(Press-News.org) The development of vehicle components is a lengthy and therefore very costly process. Researchers at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) have developed a method that can shorten the development phase of the powertrain of battery electric vehicles by several months. A team led by Martin Hofstetter from the Institute of Automotive Engineering is combining simulation models of components with evolutionary optimisation algorithms. This AI system automatically optimises the entire powertrain – from the power electronics to the electric machine through to the transmission – in line with the manufacturer’s technical requirements, taking into account targets such as production costs, efficiency and package space requirements in the vehicle. The OPED (Optimisation of Electric Drives) software solution was developed at TU Graz and is the result of almost ten years of research. It is already being used successfully by a renowned Austrian automotive supplier.
The starting point for automatic optimisation is the input of the technical requirements that the powertrain must fulfil: these include the power output, the minimum service life, the maximum speed to be achieved and the maximum space available in the vehicle. “Electric drives consist of a large number of components that can be designed very differently in order to fulfil the desired requirements,” explains Martin Hofstetter. “If I make a small change to the electric machine, it has an effect on the transmission and the power electronics. So it’s extremely complex to make optimal decisions.” An additional difficulty is that there is no one perfect solution for a powertrain, as the priorities of the manufacturers also play a role. These could be production costs, the weight and volume of the powertrain or energy efficiency.
One day instead of several months
The OPED software solution makes it possible to significantly reduce this complexity. Based on the technical requirements, the software varies and combines around 50 design parameters simultaneously and compares the simulated powertrains with the manufacturers’ priorities. Bad variants are dropped, better ones are further optimised. After several hundred thousand calculation and simulation cycles, OPED finds solutions that come closest to the manufacturers’ priorities. They can then select from a manageable number of variants those that they would like to develop and implement in detail. “What engineers would need months to do without AI support takes about a day with OPED,” says Martin Hofstetter. “This allows the development teams to focus on top-level decisions instead of investing their limited time in manual calculation and simulation work.”
Optimisation for an entire vehicle platform
The OPED system can also be flexibly expanded. As an optimisation criterion, the researchers have added the CO2 emissions generated during the use of the powertrain as well as its production across the entire supply chain. This means that sustainability is already taken into account in the early development phase. As a recent innovation, Dominik Lechleitner has succeeded in extending OPED for the optimisation of electric powertrains for an entire vehicle platform as part of his doctoral thesis. The method helps to find optimal components that can be used as carry-over parts in the powertrains of different models of a platform in order to save development and production costs.
“The OPED approach can be used for a wide variety of product developments,” explains Martin Hofstetter, “and we are happy to work with new industrial partners to adapt it to their challenges and goals.”
Martin Hofstetter and Dominik Lechleitner were awarded the VDI Prize 2024 by the Association of German Engineers for their development. Martin Hofstetter also received the Kamm-Jante Medal of the Scientific Society for Automotive and Engine Technology (WKM) and the 1st Prize of the Vehicle Association Anniversary Foundation, awarded by the Austrian Economic Chamber’s Automotive Industry Association.
More information and a video of OPED in action: go.tugraz.at/emd
END
E-mobility: TU Graz AI system accelerates the development of powertrains
The new method optimises the technical design with regard to classic objectives such as costs, efficiency and package space requirements and also takes greenhouse gas emissions along the entire supply chain into account
2025-01-30
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Better digital memories with the help of noble gases
2025-01-30
The electronics of the future can be made even smaller and more efficient by getting more memory cells to fit in less space. One way to achieve this is by adding the noble gas xenon when manufacturing digital memories. This has been demonstrated by researchers at Linköping University in a study published in Nature Communications. This technology enables a more even material coating even in small cavities.
Twenty-five years ago, a camera memory card could hold 64 megabytes of information. Today, the same physical ...
Smarter memory paves the way for EU independence in computer manufacturing
2025-01-30
New technology from Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, is helping the EU establish its own competitive computer manufacturing industry. Researchers have developed components critical for optimising on-chip memory, a key factor in enhancing the performance of next-generation computers.
The research leader, Professor Per Stenström, along with colleagues, has discovered new ways to make cache memory work smarter. A cache is a local memory that temporarily stores frequently accessed data, improving a computer’s ...
Future of UK peatlands under threat due to climate change
2025-01-30
The UK’s peatlands face an uncertain future amid the escalating impacts of climate change.
Peatlands are critical ecosystems for carbon storage and biodiversity, containing more carbon than all the world's forests despite covering just 3% of the global land surface.
But new research reveals that vast areas of the UK’s peatlands, including the Flow Country UNESCO World Heritage Site, are likely to be unsuitable for peat accumulation by 2061–80 due to climate change.
The researchers urge for a shift in conservation strategies, with the ...
‘Sleep hygiene’: How FIFO workers can get a better night's sleep
2025-01-30
‘Sleep hygiene’: How FIFO workers can get a better night's sleep
Better sleep hygiene could see fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) mining shift workers get a better night’s sleep, new research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) has shown.
Sleep hygiene includes habits and sleep environment factors that can positively influence sleep, including a healthy diet, physical exercise and limited screen time. While these all seem obvious, the remote location of mine sites across Australia and the ...
