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Due to the variability of real traffic conditions for vehicle testing, real-world vehicle performance estimation using simulation method become vital. Especially for heavy duty vehicles (e.g. 40 t trucks), which are used for international freight transport, real-world tests are difficult, complex and expensive. Vehicle simulations use mathematical methods or commercial software, which take given driving cycles as inputs. However, the road situations in real driving are different from the driving cycles, whose speed profiles are obtained under specific conditions. In this paper, a real-world vehicle performance estimation method using simulation was proposed, also it took traffic and real road situations into consideration, which made it possible to investigate the performance of vehicles operating on any roads and traffic conditions. The proposed approach is applicable to all kind of road vehicles, e.g. trucks, buses, etc. In the method, the real-road network includes road elevation.

Motion cueing algorithms can improve the perceived realism of a driving simulator, however, data on the effects on driver performance and simulator sickness remain scarce. Two novel motion cueing algorithms varying in concept and complexity were developed for a limited maneuvering workspace, hexapod/Stuart type motion platform. The RideCue algorithm uses a simple swing motion concept while OverTilt Track algorithm uses optimal pre-positioning to account for maneuver characteristics for coordinating tilt adjustments. An experiment was conducted on the US Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) Ride Motion Simulator (RMS) platform comparing the two novel motion cueing algorithms to a pre-existing algorithm and a no-motion condition.

Fluctuations in the operational output of spark ignition engines are observed from one engine cycle to the other, when an engine is run at technically identical operating condition. These fluctuations known as cycle-to-cycle variations, when high, adversely affect the performance of an engine. Reduction in cycle-to-cycle variation in engines has been noted by researchers as one of the methods of improving engine efficiency and operational stability. This study investigated the combustion performance characteristics of two fuels: E5 (95% gasoline and 5% ethanol) and ULG98 (unleaded gasoline) in a spark ignition engine, operating at varying inlet pressure conditions and ignition timing. A two-stroke, 80mm bore, spark ignition engine was operated at an engine speed of 750 rpm, inlet pressures of 1.6 and 2.0 bar and spark-timings ranging from 2 to 13 bTDC. A top cylinder head with a centralized spark plug was used in all the experiments.

Replacing the conventional fossil fuel totally or partially with alcohols or ethers in spark-ignition (SI) engine is a promising way to reduce pollutant emissions. A large number of studies on alcohol-containing blends in SI engines could be found in the literature. Nonetheless, investigations of ether-containing blends are by far much less numerous, especially for modern boosted engines. Blending with ether compounds might change the burning rate at high pressure, which consequently changes the anti-knock properties of these fuels and leads to a deterioration in the vehicle drivability. This work reports experiments carried out in two one-cylinder engines: one is a naturally aspirated, variable compression ratio engine, and the other is a strongly charged optical engine. Three fuels with different RON and MON numbers were tested: Iso-octane, a blend Ethyl Tert Butyl Ether (ETBE) with a primary reference fuel, and a commercial gasoline fuel containing 5% by volume of ethanol (E05).

The transport sector is one of the major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. This study investigated three greenhouse gases emitted from road transport using a probe vehicle: CO₂, N₂O and CH₄ emissions as a function temperature. It should be highlighted that methane is a greenhouse gas that similarly to carbon dioxide contributes to global warming and climate change. An oxidation catalyst was used to investigate CO₂, N₂O and CH₄ GHG emissions over a real-world driving cycle that included urban congested traffic and extra-urban driving conditions. The results were determined under hot start conditions, but in congested traffic the catalyst cooled below its light-off temperature and this resulted in considerable N₂O emissions as the oxidation catalyst temperature was in the N₂O formation band. This showed higher N₂O during hot start than for diesel fuel and B100 were compared. The B100 fuel was Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME), derived from waste cooking oil, which was mainly RME.

This study uses on-board measurement systems to analyze emissions from a diesel engine vehicle during the cold start period. An in-vehicle FTIR (Fourier Transform Inferred) spectrometer and a Horiba on-board measurement system (OBS-1300) were installed on a EURO3 emission-compliant 1.8 TDCi diesel van, in order to measure the emissions. Both regulated and non-regulated emissions were measured, along with an analysis of the NO/NO₂ split. A VBOX GPS system was used to log coordinates and road speed for driving parameters and emission analysis. Thermal couples were installed along the exhaust system to measure the temperatures of exhaust gases during cold start. The real-time fuel consumption was measured. The study also looks at the influence of velocity on emissions of hydrocarbons (HCs) and NOx. The cold start period of an SI-engine-powered vehicle, was typically around 200 seconds in urban driving conditions.

