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Recent advancements towards autonomous heavy-duty vehicles are directly associated with increased interconnectivity and software driven features. Consequently, rise of this technological trend is bringing forth safety and cybersecurity challenges in form of new threats, hazards and vulnerabilities. As per the recent UN vehicle regulation 155, several risk-based security models and assessment frameworks have been proposed to counter the growing cybersecurity issues, however, the high budgetary cost to develop the tool and train personnel along with high risk of leakage of trade secrets, hinders the automotive manufacturers from adapting these third party solutions. This paper proposes an automated Threat Assessment & Risk Analysis (TARA) framework aligned with the standard requirements, offering an easy to use and fully customizable framework. The proposed framework is tailored specifically for heavy-duty vehicular networks and it demonstrates its effectiveness on a case study.

Delivery trucks and vans represent a growing transportation segment which reflects the shift of consumers towards on-line shopping and on-demand delivery. Therefore, electrification of this class of vehicles is going to play a major role in the decarbonization of the transportation sector and in the transition to a sustainable mobility system. Hybrid electric vehicles can represent a medium-term solution and have gained an increasing share of the market in recent years. These vehicles include two power sources, typically an internal combustion engine and a battery, which gives more degrees of freedom when controlling the powertrain to satisfy the power request at the wheels. Components sizing and powertrain energy management are strongly coupled and can make a substantial impact on the final energy consumption of a hybrid vehicle.

Super Truck II is a 48V mild hybrid class 8 truck with an all auxiliary loads powered purely by the battery pack. Electric Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) load is the most prominent battery load during the hotel period, when the truck driver is resting inside the sleeper. For the PACCAR Super Truck II (ST-II) project a 48 V battery system provides the required power during the hotel period. A cabin-HVAC model estimates the electric load on the 48V battery system, allowing the control system to implement an efficient energy management strategy that avoids engine idling during the hotel period. The thermal model accounts for the sun load due to the time of day and the geographic location of the truck during the hotel period. The cabin-HVAC model has two parts. First, a grey box model with two heat exchangers (Condenser and Evaporator) working in unison with refrigerant mass flow rate as an input and HVAC load as an output.

Diesel Cylinder Deactivation (CDA) has been shown in previous work to increase exhaust temperatures, improve fuel efficiency, and reduce engine-out NOx for engine loads up to 3 bar BMEP. The purpose of this study is to determine whether or not the turbocharger needs to be altered when implementing CDA on a diesel engine. This study investigates the effect of CDA on exhaust temperature, fuel efficiency, and turbocharger performance in a 15L heavy-duty diesel engine under low-load (0-3 bar BMEP) steady-state operating conditions. Two calibration strategies were evaluated. First, a “stay-hot” thermal management strategy in which CDA was used to increase exhaust temperature and reduce fuel consumption. Next, a “get-hot” strategy where CDA and elevated idle speed was used to increase exhaust temperature and exhaust enthalpy for rapid aftertreatment warm-up.

Commercial vehicles require continual improvements in order to meet fuel emission standards, improve diesel aftertreatment system performance and optimize vehicle fuel economy. Aftertreatment systems, used to remove engine NOx, are temperature dependent. Variable valve actuation in the form of cylinder deactivation (CDA) has been shown to manage exhaust temperatures to the aftertreatment system during low load operation (i.e., under 3-4 bar BMEP). During cylinder deactivation mode, a diesel engine can have higher vibration levels when compared to normal six cylinder operation. The viability of CDA needs to be implemented in a way to manage noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) within acceptable ranges for today’s commercial vehicles and drivelines. A heavy duty diesel engine (inline 6 cylinder) was instrumented to collect vibration data in a dynamometer test cell.

Fuel economy is one of the major challenges for both on and off-road vehicles. Inefficient engine operation and loss of kinetic energy in the form of heat during braking are two of the major sources of wasted fuel energy. Rising energy costs, stringent emission norms and increased environmental awareness demand efficient drivetrain designs for the next generation of vehicles. This paper analyzes three different types of powertrain concepts for efficient operation of a forklift truck. Starting from a conventional torque convertor transmission, hydrostatic transmission and a hydraulic hybrid transmission (Eaton architecture) are compared for their fuel economy performance. Eaton hydraulic hybrid system is seen to perform much better compared to other two architectures. Improved fuel economy is attributed to efficient engine operation and regeneration of vehicle kinetic energy during braking.

