additional business opportunities for the regional transport-related industries, including smart e-metering, passenger information systems, cross border roaming and billing models. The participating RDCs with their project activities aim to strengthen the research and innovation capacity for these EU sectors and will look for innovations, investments and projects to implement.
One of ELMOS novelties lies in the cooperation of six thematically and geographically linked regions and value network clusters which will use their knowledge potential to the project’s goal of developing cross-border test concepts. The clusters lie in a geographically proximity with common borders and cultural linkages. Vehicle fleet tests are one of the focal points of research of alternative drive engines. Aiming at integrating research agendas and conflating so far isolated pilot actions in transnational electromobility solutions and field trials, the geographic proximity of the research-driven clusters predestines the project to elaborate on cross-border tests. Consisting of a mixture of densely populated areas with metropolitan regions, big cities, po¬ly¬¬cen¬tric city nets and middle-sized towns in more rural areas, the geographic setting of the participating clusters fits perfectly for test concepts in urban mobility covering themes such as standardisation, research for emergency cases, and so far never tried range extension trials for electric vehicles with an average range limited to 150 km by intelligent dissemination of charging stations chains and their mapping.
Though many car manufacturers globally intend to roll-out their newest electric car models on an industrial scale within the next years, many research questions remain open, ranging from improved electrochemical storage capacity in battery systems to integrated urban mobility research on electromobility intermodality. To choose the right deployment strategy of charging points and other infrastructures, further research on usage patterns in general and in the specific local situation is necessary to bolster sound decisions. Boosting regional capacities for a better support of sustainable transport-related industries. Knowledge enhancement for regional decision makers, planers, transport providers, emergency teams, repair shops and SMEs is here the key. Concepts for training and knowledge transfer, a cross-border action plan for knowledge exchange and RSC, the establishment of a European «Electromobility Inventory » will be elaborated.
The project is funded under the FP7 Capacities “Regions of Knowledge” initiative and the consortium is composed of:

• tcbe.ch – ICT Cluster Bern, Switzerland (Coordinator) www.tcbe.ch
• autocluster.ch – Automobile Network Switzerland www.autocluster.ch
• Berne University of Applied Sciences www.bfh.ch
• Pôle Véhicule du Futur® – Etupes, France www.vehiculedufutur.com
• Economic Development Agency Region of Stuttgart GmbH – CARS www.cars.region-stuttgart.de
• University of Applied Sciences, Institute for Work and Technology www.iat.eu
• City System GmbH www.city-system.de
• Vorarlberg Elektroautomobile Planning- and Consulting GmbH www.vlotte.at
• Pannon Novum West Transdanubian Regional Innovation www.pannonnovum.hu
• Automotive Cluster Slovenia www.acs-giz.si

Kick-off Meeting