▲Vanderhall's all-electric UTV, the Brolly (Image courtesy of MathWorks)

Vanderhal Completes UTV Design, Simulation, and Testing in Eight Months Using MathWorks Software
Control algorithm design and testing are performed virtually, minimizing risk during code deployment.

The case of MathWorks and Vanderhal Motorworks (hereafter Vanderhal) has proven that simulation technology can significantly help shorten vehicle testing and development times in the rapidly changing electric vehicle market.

MathWorks announced on the 27th of last month that American electric vehicle manufacturer VanderHaal shortened the development process of its electric UTV (off-road utility vehicle) 'Brawley' by utilizing MathWorks' simulation software 'Simulink'.

“Electric vehicles are a fast-moving market, and if we had used traditional development methods, we would still be behind the competition and not delivering on our promise,” said Christopher Johnson, CTO of VanderHaal. “Simulink’s superior vehicle dynamics simulation eliminates the need to repeat extensive physical testing every time we make a code change.”

According to MathWorks, three engineers at VanderHaal completed the design, simulation, and testing of the Brolly prototype in eight months, a process that would normally take years.

The biggest difference of Broly is Four electric motors, one for each 35-inch wheel, are key elements to ensure high speed and turning ability on rough off-road.

This was a requirement that existing electric vehicle powertrain suppliers could not meet, so VanderHaal developed the powertrain and vehicle control system from scratch.

During this process, VanderHaal used Simulink to build a virtual car, simulate the powertrain and vehicle dynamics in real time, and evaluate how the control algorithms worked.

For example, we simulated what would happen in various situations, such as when a vehicle makes an emergency maneuver or when a high-voltage battery overheats, and implemented control algorithms accordingly to accurately determine how the vehicle would actually operate without physical testing.

MathWorks' Vehicle Dynamics Blockset was useful in designing vehicle control software.

Using this blockset, Vanderhal built a system that can independently control the output, speed, and velocity of each wheel by modeling the rotational speed of the wheel and the acceleration of the vehicle according to torque.

Additionally, VanderHaal modeled and simulated SOC (battery state of charge), the most important data for electric UTVs, using the Powertrain Blockset for automotive powertrain systems and simulation.

“Estimating the actual SOC of an electric vehicle battery is challenging when all metrics, including acceleration, are constantly changing, and Powertrain Blockset has been a huge help in this area,” said Johnson, CTO.