BEV Powertrain simulation determined by real driving cycle data

This thesis focuses on the powertrain simulation of a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) city car to gain a thorough understanding of its internal workings using Matlab and Simulink software. By acquiring data from the vehicle with Canalyzer, a simulated model has been created to accurately represent the car’s behavior. This project explores technical and functional features of a BEV city car and analyze its propulsion system in detail. Firstly, the construction of the design has been focused on the acquisition of the physical and performance data of the vehicle. To ensure a comprehensive understanding of the vehicle, a combination of general manuals provided by the manufacturer and previously collected data from Teoresi S.p.A., an engineering company, has been utilized. This data acquisition process forms the foundation for further analysis and research conducted through the thesis. The project began with the acquisition of the data from the actual vehicle, located at Teoresi headquarters, using CAN network and appropriate monitoring tool called Canalyzer. The connection between the data acquisition system and the vehicle's CAN bus, makes possible to read and interpret the information transmitted through the network. To enable proper reading and interpretation of the data were used signal translation codes called DBC (Data Base Container). Some important parameters were recorded, such as vehicle speed, motor power, energy consumption, battery level, and other relevant parameters. The acquired data are served as the foundation for creating a realistic simulation model. Canalyzer, data analysis tool, was used to examine and interpret the collected information, in this way a correct identification of patterns and relationships governing the car’s operation was possible as well as a better understanding of its electric architecture. The mathematical model, that represents the complete functioning of the BEV city car, has been created using Simulink software. This model incorporates the acquired data and specific vehicle parameters, enabling an accurate simulation of the car’s performance and include the acquired data and vehicle-specific parameters to simulate various driving scenarios and conditions. Once the simulations are completed, the results and identification areas for improvement was assessed. Some of the most significant results to highlight include the State of Charge (SOC), torque profile in relation to the driving cycle, AC motor current, inverter power losses, and DC current of the high-voltage (HV) battery. The results obtained could be used to inform the design and development of future electric city cars, enabling progress towards more sustainable and low-carbon mobility. The Simulink model can be modified to optimize car performance or explore different control strategies to maximize efficiency and the range of possible future developments. Through the reverse engineering and simulation project using Simulink, a complete understanding of the operation of a BEV city car can be gained. This methodology will allow to study the electric propulsion system of any electric car, analyze the car’s performance, and evaluate the impact of various environmental and driving factors.