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In order to meet stringent emission targets and to achieve better fuel efficiency, closed loop air mass control strategies have become essential across all vehicle segments. Closed loop air mass control mandates measuring fresh air mass entering the engine combustion chamber. However, in Naturally Aspirated (NA) engines, while measuring air mass using conventional methods such as Hot Film Air mass (HFM) sensor, heavy pulsations in the Air-intake results in errors which would impact closed loop air mass control and lead to inconsistencies in emissions. To address this issue, we studied different approaches using HFM sensor with Resonator, differential pressure sensor across the intake air filter and Lambda based air mass control. Based on this empirical study we found that modelling air mass with differential pressure sensor using Bernoulli’s principle (Flow rate ∝ √Differential pressure) results in higher accuracies compared to conventional methods.

Sustainability today has evolved from being just a niche engagement to an absolute necessity. The reduction of carbon emissions from aspects of human activity has become a critical enabler to mitigate the impact of climate change. The Transportation industry is a significant contributor to such emissions while at the same time a critical part of the global economy. As powertrains have undergone significant changes to reduce emissions through hardware changes, now an effective and efficient engine oil is amongst the most convenient and cost-effective ways of reducing a vehicle’s carbon emissions. Development of lubricants towards this must address many challenges of today’s world. Modern Commercial Vehicle engines operate at higher temperatures than before, promoting both oxidation and nitration of the lubricant.

Due to increasing competitiveness, the arrival of industry giants, product pricing, etc., the automobile market in India is becoming more dynamic to adopt the changes. Apart from this, the product needs to be competitive to capture market by lowering the benefit margin. After launch and gaining of mass volume of the market, the Value Analysis and Value Engineering (VAVE) helps in minimizing the design and development costs through removal of non-value adding processes and activities by understanding the product's value, functions, features, customer demand, quality, and Real-World Usage Pattern (RWUP) without affecting the performance and eventually help in increasing the profit margin of organization. In this study, the benchmarked based statistical Light Weight Index (LWI) technique is developed for the predicting the world in class optimum weight. For these four statistical Light weight Index numbers is derived based on the geometrical dimensions.

Toe misalignment detection and its correction are important periodic tasks recommended by Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) for Heavy Commercial Road Vehicles (HCRVs) to prevent premature tyre wear and improve fuel economy. Existing misalignment detection methods need skilled professionals to operate sophisticated equipment, while automated methods require additional sensors, which are not readily available in most trucks, making their implementation challenging. This study explores the effectiveness of a data-driven method to detect toe misalignment in single-unit twin-axle trucks with symmetric and asymmetric toe configurations. This method involves continuous monitoring of lateral dynamics variables measurable using sensors present in most trucks making it practically tractable.

Climate change due to global warming calls for more fuel-efficient technologies. Parallel Full hybrids are one of the promising technologies to curb the climate change by reducing CO2 emissions significantly. Different parallel hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) architectures such as P0, P1, P2, P3 and P4 are adopted based on different parameters like fuel economy, drivability, performance, packaging, comfort and total cost of ownership of the vehicle. It is a great challenge to select right hybrid architecture for different vehicle segments. This paper compares P2 and P3 HEV with AMT transmission to evaluate most optimized architecture based on vehicle segment. Vehicles selected for study are from popular vehicle segments in India with AMT transmission i.e. Entry segment hatch and Compact SUV. HEV P2 and P3 architectures are simulated and studied with different vehicle segments for fuel economy, performance, drivability and TCO.

Enhanced impeller blade design for water coolant pump in IC engines Sudeshna Roy Pratihar, Amol Barve, Onkar Mokashi, Naveen Patil Mercedes-Benz Research & Development India Private Ltd, India. Keywords: Turbulence; hydraulic efficiency; friction loss; computational fluid dynamics; tubercles Abstract: This paper illustrates scope for improvement in water pump hydraulic efficiency by proposing novel design of impeller blade for internal combustion engine. For water pump, hydraulic efficiency is directly proportional to fluid drag imposed on impeller blades. Friction loss & turbulence during typical operating conditions needs to considered, by keeping in mind optimum performance of water pump. Increase in drag losses results in higher power consumption of water pump. Considerable literature study indicates that, tubercles design in area of IC Engines more precisely in topics relevant to water pump design has never tested for Automotive application.

In farm tractors, the available drawbar power and Power Take-Off (PTO) power are generally lower than the engine power due to parasitic losses. These losses are caused by engine-driven auxiliary loads such as cooling fans, hydraulic pumps for power steering, alternators, etc. Minimizing these parasitic losses can increase the available drawbar power and PTO power, resulting in direct fuel savings by reducing fuel consumption. The continuous increase in fuel costs and the environmental impact of emitted gases from burned fuel into the atmosphere have necessitated the replacement of hydraulic power steering and mechanical fans with electric power steering (EPS) and electric fans, respectively, to improve efficiency. The existing battery has been replaced with a higher capacity battery to provide power to the electric fan, electric power steering, and other electrical components.

