NSF Award Establishes EV/Automated Trucking Center
UofM receives National Science Foundation award to establish Center for Electrified and Automated Trucking (CEAT)
The University of Memphis recently received the National Science Foundation’s Industry University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) award in collaboration with Purdue University Indianapolis. The Center for Electrified and Automated Trucking (CEAT) will be a designated NSF IUCRC site at UofM from 2024-2029. The combined support of NSF and industry members will be $1.5 million which will be used to establish a center to focus on the future of automation, electrification, and next generation workforce of trucking and transit industry.
The lead principal investigator for this project is Dr. Sabya Mishra (Civil Engineering) and co-principal investigators include Dr. Mihalis Golias (Civil Engineering), Dr. Hasan Ali (Electrical Engineering), Dr. Myounggyu Won (Computer Science), and Dr. Mehdi Amini (Business). Mishra states that this NSF IUCRC award “will be of great benefit not only for UofM faculty and students, but also for the large logistics, freight, and transit sector in the greater Memphis area, which is known as logistics capital of the world”.
Potential topics that CEAT will investigate for the business world include: (i) electrification of long-haul trucking and public transit vehicles with highly durable fuel-cells and optimal deployment of charging stations; (ii) CEAT adoption models and business cases; (iii) operational strategies such as platooning and caravanning; (iv) vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication systems for efficient CEAT operation; and (v) strategies for addressing the workforce deficit in the logistics industry.
Commercial vehicles play a pivotal role in our society in moving people and goods. This project aims to converge and apply knowledge in emerging technologies in connected, electrified, and automated commercial vehicles and logistics networks for efficient, safe, agile, and sustainable mobility for the benefit of society. By bringing together a coalition of private and public sector stakeholders and academic institutions, this project will build the Center for Electrified and Automated Trucking (CEAT). The goal of CEAT is to drive innovation and facilitate the widespread adoption of electric and automated commercial vehicles for sustainable freight and public transportation in North America and worldwide.
For more information, contact Mishra at smishra3@memphis.edu.