Modeling and simulation tool for vehicular auxiliary power systems

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The Erwin Hymer Group North America, Inc. (EHG), a market leading Canadian manufacturer of recreational**vehicles, recently collaborated with the research group of Dr. Jin Jiang at Western University to investigate**technological solutions for interconnecting the auxiliary power systems on board their vehicles through an**NSERC Engage partnership. These vehicles incorporate advanced power systems, including photovoltaic**arrays and lithium batteries. During this research project the need for more sophisticated models of the vehicle**auxiliary power systems and the solar and load operating profiles was identified. The proposed Engage Plus**research project will involve the development of these models and their implementation in a software**simulation tool that can be used to evaluate and visualize different vehicle operating scenarios. This capability**will allow EHG to both optimize their designs, and provide them with a quantitative visualization of the system**performance under different conditions that can be used to illustrate key features of the vehicle. Dr. Jiang's**research group has published extensively on the key topics of interest, including hybrid power management,**photovoltaics, and microgrid energy management, with both theoretical and experimental contributions, and**can therefore provide the expertise that the company is seeking. EHG recognizes that technological innovation**is a key element in maintaining their market leadership position, and has demonstrated the engineering and**production capacity to take sophisticated concepts to market. The company is supporting the project with both**cash and in-kind contributions, and will provide access to vehicles and photovoltaic/battery subsystems.**Additional research projects are anticipated to pursue additional research topics that are of interest to the**company. This collaboration will allow EHG to leverage the expertise at Western University to establish a**solid foundation for future product innovations in this area, which will ultimately contribute to increased**employment of HQP and increased export revenue flowing into the Canadian economy.