Fuel efficiency is one of the most important customer requirement in Indian market as well as very crucial to meet the upcoming regulation like CAFÉ for Indian Automotive manufacturers. Most of the technology changes to meet this challenge, always come with a cost penalty with hardware addition. To counter the above challenge, we identified a strategy in the EMS software, without any hardware change, that will dynamically adapt the spark timing based on fuel quality. This strategy has resulted in fuel efficiency improvement on MIDC as well as on-road as per customer driving pattern. Going forward the availability of Ethanol Blended Fuels are going to increase multifold, to take advantage of this, the dynamic spark advance strategy has been proposed in this paper. This paper elaborates on the work done to develop and validate the EMS Strategy as well as the test results with different Ethanol Fuel Blends.

India's natural gas consumption reached 60.3 billion cubic meters (BCM) in the year 2022-23, with imports accounting for 44.2% of the total consumption. As India targets 15% of primary energy consumption from gas by 2030, the demand for natural gas is expected to grow significantly. In this context, CBG, which can reduce dependence on imported natural gas, has emerged as a viable alternative to CNG. The government's SATAT (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation) initiative encourages entrepreneurs to establish CBG plants and supply CBG to Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) for use as automotive and industrial fuels. As of April 2023, 47 CBG plants have been set up, and 117 retail outlets in India are selling CBG as a transportation fuel. The quality requirements of CBG are governed by IS 16087, aligning with the specifications for automotive CNG defined in IS 15958.

The increasing demand for higher specific power, fuel economy, Operating Costs as well as meeting global emission norms have become the driving factors of today’s product development in the automotive market today. Substitution of high-density materials and more precise adjustment of material parameters help in significant weight decrease, but it is accompanied by undesirable cost increase and manufacturing complexity. This becomes a challenge for every automotive engineer to balance the above parameters to make a highly competitive design. This work is a part of the Design and Development of 2.2 L, 4 Cylinder TCIC Diesel Engine for a complete new monocoque vehicle platform, focused on automotive passenger car application. This paper explains the selection of a suitable cylinder head gasket technology for a lightweight engine that acts as a sealing interface between the cylinder block and cylinder head.

Methanol, a fuel obtainable through the capture and conversion of Carbon Dioxide (CO2), has garnered attention as a suitable alternative fuel for gasoline. Methanol-gasoline blends, characterized by their high-octane rating, commendable performance, and reduced carbon emissions, present themselves as promising alternative fuels for internal combustion engines. In the present study, a comprehensive comparative analysis was conducted to assess the performance and emissions characteristics of unmodified vehicles utilizing methanol blends at lower concentrations, ranging up to 30%, in gasoline. The research focused on two distinct classes of vehicles commonly found on the roads of India: those compliant with BS-IV (Euro IV) and BS-VI (Euro VI) emission standards. Experimental evaluations were carried out on a chassis dynamometer, with the vehicles subjected to the Worldwide Harmonized Motorcycle Test Cycle (WMTC) and Wide open throttle (WOT) driving tests.

The focus on driver and occupant safety as well as comfort is increasing rapidly while designing commercial vehicles in India. Improved network of highways led to enhanced road transportation through commercial vehicles. Apart from cost of operation and fuel economy, the commercial vehicles must deliver goods within stipulated time. These factors resulted in higher speed of operation for commercial vehicles. The design should not compromise the safety of the vehicle at these higher speeds of operation. The vehicle should obey the driver’s intended direction at all speeds and the response of the vehicle to driver input must be predictable without much larger surprises which can lead to accidents. The commercial vehicles are designed with rigid axle and pitman arm-draglink kind of steering system. This suspension and steering design combination introduce steering errors when vehicle travel over bump, braked and while cornering.

Various emission and fuel economy norms have been introduced worldwide by governments. In India, meeting each revision of Bharat Stage (BS) emission standards and Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) norms is challenging and requires new technologies to be incorporated in IC engines. One such technology used in gasoline engines is EGR (Exhaust gas recirculation). It works by recirculating exhaust gases back into the engine in turn increasing fuel economy and reducing nitrogen oxide emissions. An electronic control unit (ECU) precisely controls EGR valve via stepper motor, regulating the flow of exhaust gases into the engine. Lead screw type unipolar stepper motor is commonly used for the same. Vehicle ECU calculates optimum EGR percentage and decides valve opening, further sequentially engaging stepper motor coils to advance or retract the EGR valve.

