A real-time multibody model of an off-road vehicle can be used to analyze the dynamics of tasks, such as loading and/or transferring material from deformable ground. This analysis requires an accurate description of the mechanics, hydraulic actuators, and the terrain. The objective of this paper is to introduce a novel, real-time capable, deformable terrain/soil model that can interact with the mechanics of a multibody system model and the dynamics of a hydraulics model. To this end, a tractor is modeled by using a semi-recursive multibody formulation based on velocity transformation. The hydraulic actuation of the tractor’s front-loader is modeled by using the lumped fluid theory. The tractor loads and transfers sand material from a deformable sand field (the ground), which is modeled by combining mesh-based and particle-based soil representation approaches for the real-time simulation of soil deformation. The work cycle of the tractor model follows a 3D maneuver that is used to load and transfer sand material. During the digging and dumping operations, the static sand field is converted into sand particles and vice versa respectively. For the presented work cycle, the real-time capability of the system is analyzed and determined. Furthermore, the dynamic actuator forces in the hydraulic cylinders are compared with the static actuator forces. The introduced real-time capable tractor simulation model can be utilized in product development and other product processes.

The concept of heads-up display can be used to provide augmented information onto the windshield of a tractor. The objective of this paper is to introduce a detailed real-time multibody model that is used in the design of a novel heads-up display unit of a tractor. To this end, a tractor is described using a multibody dynamics approach. A heads-up display unit is designed using a series of tasks that are associated with sets of logical conditions and instructions. These conditions and instructions, in turn, determine/design the analog and digital gauges. The gauges are linked with the virtual sensors installed at a number of locations on the tractor. In this study, the heads-up display unit includes elements, such as tachometer, speedometer, roll inclinometer, gear indicator, fuel gauge, and bucket height, tilt, and weight indicators. The effectiveness of the heads-up display unit is determined based on a goal of moving a certain amount of sand from one place to another. The results demonstrate the utility of the heads-up display unit.

Zero-emission trucks for regional and long-haul missions are an option for fossil-free freight. The viability of such powertrains and system solutions was studied conceptually in project ESCALATE for trucks with GVW of 40 tonnes and beyond through various battery electric and fuel cell prime mover combinations. The study covers battery and fuel cell power sources with different degrees of battery electric as well as H₂ and fuel cell operation. As a design basis, two different missions with a single-charge/H₂ refill were analysed. The first mission was the VECTO long-haul profile repeated up to 750 km, whereas the second was a real 520 km on-road mission in Finland. Based on the simulated energy consumption on the driving cycle, on-board energy demand was estimated, and the initial single-charge and H₂ refill operational scenarios were produced with five different power source topologies and on-board storage capacities. The traction motors of the tractor were dimensioned so that a secondary mission of GVW up to 76 tonnes on a shorter route or a longer route with more frequent battery recharge and/or H₂ refill can be operated. Based on the powertrain and vehicle model, various infrastructure options for charging and H₂ refuelling strategies as well as various operative scenarios with indicative total cost of ownership (TCO) were analysed.

Auxiliary diesel heaters are commonly used in all types of vehicles in cold climates and conditions around the world. Electric buses used in public transport utilise diesel-burning auxiliary heaters to provide thermal comfort for passengers under cold weather conditions while maintaining the operational range otherwise reduced by electric heating. However, the downside of utilising diesel burners is that they cause similar exhaust pollutants to conventional diesel vehicles. Because the emission control for auxiliary heaters is lax, the diesel burners typically lack any exhaust aftertreatment (EAT), resulting in potentially high local emissions. As the public transport sectors around the world seem to transit from traditional internal combustion engine-vehicles to battery electric applications, the significance of the emissions caused by diesel auxiliary heaters is continuously increasing. EVs are generally considered zero-emission vehicles but the implementation of diesel burners is evidently conflicting with this concept. Nevertheless, publicly available experimental results from studies around this topic are surprisingly limited. The data of the few available publications are not directly comparable because there is no direct procedure or protocol for determining the exhaust pollutants from auxiliary heaters in real-world conditions at present. As a result, assessing the direct effect of the pollutants caused by electric vehicles utilising auxiliary heaters in the public transport is challenging. This study addresses this problem by introducing two methods for measuring auxiliary heater emissions; first, a field-test method that is applicable for a quick screening of the emissions of multiple heater units; secondly, a laboratory test method for a more detailed emission characterisation in a simulated real-world operation environment. In these experiments, the primarily objective was to study the emissions of the auxiliary heaters, including CO₂, CO, NO_x and soot. The heater operation was found to be cyclic with numerous start-ups during its typical operation. The cyclic operation resulted in concurrent emission peaks in CO and soot. Measurements of actual operation showed auxiliary heater utilisation rates similar to the controlled measurements, although the whole temperature range of the controlled measurements was not reached in real-world conditions. The measurements conducted during the field screening revealed high variations between emissions of individual units. A further screening of auxiliary heaters would provide a better outlook for the mitigation of their emissions.

Zero-emission trucks for regional and long haul missions are an option for fossil-free freight. The viability of such powertrains and system solutions was studied conceptually in project ESCALATE for trucks with GVW of 40 tonnes and beyond through various prime mover combinations. The study covers battery and fuel cell power sources with different degrees of battery electric as well as H2 and fuel cell operation. As a design basis, two different missions with a single-charge/H2 refill were analysed. The first mission was the VECTO long haul profile repeated up to 750 km, whereas the second was a real 520 km on-road mission in Finland. Based on the simulated energy consumption on the driving cycle, on-board energy demand was estimated, and the initial single-charge operational scenarios were analysed with five different power source topologies. The traction motors of the tractor were dimensioned so that a secondary mission of GVW up to 76 tons on a shorter route can be operated. Based on the powertrain and vehicle model, various infrastructure options for charging and H2 refuelling strategy as well as various operative scenarios with indicative total cost of ownership (TCO) were analysed.