System for Road Vehicle Energy Optimization Using Real Time Road and Traffic Information

Felipe Jiménez,Wilmar Cabrera-Montiel

doi:10.3390/en7063576

Abstract

Nowadays, reducing the energy and fuel consumption of road vehicles is a key issue. Different strategies have been proposed. One of them is to promote Eco-driving behaviour among drivers. Most Eco-driving tips take into account only the road stretch where the vehicle is located. However, larger improvements could be achieved if information from subsequent stretches is used. The main objective of this work is to develop a system to warn the driver in real time of the optimal speed that should be maintained on every road segment in order to optimize the energy used and the fuel consumed while observing a time schedule. The system takes into account the road vertical profile, the fixed and variable speed limits and the traffic information retrieved using V2V and V2I communications. The system has been tested on real road sections with satisfactory results in fuel savings.

Highlights

The current trend towards increased mobility in the most advanced societies runs counter to the criteria for controlling the greenhouse effect, local pollution and the exploitation of fuel resources.Increases in mobility and population becoming motorized represent an increase in the demand for primary energy, and if fossil energy is used, it will mean a major increase in local emissions and in the Energies 2014, 7 corresponding greenhouse gases emissions, so fuel consumption is an important issue in present-day society and there is intensive research into this issue
The main objective of this work is to develop a system to warn the driver in real time of the optimal speed that should be maintained on every road segment in order to optimize the energy used and the fuel consumed while observing a time schedule
An optimization system based on Dynamic Programming theory has been implemented to perform energy and fuel consumption minimization in vehicles with a conventional power-train

Summary

Introduction

The current trend towards increased mobility in the most advanced societies runs counter to the criteria for controlling the greenhouse effect, local pollution and the exploitation of fuel resources.Increases in mobility and population becoming motorized represent an increase in the demand for primary energy, and if fossil energy is used, it will mean a major increase in local emissions (nitrogen oxides NOx, carbon monoxide CO, unburnt hydrocarbons HC and particles matter PM) and in the Energies 2014, 7 corresponding greenhouse gases emissions, so fuel consumption is an important issue in present-day society and there is intensive research into this issue. In addition to power-train, the vehicle aerodynamics, other resistances and the influence of road vertical profile on fuel consumption must be considered. Driver manoeuvres can directly affect energy requirements For this reason, informing the driver about the optimal speed to travel on a given road could reduce the fuel mass required to finish the current trip. This speed profile can be used to either feed an automatic system or to give advice to the driver. Several management strategies have been implemented for power-train control These methods try to reduce the required energy. Other examples of optimization can be found in [16,17,18,19]

Results

Discussion

Conclusion