This paper will present a method of estimating tyre friction force using an extended Kalman filter (EKF). A review of current and proposed methods for tyre force estimation from the literature will be given. The EKF developed will estimate vehicle motions and tyre forces as state estimates from a noisy measurement set. The tyre forces will be compared to those from a high order vehicle model with non-linear tyres, which is subjected to the same tests as the measured vehicle, in order to validate the estimated forces. The robustness of the estimator to noise and input errors will be tested. The ultimate aim of this work is to provide estimates of tyre forces to a controller such as ABS or TCS.

Most active control systems developed for passenger vehicles are developed as safety systems. These control systems usually focus on improving vehicle stability and safety while ignoring the effects on the vehicle driveability. While stability is the primary concern of these control systems the driveability of the vehicle is also an important consideration. An example of compromised driveability in a stability control system is brake based active yaw control. Brake based systems are very effective at stability control but can have a negative impact on the longitudinal dynamics of a vehicle. The objective of the vehicle control systems developed for the future will be to preserve vehicle driveability while ensuring the stability of the vehicle. In this work, active suspension and active drivelines are developed as stability control systems that have a minimal impact on the driveability of the vehicle.

Many active control systems are developed as safety systems for passenger vehicles. These control systems usually focus on improving vehicle stability and safety while ignoring the effects on the vehicle driveability. In the motorsport environment, increased stability is desirable but not if the driveability of the vehicle is heavily compromised. In this work, active suspension and active drivelines are examined to improve vehicle dynamics and enhance driveability while maintaining stability. The active control systems are developed as separate driveability and stability controls and tested individually then integrated to create a multi-objective control system to improve both driveability and stability. The controllers are tested with standard vehicle manoeuvres.

Modern engine developments result in very different gas pressure-temperature histories to those in RON/MON determination tests and strain the usefulness of those knock scales and their applicability in SI engine knock and HCCI autoignition onset models. In practice, autoignition times are complex functions of fuel chemistry and burning velocity (which affects pressure-temperature history), residual gas concentration and content of species such as NO. As a result, autoignition expressions prove inadequate for engine conditions straying far from those under which they were derived. The currently reported study was designed to separate some of these effects. Experimental pressure crank-angle histories were derived for an engine operated in skip-fire mode to eliminate residuals. The unburned temperature history was derived for each cycle and was used with a number of autoignition/knock models.

This paper proposes an advanced control strategy to improve vehicle handling and directional stability by integrating either Active Front Steering (AFS) or Active Rear Steering (ARS) with Variable Torque Distribution (VTD) control. Both AFS and ARS serve as the steerability controller and are designed to achieve the improved yaw rate tracking in low to mid-range lateral acceleration using Sliding Mode Control (SMC); while VTD is used as the stability controller and employs differential driving torque between left and right wheels on the same axle to produce a relatively large stabilizing yaw moment when the vehicle states (sideslip angle and its angular velocity) exceed the reference stable region defined in the phase plane. Based on these stand-alone subsystems, an integrated control scheme which coordinates the control actions of both AFS/ARS and VTD is proposed. The functional difference between AFS and ARS when integrated with VTD is explained physically.

A non-linear contact analysis of a leading-trailing shoe drum brake, using the finite element method, is presented. The FE model accurately captures both the static and pseudo-dynamic behaviour at the friction interface. Flexible-to-flexible contact surfaces with elastic friction capabilities are used to determine the pressure distribution. Static contact conditions are established by initially pressing the shoes against the drum. This first load step is followed by a gradual increase of applied rotation to the drum in order to define the maximum reacted braking torque and pseudo-dynamic pressure distribution at the transition point between sticking and sliding motion. The method clearly illustrates the changes in contact force that take place as a function of the applied pressure, coefficient of friction and initial gap between lining and rotor. These changes in contact area are shown to influence the overall stability and therefore squeal propensity of the brake assembly.

This paper presents a method of control for a 6×6 series-configured Hybrid Electric Off-road Vehicle (HEOV). The vehicle concerned is an eight-tonne logistics support vehicle which utilizes Hub Mounted Electric Drives (HMED) at each of its six wheel stations. This set-up allows Individual Wheel Control (IWC) to be implemented to improve vehicle handling and mobility. Direct Yaw-moment Control (DYC) is a method of regulating individual wheel torque to control vehicle yaw motion, providing greater stability in cornering. When combined with both a Traction Control System (TCS) and an Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) the tire/road interaction is fully controlled, leading to improved control over vehicle dynamics, whilst also improving vehicle safety.

