Performance test stand

vehiclefor mechanical drive

The growing complexity of today’s powertrain management systems with close interactions of various control units as well as the hybridization require proving ground tests to validate the entire powertrain integrated in a vehicle. Thus, the overall performance could easily be approved with all-wheel drive test bench. This enables rig testing before the combustion engine has a proven maturity and the first vehicle prototype will be available. Hence real world driving at the test bed reduces proving ground test, vehicle prototypes and consequently costs.Virtual proving ground testing using all-wheel drive test bench approach lead to reproducible test results under well-known constant environmental conditions and enables benchmarking. The key features of this solution are on the one hand an drive dynamometer, which is replacing the combustion engine and on the other hand low inertia absorbing AC dynamometers which are replacing the wheel, wheel slip and vehicle dynamics model. The drive AC dynamometer simulates the engine’s transient behaviour and reacts to control unit commands. Engine firing pulses can be simulated. The wheel-dynamometers with the wheel’s inertia assure peak load, torque oscillation and damping behaviour comparable to real proving ground tests. This pioneers maneuverer based testing and treads a path which has traditionally been reserved for real proving ground tests