ITT CRUX GENERATOR – DELIVERING MOBILE POWER TO THE WARFIGHTER
Warfighter Needs for On-board Vehicle Power (OBVP)
Over the past 10 years, US ground combat and tactical wheeled vehicles programs have been challenged to meet an expanded mission in-theater in the Middle East and South Asia. Central to this expanded mission, is the need to maintain and deploy robust OBVP systems to enable the full suite of available C4ISR and counter-measures to keep soldiers connected and protected. Current engine and vehicle integrated systems fail to provide the necessary power to maintain these systems during forward deployed and mobile operations. This creates a shortfall in functionality due to a need to make real-time, in the field trade-offs in which systems will be active during mobile operations. To bridge this gap, current fleets include stationary generators to delivery local power. This creates a significant logistics burden and sub-optimizes the effectiveness of on-board C4ISR tools while potentially exposing soldiers to risks while outside of protective vehicles.
To respond to this challenge, the US Department of Defense (DoD) is seeking innovative technologies capable of delivering sustainable on-board power generation, conversion, and management. As C4ISR functions expand, this power demand will increase. Meeting this OBVP demand is critical to current and future operations and ensures enhanced survivability for US warfighters and enables information superiority and full spectrum dominance.
Meeting the OBVP Challenge: ITT’s CRUX Generator
ITT identified OBVP as a critical need for US military platforms over four years ago and has committed substantial resources to achieving a revolutionary advance in alternator technology to deliver needed on-board and mobile power to the US warfighter. As a leading US defense provider to the US military, ITT is uniquely positioned to bridge the gap between commercial innovations and military needs. Over the past four years, ITT has teamed with leading commercial research companies to achieve a breakthrough in alternator design capable of meeting the power output objectives for current and future US military tactical vehicle fleets.
ITT’s CRUX Generator is a vehicle mounted, air-cooled, 28 kilowatt alternator and regulator unit that provides 750 Amps of DC at 1900 alternator RPM and 1000 Amps of DC at 2300 RPM. ITT’s CRUX Generator is specifically designed as a high power density system that provides commercial and military users with the power output they need to meet current and emerging OBVP requirements. Its convenient size makes it an easy drop-in replacement for current alternator solutions.
The CRUX Generator has several unique design attributes representing a step-change in alternator technology coupled with the ability to regulate and deliver reliable, clean power for on-board use. The CRUX Generator can be applied readily to US military applications including the MRAP and JLTV vehicle in a Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) configuration. The ITT CRUX Generator includes an air-cooled alternator, remote air-cooled regulator/rectifier unit, alternator pulley, drive pulley and drive belts for a prime mover and power cables and control cable harnesses.
Benefit to the Ground Combat and TWV Fleet
IPS CRUX Generator Features
* Drop in replacement for alternators currently fielded on current ground and wheeled vehicles
Compact alternator size and weight, smaller than current 400 or 570 amp alternators
* Power at idle: ITT solution nearly doubles the power output of the OEM alternator below specified Horsepower (HP) at engine idle.
* Ability to meet Network Centric Warfare (NCW) mission with full suite of current and emerging C4ISR systems capability for mobile and forward deployed forces in theater.
Ability to deliver 1,000 Amperes (Amps) of on-board power to meet power threshold objectives for MRAP and JLTV fleet utilizing a permanent magnet alternat