A novel dual seeding method has been developed to obtain full bore cyclically resolved simultaneous flame images and associated velocity fields in an optically accessed single cylinder research spark ignition engine. The technique has been used to study interaction between the propagating flame and in-cylinder gas motion. Light generated by a fast repetition rate copper vapour laser was formed into a thin light sheet, which passed horizontally through the disc shaped combustion space of a spark ignition engine having complete overhead optical access. Mie scattered light from relatively sparse and large particles (∼65μm) at successive intervals allowed flow definition by particle tracking velocimetry. Simultaneous scattering from dense small seed (∼0.22μm) was used to generate flame front images, which were digitised and analysed to quantify turbulent flame structure and development. The flame was shown to have significant effect on local unburned gas motion as well as vice versa.

Persisting concerns regarding ride comfort, directional stability and more recently road damage have caused the manufacturers of commercial vehicles to consider controllable suspension systems. An electronically controllable adaptive suspension that comprises a variable spring rate system, switchable damping and load levelling is proposed as a cost-effective solution. This paper describes the aforementioned system and provides an outline of the design scheme for a prototype system; practical issues such as system configuration/detail, control system requirements, etc., are discussed. The system is evaluated analytically and both ride and handling modes are examined. In conclusion, performance capabilities are defined and cost-benefit issues addressed.

A non-contacting laser displacement meter has been used for dynamic measurements of the radial movement of a v-ribbed belt (type 3PK) around the arc of wrap running on a belt testing rig. Accurate and repeatable results are possible. Using this device, the belt radial movement and the beginning of rib bottom / groove tip contact around the arc of wrap have been determined experimentally for v-ribbed belts. Slip, torque loss, maximum torque capacity and efficiency have been measured during the tests.

Current trends in automotive engine design are towards smaller, lighter components operating under higher specific loads. Consequently, engine bearings are expected to operate under highly stressed conditions, with minimum lubricant film thicknesses falling below 1μm. There is, however, insufficient understanding of acceptable tolerances on surface geometry of bearing shells and crankshaft pins. Measurement data suggest that some engine crankpins are machined with as many as 21 circumferential lobes. Some lobes have amplitudes in excess of 5 μm and are thought to be responsible for premature bearing damage. This study presents results from a theoretical analysis of dynamically loaded journal bearings with circumferential lobes on the journal. The Reynolds equation for a rigid journal bearing is solved for an incompressible, Newtonian, iso-viscous lubricant, with a flow conserving cavitation model accommodating oil film history.

A non-linear example vehicle model including four degrees of freedom (yaw, sideslip, roll and steering), non-linear kinematics and the Magic Formula tyre model has been developed. With the assumption of small perturbations around any steady-state working condition, the linearised equations are derived. A novel approach is used for the linearisation of external forces and moments from the tyres. They are linearised in terms of the state variables rather than the slip angle, camber angle and vertical load which are themselves functions of the state variables. The results of this process are expressed in terms of stability derivatives. In order to use the method, the steady-state solution of the non-linear equations is first obtained for a particular value of lateral acceleration, then after the calculation of the stability derivatives, a linear analysis can be performed for the linear equations in terms of perturbed variables.

A range of multiple and sequential Mie scattering imaging techniques have been employed to investigate turbulent flame propagation in a relatively quiescent optically accessed two-stroke spark ignition engine. Flame structure and turbulence scales have been characterised by a number of methods. These include fractal analysis, simple flame perimeter to area ratios and techniques based on Fourier analysis of an independent stationary coordinate. From this was derived an integral scale of flame wrinkling and a parameter related to turbulent flame thickness. Fully developed values of these turbulence parameters proved independent of cyclic variation, mixture strength and (apart from increasing flame thickness) apparent flame extinction. Islands of unburned gas behind the flame front were associated with encirclement by large scale structures rather than partial quench or total quenching due to flame stretch.

A 2-D simulation of fluid dynamic and chemistry interaction following end gas autoignition has demonstrated three distinct modes of reaction, dependent upon the temperature gradient about an exothermic centre. All three modes (deflagration, developing detonation and thermal explosion) can contribute to knock; the developing detonation case, associated with intermediate temperature gradient, has been identified as the more damaging. The simulation code (LUMAD) has been used in a systematic parametric study designed to separate the complex interacting events which can lead to mixed modes in real engines. A most significant finding related to the sequential autoignition of multiple exothermic centres.