Brake Control Module Tuning using Computer Aided Engineering - A study in cooperation with Volvo Car Corporation

Abstract

Brake Control Module (BCM) tuning in terms of the Antilock Braking system (ABS) and the Dynamic Stability Traction Control (DSTC) is normally a time consuming and costly procedure since it involves comprehensive physical testing on the prototype vehicles in early phases of the vehicle development. To reduce prototype vehicles and make the procedure time efficient, it is envisioned that BCM tuning will be achieved using Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) in all future V54X cars at Volvo Car Corporation. The thesis work aims to facilitate method development for Virtual Brake Software Release which constitutes BCM tuning using CAE tools in a closed loop control environment using Global Optimization tools. The CAE environment demands a high correlation between the simulated model (plant) and the actual vehicle. For the preparation of this plant model, tire parameter optimization using global optimization tools is performed using data from physical tests carried out on the test track to achieve good correlation between virtual and physical tests. These maneuvers are reproduced on IPG CarMaker to optimize the tire parameters in the pure slip region. Subsequently, the identification of a reference model was carried out using a 2 DOF model to tune with respect to the plant. The latter part of the thesis discusses various simplified DSTC strategies and a framework to perform the Brake Control Module tuning. It is realized that CAE tuning in terms of Brake Control Module is possible with an appropriate vehicle model in the CAE environment. As a future scope, sophisticated BCM model could be tuned using CAE tool; however, the constraints set up and weighting factors in the optimization would determine the final tuned values.