Constrained nested logit model: formulation and estimation

A model of traveller behaviour should recognise the exogenous and endogenous factors that limit the choice set of users. These factors impose constraints on the decision maker, which constraints may be considered implicitly, as soft constraints imposing thresholds on the perception of changes in attribute values, or explicitly as hard constraints. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) To present a constrained nested logit-type choice model to cope with hard constraints. This model is derived from the entropy-maximizing framework. (2) To describe a general framework to deal with (dynamic) non-linear utilities. This approach is based on Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Spaces. The resulting model allows the dynamic aspect and the constraints on the choice process to be represented simultaneously. A novel estimation procedure is introduced in which the utilities are viewed as the parameters of the proposed model instead of attribute weights as in the classical linear models. A discussion on over-specification of the proposed model is presented. This model is applied to a synthetic test problem and to a railway service choice problem in which users choose a service depending on the timetable, ticket price, travel time and seat availability (which imposes capacity constraints). Results show (1) the relevance of incorporating constraints into the choice models, (2) that the constrained models appear to be a better fit than the counterpart unconstrained choice models; and (3) the viability of the approach, in a real case study of railway services on the Madrid–Seville corridor (Spain).     

Analytical study on the performance of a high power pretensioner

In this paper, a numerical procedure to estimate the performance of the high power pretensioner used in the seatbelt of a passenger vehicle is presented. The data on the gas explosion pressure in a 10-cc volume and the data on the displacement of the rack according to time were applied to the numerical procedure. The procedure was implemented using MATLAB. The testing device, which met the automobile industry standards, was created. Experiments were carried out seven times under the same conditions, and the mean values of the web retraction and belt load were used as the representative data. By comparing the simulation results to the test results, the numerical procedure presented in this paper was verified.     

Urban traffic studies from aerial photographs

Two problems concerning the use of aerial photographs for conducting traffic studies in urban areas are considered in this paper: (1) Suitable procedures requiring simple equipment and methods and the appropriate formulae for determining the traffic characteristics of density, volume, traffic count, speed, composition; (2) Problems relating to flight planning for traffic surveys from the points of view of duration of photography and the scale of the photography from considerations of the reliability of the determined traffic characteristics, vehicle identification, and also economy. The conclusions concerning the flight planning were applied in a test flight from which traffic data were determined as illustrated in a sample calculation.     

Simulation of an airbag deployment in out-of-position situations

The commonly used 'uniform pressure method' (UP) is a well-tried method to simulate an airbag deployment in accident cases. Nevertheless, this method indicates rather heavy inadequacies at the examination of the airbag deployment in the first milliseconds. A solution is the airbag deployment calculation by using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods, wherein the calculated gas flow pressure may be applied 'correctly' to the airbag shell elements.

This CFD simulation is integrated in LS-Dyna with the so-called Arbitrary Lagrangian Eulerian (ALE) method and in this review the result's accuracy will be discussed. According to the FMVSS 208, an OoP model will be built-on and comparisons with simulations and tests are done. Another important detail in this labour is the airbag cover examination and the tear seam modelling, as a trivial FE modelling cannot be done due to the very fine mesh. So two possible solutions for tear seam modelling are introduced and discussed. Furthermore considerations concerning the gas generator combustion will also be revealed and an analysis about the impossibility of the direct comparison between gas generator tank test and airbag deployment will be done. At least some parameters, which take effects in the simulation, are researched and evaluated, so finally an optimised simulation model can be made available for further examinations.     

Effect of the fuel injection strategy on first-cycle firing and combustion characteristics during cold start in a TSDI gasoline engine

The first firing cycle is very important during cold-start for all types of spark ignition engines. In addition, the combustion characteristics of the first firing cycle affect combustion and emissions in the following cycles. However, the first-cycle fuel-air mixing, combustion and emissions generation within the cylinder of a two-stage direct-injection (TSDI) engine during cold start is not completely understood. Based on the total stoichiometric air-fuel ratio and local richer mixture startup strategy, the first-cycle firing and combustion characteristic at cold start were investigated in a two-stage direct injection (TSDI) gasoline engine. In addition, the effects of the first injection timing, second injection timing, 1st and 2nd fuel injection proportion and total excess air ratio on the in-cylinder pressure, heat release rate and accumulated heat release were analyzed on the basis of a cycle-by-cycle analysis. It is shown that a larger 2nd fuel injection amount and later 2nd injection timing are more beneficial to the firing of the first cycle in the case of a total excess air ratio of 1.0. The optimum 1st and 2nd injection timing fuel injection proportions are 120°CA ATDC during the intake stroke, 60°CA BTDC during the compression stroke and 1:1. In addition, the firing boundary is a 2nd injection timing later than 90°CA BTDC during the compression stroke in the case of the 1st injection timing from 60°CA to 180°CA ATDC during an intake stroke and involves a 1st and 2nd fuel injection proportion of 1:1 and an excess air ratio of 1.0. The study provides a detailed understanding of cold-start combustion characteristics and a guide for optimizing the reliable first-cycle firing at cold start.     

