Chapter 202: Heat Control System
A slide titled Heat Control System was projected onto the projector.
I walked to the front of the conference room and looked up at everyone.
“Strengthening our capabilities doesn’t just mean developing new weapons.”
Silence fell over the conference room.
“Through this experience, I realized that if we have overwhelming technological prowess and market dominance, we could face similar situations again.”
It meant that more people like Chairman Cheon Ho-tae could emerge in the future.
I pressed the remote control in my hand to move to the next slide.
[Building AI-Based Physical Deterrence]
“Wars don’t start with guns. They start with technology and capital, and how efficiently those two can be implemented in the real world.”
To protect my capital, I needed commensurate power, and I planned to find the starting point in physical AI technology.
“To secure physical AI technology, autonomous driving technology must be completed first.”
It was Chilbong’s answer, who had become the head of development in the last organizational restructuring.
“Are you referring to the Aegis-X system that was posted on the feed?”
Vice President Hong Chung-ki mentioned the video that had been posted on the feed and become a global issue.
Bipedal robots with human-like shapes and four-legged animal-shaped robots running quickly between them.
As Chilbong said, the completion of autonomous driving technology was absolutely necessary for these to be realized.
“The physical AI I’m pursuing is not just a moving robot.”
On the newly displayed slide, the phrase Autonomous Decision-Making System and Dynamic Mobility Platform Combined was written in large letters.
“True physical AI is a system that judges, moves, and reacts on its own. And among them, the most important element is ‘locomotion,’ that is, mobility.”
No matter how brilliant the mind is, an AI that cannot move has limitations in practicality.
“Is that why you’re entering the electric vehicle market and developing PRIME?”
“Yes.”
I nodded and moved to the next slide again.
Initial design drawings of PRIME and a Lunar-based autonomous driving structure diagram appeared side by side on the screen.
“The reason I’m entering the electric vehicle market is not only to secure future food and ride the trend, but the bigger reason is……”
Chilbong took my words.
“To create a learning environment for physical AI.”
“As Director Hwang said, by producing electric cars and commercializing them with autonomous driving systems, we will be able to secure an enormous amount of real-time data.”
As I said when developing the smartphone OS Lunar in the past.
The most powerful weapon of the future is not guns or missiles, but ‘data.’
The reason why I started the mobile business first among many business items.
And the reason why I mobilized politics, capital, and technology to dominate platforms like KTalk, Lunar, and Feed.
It was all to secure that data.
Only then could I quickly and accurately teach the physical AI that would be developed in the future.
“So, the first thing to do is to succeed with PRIME.”
Only by succeeding with PRIME could we successfully enter the automobile market.
“But can you really unveil PRIME at the Brookling Circuit Trial Race?”
There were only about two and a half months left until June, as I had promised.
Concerned, Vice President Hong Chung-ki spoke, and Park Cheol-jin, the representative of Dojin Frontier, added an explanation.
“It’s tight, but we expect it to be possible.”
Park Cheol-jin displayed the development roadmap for PRIME on my behalf.
Phase 1: Core Basic Technology [Completed]
- Battery System
· Conversion of high-density electrical technology secured from the existing mobile battery business
· Expansion and application test passed for electric vehicle modules (output stability secured)
- Powertrain
· Design and simulation of a 1,550 horsepower electric powertrain based on dual motors completed
· Zero to hundred in 1.6 seconds confirmed based on actual setup
- Design & Aerodynamics Design
· Exterior design completed through collaboration between Director Jang Hee-soo and Eric Barkley (from BMWW)
· Active aero design based on CFD (computational fluid dynamics) analysis
While checking the contents completed in Phase 1,
When the details of PRIME’s design came out, exclamations burst out from everyone’s mouths at the same time.
“Is what we’re seeing now the final exterior rendering of PRIME?”
“Yes.”
Park Cheol-jin nodded.
The body was low and wide, and the roofline flowed smoothly as if cutting through the wind.
The rear active aero wing boasted details that seemed borrowed from a fighter jet.
The headlights were installed along the rhombus LED line, and just looking at them, one could feel the powerful strength.
“As shown in the data, the design was co-directed by Eric Barkley, recruited from Munich, Germany, and Director Jang Hee-soo. It’s a model designed with motifs of curves riding the wind, edge structures avoiding air resistance, and a futuristic concept car.”
From various places in the conference room, comments like ‘It perfectly fits the image of a hypercar,’ ‘Will it actually be sold?’ and ‘The design is overwhelming’ poured out.
