Electric Dreams: The Electrification of Mobility is Hard Work

Dreams. Science Fiction. They have both long since ceased to be tomorrow’s electric mobility concepts. Rather, the electrification of driving, whether in cars, buses or trucks, is through the hard work of engineering departments and teams. Because of this, new territories are discovered with additional physical disciplines. They all gain new relevance and team up for the perfect mobility experience. Moreover, although existing best practices in vehicle design and construction may continue to work, they may no longer necessarily be the most appropriate approach.

For example, if you arrive at Tegel Airport in Berlin, Germany and then take the Berlin public transportation bus, you have a chance to be brought to the city in a blue test vehicle. This bus no longer looks like a bus you’re familiar with – it’s something in between a tram and bus. The new bus manufacturer, which has built trains and trams so far, has combined the best features of both worlds, rail and road, in addition to being an electric vehicle. The result is an electrically powered bus with increased maneuverability, more space and comfort for passengers, larger windows, etc.

In addition to new approaches, mobility must also be linked closely to urban planning itself. Our 3DEXPERIENCity, together with cities like Singapore and Rennes, shows how the digital representation of entire metropolises is possible. This representation is not only geometric, but also depicts entire city processes, data and physical phenomena. All this with the aim of being able to play through “what-if” scenarios in advance on the digital model – as a reliable decision-making basis for a better coexistence in the cities.

In order to make such mobility concepts possible, not only in the area of vehicles, but also in aviation, a virtual model capturing the physics offers a good basis. In this way, the most diverse physical disciplines can be coordinated with each other, familiar constructions and designs can be questioned and, if necessary, replaced with new solutions. After years of evolution, topics such as aerodynamics, vibration and noise, overall vehicle structure, electromagnetic compatibility, NVH and crash, now demand revolutionary ideas and new answers.

Answers that are often no longer competitively achievable using the traditional approach of ‘design and then check things out.’ Even physical simulation as an expert tool for individual disciplines often only helps to a limited extent. Future success requires bringing together geometry and physics on one hand, but also bringing together the various physics disciplines and their experts on the other. This is the only way to quickly and easily estimate the influence of a change in geometry on the actual product performance and thus to digitally test as many variants as possible in advance in order to have a successful start with the real product on the market.

How should one imagine this ‘bringing together’ of various disciplines?

Geometry and physics: In the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, the physical properties can be defined as directly associated with the geometry and stored in a common data model. If the geometry changes, the physics definition is preserved or only needs to be mapped to a newly created surface, for example.

Different physics disciplines can be brought together with their models on the platform via co-simulation. Here, too, our model-based approach gives engineers time and better insights, since changes in geometry or changes in the simulation models can be applied quickly and easily.

Want to learn more about Dassault Systèmes’ simulation solutions for electric vehicles? Visit: go.3ds.com/TrustTheDrive