Regenerative Brake

A regenerative brake is an energy recovery mechanism that

reduces vehicle speed by converting some of its kinetic energy into a useful form of energy instead of dissipating it as heat as in a conventional brake. The converted kinetic energy is stored for future use or fed back into a power system for use by other vehicles.

Electrical regenerative brakes in electric railways feed the generated electricity back into the supply system. In battery electric and hybrid electric vehicles, the energy is stored in a battery or bank of capacitors for later use. Energy may also be stored by compressing air or by a rotating flywheel.

Regenerative braking is not the same as dynamic braking, which dissipates the electrical energy as heat and does not maintain energy in a usable form.

The motor as a generator

Vehicles driven by electric motors use the motor as a generator when using regenerative braking: it is operated as a generator during braking and its output is supplied to an electrical load; the transfer of energy to the load provides the braking effect.

Regenerative braking is used on hybrid gas/electric automobiles to recoup some of the energy lost during stopping. This energy is saved in a storage battery and used later to power the motor whenever the car is in electric mode

Early examples of this system were the front-wheel drive conversions of horse-drawn cabs by Louis Antoine Krieger (1868-1951). The Krieger electric landaulet had a drive motor in each front wheel with a second set of parallel windings (bifilar coil) for regenerative braking.

An Energy Regeneration Brake was developed in 1967 for the AMC Amitron. This was a completely battery powered urban concept car whose batteries were recharged by regenerative braking, thus increasing the range of the automobile.

Many modern hybrid and electric vehicles use this technique to extend the range of the battery pack. Examples include the hybrids Toyota Prius, Honda Insight, and the Vectrix electric maxi-scooter.

Limitations

Traditional friction-based braking is used in conjunction with mechanical regenerative braking for the following reasons:

• The regenerative braking effect drops off at lower speeds, therefore the friction brake is still required in order to bring the vehicle to a complete halt, although malfunction of a dynamo can still provide resistance for a while. Physical locking of the rotor is also required to prevent vehicles from rolling down hills.
• The friction brake is a necessary back-up in the event of failure of the regenerative brake.
• Most road vehicles with regenerative braking only have power on some wheels (as in a 2WD car) and regenerative braking power only applies to such wheels, so in order to provide controlled braking under difficult conditions (such as in wet roads) friction based braking is necessary on the other wheels.
• The amount of electrical energy capable of dissipation is limited by either the capacity of the supply system to absorb this energy or on the state of charge of the battery or capacitors. No regenerative braking effect can occur if another electrical component on the same supply system is not currently drawing power and if the battery or capacitors are already charged. For this reason, it is normal to also incorporate dynamic braking to absorb the excess energy.
• Under emergency braking it is desirable that the braking force exerted be the maximum allowed by the friction between the wheels and the surface without slipping, over the entire speed range from the vehicle's maximum speed down to zero. The maximum force available for acceleration is typically much less than this except in the case of extreme high-performance vehicles. Therefore, the power required to be dissipated by the braking system under emergency braking conditions may be many times the maximum power which is delivered under acceleration. Traction motors sized to handle the drive power may not be able to cope with the extra load and the battery may not be able to accept charge at a sufficiently high rate. Friction braking is required to absorb the surplus energy in order to allow an acceptable emergency braking performance.

For these reasons there is typically the need to control the regenerative braking and match the friction and regenerative braking to produce the desired total braking output. The GM EV-1 was the first commercial car to do this. Engineers Abraham Farag and Loren Majersik were issued two patents for this 'Brake by Wire' technology.

Electric railway vehicle operation

During braking, the traction motor connections are altered to turn them into electrical generators. The motor fields are connected across the main traction generator (MG) and the motor armatures are connected across the load. The MG now excites the motor fields. The rolling locomotive or multiple unit wheels turn the motor armatures, and the motors act as generators, either sending the generated current through onboard resistors (dynamic braking) or back into the supply (regenerative braking).

For a given direction of travel, current flow through the motor armatures during braking will be opposite to that during motoring. Therefore, the motor exerts torque in a direction that is opposite from the rolling direction.

Braking effort is proportional to the product of the magnetic strength of the field windings, times that of the armature windings.

Savings of 17% are claimed for Virgin Trains Pendolinos. There is also less wear on friction braking components. The Delhi Metro saved around 90,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from being released into the atmosphere by regenerating 112,500 megawatt hours of electricity through the use of regenerative braking systems between 2004 and 2007. It is expected that the Delhi Metro will save over 100,000 tons of CO₂ from being emitted per year once its phase II is complete through the use of regenerative braking.

Another form of simple, yet effective regenerative braking is used on the London underground which is achieved by having largely imperceptible slopes leading up and down from stations. This exchanges kinetic energy for potential energy, where it can be stored until the train restarts.

Comparison of dynamic and regenerative brakes

Dynamic brakes ("rheostatic brakes" in the UK), unlike regenerative brakes, dissipate the electric energy as heat by passing the current through large banks of variable resistors. Vehicles that use dynamic brakes include forklifts, Diesel-electric locomotives and streetcars. If designed appropriately, this heat can be used to warm the vehicle interior. If dissipated externally, large radiator-like cowls are employed to house the resistor banks.

The main disadvantage of regenerative brakes when compared with dynamic brakes is the need to closely match the generated current with the supply characteristics and increased maintenance cost of the lines. With DC supplies, this requires that the voltage be closely controlled. Only with the development of power electronics has this been possible with AC supplies, where the supply frequency must also be matched (this mainly applies to locomotives where an AC supply is rectified for DC motors).