I added a word.
“Director Jang Hee-soo really does an amazing job with design, doesn’t she?”
Although Eric, recruited from BMWW, helped.
What he mainly did was the internal structure of the car, and I heard that Hee-soo designed the exterior almost alone.
Park Cheol-jin moved to the next slide again.
Phase 2: High-Speed Driving Stabilization & Hardware Durability Design [In Progress]
- Body Rigidity & Suspension Setting
· Carbon fiber-aluminum hybrid chassis prototype production completed
· Possibility of rear understeer occurring in high-speed cornering → Reinforcing rear track width
- Heat Control System
· Battery cooling performance, critical point reached after more than 3 minutes of high-speed driving
· Reviewing new active cooling loop (composite conduction/convection method)
- Brake System
· Carbon ceramic disc applied as standard
· Brake fade under repeated braking conditions above 800°C……
“These are the items being improved in the high-speed driving stabilization section.”
Vice President Hong Chung-ki expressed doubt.
“There are so many problems left. Is it possible to resolve them within the remaining time of just over two months?”
Even after completing the actual vehicle, core procedures such as driving tests and continuous durability condition verification needed to be repeated at least dozens of times.
“As you said, the situation is not entirely optimistic.”
Park Cheol-jin continued in a calm voice.
“In the current state, the specifications under single driving conditions are met, but the problem is sustainability and consistency. When high-speed driving is repeated continuously, improvements are urgently needed for battery heat saturation and braking force degradation approaching the critical point. Especially, brake fade can directly lead to accidents during races.”
Listening silently, I slowly opened my mouth.
“Then, the biggest remaining problems are the battery cooling performance reaching the critical point after more than 3 minutes of high-speed driving and the brake system, right?”
“Yes. For battery cooling, we are reviewing a new loop based on the composite conduction/convection method, but it doesn’t seem easy to resolve.”
Of course.
The current battery structure, a high-energy density cell array based on pouch cells, focuses more on storage capacity than heat dissipation efficiency.
“Without fundamental structural changes, it won’t be easy to resolve with just the cooling system.”
At my words, Chilbong immediately showed interest.
“Then how should we do it? Could you please explain in more detail?”
I moved to the side with the whiteboard and drew a simple diagram of a new type of cell structure.
“As you know, the battery cells currently applied to PRIME are high-energy density pouch cells. The advantage is that they are light and have high storage efficiency, but they are also a structure where heat concentration is inevitable. Especially, the narrow spacing between cells and the lack of internal cooling channels are fatal.”
“So, improvement wasn’t possible with just a single water cooling channel like the existing method?”
“Yes. The core is an Active Thermal Management (ASM) system based on cell temperature distribution. When heat saturation occurs at the cell level, it bypasses the surrounding cells or changes the circulation cooling.”
It’s hard to understand just by talking about it.
When I showed it by drawing a diagram, an exclamation burst out from Chilbong’s mouth right away.
“Indeed, by doing so, it seems possible to distribute the heat concentration phenomenon much more effectively than before.”
As expected of a genius, he seemed to be redrawing the entire system structure in his head with just a few words.
To help Chilbong a bit more, I added a cell module loop switching scenario next to the sketched diagram.
“For example, if this cell exceeds 65 degrees, it immediately distributes the heat to the adjacent loop and simultaneously bypasses the regenerative braking energy to this reserve cell. Each loop has two or more sensors and one signal control unit connected to RTOS. How many circuits can be arranged in total?”
“Based on the current chassis internal space, a maximum of 6 loops, 72 sensors per cell, and 4 control units are possible. With a little more design complement, up to 8 loops are possible.”
Chilbong’s answer seemed to have already completed the prototype circuit diagram in his head.
Looking at the circuit structure drawn on the whiteboard for a moment, I nodded low with a sound of hmm……
“For now, ASM-based active cooling is the most realistic solution. At least until Brookling……”
Another possibility flashed through my mind.
All-solid-state.
Solid electrolyte.
Inorganic anode material.
Ultra-precision layer deposition technology.
And a perfect sealing process for moisture and oxygen.
I was confident because I had already done it once…… but it was impossible right now.
‘Pilot cells are already out, but to raise them to high-output cells, several supporting technologies and infrastructure are needed.’
Unfortunately, this alone should be enough to solve the battery cooling performance problem.
Next, it was time to solve the brake system problem.