Modeling and Simulation of the Performance and Efficiency of a Sport Utility Vehicle Powertrain with Automatic Transmission through Model-Based Design

The current scenario of the automotive industry requires the continuous improvement of powertrain design, with market demands increasingly rigorous that look towards the maximum reduction of fuel consumption without losses related to the vehicle performance. The purpose of this study is modeling and simulating a 4WD vehicle with automatic transmission subjected to an American urban cycle (FTP-72 driving cycle), where the commanded speed curves were approximated to the desired speed curves through a controller subsystem created with the use of a graphic programming language tool called Simscape Driveline^TM, in MATLAB^® /Simulink^® environment. The main model aimed to analyze the improvements generated in the conflicting fuel consumption x performance tradeoff.