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Latest NewsReducing and Measuring Fuel Consumption, Without the Costs Newly published work from the CVDC reveals that larger vehicle configurations are always more energy efficient when fully loaded. Although current trends in goods distribution are leaning towards centralised dispatch using smaller, 4-axle rigid trucks, this method of transportation was found to increase fuel consumption in an urban cycle by 35% as compared with using longer combination vehicles. Running partially laden vehicles increased fuel consumption per freight task by as much as 65%. Despite popularity in other research and European regulation, results from this study demonstrated that reducing aerodynamic drag and increasing engine efficiency net relatively small gains in fuel economy when compared with other factors, such as increasing vehicle size and using regenerative braking. Researchers validated a simulation of HGV fuel consumption without expensive testing facilities using novel, simple, and common-sense experimental tests. The benchmarked mathematical model predicted the fuel consumption over a 4km drive cycle for a 37 tonne semi-trailer combination to within 1.4%. Work within the CVDC on the issue of energy efficient transportation is continuing to show which methods are effective, and which are just hot air. More information on continuing work within CVDC on regenerative braking and other strategies for improving heavy vehicle energy efficiency can be found on the Projects page. EPSRC Project Completed The introduction of Long Combination Vehicles (LCVs) to Britain could reduce losses due to traffic congestion by £2.1 billion, says a recent CVDC report summarizing three and a half years worth of research. The EPSRC project titled 'Active Multi-Axle Steering of Heavy Goods Vehicles' sought to address the three major technical hurdles facing the adoption of LCVs in the UK: manoeuvrability, high-speed stability, and reversibility. By developing advanced control strategies for the CVDC steering trailer, researchers were able to eliminate roundabout entry tail swing. In high-speed lane change manoeuvres, active steering improved rollover stability by reducing lateral acceleration by 27%. Experiments with the new CVDC B-double configuration revealed that unsteered LCVs cannot negotiate a UK roundabout. With active steering, the CVDC B-train used less swept-path width than a conventional semi-trailer and produced no tail swing. By using path-following control, the B-double configuration navigated a standard UK roundabout in reverse with virtually zero path error; an impossible task for an unsteered vehicle. More details and references can be found in the project summary report here. Videos of the CVDC semitrailer performing roundabout manoeuvres can be found here. Videos of the new CVDC B-train can be found here. The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company joins CVDC
For more information on Goodyear, please follow the link on the Sponsors page.
Intec joins the CVDC
The 'Cambridge Vehicle Dynamics Consortium' is a group of manufacturers from the heavy truck industry which has joined forces with engineers from Cambridge University to develop safer and more 'road-friendly' heavy vehicles. The Consortium includes companies from various sectors of the industry concerned with vehicle dynamics and suspension design. The current members are:
The membership is continuing to expand, and companies are being sought from other sectors of the heavy vehicle industry. By having just one member company from each sector, the companies can meet and work together in a non-competing, co-operative environment. The main focus of the Consortium's research is to develop improved suspensions which maximise truck safety, minimise road damage and improve driver ride comfort and vehicle body vibration. The research is concentrating on optimising existing suspension components and is investigating advanced concept suspensions with computer-controlled 'active' and 'semi-active' elements. The work involves computer modelling, laboratory testing of prototype hardware and field trials of instrumented vehicles. Members of the Consortium pay an annual membership fee and provide contributions 'in kind' to assist the research. The Steering Committee consists of representatives of each sponsor and University researchers. It meets twice yearly, proposes research projects and monitors performance. See our invitation to industry document for further information on the consortium. Any other questions can be answered by contacting Dr David Cebon, at dc@eng.cam.ac.uk | |||
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January 2007 | ||||
The CVDC is excited to welcome 
