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Vehicle Design Processes

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A special issue of Vehicles (ISSN 2624-8921).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 54799

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Prof. Dr. Ralf Stetter

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Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences, 88250 Weingarten, Germany
Interests: autonomous vehicles; vehicle interior; vehicle ergonomics; vehicle seating systems; vehicle design processes; fault-tolerant control and design
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Prof. Dr. Udo Pulm

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Department of Mechanical Engineering and Production Management, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, 20099 Hamburg, Germany
Interests: system theory; technical ethics; interdisciplinary design processes; functional modelling; environmental protection; digitalisation and artificial intelligence
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Prof. Dr. Markus Till

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Guest Editor

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences, 88250 Weingarten, Germany
Interests: simulation; digital design processes; vehicle design processes; mechanisms for convertibles; multi-body analysis; finite lement analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The design processes of vehicles are a promising research topic. The design of vehicles is one of the most challenging tasks in engineering because of several reasons. The enormous consumer expectations as well as the intensive global competition aggravates vehicle design. Cost-driven design is a necessity and vehicles need to be economical in production, operation, and recycling; in fact, sustainable design is also imperative for ecological vehicles. The dynamics of vehicles have to be considered in the design of all components and light-weight design is of fundamental importance. Consumers expect convincing functional performance, high product quality, appealing appearance, high reliability, interconnected functionality as well as comprehensible and appealing user interfaces. More and more, additional services are connected with vehicles. These enormous requirements lead to complex multi-domain design processes of vehicles, because most of the important decisions are made in the design phase. Production optimization and intelligent operation are important topics, but flaws and insufficiencies in the design stage lead to enormous expenditures in later stages and less-than-perfect products. The design processes of vehicles involve thousands of engineers are spread globally and need to consider multiple product versions and variants as well as multi-company product platforms. Very often, testing necessities and legal issues play an important role in these processes and the economic and ecological quality of the product has to be monitored throughout the processes. Even in early stages, vehicle safety and ergonomic quality need to be considered. Needless to say, only digital support makes these processes feasible. For all domains, powerful computer tools for synthesis, analysis, evaluation, and optimization were created and numerous attempts try to sensibly link the data used in all these tools. However, many domain specific and generic data formats as well as the sheer size of the data still create serious problems. It is important to note that design is also connected with scheduling and project management, because certain design decisions can lead to long-term testing and production preparation processes. The listed challenges concerning the multi-domain design processes of vehicles lead to a prominent need for research activities aimed at supporting the designers in this endeavor. This Special Issue intends to present the current status of these research activities. They will range from application-oriented attempts to improve certain design tools over process improvement attempts to fully integrated digital processes as well as novel approaches in this field such as big data and artificial intelligence. We are looking forward for your excellent research papers.

Prof. Dr. Ralf Stetter
Prof. Dr. Udo Pulm
Prof. Dr. Markus Till
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Vehicles is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

design processes
vehicle design
design engineering
digital design
robotics
product data management
multi-domain design processes
vehicle dynamics
vehicle safety
vehicle ergonomics

Related Special Issue

Vehicle Design Processes, 2nd Edition in Vehicles (1 article)

Published Papers (12 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 4079 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modernization of Fire Vehicles with New Technologies and Chemicals

by Cagri Un and Kadir Aydın

Vehicles 2023, 5(2), 682-697; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles5020037 - 04 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2220