Efficiency improvement for an unthrottled SI engine at part load

Variable valve timing (VVT) and cylinder deactivation (CDA) are promising methods in reducing fuel consumption and emission at part load in SI engines. An SI engine which uses electromagnetic valvetrain (EMV) will eliminate flow restriction from the throttle valve and produce higher indicated mean efficiency pressure (IMEP) due to the disabling of some of the working cylinders at part load. Therefore, pumping loss can be significantly reduced at part-load conditions. In addition, duration and timing of valve events are variably controlled at different operating conditions. This contributes to the improvement of engine efficiency. In this study, a dynamic model of an unthrottled SI engine has been developed to simulate the engine cycle. The model uses an EMV system that allows valvetrain control and cylinder deactivation techniques to be carried out in simulation flexibly. The simulated results find the optimal valve timing for different engine speeds. The optimal timing of intake valve closing depends on engine speed linearly, while the intake valve opening insignificantly influences engine performance. Additionally, this study also shows that cylinder deactivation modes can be successfully applied in improving engine efficiency at different engine loads. Different cylinder deactivation strategies have been applied for the full range of engine loads. It is concluded that the two-cylinder deactivation mode (50% CDA) considerably improves fuel consumption at low engine load. Meanwhile, one-cylinder deactivation (25% CDA) is an optimal fuel economy mode at medium engine load. With proper uses of VVT and CDA strategies, the efficiency of an SI engine can be increased more than 30% at low engine load and 11.7 % at medium engine load.     

Bees-algorithm-based optimization of component size and control strategy parameters for parallel hybrid electric vehicles

This paper presents the optimization of key component sizes and control strategy for parallel hybrid electric vehicles (parallel HEVs) using the bees algorithm (BA). The BA is an intelligent optimization tool that mimics the food foraging behavior of honey bees. Parallel HEV configuration and electric assist control strategy were used to conduct the research. The values of the key component size and the control strategy parameters were adjusted according to the BA to minimize the weighted sum of fuel consumption (FC) and emissions, while the vehicle performance satisfies the PNGV constraints. In this research, the software ADVISOR was used as the simulation tool, and the driving cycles FTP, ECE-EUDC and UDDS were employed to evaluate FC, emission and dynamic performance. The results demonstrate that the BA is a powerful tool in parallel HEV optimization to determine the optimal parameters of component sizes and control strategy, resulting in the improvement of FC and emissions without sacrificing vehicle performance. In addition, the BA is able to define a global solution with a high rate of convergence.     

冲击压实破裂稳固后对沥青混凝土加铺层结构影响的数值分析

采用有限元分析法,利用Ansys软件结合薄板理论和弹性地基板理论,建立板单元和连续半空间地基上的破裂后旧混凝土板块群与新加铺沥青混凝土路面的力学模型[1],计算分析加铺沥青混凝土面层厚度、基层强度及旧水泥混凝土路面破裂块度大小对加铺层结构的影响.     

La place des modèles de trafic dans les récentes modélisations des impacts environnementaux des transports. Importance de l’explicitation des méthodes et hypothèses

The authors present a recent development in the use of classic travel demand models (TDMs) to environmental impact assessment of transport, far from its initial target. By comparing previous cases found in the literature (Chester, Seoul, Florence, Brisbane and Saint-Etienne) with their present works (Eval-PDU in Nantes), the authors notice that their predecessors tend to be evasive on their use of TDM. Hence, traffic data are little discussed in these works, while their works constitute one of the main stakes in this kind of study. Indeed, the hypotheses for traffic modeling are impacting the next steps of the modeling chain (pollutants emission/dispersion). The importance of this first modeling stage implies that relevant attention has to be brought to their assumptions and input data.