Schools promote research as auto industry boost

The schools and their researchers have contributed to improvements in safety, performance and fuel economy with more than $300 million in auto-related research projects over a five-year period, officials with the state's University Research Corridor partnership said.

During a tour of the North American International Auto Show, Wayne State University engineering professor Jerry Ku said the gap between academic and industry research has narrowed in recent years.

"We are very, very aligned. Same direction," said Ku, whose research deals in part with electric vehicle battery packs.

Ku said vehicles such as the Nissan Leaf electric car, the Chevrolet Volt plug-in and Toyota's Prius hybrids also serve as inspiration when coming up with ways to teach about the latest industry advances. He said students are asked to look at how the technology for such vehicles is developed and selected.