Automotive electrical power system simulation (AEPSS)

Lucas are active in the design and specification of vehicle electrical power systems. It is required that the charging and storage system should be adequate for the demands placed on it during vehicle use. As the pace of change increases, and as weight and cost constraints tighten, it becomes necessary to assess proposed systems quickly, cheaply, and reliably before implementing in hardware. To this end a computer simulation model has been developed by the Lucas Research Centre, sponsored by other Lucas companies. The purpose of the simulation model is to predict the performance of an automotive electrical power system when exercised by a variety of duty cycles. The performance is defined by the system voltages at specific points (e.g. battery terminals, electronic control module), current flows between specific points (e.g. into/out of battery), and by state of charge (SOC) of the storage element. The model and its application are described