Automotive Engineer

As more and more alternatively powered vehicles enter the market, the demand for test capacities for E-motors and hybrids is growing rapidly. The electrification of the powertrain using hybrid and E-motors is a challenge for the suppliers of test stands. With the new TITAN E-Drive, HORIBA provides a development tool allowing it to meet these requirements with regard to research on alternative powertrains even in the pre-series status.

Electrification of the powertrain is a major trend in the automobile industry. To meet the resulting demand for testing facilities, HORIBA developed a test stand for alternative powertrain testing. Equipped with an asynchronous machine as dynamometer and a virtual battery system, the test stand ensures maximum testing flexibility. Its modular design and variable frame for installing the asynchronous machine and specimen ensure flexible adjustment and customizable configurations. The TITAN E-Drive is used for applications such as carrying out analyses of the characteristic diagram as well as idling and short-circuit tests.

High Speeds and Torques
The dynamometer used for the E-motor test stand is an asynchronous machine of DYNAS₃ HS 180 type designed for the high starting torque of the electric motors with speeds of up to 16,000 rpm. With a rated power output of 178 kW and a rated torque of 430 Nm (overload torque: 559 Nm), the DYNAS₃ HS 180 asynchronous machine covers a wide field of applications and a broad test range.

Virtual Battery for Realistic Conditions
An optimized DC power source supplies the test specimens with voltages of up to 950 V. As an extension of this DC power supply, the virtual SPARC battery system simulates different battery behaviours and a wide range of battery parameters. The system not only maps the physical and chemical charging condition of the battery; it also simulates various parameters such as the age and composition of the battery, driving cycles and a wide range of environmental influences. It thus proves its worth as an efficient tool for simulating and forecasting the actual battery behaviour of various battery models. In this way, HORIBA guarantees maximum testing flexibility. In conjunction with HORIBA’s own virtual battery simulation system, it is thus possible to test E-motors under realistic conditions. The HORIBA engineers are therefore in a position to carry out complex E-motor analyses according to individual customer requests.