AI-based pregnancy analysis discovers previously unknown warning signs for stillbirth and newborn complications
2025-01-30
###EMBARGOED BY BMC PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH UNTIL 1AM GMT JAN 30 / 8PM ET JAN 29###
A new AI-based analysis of almost 10,000 pregnancies has discovered previously unidentified combinations of risk factors linked to serious negative pregnancy outcomes, including stillbirth.
The study also found that there may be up to a tenfold difference in risk for infants who are currently treated identically under clinical guidelines.
Nathan Blue, MD, the senior author on the study, says that the AI model the researchers generated helped identify a “really unexpected” combination of factors associated with higher risk, and that the model is an important step ...
Antidepressants reduce anxiety, but long-term impact remains unclear
2025-01-30
A new Cochrane review confirms that antidepressants effectively reduce symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) under trial conditions, although there is limited data on long-term usage.
GAD affects millions of people worldwide and is characterized by excessive worry about everyday issues. Antidepressants, particularly selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), are recognized treatments for GAD, recommended by many national bodies including the UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. However, misconceptions ...
Childhood trauma strongly linked to mental health problems in Brazilian adolescents, new study finds
2025-01-30
Childhood trauma can include witnessing death, experiencing severe injury, and physical or sexual violence.
Over 81% of Brazilian youth had experienced trauma by age 18.
Trauma was potentially responsible for a third of all mental health disorders by age 18.
A new study by a team of researchers from the UK and Brazil has revealed a strong connection between childhood trauma and the development of psychiatric disorders in adolescents living in low-and middle-income countries.
The research findings are based on the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort, Brazil, which has tracked more than 4,000 children born in Pelotas, a city in the southern ...
Researchers leverage large-scale data to uncover new insights into rare diseases and COVID-19
2025-01-30
An England-wide study of over 58 million people has identified eight rare diseases that carry significantly increased risks for COVID-19-related mortality in fully vaccinated individuals. This important research calls for better inclusion of rare diseases in public health strategies, including future pandemic planning, vaccination policies, and NHS service provision.
Historically rare diseases have been difficult to study and neglected in research, in part due to a lack of large-scale data. This means that people living with rare conditions often struggle to get the treatment and support they need. Additionally, rare disease patients were overlooked in public health ...
Fresh embryo transfer may be better for women with low chance of IVF success
2025-01-30
Fresh embryo transfer may be a better option than use of frozen embryos for women with a low chance of having a healthy baby by vitro fertilisation (IVF), suggests a trial from China published by The BMJ today.
The researchers say their findings do not support the routine use of the freeze-all strategy in women with low prognosis of IVF treatment success, which can be due to older age, low quantity or quality of eggs, or certain underlying conditions.
IVF has revolutionised infertility treatment and a strategy of freezing all suitable embryos before transfer (freeze-all strategy) is now a routine part of the treatment to help prevent ...
First-of-its-kind research identifies beneficial prenatal vitamins to reduce risk of infant death
2025-01-30
Dongqing Wang, an assistant professor of Global and Community Health at George Mason’s College of Public Health, is pioneering research in prenatal nutritional interventions. His latest report identifies prenatal supplements that reduce health risks to small and vulnerable babies. This research was published in the prestigious The Lancet Global Health journal and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Wang found that compared to folic acid and iron alone, a multiple micronutrient supplement ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Earth scientists study Sikkim flood in India to help others prepare for similar disasters
Leveraging data to improve health equity and care
Why you shouldn’t scratch an itchy rash: New study explains
Linking citation and retraction data aids in responsible research evaluation
Antibody treatment prevents severe bird flu in monkeys
Polar bear energetic model reveals drivers of polar bear population decline
Socioeconomic and political stability bolstered wild tiger recovery in India
Scratching an itch promotes antibacterial inflammation
Drivers, causes and impacts of the 2023 Sikkim flood in India
Most engineered human cells created for studying disease
Polar bear population decline the direct result of extended ‘energy deficit’ due to lack of food
Lifecycle Journal launches: A new vision for scholarly publishing
Ancient DNA analyses bring to life the 11,000-year intertwined genomic history of sheep and humans
Climate change increases risk of successive natural hazards in the Himalayas
From bowling balls to hip joints: Chemists create recyclable alternative to durable plastics
Promoting cacao production without sacrificing biodiversity
New £2 million project to save UK from food shortages
SCAI mourns Frank J. Hildner, MD, FSCAI: A founder and leader
New diagnostic tool will help LIGO hunt gravitational waves
Social entrepreneurs honored for lifesaving innovations
Aspects of marriage counseling may hold the key to depolarizing, unifying the country, study finds
With $2 million in new funding, Montana State research lab continues explorations into viruses and honeybee health
Scientists chip away at potato storage problems
Research update: Generating electricity from tacky tape
People’s acceptance of AI judgements on moral decisions: A study on justified defection
Wildfire smoke can carry toxins hundreds of kilometers, depositing grime on urban structures, surfaces: research
New study highlights AI’s potential to help doctors detect congenital heart defects
Your fridge uses tech from the 50’s, but scientists have an update
Archaeology: Ancient Greek and Roman cultures caused lead pollution in Aegean Sea region
Lead contamination in ancient Greece points to societal change
[Press-News.org] E-mobility: TU Graz AI system accelerates the development of powertrainsThe new method optimises the technical design with regard to classic objectives such as costs, efficiency and package space requirements and also takes greenhouse gas emissions along the entire supply chain into account