Probabilistic Analysis of the Behaviour of Transport Vehicles

Many facets of the design and development of transport vehicles would benefit from a better working knowledge of vehicle and engine behaviour under true stochastic loads with statistics comparable to those obtained in actual service. This is particularly important for transmission design, engine selection and regenerative braking, storage and propulsion system designs.

This paper will explore the use of probabilistic statistical analysis to extract information from data collected on the operation of three vehicles, viz; a 4.1 ℓ automatic sedan, a 3.3 ℓ manual sedan and an 11 ℓ diesel powered transit bus. The data obtained over four driving routes will include the vehicle characteristics of velocity, acceleration and driveshaft torque, as well as data pertaining to engine operation such as manifold pressure, engine speed and fuel flow.