Driveability Evaluation Using a Dynamic Driving Simulator

The present paper aims to evaluate the objective data and subjective ratings of five drivers regarding a driveability maneuver, varying the vehicle model’s pedal map in two configurations (Economic and Sport) through a dynamic driving simulator. Initially, there were defined the maneuvers (0 to 100 km/h and tip-in) and the main parameters to be analyzed (e.g. engine speed, engine torque, longitudinal velocity and longitudinal acceleration), in order to properly acquire data during tests with booth the real vehicle and with the dynamic driving simulator (VI-Grade DIM-150). Along the driver-in the loop (DIL) simulations, the drivers - which had different driving perceptions - were oriented to report their subjective perceptions during each test step and pedal map change. In comparison with the Economic map, the Sport one yielded values of torque and acceleration three times bigger regarding 15% of throttle pedal and 2220 rpm and two times bigger regarding 25% of throttle pedal and 2000 rpm. Considering the subjective evaluation, all of the drivers clearly perceived the differences between the maps in a short simulation time (about 15 seconds), proving that even with a relatively simple vehicle model it is possible to obtain significant responses for driveability analysis.