Simulation based planning processes for the integration of inductively charged vehicles into public transportation services

Kurzfassung

Economy and reliability are requirements that innovative vehicle concepts for public transport operations need to fulfil. In the context of inductive charging, the interdependency between the dimensioning of power electronics and drive aggregates of the vehicles and the charging infrastructure need to be taken into consideration. Life-cycle costs of stationary infrastructure and compatible vehicles need to be reflected. The battery significantly determines the investment and the vehicle weight. This has to be weighed up against the required high level of operational availability. The planning process of the introduction of electrically charged vehicles aims for the maximization of operational availability. The evaluation of the application of novel energy-supplies and drive concepts requires a tool that combines several systems and aspects. These include transportation scheduling, the influence of and the interaction with general traffic and also kinematic models. The open source software SUMO can be applied. Real operational data from vehicles that are currently in service allows appropriate model calibration. In Brunswick (Germany), the line M19 was taken into consideration for the electrification with inductively charged buses. The simulation clearly showed that not only varying traffic conditions have to be reflected, but also the passenger occupancy. The energy consumption of a single drive-cycle varies by about 20 % for the measured cycles and might vary by about 40 % in for theoretical passenger rates. The capacity of available batteries proved sufficient, though. The project proves that results of traffic flow simulations with an integrated energy consumption model are useful for operational planning prior to the start of operation of busses with alternative power trains.