D3.1/5/6: Definition and Validation of a Smart Infrastructure Access Policy utilising Performance-Based Standards

The FALCON project (“Freight and Logistics in a Multimodal Context”) is a collaborative effort funded by the Conference of European Directors of Roads (CEDR), and has set out to address ambitious carbon emission reduction targets set by the European Commission. A primary goal of the project is to define a potential Performance-Based Standards (PBS) framework for cross-border road freight transport in Europe. Such a framework would accommodate high capacity vehicles, which have been shown to have a large beneficial impact on road freight transport efficiency and emissions. This report details the work of FALCON tasks 3.1, 3.5 and 3.6, in which a proposed PBS framework is formulated through a simulation-based analysis of on-road vehicle behaviour and impact on the infrastructure.CEDR-Utlysning Transporter och logistik i multimodal synvinke

Advanced vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks with the perspective of road safety

This paper presents state-of-the art within advanced vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks with the perspective of road safety. The most common accidents with heavy trucks involved are truck against passenger cars. Safety critical situations are for example loss of control (such as rollover and lateral stability) and a majority of these occur during speed when cornering. Other critical situations are avoidance manoeuvre and road edge recovery. The dynamic behaviour of heavy trucks have significant differences compared to passenger cars and as a consequence, successful application of vehicle dynamic functions for enhanced safety of trucks might differ from the functions in passenger cars. Here, the differences between vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks and passenger cars are clarified. Advanced vehicle dynamics solutions with the perspective of road safety of trucks are presented, beginning with the topic vehicle stability, followed by the steering system, the braking system and driver assistance systems that differ in some way from that of passenger cars as well

Advanced vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks with the perspective of road safety

\u3cp\u3eThis paper presents state-of-the art within advanced vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks with the perspective of road safety. The most common accidents with heavy trucks involved are truck against passenger cars. Safety critical situations are for example loss of control (such as rollover and lateral stability) and a majority of these occur during speed when cornering. Other critical situations are avoidance manoeuvre and road edge recovery. The dynamic behaviour of heavy trucks have significant differences compared to passenger cars and as a consequence, successful application of vehicle dynamic functions for enhanced safety of trucks might differ from the functions in passenger cars. Here, the differences between vehicle dynamics of heavy trucks and passenger cars are clarified. Advanced vehicle dynamics solutions with the perspective of road safety of trucks are presented, beginning with the topic vehicle stability, followed by the steering system, the braking system and driver assistance systems that differ in some way from that of passenger cars as well.\u3c/p\u3

Determination of representative loading conditions for effective semitrailer design

Obtaining a representative loading spectrum that corresponds well to the reality is still one of the greatest challenges for fatigue life calculations and optimal design of the trailer body. A good qualitative and quantitative knowledge of the spectrum leads to more efficient usage of material, a better design of connection points and an overall decrease of the weight of the trailer, which finally results in a significant decrease in the price of a ton of cargo per km. Despite that, the approach is nowadays mostly based on the experience and rules of thumb. It typically results in over-dimensioning of some parts while other parts remain vulnerable to failure due to unknown loading patterns. This paper describes a generic approach to solve the problems mentioned above applied in a research project named FORWARD (Fuel Optimized trailer Referring to Well Assessed Realistic Design loads). The project lasted two years and was carried out in cooperation with several different trailer manufacturers and 1st tier suppliers. The loading history of more than 1000 hours for five trailer types were captured in the shape of strains, accelerations and velocities of various elements of the trailers, enabling reconstruction of the loading in terms of forces and moments acting on the wheels and kingpin. Parallel to this extensive test-campaign, a novel generic physics-based computational approach was developed to predict selected loads encountered during common manoeuvres to all trailer types. The computational approach was validated against test-data and resulted in creating a generic multi-body library applicable for all trailer types, and an automated post-processing routine for the large amount of test-data

Non-Linear Model of Predictive Control-Based Slip Control ABS Including Tyre Tread Thermal Dynamics

Vehicle dynamics can be deeply affected by various tyre operating conditions, including thermodynamic and wear effects. Indeed, tyre temperature plays a fundamental role in high performance applications due to the dependencies of the cornering stiffness and potential grip in such conditions. This work is focused on the evaluation of a potentially improved control strategy’s performance when the control model is fed by instantaneously varying tyre parameters, taking into account the continuously evolving external surface temperature and the vehicle boundary conditions. To this end, a simplified tyre thermal model has been integrated into a model predictive control strategy in order to exploit the thermal dynamics’ dependents within a proposed advanced ABS control system. We evaluate its performance in terms of the resulting braking distance. In particular, a non-linear model predictive control (NMPC) based ABS controller with tyre thermal knowledge has been integrated. The chosen topic can possibly lay a foundation for future research into autonomous control where the detailing of decision-making of the controllers will reach the level of multi-physical phenomena concerning the tyre–road interaction

Smart infrastructure access policy: a highway towards more efficient road freight transport

This paper describes interim results of the ongoing CEDR-funded "FALCON" project, which aims to introduce a step improvement in transport efficiency in Europe through the definition of a new performance-oriented legislative framework for road freight transport, thus ensuring a proper match between vehicles and the infrastructure. A Smart Infrastructure Access Policy (SIAP) is being developed as the primary method of regulation, in which policy explicitly specifies the performance level required from the road freight vehicle with respect to safety, manoeuvrability, infrastructure loading, and environmental impact, while giving consideration to national topologies and operational conditions. This method is fundamentally different to the prescriptive approach which mandates mass and dimension limits of vehicles. The prescriptive approach indirectly and often ineffectively ensures acceptable vehicle performance, as is the case of current, mainly prescriptive oriented, European legislation (96/53/EC)

Assesment of Dutch longer and heavier vehicles with a performance based approach and its applicability to Europe

The volume of goods transported as well as the number of commercial vehicles in Europe has increased substantially over the past decade. The sixteen years old European directive on vehicle weights and dimensions does not fully reflect on these circumstances and allows commercial vehicles up to 18.75m of length and weight of 44t for international transport. As the Dutch experience reveals, the legalization of longer and heavier vehicles (LHV) on highways makes transportation of goods more efficient, sustainable and is applicable even in highly populated regions. This paper is benchmarking the performance of all currently used Dutch LHV combinations, two potential LHV concepts satisfying the logistic needs, and conventional European combinations using the Australian performance based approach. Furthermore it discusses applicability of performance based standards to Europe as an alternative to current prescriptive legislation and shows that performance of LHV’s can differ very much