The basic idea of the e²-Lenk project is simple: The wheels in an electric car will be driven individually by electric motors in contrast to a car with an internal combustion engine where all the wheels are provided with equal force. If the wheels on the left side transmit more drive torque to the road than those on the right side, this will result in acceleration of the vehicle to the right without the need to turn the front wheels or consume additional energy for steering. Tracked vehicles or quadrocopters steer using the same principle. "Steering assistance can be provided while driving by means of an intelligent control system and suitable wheel suspension", says Schaeffler engineer Mayer, Manager of the Automatic Driving Working Group, which is carrying out research as part of the collaborative research project SHARE (Schaeffler Hub for Automotive Research in E-Mobility) at KIT. "Only steering when stationary remains a challenge with conventional designs."
"The assisted steering system is part of the drive train with our approach", explains Frey who is researching at KIT's Institute of Vehicle Systems Technology. Steering the front wheels is carried out without using additional energy. "We also want to significantly increase the quality of driving. Customer benefit, comfort, safety and reliability go hand in hand here."
As part of the project, functional demonstrators are being built, with which the concepts can be validated and optimized in experiments. It is also planned to implement the system in last year's Formula Student racing car KIT built by the university group KA-RaceIng with the participation of the students.
e²-Lenk is the first publicly subsidized joint project as part of the collaborative research project SHARE at KIT between Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co. KG and KIT. This joint project is being managed at KIT's East Campus in a joint project management office run by SHARE at KIT and the Institute of Vehicle Systems Technolo-gy (FAST).
Leading Edge Cluster Electric Mobility South-West
Schaeffler and KIT are partners in the Electric Mobility Cluster of Excellence Southwest (ESW), which connects over 80 stakeholders from science and economics in the region Karlsruhe - Mannheim - Stuttgart - Ulm. The cluster strategy of the ESW cluster aims to achieve intensive regional collaboration in the field of electric mobility by means of new approaches and forms of cooperation. As a result, knowledge is developed, consolidated and ultimately advantages are achieved in international competition.
The Mobility Systems Center pools KIT activities relating to vehicle technology. Presently, 40 KIT institutes with about 800 employees are working on methodological and technical fundamentals for tomorrow's vehicles. It is their objective to develop concepts, technologies, methods, and processes for future mobility considering the complex interactions of vehicle, driver, traffic, infrastructure, and society.
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is a public corporation pursuing the tasks of a Baden-Wuerttemberg state university and of a national research center of the Helmholtz Association. The KIT mission combines the three core tasks of research, higher education, and innovation. With about 9,400 employees and 24,500 students, KIT is one of the big institutions of research and higher education in natural sciences and engineering in Europe.
Since 2010, the KIT has been certified as a family-friendly university.