Experimental Ride Comfort Analysis of an Electric Light Vehicle in Urban Scenario

Urban mobility represents one of the most critical global challenges nowadays. Several options regarding design and power sources technologies were recently proposed; among which electric and hybrid vehicles are quite successful to meet the increasingly restrictive environmental targets. This significant goal may affect the perceived vehicle comfort and drivability, especially in everyday urban scenarios. The purpose of this paper is to carry out a comparison in terms of comfort between vehicles belonging to different categories, but all designed for urban mobility: an electric 2-passenger quadricycle used during the demonstration phase of the European project STEVE, an internal combustion engine 2-passenger car (Smart Fortwo), an electric 4-passenger car (Bolloré Bluecar) and an internal combustion engine 4-passenger car (Fiat 500). Leading European car-sharing services use the last three car models. Onboard accelerations at the seat, the feet and the steering wheel are recorded, as suggested by ISO 2631 and ISO 5349 standards. The tests are performed driving on a straight path on two different road surfaces at eight constant vehicle speeds. An optical sensor clamped outside of the vehicle monitors the vehicle speed and the path. The signals coming from the mentioned cars are analysed and compared in the frequency domain to highlight the differences for comfort quality.