Abstract

Fire is a stable exothermic chain reaction of flammable materials brought together with oxygen or other oxidizing substances under certain conditions, occurring uncontrollably. Fire vehicles interfere with many types of fire, such as wildfires, factory fires, building fires, etc. During this intervention, fire vehicles generally use water or foam. In this study, new effective fire suppression applications are investigated. Thermal camera applications in fire trucks and also new extinguishing agents—boron-based chemicals—were tested in forest fire simulations. In these experiments, it was observed that the thermal camera detected the fire as soon as it occurred. It seemed appropriate to use thermal cameras for all types of fire vehicles (foam trucks, water tankers, rescue trucks, etc.). It was seen that the thermal camera application could detect and monitor the fire during the fire-extinguishing work of the firefighters. The boron-based fire suppressant had a better extinguishing and cooling effect than water in the experiments. Compared to the water used as a traditional method, the liquid boron-based extinguisher provided 22% faster—while the solid boron-based extinguisher provided 42% faster—suppression and cooling. With three separate experiments, it is predicted that thermal camera applications and the use of boron-based extinguishers in fire vehicles can lead to an effective and positive transformation in the coming years. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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15 pages, 19017 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Enhanced Derivation of Customer-Specific Drive System Design Parameters with Time Frame-Based Maximum Load Analysis

by Raphael Mieth, Fabian Markschies, Ruixin Zhou, Frank Gauterin and Arnd Stephan

Vehicles 2023, 5(1), 306-320; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles5010017 - 24 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1361

Abstract

Only a small part of the high performance of electric drive systems in vehicles is used in everyday operation by customers. As a result, most drives are not operated in the optimum efficiency range. Designing a suitable drive system, whose performance is aligned with actual customer requirements, presents the potential to increase efficiency. Based on the findings of previous research, this paper serves to complement an existing method, which already introduced the basic method of transferring statistical customer data into relevant parameters for the design of a customer-specific drive system. In order to improve the method, further criteria for the selection of relevant time series come into place. Furthermore, the impact on maximum loads resulting from various sequences of the selected time series is identified and evaluated with time frame-based analysis. A new approach for the effective computation of maximum design-relevant loads in the admissible time frame range is introduced and validated. By taking this approach, the sensitivity of the derived design parameters regarding various time series sequence is evaluated in the context of selected datasets. In addition, concatenations of time series are identified which may have a relevant influence on the maximum loads. Consequently, the design process is safeguarded thoroughly against potential maximum loads as well as the associated thermal stresses. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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19 pages, 10981 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evolution of the Hybrid Aerial Underwater Robotic System (HAUCS) for Aquaculture: Sensor Payload and Extension Development

by Casey J. Den Ouden, Paul S. Wills, Lucas Lopes, Joshua Sanderson and Bing Ouyang

Vehicles 2022, 4(2), 390-408; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles4020023 - 21 Apr 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2717

Abstract

While robotics have been widely used in many agricultural practices such as harvesting, seeding, cattle monitoring, etc., aquaculture farming is an important, fast-growing sector of agriculture that has not seen significant adoption of advanced technologies such as robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT). In particular, dissolved oxygen (DO) monitoring, a practice in pond aquaculture essential to the health of the fish crops, remains labor-intensive and time-consuming. The Hybrid Aerial Underwater robotiCs System (HAUCS) is an IoT framework that aims to bring transformative changes to pond aquaculture. This paper focuses on the latest development in the HAUCS mobile sensing platform and field deployment. To address some shortcomings with the current implementation, the development of a novel rigid Kirigami-based robotic extension subsystem that can expand the functionality of the HAUCS platform is also being discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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20 pages, 1773 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Potential Analysis for a New Vehicle Class in the Use Case of Ride-Pooling: How New Model Developments Could Satisfy Customers and Mobility Makers

by Martin Dorynek, Lisa-Theres Derle, Martin Fleischer, Alex Thanos, Paul Weinmann, Michael Schreiber, Sebastian Schumann, Tolga Tunc and Klaus Bengler

Vehicles 2022, 4(1), 199-218; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles4010013 - 05 Mar 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2629

