Title: Smart energy management for electric connected vehicles
Abstract:
Due to their advantages in terms of efficiency and ability to exploit renewable energy sources, electric vehicles (EVs) are set to play a key role in the challenging goal of approaching zero-emission mobility. However, the wide diffusion of EVs requires overcoming certain technological challenges, among which the following are worth mentioning: (i) Battery performance depends on the battery's state of charge, health, and thermal state, so its capacity and maximum power (on charge or discharge) may be limited depending on its usage history. (ii) High efficiency and the lack of a high-temperature thermal focus reduce the potential for using residual energy for thermal conditioning of the cabin and the propulsion system, then impacting range. (iii) The charging infrastructure is still limited and heterogeneous, so the choice of charging point, or reducing energy demand to avoid the need for charging in the middle of a route, has a strong impact on cost and journey time.
According to the previous paragraphs, there is a strong coupling between the energy flows in the vehicle and its operating conditions. The above reasons suggest that a description of future vehicle operating conditions can be exploited to conveniently control the energy flows in the vehicle in a way that minimises energy consumption, reduces travel time or improves passenger comfort. The advent of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) or vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication technologies, which are already used to improve vehicle safety, can contribute to more efficient energy management. In this sense, this lecture reviews current control approaches that explore considering the system comprising the vehicle and its operational context (driving cycle, environmental conditions,...) in a holistic way, minimising energy consumption and keeping the propulsion system elements within their operational limits and the cabin occupants within the comfort range.
Biography:
Benjamín Pla (Valencia, Spain) is Professor at the Departamento de Máquinas y Motores Térmicos (DMMT, Department of Thermal Machines and Engines) of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), Spain. He is member of the Research Institute CMT – Clean Mobility and Thermofluids. His research interests include the optimal control of combustion engines and hybrid-electric powertrains, the development of control-oriented models and the use of data fusion techniques for powertrain control and diagnosis. He has participated in more than 20 public funding research projects within the regional, national and European frameworks. He also maintains a long R&D activity financed by the technical centers of some of the main companies in the automotive sector (PSA Peugeot Citroën, Ford, Renault, Jaguar Land Rover, VALEO…). B. Pla is co-author of more than 90 articles published in JCR journals and more than 50 papers at international conferences with an H-index of 22 (according to Scopus).
