We asked about the issues and opportunities facing engineers operating in this specialised area of vehicle engineering and what key areas he is looking to discuss at this year’s conference.
Q: Please can you kindly explain your role and involvement with these technologies.
As a technical consultant for thermal management at IAV, I am responsible for research in the field of thermal management, as well as the development and deployment of on-demand temperature control strategies for the engine and the various components surrounding it. The latter includes charge air temperature control, EGR temperature control, and temperature control of the exhaust-gas after treatment components etc.
Q: What is the number one challenge for engineers working on vehicle thermal management systems, in your opinion?
A very big challenge in this field consists of the on-demand temperature requirement for various components, which may even be mutually exclusive for certain operation points. From the viewpoint of control theory, this results in a constrained optimisation problem, where the respective demands have to be prioritised. Solutions to this problem, both on the hardware as well as on the software side, mark major steps forward in the field of ICEs, as well as for vehicles with alternative drivetrains.
Q: What is the most important development in this field at the moment, either within your organisation or in the industry in general?
Control strategies, which meet the on-demand temperature requirements irrespective of the driving situation. This may include the coupling of different cooling cycles, more efficient energy harvesting from the enthalpy of the EGR, or water injection into the intake path.
Q: Where do you see the future of these technologies going in the next 5 – 10 years?
The extension of the model-based control towards model-predictive control, where the temperature demands may be predicted by means of the evaluation of the vehicle’s trajectory. To this end, methods based on artificial intelligence will be crucial.
Q: What can attendees expect from your presentation at this year’s conference?
The content of my presentation will be twofold. On the one hand, I present a method that stabilises model-based temperature control strategies by monitoring the cooling medium concentration. On the other hand, I describe the possibility to implement artificial neural networks to this end. So altogether, this presentation brings two techniques together, which in my opinion can have major impacts in the near future in the automotive industry.
Q: What other topics are you looking forward to hearing about and discussing at the upcoming conference?
I am looking forward to hearing novel approaches concerning model-based temperature control strategies. In this respect, I am especially interested in the energy management of electrical machines.
Q: Why do you feel it is important for all engineers to attend the VTMS conference
In my opinion, the VTMS is one of the leading international thermal management conferences on the topic, which comprises recent technological advances and developments from industrial applications as well, as academic research. The high standards of the presentations as well as the technological discussion within the networking breaks are very valuable to any researcher in the field.
About Vehicle Thermal Management Systems Conference and Exhibition - VTMS14
5-6 June 2019, Twickenham Stadium, London.
VTMS 14 is dedicated to discussing the latest international developments in Vehicle Thermal Management Systems. The two-day programme will feature plenary sessions, breakout technical sessions, panel discussions, and a dedicated exhibition to bring you the latest product offerings from around the world, along with a great opportunity to network with the leaders in industry.
With the drive towards electrification the challenges involved in vehicle thermal management have never been so diverse. VTMS 14 will showcase the latest research and technological advances in heat transfer, energy management, thermal comfort and the efficient integration and control of all thermal systems within the vehicle.
Speaking organisations include:
- Mercedes-Benz Research and Development India
- Tata Motors Ltd
- Magna Powertrain
- Toyota Europe SA
- MAHLE Powertrain Ltd
- Williams Advanced Engineering
- Alers, Shaefller and more.
For further information and to book your place, please visit the event website www.imeche.org/vtms