Advancing Vehicle Technology Exploration with an Open-Source Simulink Model Featuring Commercial Truck Solutions

Abstract

In response to the EU’s stringent zero-carbon emission standards for 2035 and global initiatives to phase out fossil-fuel-powered vehicles, there is an urgent need for innovative solutions in vehicle propulsion systems. While much of the current research focuses on electric passenger cars, commercial vehicles remain relatively underexplored despite their significant potential impact on carbon neutrality goals. This study presents an open-source Simulink model specifically tailored for the analysis of electric commercial trucks, concentrating on the 6.5-ton category. Developed to assess the influence of various power components and control strategies on driving range, the model incorporates three validated powertrain configurations and features such as regenerative braking and one-pedal drive. Simulations are conducted under two real-world driving scenarios in the city of Taipei in Taiwan to evaluate different configurations’ effects on energy consumption and efficiency. Results indicate that optimizing the vehicle configuration can reduce power consumption by 26.3% and extend driving range by an additional 25.1 km on a single battery charge. By making the model and its source code publicly available, this research not only fills a critical gap in specialized evaluation tools for electric commercial vehicles but also serves as a valuable resource for both industrial assessments and educational purposes in the field of vehicle electrification.