FIRST SCIENTIFIC WORKSHOP ON TRANSPORT, VEHICLES AND LOGISTICS
A. Short description of the Faculty sub-projects 1. The Faculty and its Doctoral Schools
The transportation of the materials and goods generates about one third part of price (primary cost) of the products and it plays determining strategic role in economy. The transport together the vehicle engineering, vehicle production and logistics define the level of country economy. Therefore, the development strategies of the countries list the
"Transport - Vehicles - Logistics -TVL" to key elements.
The Faculty of Transportation Engineering and Vehicle Engineering (FTEVE), BME, is a 60 years old leader Easter – Central European education and research center in field of TVL. It has BSc., MSc. and PhD.
programs in all fields of transport (road, city, rail, water, air), vehicle (railway, automobile, ship, aircraft) and logistics (including the building and material handling machines, logistics machines and supports, etc.).
The faculty has more than 130 staff members and about 1400 students. There are 10 different Departments and many laboratories. The info-communication system and software bank is very large containing all the important type of software required for investigation, evaluation, design and development of the
transportation systems, vehicles and logistical systems.
The Faculty had defined its research goals following to major European technological platforms (ETRAC, ERRAC, WATERBORNE, ACARE, EIRAC) – as development, establishing, operation and control and managing of such vehicle – transport – logistics complex system that is user friendly, effective (operating with minimum total life cycle cost), safe, secure, having minimum impact on environment, sustainable, integrated (interoperable, and intermodal) and may support the on-demand free motion of peoples and goods.
The Faculty has two Doctoral Schools, that are excellent in model development, model identification, simulation, automation and control, as well as combining the economical, and environmental factors with engineering solutions and developing original solutions.
Gábor Baross Doctoral School on Transportation Engineering (GB-DS) supports the doctoral research dealing with scientific investigation, development, establishing,
operation, measuring, evaluation, managing, economy and control of the transport and logistics systems.
The Kálmán Kandó Doctoral School on Mechanical Engineering Sciences (Vehicle and Mobile Machines) (KK-DS) is a basis for doctoral research in field of developing, design, production, operation, control of the all kind of vehicles (automobiles, railway vehicles, ships, aircraft), mobile vehicles (logistic, building, material handling machines) and their systems, element, etc. as well as the integration of the vehicles into the transport and logistics systems.
Both Doctoral Schools take part in TAMOP project by two – two sub-projects.
2. Sub-projects of the Faculty Doctoral Schools
2.1. Control of the vehicles and transportation systems (GB-DS)
The goal of the sub-project is developing new control and simulation methods and technologies for effective, safe and greener control of the vehicles, group of vehicles, platoons, transportation and logistics systems. The major themes are the followings:
• control-goal modeling and its application in vehicle dynamics,
• control of platoon systems,
• modeling of the large non-linear transportation systems and their optimal control.
The accelerated increasing in computer capacities, the use of distributed wireless sensor and communication technology, applying the space-origin sensors (like GPS), developing new more effective control methods, increasing the role of system integration, changes in system management based on the situation analysis – simulation based decision support – decision – realization of the decisions, etc. make possible not only improving the existing vehicle and transport system control and management, but developing radically new methods and technologies.
For reaching the goals the efficiency has to be redefined, the role of modeling and simulation must be reevaluated, and the new control and simulation principles must be developed for handling the newly defined problems as simulation of the large
transportation systems, or control of group of vehicles, platoon systems).
2.2. Improving the efficiency of the transportation system and its service quality, (GB-DS)
The goal of this sub-project is developing new models, methods, technologies for
improving the efficiency of transportation and logistics systems, reducing their impact on the environment and increasing the service quality.
The research in this project focuses on
• evaluation and development of the complex technical – economical methods for improving the efficiency in forwarding,
• using the integrated telemetric systems in passenger transport,
• developing new railway cargo transport harmonized with EU directives
• improving the service quality of the local mass transport systems.
Rapid development in parallel computing, MEMS based sensor and nano technology, embedded systems, system integration, monitoring systems, etc. and increasing the strategic role of transportation system in modern, global economy require discovery the new approaches in evaluation of the efficiency of the transportation systems, using new elements and methods in control and management, developing new operational concepts and methods including the intermodality, sustainability, and strong application of the system integration principles.
