Abstract
Abstract
The aim of the research described in the article was to optimize compressed air consumption in a pneumatic driven vehicle to achieve the maximum traveled distance and maximum acceleration over a short distance. The Pneumatic vehicle was equipped with a 10-liter tank. The vehicle drive system consists of an actuator, a reciprocating movement which is converted into rotary motion and transmitted to the road wheels. The article analyses the impact on the range and maximum speed of a pneumatic vehicle based on parameters such as gear ratio, the amount of air supplied to the actuator, opening the drain valves before the piston reaches dead center, setting on the reduction valve, size of the buffer tank, and gear shift time. After the initial analytical estimation of the actuator operating parameters, a numerical analysis of the vehicle operation of the pneumatic and drive systems of the vehicle was performed in the Simcenter Amesim program. In this program, a pneumatic system model was created together with the vehicle drive system. Finally, conclusions from the simulations are presented, showing how the pneumatic system should be built and how it should be powered to obtain the maximum range and the greatest acceleration of the vehicle.