The EBSF_2 innovative predictive maintenance system for buses: A case study to synergetically improve operational and environmental bus performance

The European Bus System of the Future — EBSF_2 (2015–2018) is a research project funded by the European Union with the aim to develop a new generation of buses by combining new vehicle technologies and infrastructures with operational best practice. Among the several demonstrators involved, the paper focuses on the methodology and the test process adopted in Ravenna (Italy) where a demonstrator is under test to improve predictive maintenance performance. More specifically, this demonstrator is currently testing a maintenance software to analyze data coming from sensors for lubricants to assess the oil quality, therefore detecting potential or prospective breakdowns and replacing spare parts in advance; the system also enables to understand which substances or problems concurred to the oil poor quality. The paper describes the performance prior to and during the implementation of the system; such variations are measured by a series of Key Perfomance Indicators corresponding to different impact areas (maintenance, operations, fuel consumption, costs, staff training, efficiency of the ITS to process data). The paper also highlights prospective environmental consequences, and reports the results thus far achieved, with the research objective to provide advanced knowledge for further applications beyond the EBSF_2 project field.