The implementation of TREM/CEV 5 emission norms on farm equipment will bring in cost pressure due to the need for exhaust after treatment systems. This cost increase needs to be reduced by bringing in more efficient and effective processes to shorten the development phase and to provide better fuel efficiencies. In this work ETAS ASCMO Online DoE with Constraint Modelling (ODCM) to execute smart online DoE on a new common rail diesel engine with EGR, whose exact bounds of operation was not available. A Global test plan with ASCMO Static was created without much focus on detailed constraints of engine operation, other than the full load curve. The parameters which were selected were Speed, Torque, Rail Pressure, Main Timing, EGR Valve Position, Pilot Separation and Quantity and Post Quantity and Separation. For these parameters, the safe operating bounds were not available. This ASCMO Static test plan is automated and executed on engine test cell with ETAS INCAFlow.

Fuel cell electric vehicles generally have two power sources – the fuel cell power system and a high voltage battery pack - to power the vehicle operations. The fuel cell power system is the main source of power for the vehicle and its operations are supported by the battery pack. The battery pack helps to tackle the dynamic power demands from the vehicle such as during acceleration, to which the response of the fuel cell might be slower. The battery is also used to recover the energy from regeneration during braking and can also be used to extend the range of the vehicle in case the storage tanks runs out of hydrogen. In order to maximize the fuel efficiency of the fuel cell power system it is critical that these two power sources are used in conjunction with each other in an optimal manner.

In the automotive industry, silicon adhesive has become increasingly popular due to its benefits in ease of assembly and cost savings associated with material and manufacturing processes. Due to the demand to reduce time and costs in the development phase of the project, it is critical to choose the right gasket material, and a suitable flange design as early as possible in the design process. In order to achieve stringent emission standards such as Real Driving Emission (RDE) and Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) norms, a better sealing performance is an essential parameter. Various types of liquid gaskets such as silicon rubber based Room Temperature Vulcanizing (RTV) sealants and thermoset plastic based Anaerobic sealants are widely used in an Internal Combustion engine. They are commonly used for the components such as oil sump, bedplate, gearbox housings, etc. Traditional simulation methods could not capture the exact failure modes of the liquid sealants.

Energy Conservation And Protecting Global Health By Automated Corporate Transport Services Application/System. Now a days the huge problem our globe is facing is global warming and energy conservation. All world engineering is happening around this topic particularly, that’s why we have introduce clean fuels, EV’s, solar systems, stopping all conventional energy sources ex; thermal power plants, limited use of coal and conventional fuel etc. world is putting all investment, technology in making world a better place to live and sustain healthy environment. That’s the corporates also up to, saving paper by limited use of it, no carbon footprint awareness program, saving electricity using more day light many more. Still, corporates are missing on crucial point known to all, i.e. To daily commute from office to home employees are using their own vehicle hatchback, sedan, SUV etc.

High strength aluminium alloys are an ideal material in the automotive sector leading to a significant weight reduction and enhancement in product safety. In recent past extensive development in the field of high strength steel and aluminium was undertaken. This development has been propelled due to demand for light weight automotive parts. The high strength to weight ratio possessed by Al alloy helps in reducing the total weight of the vehicle without effecting the overall performance, thereby increasing the fuel economy and reducing the carbon emission level. Joining of high strength aluminium alloy is critical to develop durable automotive products. Joining of high strength aluminium alloy for mass production in automobile industry is a challenging task. Laser welding is recognized as an advanced process to join materials with a laser beam of high-power, high-energy density.

Internal combustion engine vehicles are major contributors to many environmental and health hazardous emissions and sometimes consume more fuel. New regulations like Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (CAFÉ) norms are coming up and demand lower emissions. Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are committed to bringing various technological advancements in Internal Combustion Engine (ICE)powered vehicles to maximize their efficiency. Hence it is important to reduce the loss and improve the fuel economy. This paper explains a new approach methodology used for reducing the gearbox drag by 5- 10 %. This improvement can significantly contribute to the overall efficiency improvement thus carbon footprints of vehicle getting reduced.

In recent decades, significant technological advances have made cruise control systems safer, more automated, and available in more driving scenarios. However, comparatively little progress has been made in optimizing vehicle efficiency while in cruise control. In this paper, two distinct strategies are proposed to deliver efficiency benefits in cruise control by leveraging flexibility around the driver’s requested set speed, and road information that is available on-board in many new vehicles. In today’s cruise control systems, substantial energy is wasted by rigidly controlling to a single set speed regardless of the terrain or road conditions. Introducing even a small allowable “error band” around the set speed can allow the propulsion system to operate in a pseudo-steady state manner across most terrain. As long as the vehicle can remain in the allowed speed window, it can maintain a roughly constant load, traveling slower up hills and faster down hills.