Solaris presents first all-electric bloodmobile
Solaris has turned an electric bus into a mobile blood donation center. It is the first of two vehicles of this type commissioned by the Regional Blood Donation Centre (RCKiK) in Katowice, Poland and has already won an innovation award.
While Solaris writes in their press release that it is a world’s first, we know of another eBloodmobile built by Motiv Power Systems in the USA. There should be more of such vehicles around though as using batteries to power special outreach vehicles that often idle for long times while extensive onboard equipment needs to be powered.
So the Solaris Bloodmobile has a 160 kW electric drive and a 160 kWh battery pack that ensures fully emission-free operation mode including heating or air-conditioning even when all devices on-board are running.
Moreover, the electric bloodmobile was designed to facilitate blood donation campaigns at locations such as city centres, shopping malls, or sports halls, where conventional gas guzzlers cannot be used.
Built on their Urbino 8.9 LE electric, the bloodmobile resembles a standard bus from the outside, but inside has all that is required for blood donation and storage.
In line with the requests of RCKiK in Katowice, the manufacturer has equipped the bus with two specialist mobile blood donor lounges, a doctor’s office, a reception area as well as a small catering area.
The vehicles are also fitted with air-conditioning, Wi-Fi access and USB ports installed near the lounges, so that anyone willing to donate blood may do so in a comfortable setting.
The data connections also enable the remote transmission of data to the Blood Bank computer system. It is one of the features that convinced the jury at the INTARG show to award Solaris with the International Invention and Innovation award this year.
Solaris have also filed the design of the electric bloodmobile with the Patent Office and the application is being reviewed now.
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