A Systemic Approach Integrating Driving Cycles for the Design of Hybrid Locomotives

Abstract

Driving cycles are essential in hybrid locomotive design by conditioning their size and performance. This paper introduces a new systemic approach to hybrid locomotive design, taking real-world driving cycles into account. The proposed approach first exploits clustering analysis with the aim of identifying classes corresponding to particular sets of driving cycles. Then, a synthesis process of a reduced and representative profile from each class of driving cycles is presented. Both approaches are applied to the integrated optimal design of an autonomous hybrid (Diesel–electric) locomotive devoted to shunting and switching operations in nonelectrified areas.