SAE Update - March 2021 - 13

Cover Story


DOSSIER: Steve Rohde, retired
General Motors engineer
Dr. Steve Rohde has always been interested in
science, mathematics, and cars. He grew up in
Newark, NJ, and did his undergraduate work at New
Jersey Institute of Technology, receiving a BS degree
in electrical engineering in 1967. Still extremely
interested in applied mathematics, he attended
Lehigh University and received an MS in 1969 and a
Ph.D. in 1970, both in mathematics. Rohde then joined
General Motors' Research Laboratories in Warren,
Mich.
" This was a wonderful place to work, " he told
Update. " GM was in the process of 'upgrading' its
technical talent at that time and was hiring many
engineers and scientists with advanced degrees. "
Rohdes' first few years at GM were spent in the
Mechanical Research Department, delving deeply into
the field of tribology, which is the study of lubrication,
friction, and wear. At this time, the U.S. was in its first

The flywheel hybrid team gathered around a mockup of a
1985 X-car.

UPDATE

Steve Rohde, Ph.D., is both an SAE
Fellow and a member of SAE's 2020
Top Contributor Class.

oil embargo, and fuel economy
became very important.
" The complex mathematics
and the potential for reducing
engine friction were fascinating, "
said Rohde. " I published many
technical papers in this area and
won several awards, including
becoming a Fellow of ASME. "
He became involved with
hybrid vehicles at GM around
1980. Flywheel hybrids were
being investigated at that time
and he led a simulation group to
design one. A flywheel hybrid
van was built, as well as the
March 2021

13



SAE Update - March 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SAE Update - March 2021

SAE Update - March 2021 - Cov1
SAE Update - March 2021 - Cov2
SAE Update - March 2021 - 1
SAE Update - March 2021 - 2
SAE Update - March 2021 - 3
SAE Update - March 2021 - 4
SAE Update - March 2021 - 5
SAE Update - March 2021 - 6
SAE Update - March 2021 - 7
SAE Update - March 2021 - 8
SAE Update - March 2021 - 9
SAE Update - March 2021 - 10
SAE Update - March 2021 - 11
SAE Update - March 2021 - 12
SAE Update - March 2021 - 13
SAE Update - March 2021 - 14
SAE Update - March 2021 - 15
SAE Update - March 2021 - 16
SAE Update - March 2021 - 17
SAE Update - March 2021 - 18
SAE Update - March 2021 - 19
SAE Update - March 2021 - 20
SAE Update - March 2021 - 21
SAE Update - March 2021 - 22
SAE Update - March 2021 - 23
SAE Update - March 2021 - 24
SAE Update - March 2021 - 25
SAE Update - March 2021 - 26
SAE Update - March 2021 - 27
SAE Update - March 2021 - 28
SAE Update - March 2021 - 29
SAE Update - March 2021 - 30
SAE Update - March 2021 - 31
SAE Update - March 2021 - 32
SAE Update - March 2021 - 33
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https://www.nxtbook.com/smg/sae/21UPD12
https://www.nxtbook.com/smg/sae/21UPD11
https://www.nxtbook.com/smg/sae/21UPD10
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