A Novel Co-Simulation Framework for Optimizing Human Thermal Comfort and Energy Consumption

A major portion of the energy consumed in a vehicle is spent on keeping the occupants thermally comfortable in all environmental conditions. Maintaining the thermal comfort of a passenger is critical in terms of fuel consumption and emission for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. In electrified vehicles where range is of major concern, this gains further-more importance. SC03 is a test defined by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to measure tailpipe emissions and fuel economy of passenger cars with the air-conditioner on. The current study would focus on this drive cycle on an ICE vehicle. The co-simulation framework would include a 1D thermal system model, associated thermal controls, a vehicle cabin model, and a human thermal model. 1D model will be predicting the energy consumption via compressor power, blower power, etc. 1D-3D co-simulation approach is used for modeling the cabin. Berkeley human comfort model has been used in recent times to get a subjective assessment of passenger comfort via comfort and sensation. With this co-simulation framework, in addition to energy consumption by the components, we can predict pressure and temperature anywhere within the refrigerant loop, temperatures in the coolant loop, air temperatures anywhere within the cabin and in addition, comfort and sensation of the passengers. Sensitivity studies are also performed to assess the impact of cabin glass properties, insulation etc. on the energy consumption and passenger thermal comfort.