EE TIMES EUROPE -- A research consortium headed by carmaker BMW explored ways to extend the driving range of electric cars at a given battery capacity. The result: Smart driving strategies and connected technologies can extend the range by as much as 15%, even with available batteries.
The research project EFA 2014 focused on smart energy management systems and ways to optimize driving strategies by means of online information. In this context, the power train, the temperature management system (air conditioning), and the driver benefited from the availability of relevant information obtained through connectivity. For instance, data on the planned route and the traffic situation can be utilized to optimize driving and operating strategy to maximize the range. The rules and principles devised in this context can be used to implement the control algorithm for a proactive efficiency assistant system.
This concept of an efficiency assistant that offers a particular, extensive support to the driver in terms of range-optimized mobility builds on intelligent systems already in use in BMWs i3 electric vehicle. These systems compute the available range, taking into account the route topology and the current traffic situation.
Within the concept of the trial, the researchers also investigated the impact of traffic lights to driving range and how traffic flow could be optimized for electric driving. The city of Dresden participated in the trial when it used the data generated by the test vehicles to control the traffic flow across the city. Phased traffic lights help drivers optimize their range -- but it is important that the vehicles are enabled to optimize speed according to the traffic light phase and to adapt the operation of electric loads within the car accordingly.
In addition, the researchers developed an electronically controlled brake resistor whose thermal energy is utilized for the air conditioning system. At the bottom line, the techniques and algorithms developed in the trial will enable designers to build an energy-efficiency assistant system that helps even inexpert drivers to improve their driving range by about 15%.
Under the lead of BMW, electronics suppliers Bosch, Continental, Daimler, Elmos Semiconductor, Hella, and Infineon Valeo participated in the project, as did the research institutes FKFS in Stuttgart, FZI in Karlsruhe, ZAE in Munich, and the Dresden Technical University contributed to the project.
Article originally published on EE Times Europe.