Validation Process of a HEV System Analysis Model: PSAT

Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) combine two sources of energy and offer a wide variety of component and drivetrain configurations. However, optimizing the blending of these two energy sources is complex. Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) working with the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV), maintains hybrid vehicle simulation software, the PNGV System Analysis Toolkit (PSAT). PSAT allows users to choose the best configuration and to optimize the control strategy in simulations. The importance of component models and the complexity involved in setting up optimized control laws require validation of the models and control strategies developed in PSAT. In this paper, we first describe our capability to validate each component model with an actual component test, using test stand facilities. Once each component model has been validated, ANL can perform tests on a whole HEV by using a chassis dynamometer. So, we also present the differences between the measured and simulated results. Finally, we explain the tuning of the simulated vehicle control strategy, based on the analysis of these differences. In this way, we demonstrate the validation of PSAT component models, and then the control strategy tuning, using HEV test data.