Formula One news

Williams makes acquisition for future rules

Williams has acquired a minority shareholding in Automotive Hybrid Power Limited, a company developing high-energy composite flywheels for use in energy recovery systems. AHP has relocated from Norwich to Williams' headquarters outside Oxford, UK and has been renamed Williams Hybrid Power Limited. 

Williams Hybrid Power Limited is developing a flywheel for potential use as the energy storage element of Williams' kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS), a technology that will be allowed by regulation in Formula One next year. 

This technology stores kinetic energy generated under braking that would otherwise be dissipated. Williams is exploring a number of energy storage options. The Williams Hybrid Power system is based on a flywheel rotating at speeds of up to 100,000rpm that would capture this energy for later release. The competitive rigour of Formula One requires quickly deployable solutions to technical problems, as well as ensuring any such solutions are lightweight, robust and high performance. Williams Hybrid Power hopes to build on the Formula One experience to transfer its technology to other types of vehicle. 

"High-energy flywheel technology is a challenging field of engineering," said Patrick Head. "We fully support the FIA's positive initiative in energy recovery systems which we hope will allow Formula One to make some contribution to the development of an environmentally beneficial technology that could help to reduce the carbon emissions of vehicles." 

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