Online Processing of Crosswind and Slope for Optimizing the Energy Consumption of Future Vehicles

Light electric vehicles with less battery capacity or commercial vehicles in particular require an exact prediction of range. Differences in altitude and airstream are important parameters for the energy consumption of vehicles. The aim of the team of authors consisting of university researchers and vehicle engineers is to contribute to the careful use of energy in the mobility of the future. Air friction is an essential component of driving resistance. Today, weather forecasting service providers offer wind data of geographical locations on a route for mobile devices. In this article, available mobile applications for wind forecasting are first analyzed with regard to their accuracy. Based on the aerodynamic principles of wind influence on vehicles, simulation calculations of the drag coefficient under different angles of attack are then carried out. Energy demand calculations according to the NEDC for an electric vehicle are then based on this. For accompanying test drives, a procedure for processing altitude data to determine the current angle of inclination is described. Documented test drives with an electric vehicle and the comparison of simulations of longitudinal dynamics with measurement results round off the article.