magniX is an
electric motor
An electric motor is an Electric machine, electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a Electromagneti ...
manufacturer for
electric aircraft
An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity.
Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights.
Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, ...
, wholly owned by Singapore investor
Clermont Group
The Clermont Group is a Singapore-based conglomerate with interests in many parts of the world, and includes both operational businesses and financial investments. Headed by founder and Chairman, Richard Chandler, Clermont was established in 200 ...
.
The company is headquartered in
Everett, Washington
Everett is the county seat and largest city of Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is north of Seattle and is one of the main cities in the metropolitan area and the Puget Sound region. Everett is the seventh-largest city in the ...
, United States.
History
The company was founded in 2009 in Australia to research various technologies for electric motors. In 2017, it developed a motor that became their prototype and led to pivoting the company to focus on Electric Aviation and move its headquarters to Redmond, Washington.
The magni5, its original prototype electric motor, was developed in 2017.
In June 2018, magniX publicly stated plans to fly an electric
Cessna 208 Caravan
The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna.
The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982.
The production model was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, FAA ...
with a motor for up to an hour, by August 2019.
[
By then, the company's magni5 electric motor could produce peak at 2,500 rpm at 95% efficiency with a 53 kg (117 lb) dry mass motor, having a 5 kW/kg power density. The magni5 competes with the , Siemens SP260D for the Extra 330LE.]
By September 2018, a electric motor with a propeller had been tested on a Cessna iron bird. The Caravan was expected to fly by the fall of 2019 and by 2022 magniX estimates electric aircraft could fly up to by 2024.
The motor ran on a test dynamometer
A dynamometer or "dyno" for short, is a device for simultaneously measuring the torque and rotational speed (RPM) of an engine, motor or other rotating prime mover so that its instantaneous power may be calculated, and usually displayed by the ...
for 1,000 hours. The iron bird is a Caravan forward fuselage used as a test bed, with the usual PT6
The Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 is a turboprop aircraft engine produced by Pratt & Whitney Canada.
Its design was started in 1958, it first ran in February 1960, first flew on 30 May 1961, entered service in 1964 and has been continuously up ...
turboprop engine replaced by an electric motor, inverter and a liquid-cooling system, including radiators, driving a Cessna 206
The Cessna 205, 206, and 207, known primarily as the Stationair (and marketed variously as the Super Skywagon, Skywagon and Super Skylane) are a family of single-engined, general aviation aircraft with fixed landing gear, used in commercial air ...
propeller.
The production motor will produce at 1,900 rpm, down from the test motor's 2,500 rpm, allowing the installation of the propeller without a reduction gearbox.
By April 2019, the magni250 375 hp (280 kW) was offered for the Eviation Alice
The Eviation Alice is an electric aircraft designed to accommodate nine passengers and two crew members. Currently under development, its construction incorporates 95% composite material, is powered by two electric motors, and has a T-tail. The ...
as a second power option after Siemens 260 kW motors, as magniX had accumulated over 1,500 hours of ground tests in Redmond and Australia.[
]
Beaver conversion
By then, magniX partnered with Harbour Air
A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...
to electrify its entire fleet: the first converted aircraft was to be a DHC-2 Beaver
The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined high-wing propeller-driven short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft developed and manufactured by de Havilland Canada. It has been primarily operated as a bush plane and has been used ...
serving as the test prototype for the magniX motor, energy storage, and control systems.
On December 10, 2019, the eBeaver flew for the first time.
Low energy density
In physics, energy density is the amount of energy stored in a given system or region of space per unit volume. It is sometimes confused with energy per unit mass which is properly called specific energy or .
Often only the ''useful'' or extract ...
but proven lithium-ion batteries
A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery which uses the reversible reduction of lithium ions to store energy. It is the predominant battery type used in portable consumer electronics and electric vehicles. It also se ...
filled the cabin and took the prototype to its maximum gross weight to provide enough energy for a 15 min flight with a 25 min reserve.
The magniX magni500 electric motor used in the Harbour Air electric de Havilland Canada Beaver
The de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver is a single-engined high-wing propeller-driven short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft developed and manufactured by de Havilland Canada. It has been primarily operated as a bush plane and has been used ...
weighs and develops In contrast, the Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior
The Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior is a series of nine-cylinder, air-cooled, radial aircraft engines built by the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company from the 1930s to the 1950s. These engines have a displacement of ; initial versions produced , ...
SB it is replacing has a dry weight of , not including oil, and produces , more than halving the weight, while nearly doubling the power - a saving in this case that can be transferred toward carrying the difference in additional batteries.
Caravan conversion
The first flight of the modified Cessna 208B Grand Caravan was completed at Grant County International Airport
Grant County International Airport is a public use airport in the northwest United States, located northwest of the central business district of Moses Lake in Grant County, Washington. Formerly a military facility, the airport is owned by the ...
on May 28, 2020.
The eCaravan is powered by a motor and a , 750V lithium-ion battery
A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery which uses the reversible reduction of lithium ions to store energy. It is the predominant battery type used in portable consumer electronics and electric vehicles. It also se ...
.
Its 30 min first flight consumed $6 worth of electricity, needing 30-40 min of charging.
The magni500-powered variant can fly with 4-5 passengers while keeping reserve power, and aims for a certification by the end of 2021, hoping to operate 100-mile flights with a full load of nine passengers with better batteries.
In December 2020, CEO Roei Ganzarski told an interviewer that the company was consolidating its operations at Everett, Washington, and had shut their Australian site on the Gold Coast earlier in the year. In January 2021 the company formally announced that they will be moving their headquarters from Redmond to Everett, with plans to relocate all of their Australia operations there as well.
Products
* ''magni350EPU'': Take-Off/continuous, 111.5 kg / 245.8 lbs, needs 2× magniDrive100[
* ''magni650EPU'': Take-Off/continuous, 200 kg / 440.9 lbs, needs 4× magniDrive100][
* ''magniDrive100'': power electronics used to run the magni350 and magni650, 12 kg / 26 lbs.]
Customers
See also
References
External links
* {{official website, https://www.magnix.aero/
Aircraft electric engines