Formula Hybrid forums

Hey guys

our team has already decided upon Parallel Hybrid and we are confused about going with either torque coupling or speed coupling hybrid? Anyone who knows about the pros and cons please reply?

and also that can we implement torque coupling by any chance using planetary gear set?

Thankyou

What do you mean by torque coupling vs speed coupling? No matter where you couple an electric motor to a drive train it will deal with torque and speed of the system. The important thing is to make sure that the electric motor will operate throughout the whole rpm range of its coupling location by way of selecting a correct voltage. Also, a motor controller can usually operate in a torque control mode. This means that at all rpm the motor will supply torque into the system, which will prevent the ICE from causing a motor to regen.

Hi Riviera

Actually the point where we are stuck is with the choosing of the device for coupling.For torque coupling we will be using a simple set of gears and for speed coupling we will be using planetary gearbox.And by 'Torque vs. speed coupling' i meant was which device to prefer because the control will be affected.Correct me if I am wrong.

Thanks!!

I will put my adviser hat on here for a second. I feel that both powertrain architectures that you are discussing could be very successful and ultimately win overall but it really boils down to the resources (time/funds/personnel/facility/etc.) you have available. You need to decide where your resources are going to best spent. Because your vehicle is only going to be as strong as its weakest component. So even if you have an amazing powertrain, if you had to sacrifice reliability/weight/etc. in other areas due to limited resources your vehicle may not end up as well as if you had allocated your resources more evenly.

I don't say this to discourage you from your design but to encourage you to really take a good look at your current situation and decide where your resources are going to be best spent. Many teams set lofty goals concerning powertrain architecture and in the end it comes back to bite a lot of them such that don't get other systems done in time or to a quality that is required for a demanding competition such as this. I know this probably isn't the answer you are looking for concerning torque vs. speed coupling but I hope you take it into consideration as you finalize your design goals for the next year.

Hey wos9722

Ya well said.Even I felt the same after thoroughly reviewing the team's position and my concern for this was because planetary gear set offers some advantages over a normal gear set which can be crucial in race according to my calculations.Anyways I keep it for next time.

Thanks