Date of Graduation

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (MSEE)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Electrical Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Juan Balda

Committee Member

Simon Ang

Second Committee Member

Homer Mantooth

Abstract

The objective of this thesis is to present a dynamometer test stand with hardware in the loop (HIL) testing capabilities for the evaluation of electric and hybrid vehicle powertrains under realistic driving conditions. The traction inverter and dc/dc converter are two crucial subsystems of the powertrain and new prototypes require significant validation before implementing into production vehicles. As fundamental technologies such as power modules, thermal management systems, and passive components improve; the performance improvements to the overall system must be demonstrated. The plug and play nature of the testbed makes it ideal for making direct comparisons of design iterations under realistic conditions while mitigating the complexities and safety concerns of mobile testing platforms.

In this thesis the mathematical models of the major vehicle components such as the electric motor, tires, and vehicle body will be developed. The vehicle simulation that was developed based on these mathematical models will then be presented with a discussion of the additional simulation blocks needed to accommodate the real-time simulator and the simplifying assumptions that were made in order to make the model suitable for HIL simulation. Then the individual components and physical layout of the dynamometer test system are presented. It is followed by a detailed description of the graphical user interface and communication protocol implemented between the testbed control system and the prototype inverter. Finally, the simulation and measurement results are compared to the output of NREL’s Advanced Vehicle Simulator to prove that the system can emulate realistic driving conditions.

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