Co-Simulation in the Design of Vehicle ABS Equipped Brake Systems

This paper analyses a modern approach to motor vehicles design, in particular as concerns the braking system. The study is carried on by means of a co-simulation between a software (AMESim) apt to simulate the braking hydraulic circuit and a model developed in MatLab- Simulink environment able to simulate the vehicle dynamical behaviour and the brake control system. One of the most evident advantages of this approach is the optimization of the design procedure with the consequence of shorter development time and lower costs. Actually through co-simulation is possible to build a complete virtual prototype of the system under analysis, which allows to get a functional validation of the different subsystems and of their interactions in an early stage, before getting to the final experimental stage on the real prototype. Particularly, with the proposed design technique, the control strategies, the braking system and vehicle mechanical characteristics can be developed simultaneously. In such a way it is possible a rapid and reliable development of the braking subsystems which interact and communicate easily each other, exchanging proper variables at each step of the calculus. In the paper first of all is explained the MatLab-Simulink model able to simulate the vehicle dynamical behaviour, then an ABS control strategy and the model of an hydraulic braking system developed in AMESim are described. Finally the results of an application of co-simulation to optimize controlled braking manoeuvres are provided.