Now here’s a new idea: what if each wheel of your car was a motor, instead of putting the motor on the chassis and distributing power from there? No more transmissions, driveshafts, differentials, etc. …all that becomes electronically managed. Sound interesting? That’s what Tidnab Innovations is up to, and it’s not just a drawing in a notebook–they went and built it! See the video below for a look at the system in action.
With the Tidnab system, each wheel is basically an outrunner brushless motor. The stator is mounted to the suspension arm, and magnets are mounted on the rim. It’s like the “in-runner” motors we typically use in RC turned inside-out.