Authors

M. Hofstetter, D. Lechleitner, Institute of Automotive Engineering, Graz University of Technology

Year

2026

Print Info

Production/Publication ÖVK

Summary

The development of electric vehicle powertrains is characterized by heterogeneous and frequently conflicting requirements, which are uncertain in early development phases and subject to frequent changes. Simultaneously, powertrain concepts must be competitive regarding multiple key performance indicators (KPIs), including performance, production cost, energy efficiency, and package integration. Accordingly, engineers are challenged to concurrently develop the powertrain design alongside the requirements on which the design is based on. Managing this combination of uncertain requirements and multi-KPI design optimization represents a complex challenge in automotive engineering. Based on an initial contribution, the present work demonstrates a requirements engineering approach with OPED (Optimization of Electric Drives). OPED digitalizes the transition from requirements to technical solutions by integrating parametric system models with an AI-based evolutionary optimization algorithm. This approach enables systematic exploration of design trade-offs, quantitative assessment of competing objectives, and robust handling of requirement uncertainties. As a result, a set of Pareto-optimal and technically feasible powertrain configurations is generated, providing a quantitative basis for requirement specification and product design decisions. In a case study, the requirements engineering approach is demonstrated by determining the optimal requirement regarding the maximum speed of an electric passenger
car. Moreover, the impact of the installation space requirement is investigated and quantified. For that purpose, OPED evaluates the influence of the mentioned requirements on cost and energy efficiency. The resulting Pareto fronts contain optimal powertrain solutions together with their corresponding optimal speed and installation space requirements. The results confirm that the approach effectively integrates requirements engineering with multi-objective system design optimization – thereby enabling an agile, transparent, and robust product development process for electric powertrains.

ISBN

978-3-9504969-5-6

DOI

https://doi.org/10.62626/58mc-hz4r Copy link

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