Course Name: Hybrid

Electric Vehicle Theory and

Design
Course code: HEVTD
Module 3
Architecture of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles

Course instructor: Dr. Amit Kumar Baghel

PhD( IIT Guwahati), B.Tech ( NIT Surat)

Contact mail id: [email protected]/[email protected]

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 Complex Hybrid Drive Train Drivetrain

EM1

EM2

In Figure, a complex HEV drivetrain with both torque and speed coupling is shown.
This architecture is used by Toyota Prius. The main components of Prius drivetrain are:

Ø Planetary gear unit: Used for speed coupling

Ø Fixed Axel Gear: Used for torque coupling

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 The various power sources of Prius drivetrain are connected as follows:

Ø The ICE is connected to the carrier gear of the planetary

Ø A small EM (EM1) is connected to the sun gear

Ø The ring gear is connected to the driven wheels through axel fixed gear unit
(torque coupler)

Ø An EM (EM2) is also connected to the fixed angle axel gear unit and forms the
torque coupling configuration

The rotational speed of the ring gear is given by:

(14)

𝜔" = 𝜔$%& (15)

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 𝜔' = 𝜔()$ (15)

The various modes of operation are:

Mode 1: When the vehicle speed is low and the ICE speed is not so low then EM1
rotates in the positive direction (same direction as ICE). In this condition, the EM1
operates in generation mode and a fraction of ICE power is used to charge the battery.

Mode 2: At higher vehicle speed, while trying to maintain the engine speed below a
given speed, for high engine operating efficiency, the EM1 may be operated in negative
speed. In this case EM1 acts as a motor and delivers power to propel the vehicle.

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 Basic Architecture of Electric Drive Trains

The topics covered in this chapter are as follows:

Ø Electric Vehicle (EV) Configuration

Ø EV alternatives based on drivetrains

Ø EV alternatives based on power source configuration

Ø Single and Multi-motor drives

Ø In wheel drives

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Electric Vehicle (EV) Configurations

Ø Compared to HEV, the configuration of EV is flexible. The reasons for this flexibility
are:

• The energy flow in EV is mainly via flexible electrical wires rather than bolted flanges
or rigid shafts. Hence, distributed subsystems in the EV are really achievable.

• The EVs allow different propulsion arrangements such as independent four wheels
and in wheel drives

The EV has three major subsystems:

• Electric propulsion

• Energy source

• Auxiliary system

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 Electrical
connection

Mechanical
connection
Control
information
and
communicati
on

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Ø Based on the control inputs from the brake and accelerator pedals, the electronic
controller provides proper control signals to switch on or off the power converter
which in turn regulates the power flow between the electric motor and the energy
source.

Ø The backward power flow is due to regenerative braking of the EV and this
regenerative energy can be stored provided the energy source is receptive.

Ø The energy management unit cooperates with the electronic controller to control
regenerative braking and its energy recovery.

Ø The auxiliary power supply provides the necessary power with different voltage levels
for all EV auxiliaries, especially the temperature control and power steering units.

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In modern EV configuration:

Ø Three phase motors are generally used to provide the traction force

Ø The power converter is a three-phase PWM (pulse width modulation motor) inverter

Ø Mechanical transmission is based on fixed gearing and a differential

Ø Li-ion battery is typically selected as the energy source

Electric Vehicle (EV) Drivetrain Alternatives Based on Drivetrain Configuration

Six alternatives are possible as shown:

1.

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 2. The advantage of this configuration is that the weight of the transmission is reduced.
However, this configuration demands a more complex control of the EM to provide the
necessary torque to the wheels.

3. Figure shows a configuration of EV using one EM. It is a transverse front EM front wheel
drive configuration. It has a fixed gearing and differential and they are integrated into a single
assembly

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4. In figure a dual motor configuration is shown. In this configuration the differential
action of an EV when cornering can be electronically provided by two electric motors

5. In order to shorten the mechanical transmission path from the EM to the driving wheel,
the EM can be placed inside a wheel. This configuration is called in-wheel drive. Figure
shows this configuration in which fixed planetary gearing is employed to reduce the
motor speed to the desired wheel speed.

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6. In figure, an EV configuration without any mechanical gearing is shown. By fully
abandoning any mechanical gearing, the in-wheel drive can be realized by installing a
low speed outer-rotor electric motor inside a wheel.

