The TU Ilmenau is one of the leading technical universities in Germany.  The university focuses on science-intensive, innovative technologies and developments, which in turn are made possible by highly qualified specialists. TU Ilmenau has a strong competence in IT, mechanical engineering, mechatronics, electrical and electronic engineering, mobile communications, and nanoengineering. The Institute for Automation and Systems Engineering consists mostly of PhDs and engineers who have already proven their high abilities in solving technological problems and global challenges. The working group – “Smart Vehicle Systems”, which is involved in the CliMAFlux project, is as working within the framework of the ThIMo (The Thüringer Innovationszentrum Mobilität). The ThIMo Research Center has a number of state-of-the-art test facilities at its disposal, which allow for the investigation of many aspects of powertrain and chassis design, non-exhaust emission as well as automotive control system.  Moreover, it is possible to use full-scale vehicle demonstrators in order to preform wide range of experiments in real conditions, according to different standard procedures.

The working group “Smart Vehicle Systems” constantly demonstrates high success and achievements in projects aimed at solving innovative problems in the automotive industry (XiLforEV, EVC1000, HighSCAPE, EM-TECH, ITEAM, OWHEEL). Creation of XiL-based testing environment (model-/software-/hardware-in-the-loop) for key vehicle components, controllers and actuators, including suspension control, modeling of digital twins, data validation and creation of various dynamic systems for real-time analytics and testing of different parts of vehicles – this is not a complete list of what the working team focuses on. An exclusive approach to engineering research and the creation of new, including environmentally friendly, solutions are the key objectives of the working group “Smart Vehicle System”.

Role in the Project

The working group is tasked and targeted with validating all the research results by means of XiL technology, in particular the axial flux motor (AF) components and subsystems which used in the vehicles. As a result, it is planned to evaluate the concept of new generation electric AF motor, the functionality of digital twins, actuators and power electronics, on the basis of which it is possible to outline the development and growth trends of this industrial direction as a whole. Another important task of the working group in the project is the dissemination of innovation and research results, as well as communication with the international community to promote CliMAFlux outcomes.