Abstract

Due to changes in mobility and the emergence of new services, it is becoming necessary to establish new vehicle classes between conventional buses and privately owned vehicles. New mobility scenarios need concrete specifications to develop the most user-centered shuttle buses. As a result, we are looking for the requirements and needs of operators and customers. Initially, we want to determine the status quo, as there is no preliminary work in this regard. During the course of extensive literature research, expert interviews, and follow-up workshops, the respective solution space was highlighted and narrowed down. Services such as ride-pooling require adapted vehicle concepts to ensure optimal implementation of their offer. Due to its optimized processes, the automotive industry depends on producing vehicles in a certain quantity and manner. Faster changes and extensive experiments are not possible with the current production approach. Purpose-built vehicle concepts can make mobility services more attractive to customers while facilitating business operations. For instance, potential improvements can be identified in the seating concept. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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8 pages, 10772 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Transfer of Statistical Customer Data into Relevant Parameters for the Design of Vehicle Drive Systems

by Raphael Mieth, Frank Gauterin, Felix Pauli and Harald Kraus

Vehicles 2022, 4(1), 137-144; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles4010009 - 10 Feb 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2386

Abstract

Vehicle drive systems are often oversized for common customer operation in order to cover the high demands of rare driving events such as towing a trailer, high acceleration or steep inclines. This high torque and power requirement affects the efficiency map and the highest efficiency is around the area of increased torque and speed. However, in everyday use, drive systems are mostly driven by customers at low speed and load, and therefore are not operating in the most efficient area. Designing a drive system that only covers the area of highest customer operation can increase efficiency by moving the sweet spot of efficiency to the relevant area, and thus reduce energy consumption. Therefore, customer data need to be analyzed in order to identify customer requirements and to localize the area of greatest operation. The method presented in this paper analyzes customer data in order to identify design-relevant parameters for a customer-specific drive system design. The available customer data results from event-based counts and are submitted as a statistical frequency distribution. These statistics are compared with discrete time series recorded during test drives in order to derive representative time series that correspond to customer behavior. By applying the time frame-based load analysis to these relevant time series, the desired design-relevant parameters are pointed out. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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12 pages, 5260 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Numerical Study of Longitudinal Inter-Distance and Operational Characteristics for High-Speed Capsular Train Systems

by Bruce W. Jo

Vehicles 2022, 4(1), 30-41; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles4010002 - 05 Jan 2022

Viewed by 2004

Abstract

High-speed capsular vehicles are firstly suggested as an idea by Elon Musk of Tesla Company. Unlike conventional high-speed trains, capsular vehicles are individual vessels carrying passengers and freight with the expected maximum speed of near 1200 [km/h] in a near-vacuum tunnel. More individual vehicle speed, dispatch, and position control in the operational aspect are expected over connected trains. This numerical study and investigation evaluate and analyze inter-distance control and their characteristics for high-speed capsular vehicles and their operational aspects. Among many aspects of operation, the inter-distance of multiple vehicles is critical toward passenger/freight flow rate and infrastructural investment. In this paper, the system’s equation, equation of the motion, and various characteristics of the system are introduced, and in particular control design parameters for inter-distance control and actuation are numerically shown. As a conclusion, (1) Inter-distance between vehicles is a function of error rate and second car start time, the magnitude range is determined by second car start time, (2) Inter-distance fluctuation rate is a function of error rate and second car start time, however; it can be minimized by choosing the correct second car start time, and (3) If the second car start time is chosen an integer number of push-down cycle time at specific velocity error rate, the inter-distance fluctuation can be zero. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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16 pages, 3385 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Design, Simulation and Optimization of an Electrical Drive-Train

by Sven Schumacher, Stefan Schmid, Philipp Wieser, Ralf Stetter and Markus Till

Vehicles 2021, 3(3), 390-405; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles3030024 - 27 Jul 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 5372

