Design Principles of a flywheel Regenerative Braking System (f-RBS) for Formula SAE type racecar and system testing on a Virtual Test Rig modeled on MSC ADAMS

Abstract

This thesis presents a flywheel based mechanical regenerative braking system (RBS) concept for a Formula SAE type race car application, to improve the performance and/or efficiency of the racecar. A mechanical system is chosen to eliminate losses related to energy conversion while capturing the rotational braking energy. The Flywheel-Regenerative Braking System (f-RBS) concept consists of a metal flywheel design of truncated cone geometry for the energy storage system (ESS) component and a V-belt CVT with a fixed gear for the transmission component of the RBS system. Racecar lap data and racecar specifications are used for designing/sizing the components. Mathematical models are developed for design, integration and operation of the f-RBS system. It was observed that a maximum of 27 % of energy requirements of the racecar can be supplied by the f-RBS. Also, a Virtual test rig model is created using MSC ADAMS, an advanced dynamics/virtual prototyping software, in order to test the whole f-RBS system for performance, as a preliminary alternative to experimental testing. Initial testing is performed to validate the regenerative braking principle employed, to establish the actual operating limits of the virtual test rig and for an initial analysis of performance improvement by utilization of the f-RBS system. From the results, it was inferred that using the f-RBS concept can have a significant impact in recycling wasteful the braking energy and provide additional energy to the racecar.