This study was performed to showcase the possible applications of the Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation environment developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), to test heavy truck crash avoidance safety systems. In this study, the HIL simulation environment was used to recreate a simulation of an actual accident scenario involving a single tractor semi-trailer combination. The scenario was then simulated with and without an antilock brake system (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC) system to investigate the crash avoidance potential afforded by the tractor equipped with the safety systems. The crash scenario was interpreted as a path-following problem, and three possible driver intended paths were developed from the accident scene data.

This research was to model a 6×4 tractor-trailer rig using TruckSim and simulate severe braking maneuvers with hardware in the loop and software in the loop simulations. For the hardware in the loop simulation (HIL), the tractor model was integrated with a 4s4m anti-lock braking system (ABS) and straight line braking tests were conducted. In developing the model, over 100 vehicle parameters were acquired from a real production tractor and entered into TruckSim. For the HIL simulation, the hardware consisted of a 4s4m ABS braking system with six brake chambers, four modulators, a treadle and an electronic control unit (ECU). A dSPACE simulator was used as the “interface” between the TruckSim computer model and the hardware.

A Software-in-the-Loop (SIL) simulation is presented here wherein control algorithms for the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) and Roll Stability Control (RSC) system were developed in Simulink. Vehicle dynamics models of a 6×4 cab-over tractor and two trailer combinations were developed in TruckSim and were used for control system design. Model validation was performed by doing various dynamic maneuvers like J-Turn, double lane change, decreasing radius curve, high dynamic steer input and constant radius test with increasing speed and comparing the vehicle responses obtained from TruckSim against field test data. A commercial ESC ECU contains two modules: Roll Stability Control (RSC) and Yaw Stability Control (YSC). In this research, only the RSC has been modeled. The ABS system was developed based on the results obtained from a HIL setup that was developed as a part of this research.

The tractor trailer models discussed in this paper were for a real-time hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation to test heavy truck electronic stability control (ESC) systems [1]. The accuracy of the simulation results relies on the fidelity and accuracy of the vehicle parameters used. However in this case where hardware components are part of the simulation, their accuracy also affects the proper working of the simulation and ESC unit. Hence both the software and hardware components have to be validated. The validation process discussed in this paper is divided into two sections. The first section deals with the validation of the TruckSim vehicle model, where experimental data is compared with simulation results from TruckSim. Once the vehicle models are validated, they are incorporated in the HIL simulation and the second section discusses the validation of the whole HIL system with ESC.

According to NHTSA's 2011 Traffic Safety Facts [1], passenger vehicle occupant fatalities continued the strong decline that has been occurring recently. In 2011, there were 21,253 passenger vehicles fatalities compared to 22,273 in 2010, and that was a 4.6% decrease. However; large-truck occupant fatalities increased from 530 in 2010 to 635 in 2011, which is a 20% increase. This was a second consecutive year in which large truck fatalities have increased (9% increase from 2009 to 2010). There was also a 15% increase in large truck occupant injuries from 2010. Moreover, the fatal crashes involving large trucks increased by 1.9%, in contrast to other-vehicle-occupant fatalities that declined by 3.6% from 2010. The 2010 accident statistics NHTSA's report reveals that large trucks have a fatal accident involvement rate of 1.22 vehicles per 100 million vehicle miles traveled compared to 1.53 for light trucks and 1.18 for passenger cars.

An advanced variable valve actuation system is developed that requires a coating with high stress loading capability on the sliding interfaces to enable compact packaging solutions for gasoline passenger car applications. The valvetrain system consists of a switching roller bearing finger follower (SRFF) combined with a dual feed hydraulic lash adjuster and an oil control valve. The SRFF contains two slider pads and a single roller to provide discrete variable valve lift capability on the intake valves. These components are installed on a four cylinder gasoline engine. The motivation for designing this type of variable valve actuation system is targeted to improve fuel economy by reducing the air pumping losses during partial load engine operation. This paper addresses the technology developed to utilize a Diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating on the slider pads of the SRFF.

A simulation framework with a validated system model capable of estimating fuel consumption is a valuable tool in analysis and design of the hybrid vehicles. In particular, the framework can be used for (1) benchmarking the fuel economy achievable from alternate hybrid powertrain technologies, (2) investigating sensitivity of fuel savings with respect to design parameters (for example, component sizing), and (3) evaluating the performance of various supervisory control algorithms for energy management. Presenter Chinmaya Patil, Eaton Corporation

Vehicle dynamics models employed in heavy truck simulation often treat the semitrailer as a torsionally rigid member, assuming zero deflection along its longitudinal axis as a moment is applied to its frame. Experimental testing, however, reveals that semitrailers do twist, sometimes enough to precipitate rollover when a rigid trailer may have remained upright. Improving the model by incorporating realistic trailer roll stiffness values can improve assessment of heavy truck dynamics, as well as an increased understanding of the effectiveness of stability control systems in limit handling maneuvers. Torsional stiffness measurements were conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for eight semitrailers of different types, including different length box vans, traditional and spread axle flat beds, and a tanker.

