Combined regenerative and mechanical braking in electric vehicle

Regenerative braking in electric vehicles involves a storage element, such as supercapacitor, which can store energy peaks generated by braking. This article describes the development of an experimental prototype of a system that simulates an electric vehicle induction motor using a supercapacitor bank for supplying and storing energy. The system allows carrying out the study of power supplied to the vehicle, causing acceleration, and recovered from it during the deceleration. Tests were performed to find best ways to recover the kinetic energy in regenerative braking, aiming more efficiency. The proposed system can work together with mechanical braking for low speeds, high deceleration or emergencies, keeping the braking performance.