Title: On fuel-optimal velocity control of a motor vehicle

Authors: A.P. Stoicescu

Addresses: Faculty of Transportation, Polytechnic Institute of Bucharest, Romania

Abstract: This paper presents the motor vehicle velocity control that, under certain well-defined conditions, ensures a minimum fuel consumption. To this purpose, a vehicle with a stepped mechanical transmission is considered, assuming that the gear is unchanged during the movement. The optimal control problem is formulated for different cases and solved by applying Pontryagin|s maximum principle. Whenever there is a singular solution, it is shown to correspond to the uniform motion law. The optimal velocity controls include the following phases that may be combined in different ways: deceleration without engine shut-off (null engine power), strong decelerative braking, constant speed movement and full-throttle acceleration. Examples are presented by using the experimental data on engine fuel consumption. The stress falls on the significant reductions in fuel consumption that can be achieved compared to uniform motion.

Keywords: constraints; control variables; vehicle control; experimental data; extremal control; fuel consumption; gear ratio; maximum principle; motor vehicles; optimal control; singular control; singular velocity; switching function; transmission; velocity control; speed control; vehicle design.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVD.1995.061935

International Journal of Vehicle Design, 1995 Vol.16 No.2/3, pp.229 - 256

Published online: 28 May 2014 *

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