A simulation framework with a validated system model capable of estimating fuel consumption is a valuable tool in analysis and design of the hybrid vehicles. In particular, the framework can be used for (1) benchmarking the fuel economy achievable from alternate hybrid powertrain technologies, (2) investigating sensitivity of fuel savings with respect to design parameters (for example, component sizing), and (3) evaluating the performance of various supervisory control algorithms for energy management. This paper describes such a simulation framework that can be used to predict fuel economy of series hydraulic hybrid vehicle for any specified driver demand schedule (drive cycle), developed in MATLAB/Simulink. The key components of the series hydraulic hybrid vehicle are modeled using a combination of first principles and empirical data. A simplified driver model is included to follow the specified drive cycle.

The paper covers the NOx performance evaluation of an LNT + SCR system designed to meet the 2010 on-highway heavy-duty (HD) US EPA emission standards. The system combines a fuel reformer catalyst (REF), lean NOx trap (LNT), diesel particulate filter (DPF), and selective catalytic reduction (SCR) in series, to reduce engine-out NOx and PM. System NOx reduction performance was verified in an engine dynamometer test cell, using a 2007 7.6L medium-duty engine. System NOx performance was characterized using fresh LNT and SCR along with hydrothermal aged LNT and fresh SCR. Test results show levels consistent with EPA 2010 limits under various test conditions. Catalysts performance was characterized at eight steady engine-operating conditions (A100, B50, B75, A75, B100, C100, C75, C50, across a 13-mode Supplemental Emission Test (SET), and an on-highway Heavy Duty Federal Test Procedure (HD-FTP).

The Ohio State University has fielded teams at all three of the DARPA Grand Challenge and DARPA Urban Challenge autonomous vehicle competitions, using three very different vehicle platforms. In this paper we present our experiences in these competitions, comparing and contrasting the different requirements, strategies, tasks, and vehicles developed for each challenge. We will discuss vehicle control and actuation, sensors, sensor interpretation, planning, behavior, and control generation. We will also discuss lessons learned from the engineering and implementation process for these three vehicles.

ADVISOR is a flexible drivetrain analysis tool, developed in MATLAB/Simulink® to compare fuel economy and emissions performance between different drivetrain configurations. This paper reports a couple of numerical issues with application of ADVISOR 2002 to commercial vehicles with traditional powertrain systems. One instance is when ADVISOR model is set up to simulate running a heavy-duty (HD) truck with an automated manual transmission (AMT) on a demanding pickup-delivery duty cycle. The other is highlighted during an analysis of a medium-duty (MD) truck with an automatic transmission (AT) where wide-open throttle, i.e., fast acceleration is requested. These two cases have shown different numerical difficulties by using ADVISOR 2002. Based on studying the details of the models, solutions to these numerical issues are developed. The simulation results will demonstrate the effectiveness of these solutions.

This paper describes a NOx aftertreatment system and control strategy for heavy-duty diesel engines to achieve US EPA 2010 emissions regulations. The NOx aftertreatment system comprises of a fuel reformer catalyst, a LNT catalyst, and a SCR catalyst. The only reductant required to operate this system is diesel fuel; hence, no urea infrastructure is required to support this approach. The fuel reformer is used to generate reformate which is a combination of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons. This reformate provides a more efficient feedstock to improve LNT NOx regeneration efficiency. Engine out NOx is reduced using a two-step process. First, NOx is stored in the LNT catalyst during lean operation. During rich operation, portions of the stored NOx are converted to nitrogen and ammonia. Next, the ammonia released from the LNT is captured by the downstream SCR catalyst. The stored ammonia is further used to reduce the NOx that slips past the LNT catalyst.

An existing tire model was investigated for additional normal load-dependent characteristics to improve the large truck simulations developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for the National Advanced Driving Simulator (NADS). Of the existing tire model coefficients, plysteer, lateral friction decay, aligning torque stiffness and normalized longitudinal stiffness were investigated. The findings of the investigation led to improvements in the tire model. The improved model was then applied to TruckSim to compare with the TruckSim table lookup tire model and test data. Additionally, speed-dependent properties for the NADS tire model were investigated (using data from a light truck tire).