Abstract

Today, design engineers engaged in the development of a high-performance electrical drive-train are challenged by the multitude of possible topological choices and numerous mutually interconnected physical phenomena. Development teams around the globe struggle with this challenge; usually they employ several tools for simulation and topology optimization and transfer multiple versions of their product models in a mainly manual process. The research presented in this paper aims to explore a holistic possibility to realize a sensible analysis-synthesis cycle that takes into consideration current developments in design, simulation and optimization processes. This kind of process can enhance the transparency of design decisions, can reduce the risk of design and process flaws and can support the approach toward a holistic optimum. The investigation starts with the development of the topological concept of the drive-train and continues over the interconnected simulation of several decisive properties of the drive-train. Obviously, these properties concern several domains (mechanical, electrical, thermal and the control domain). The optimization of the drive-train takes into consideration the main requirement—in the investigated example, which is a formula student drive-train—the lap time. The result is a holistic concept for a design, simulation and optimization approach that considers topological variety, interconnected multi-domain simulation and a continuous connection to the decisive requirements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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13 pages, 6058 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation into Multiaxial Character of Thermomechanical Fatigue Damage on High-Speed Railway Brake Disc

by Chun Lu, Jiliang Mo, Ruixue Sun, Yuanke Wu and Zhiyong Fan

Vehicles 2021, 3(2), 287-299; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles3020018 - 01 Jun 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3067

Abstract

The multiaxial character of high-speed railway brake disc thermomechanical fatigue damage is studied in this work. Although the amplitudes and distributions of temperature, strain and stress are similar with uniform and rotating loading methods, the multiaxial behavior and out-of-phase failure status can only be revealed by the latter one. With the help of a multiaxial fatigue model, fatigue damage evaluation and fatigue life prediction are implemented, the contribution of a uniaxial fatigue parameter, multiaxial fatigue parameter and out-of-phase failure parameter to the total damage is discussed, and it is found that using the amplitude and distribution of temperature, stress and strain for fatigue evaluation will lead to an underestimation of brake disc thermomechanical fatigue damage. The results indicate that the brake disc thermomechanical fatigue damage belongs to a type of multiaxial fatigue. Using a uniaxial fatigue parameter causes around 14% underestimation of fatigue damage, while employing a multiaxial fatigue parameter without the consideration of out-of-phase failure will lead to an underestimation of about 5%. This work explains the importance of studying the thermomechanical fatigue damage of the brake disc from the perspective of multiaxial fatigue. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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24 pages, 24182 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Tire Wear Reduction Based on an Extended Multibody Rear Axle Model

by Jan Schütte and Walter Sextro

Vehicles 2021, 3(2), 233-256; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles3020015 - 18 May 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4260

Abstract

To analyze the influence of suspension kinematics on tire wear, detailed simulation models are required. In this study, a non-linear, flexible multibody model of a rear axle system is built up in the simulation software MSC Adams/View. The physical model comprises the suspension kinematics, compliance, and dynamics as well as the non-linear behavior of the tire using the FTire model. FTire is chosen because it has a separate tire tread model to compute the contact pressure and friction force distribution in the tire contact patch. To build up the simulation model, a large amount of data is needed. Bushings, spring, and damper characteristics are modeled based on measurements. For the structural components (e.g., control arms), reverse engineering techniques are used. The components are 3D-scanned, reworked, and included as a modal reduced finite element (FE)-model using component mode synthesis by Craig–Bampton. Finally, the suspension model is validated by comparing the simulated kinematic and compliance characteristics to experimental results. To investigate the interaction of suspension kinematics and tire wear, straight line driving events, such as acceleration, driving with constant velocity, and deceleration, are simulated with different setups of wheel suspension kinematics. The influence of the setups on the resulting friction work between tire and road is examined, and an exemplarily calculation of tire wear based on a validated FTire tire model is carried out. The results demonstrate, on the one hand, that the chosen concept of elasto-kinematic axle leads to a relatively good match with experimental results and, on the other hand, that there are significant possibilities to reduce tire wear by adjusting the suspension kinematics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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28 pages, 13530 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Digital Development Process for the Drive System of a Balanced Two-Wheel Scooter

by Kevin Holder, Sven Schumacher, Matthias Friedrich, Markus Till, Ralf Stetter, Walter Fichter and Stephan Rudolph

