scholarly journals Energy Consumption and Lifecycle Cost Analysis of Electric City Buses with Multispeed Gearboxes

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2117
Author(s):  
Antti Ritari ◽  
Jari Vepsäläinen ◽  
Klaus Kivekäs ◽  
Kari Tammi ◽  
Heikki Laitinen

This study investigates the potential of improving the energy efficiency and reducing the lifecycle costs of electric city buses with multispeed gearboxes. A two-speed dual clutch gearbox and a continuously variable transmission were studied and compared to a reference fixed gear ratio powertrain. A novel two-level optimization model was introduced. The top level involves an exhaustive search algorithm and quasi-static vehicle dynamic model for optimizing the two-speed gearbox gear ratios, utilizing efficiency maps for the electric motor and the inverter. The second level is an integer programming model, which finds an optimal gear shifting policy subject to constraints on hysteresis and gear shifting induced losses. The model was applied with a standard driving cycle and additionally with three measured cycles acquired from a prototype battery electric city bus operating on a daily schedule on a suburban route in Espoo, Finland. The results showed that a two-speed gearbox reduced energy consumption by 2–3.2%, depending on the driving cycle characteristics. On the other hand, the continuously variable transmission was found to increase consumption by 1.9–4.0% due to large losses of the belt mechanism. It was concluded that the two-speed gearbox is a cost-effective investment for electric city buses characterized by operation profiles with frequent acceleration and braking events.

2011 ◽  
Vol 317-319 ◽  
pp. 529-532
Author(s):  
Kei Lin Kuo

Compared to conventional transmission layouts, Active continuously variable transmission (CVT) provides smoother gear shifting and gear ratio in smaller increments, and is, therefore, more accommodating the needs of both the driver and passengers. A few notable improvements are enhanced passenger comfort, higher transmission efficiency, and improved acceleration. Incorporating all of the above qualities has become a major developmental focus for the automotive industry, and the potential for improvement warrants further investigation. A CVT controls the gear ratio by changing the diameters of the primary (input) and the secondary (output) pulleys by adjusting the hydraulic pressure applied to each using valves. Hydraulic pressure in the channel is developed using a basic pump connected to the input shaft. Excess pressure produced at higher speed is wasted. This study aims to minimize this hydraulic pressure without affecting the transmission’s performance, in order to conserve energy. A user interface was set up and the CVT’s torque converter was modified such that the inner and outer shafts could be operated independently, allowing for full control of hydraulic pressure .This experiment successfully achieved, via a custom LabVIEW program, its goal of controlling the gear ratio between the primary and secondary pulleys whilst operating at lower pressures to those specified by the manufacturer. This proves that it is possible to fully control the CVT whilst operating at a reduced hydraulic pressure.


2009 ◽  
Vol 131 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew H. Rex ◽  
Kathryn E. Johnson

Variable speed operation enables wind turbine systems to increase their aerodynamic efficiency and reduce fatigue loads. An alternative to the current electrically based variable speed technologies is the continuously variable transmission (CVT). A CVT is a transmission whose gear ratio can be adjusted to take on an infinite number of settings within the range between its upper and lower limits. CVT research in wind turbine applications predicts an improvement in output power and torque loads compared with fixed-speed machines. Also, a reduction in the harmonic content of the currents is anticipated by eliminating the power electronics. This paper develops a model that combines a CVT model with the FAST wind turbine simulator for simulating the system’s performance in MATLAB/SIMULINK. This model is useful for control development for a variable-speed wind turbine using a CVT. The wind turbine with CVT is simulated using two controllers: a proportional-integral controller and a nonlinear torque controller of the type commonly used in the wind industry.


2012 ◽  
Vol 516-517 ◽  
pp. 665-668
Author(s):  
Kei Lin Kuo

In recent years, the main research focus for vehicle transmission systems has been the development of the Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). CVTs can provide passengers with greater comfort, reduce energy consumption, and offer better transmission efficiency. CVT systems achieve the desired gear ratio by adjusting the hydraulic pressure on the rear and front pulleys using a solenoid valve. Our study aims to increase the efficiency of an existing CVT system, without reducing its performance. In this study have modified the CVT so that we can independently control the external and internal axes electronically. The speed of the hydraulic pump in the gearbox is not affected by the engine speed. In this way, In this study can achieve the lowest possible hydraulic pressure. In our study, In this study use the visual programming language LabVIEW as the human-machine interface for the monitoring program. In addition, a data acquisition system is used to collect experimental parameters, record data in real time, and perform data consolidation. Our system uses varying loads in order to evaluate the improvement in transmission efficiency over many operating conditions. Through the use of solenoids valves acting together, the pipeline hydraulic pressure can be varied. The widths of the front and rear pulleys are thus changed to achieve the goal of continuous variation. Under different loads, the relationships between the measured efficiency and the hydraulic pressure on the rear and front pulleys are used to verify and confirm the increase in efficiency achieved by controlling the hydraulic pressure.


2000 ◽  
Vol 124 (1) ◽  
pp. 118-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karim A. Tahboub ◽  
Harry H. Asada

This paper presents kinematic and dynamic analysis of a holonomic vehicle with continuously-variable transmission. Four ball wheels, independently actuated by DC motors, enable for moving the vehicle in any direction within the plane and rotating it around its center. The angle between the two beams holding the balls can be changed to alter the gear ratio and other dynamic characteristics of the vehicle. This feature is exploited in augmenting the vehicle stability, optimizing output power, selecting an appropriate gear ratio, and in impedance matching. A simple adaptive friction-compensation-based controller is proposed to handle the complex friction properties.


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