A Low-Cost Single PC Based HiL Simulation Platform for Verification of The Hybrid Electric Vehicle Control Unit

Hardware-in-the-Loop (HiL) simulation is recognized as a reliable approach for testing and verification of the control systems of hybrid vehicles. To perform the HiL simulation, a real-time vehicle simulator is needed which can virtually emulate the real vehicle in communication with the control unit. This paper presents the design and implementation of a low-cost single PC based HiL simulation platform for testing of the Central Control Unit (CCU) in a series hybrid electric bus. For HiL simulation purposes, the generation and flow of the signals should be the same as those of the real system. Therefore, based on the Controller Area Network (CAN) messages and dynamic behaviour of each component, a comprehensive real-time simulator is designed in LabVIEW environment. The designed simulator together with the control unit and the necessary interfaces makes a functional low-cost HiL test bench. Due to modular simulation, subsystems of the designed simulator can be replaced by the real prototypes and this in turn leads to a more flexible HiL simulation test bench. With this system, the user can act like a real driver and experience driving regimes which may happen in reality without being involved with difficulties of testing on an actual vehicle. The designed simulation model has been validated using real test results. Using the designed test bench, the results show that all control functions in the CCU can be tested and verified.