Vehicles 2021, 3(1), 33-60; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles3010003 - 20 Jan 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3799

Abstract

Graph-based design languages have received increasing attention in the research community, because they offer a promising approach to address several major issues in engineering, e.g., the frequent manual data transfer between computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided engineering (CAE) systems. Currently, these issues prevent the realization of machine executable digital design processes of complex systems such as vehicles. Promising scenarios for urban transportation include an interconnection of mass transportation systems such as buses and subways with individual vehicles for the so-called “last mile” transport. For several reasons, these vehicles should be as small and light as possible. A considerable reduction in weight and size can be achieved, if such vehicles are tailored to the individual size, weight and proportion of the individual user. However, tailoring vehicles for the individual characteristics of each user go beyond a simple building set and require a continuous digital design process. Consequently, the topic of this paper is a digital design process of a self-balanced scooter, which can be used as an individual last-mile means of transport. This process is based on graph-based design languages, because in these languages, a digital system model is generated, which contains all relevant information about a design and can be fed into any simulation tool which is needed to evaluate the impact of a possible design variation on the resulting product performance. As this process can be automated by digital compilers, it is possible to perform systematic design variations for an almost infinite amount of parameters and topological variants. Consequently, these kinds of graph-based languages are a powerful means to generate viable design alternatives and thus permit fast evaluations. The paper demonstrates the design process, focusing on the drive system of the respective balanced two-wheel scooter and highlights the advantages (data integration and possibility for machine execution). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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13 pages, 2450 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Design of a Hybrid Electric Vehicle Powertrain for Performance Optimization Considering Various Powertrain Components and Configurations

by Manh-Kien Tran, Mobaderin Akinsanya, Satyam Panchal, Roydon Fraser and Michael Fowler

Vehicles 2021, 3(1), 20-32; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles3010002 - 31 Dec 2020

Cited by 90 | Viewed by 21037

Abstract

Emissions from the transportation sector due to the consumption of fossil fuels by conventional vehicles have been a major cause of climate change. Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are a cleaner solution to reduce the emissions caused by transportation, and well-designed HEVs can also outperform conventional vehicles. This study examines various powertrain configurations and components to design a hybrid powertrain that can satisfy the performance criteria given by the EcoCAR Mobility Challenge competition. These criteria include acceleration, braking, driving range, fuel economy, and emissions. A total of five different designs were investigated using MATLAB/Simulink simulations to obtain the necessary performance metrics. Only one powertrain design was found to satisfy all the performance targets. This design is a P4 hybrid powertrain consisting of a 2.5 L engine from General Motors, a 150 kW electric motor with an electronic drive unit (EDU) from American Axle Manufacturing, and a 133 kW battery pack from Hybrid Design Services. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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13 pages, 15170 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Analysis and Research on the Comprehensive Performance of Vehicle Magnetorheological Regenerative Suspension

by Jinhui Huang, Enrong Wang and Hailong Zhang

Vehicles 2020, 2(4), 576-588; https://doi.org/10.3390/vehicles2040033 - 22 Oct 2020

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2295

Abstract

Magnetorheological (MR) regenerative suspension system can not only achieve excellent comprehensive suspension performance but also effectively recover and utilize vibration potential energy, which has been a research hotspot in the field of vehicle engineering. In this paper, for the 1/4 vehicle’s MR regenerative suspension system parallel with a tubular permanent magnet linear motor (TPMLM), the dynamic model of the MR semi-active suspension system and the TPMLM finite element model are established separately to form a joint simulation platform. The simulation analysis of the comprehensive suspension performance and regeneration performance under different road excitations is performed. The results show that installing TPMLM does not change the natural resonance frequency of the suspension system, which ensures good driving comfort and handling stability. At the same time, it has considerable regeneration power. This research can provide a reference for the stability analysis and popularization of the vehicle’s MR regenerative suspension system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vehicle Design Processes)

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