2.3. Mechanical investigations on the (rail) vehicles (KK-DS)
Developing, testing and using such new application – oriented testing, monitoring and diagnostic systems, that increasing the efficiency, safety and reducing the environmental impacts of the (railway) vehicles. The sub-projects deals with three major fields:
• stress analysis: investigation of dynamics, diagnostics and structural reliability,
• damage process analysis: running stability and friction damage analysis, investigation of mechanical and thermodynamic processes, investigation of the vehicle element fatigue damage processes, their simulation and technical life prediction,
• energetic analysis: optimal control for reducing the vehicle energy consumption.
Within the sub-project two major research fields are in focus:
• modeling and simulation of the friction effects in vehicle and their system elements (taking into account the physical chemical properties of the applied
materials, influence of the operational modes and intensity on the friction damages, etc.),
• load management including the mechanical and thermodynamic loads, their effects on the technical life of elements, especially on bogie frame and running gears, reliability analysis, management of the condition degradation processes, etc.
During the period of the existing TAMOP project, the time is available for developing the models and possible simulation methods and technologies, as well as developing the load management philosophy, with using multi physical approaches, non-linear and stochastic models, and methods of statistical dynamics.
2.4. Fluid mechanics and thermodynamics of the vehicles and engines.
The goal of this sub-project is developing methods and technologies allowing the investigation and optimization of external and internal fluid mechanical and thermodynamic processes of vehicles for improving the vehicle efficiency, safety greening and operational quality level.
The planned research and developments are object-oriented, therefore the following problems are defined for further investigation:
• fluid mechanical problems: fluid mechanical investigation of the aircraft and their engines and control of flow by use of MEMS technology,
• thermodynamic investigation: study on energetic problems of aircraft, theoretical (numerical) and practical (infra red camera) investigation of heat distribution around the engines in airframe,
• multi physical investigation: such numerical investigation that may reduced the energy losses, aerodynamic interference drag and infra red radiation of the aircraft elements and may allow to use morphing technology.
Due to developing the micro sensing and MEMS technology, use of multi physical numerical methods, application of virtual technology, implementing new modeling and simulation methods, deployment of the on-line optimization and control, utilizing the system integration, indicate the study of the following fields and problems:
• developing the new modeling and simulation methods for investigation of the flow and heat transfer processes realizing in elements of aircraft and engines,
• developing radically new methods and technologies like use of methods of subjective analysis, flow and heat transfer control by using the MEMS technology, flow and heat management,
• investigation of the critical regimes, possible use and control of critical regimes, risk analysis, departure to critical regimes and recovery, etc.
3. Expected results and their significances
The four sub-projects deal with quit different fields of sciences, using different methods and technologies, therefore the expected results will be quit different, too. However, there are several general similarity can be predicted:
• new models, simulation methods and technology and controls will be developed for more accurate, and more effective design, control and management of the
vehicles, group of vehicles (as formation flight or platoons), transportation and logistic systems,
• increasing the accuracy of the inputs for monitoring, diagnostic, control development, management, etc.,
• using the sensors located in space, and using the micro sensors,
• developing and defining new criteria for evaluation development, operation and control of the integrated complex intermodal transportation systems,
• development of the telemetric and info-communication systems for the vehicles, transportation and logistics systems,
• developing new cargo and forwarding systems,
• developing, design and establishing new system integration, monitoring and diagnostic systems, new operational concepts, new operating systems, new sub-systems, as health monitoring, self-repairing, etc.,
• load and life management including the on-line traffic complexity evaluation and monitoring the human physical and mental load, evaluation of the overloading, on-line human - operator load management,
• definition, investigation and control of critical regimes,
• improving efficiency, safety, greening, and security of the investigated systems.
The significances of the expected results can be characterized by following aspects:
• initiating a step change in national vehicle engineering, vehicle production and operation,
• increasing the affordability, efficiency of the transportation and logistics system,
• supporting the development and improving the national transportation and logistics strategy, its harmonization with the global (European) system,
• contribution to national defense system developments,
• considerable development of the tacit (practical) knowledge of the PhD students and young scientists,
• involving the PhD students and young scientist into the international (bilaterally, cross-border, EU supported, etc.) projects,
• improving the quality of working out the international projects,
• publication of the results, increasing the publication activities of the PhD students and young scientists,
• organizing team meetings,
• organizing special workshops for supported students,
• visiting the high level research centers,
• involving the supported PhD students into the national and international projects,
• publication of supported PhD students together their supervisors,
• involving the PhD students and young scientist into the knowledge and technology transfer, dissemination and deployment of the results, etc.,
4. The results
During the first year of the project, 12 teacher - supervisor, 3 teachers working on their PhD and 11 students were involved into the projects. They have published 2 chapters in books, 6 papers and 16 conference articles.