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 Electric Vehicle (EV) Drivetrain Alternatives Based on Power Source Configuration

Ø It is a simple battery powered configuration figure. The battery may be distributed

around the vehicle, packed together at the vehicle back or located beneath the
vehicle chassis.

Ø In case of EVs, the battery should have both high specific energy and specific power
because high specific energy governs the driving range while the high power density
governs the acceleration rate and hill climbing capability.

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Configuration 2: Instead of two batteries, this design uses two different batteries. In the
figure it is seen that one battery is optimized for high specific energy and the other for
high specific power.

High specific energy: measure of storage

High specific power: measure of maximum power. Useful for acceleration and
deceleration.

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Configuration 3:
Ø In this arrangement fuel cell is used. The battery is an energy storage device, whereas the fuel
cell is an energy generation device.
Ø The operation principle of fuel cells is a reverse process of electrolysis. In reverse and
electrolysis, hydrogen and oxygen gases combine to form electricity and water.

Ø The hydrogen gas used by the fuel cell can be stored in an on-board tank whereas oxygen gas
is extracted from air. Since fuel cell can offer high specific energy but cannot accept
regenerative energy, it is preferable to combine it with battery with high specific power and
high-energy receptivity.

High specific
power

High specific
energy

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Configuration 4: Rather than storing it as a compressed gas, a liquid or a metal hydride,
hydrogen can be can be generated on-board using liquid fuels such as methanol. In this
case a mini reformer is installed in the EV to produce necessary hydrogen gas for the
fuel cell.

Help in generating the

hydrogen on-board

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Configuration 5:
Ø In fuel cell and battery combination, the battery is selected to provide high specific
power and high-energy receptivity.
Ø In this configuration a battery and supercapacitor combination is used as an energy
source.

Ø The battery used in this configuration is a high energy density device whereas the
supercapacitor provides high specific power and energy receptivity.

Ø Usually, the supercapacitors are of relatively low voltage levels, an additional dc-dc
power converter is needed to interface between the battery and capacitor terminals.

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 Single and Multi-motor Drives
Ø When a vehicle is rounding a curved road, the outer wheel needs to travel on a
larger radius than the inner wheel.

Ø With the use of multiple EMs, each wheel can be coupled to an EM and this will
enable independent control of speed of each wheel in such a way that the
differential action can be electronically achieved. In figure, a typical dual motor
drive with an electronic differential is shown.

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 In Wheel Drives
The rotor is inside the wheel
Rotor

Wheel

Stator

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Ø When a high-speed inner-rotor motor is used then a fixed speed-reduction gear
becomes necessary to attain a realistic wheel speed.

Ø In general, speed reduction is achieved using a planetary gear set. This

planetary gear is mounted between the motor shaft and the wheel rim.

Ø Usually this motor is designed to operate up to 1000 rpm so as to give high

power density.

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In case outer rotor motor is used, then the transmission can be totally removed and the
outer rotor acts as the wheel rim and the motor speed is equivalent to the wheel speed
and no gears are required.

The tradeoffs of the high-speed inner rotor motor are:

Ø It has the advantage of smaller size, lighter weight and lower cost.

Ø Needs additional planetary gear set.

The tradeoffs of outer-rotor motor are:

Ø Low speed and hence does not need additional gears

Ø The drawbacks are larger size, weight and cost because of the low speed design.

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Considerations of EMs used in EVs The requirements of EMs used in EVs are:

Ø Frequent start/stop

Ø High rate of acceleration and deceleration

Ø High torque low speed hill climbing

Ø Low torque cruising

Ø Very wide speed range of operation

The EMs for EVs are unique and their major differences with respect to industrial
motors:

Ø EV motors need to produce the maximum torque that is four to five times of the rated
torque for acceleration and hill climbing, while industrial motors generally offer the
maximum torque that is twice of the rated torque for overload operation.

Ø EV motors need to achieve four to five times the base speed for highway cruising,
while industrial motors generally achieve up to twice the base speed for constant
power operation.
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Ø EV motors require high power density as well as good efficiency map (high efficiency
over wide speed and torque ranges), while industrial motors are generally optimized
to give high efficiency at a rated point.

Ø EV motors need to be installed in mobile vehicles with harsh operating conditions

such as high temperature, bad weather and frequent vibration, while industrial motors
are generally located in fixed places

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