A small number of mountain railways have used 3-phase power supplies and 3-phase induction motors. This results in a near constant speed for all trains as the motors rotate with the supply frequency both when motoring and braking.

Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems

Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS) were used for the motor sport Formula One's 2009 season, and under development for road vehicles. However, KERS has been abandoned for the 2010 Formula One season. The Formula One Teams that used Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems in the 2009 season are Ferrari, Renault, BMW and McLaren. One of the main reasons that not all cars use KERS is because it adds an extra 25 kilograms of weight, while not adding to the total car weight, it does incur a penalty particularly seen in the qualifying rounds, as it raises the car's center of gravity, and reduces the amount of ballast that is available to balance the car so that it is more predictable when turning. FIA rules also limit the exploitation of the system. Eventually, during the season, Renault and BMW stopped using the system. Williams is developing a flywheel-KERS system. The concept of transferring the vehicle’s kinetic energy using Flywheel energy storage was postulated by physicist Richard Feynman in the 1950s and is exemplified in complex high end systems such as the Zytek, Flybrid, Torotrak and Xtrac used in F1 and simple, easily manufactured and integrated differential based systems such as the Cambridge Passenger/Commercial Vehicle Kinetic Energy Recovery System (CPC-KERS)

Xtrac and Flybrid are both licensees of Torotrak's technologies, which employ a small and sophisticated ancillary gearbox incorporating a continuously variable transmission (CVT). The CPC-KERS is similar as it also forms part of the driveline assembly. However, the whole mechanism including the flywheel sits entirely in the vehicle’s hub (looking like a drum brake). In the CPC-KERS, a differential replaces the CVT and transfers torque between the flywheel, drive wheel and road wheel.

Use in motor sport

History

The first of these systems to be revealed was the Flybrid. This system weighs 24  kg and has an energy capacity of 400

kJ after allowing for internal losses. A maximum power boost of 60  kW (81.6 PS, 80.4 HP) for 6.67 s is available. The 240  mm diameter flywheel weighs 5.0  kg and revolves at up to 64,500 rpm. Maximum torque is 18  Nm (13.3 ftlbs). The system occupies a volume of 13 liters.

Two minor incidents have been reported during testing of KERS systems in 2008. The first occurred when the Red Bull Racing team tested their KERS battery for the first time in July: it malfunctioned and caused a fire scare that led to the team's factory being evacuated. The second was less than a week later when a BMW Sauber mechanic was given an electric shock when he touched Christian Klien's KERS-equipped car during a test at the Jerez circuit.

FIA

Formula One teams have said they must respond in a responsible way to the world's environmental challenges, and the FIA allowed the use of 81 hp (60  kW) KERS in the

regulations for the 2009 Formula One season. Teams began testing systems in 2008: energy can either be stored as mechanical energy (as in a flywheel) or as electrical energy (as in a battery or supercapacitor). Due to high cost, FOTA teams agreed to drop KERS from the 2010 season onwards, but this is still an open issue as Williams F1 said it will use KERS in 2010 and changes to the regulations must be agreed by all teams. Vodafone McLaren Mercedes became the first team to win a F1 GP using a KERS equipped car when Lewis Hamilton won the Hungarian Grand Prix on July 26, 2009. Their second KERS equipped car finished fifth. At the following race Lewis Hamilton became the first driver to take pole position with a KERS car, his team mate, Heikki Kovalainen qualifying second. This was also the first instance of an all KERS front row. On August 30, 2009, Kimi Räikkönen won the Belgian Grand Prix with his KERS equipped Ferrari. It was the first time that KERS contributed directly to a race victory, with second placed Giancarlo Fisichella claiming "Actually, I was quicker than Kimi. He only took me because of KERS at the beginning".

Autopart makers

Bosch Motorsport Service is developing a KERS for use in motor racing. These electricity storage systems for hybrid and engine functions include a lithium-ion battery with scalable capacity or a flywheel, an four to eight kilogram electric motor [with a maximum power level of 60  kW (81  hp)], as well as the KERS controller for power and battery management. Bosch also offers a range of electric hybrid systems for commercial and light-duty applications.

Carmakers

Automakers including Honda has been testing KERS systems. At the 2008 1000  km of Silverstone, Peugeot Sport unveiled the Peugeot 908 HY, a hybrid electric variant of the diesel 908, with KERS. Peugeot plans to campaign the car in the 2009 Le Mans Series season, although it will not be capable of scoring championship points.

Vodafone McLaren Mercedes began testing of their KERS in September 2008 at the Jerez test track in preparation for the 2009 F1 season, although at that time it was not yet known if they would be operating an electrical or mechanical system. In November 2008 it was announced that Freescale Semiconductor would collaborate with McLaren Electronic Systems to further develop its KERS for McLaren's Formula One car from 2010 onwards. Both parties believed this collaboration would improve McLaren's KERS system and help the system filter down to road car technology.

Toyota has used a supercapacitor for regeneration on Supra HV-R hybrid race car that won the 24 Hours of Tokachi race in July 2007.

Motorcycles

KTM racing boss Harald Bartol has revealed that the factory raced with a secret Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) fitted to Tommy Koyama's motorcycle during the 2008 season-ending 125cc Valencian Grand Prix. This was illegal and against the rules. so they were later banned from doing it afterwards.

Races

Automobile Club de l'Ouest, the organizer behind the annual 24 Hours of Le Mans event and the Le Mans Series is currently "studying specific rules for LMP1 which will be equipped with a kinetic energy recovery system. " Peugeot was the first manufacturer to unveil a fully functioning LMP-1 car in the form of the 908 HY at the 2008 Autosport 1000  km race at Silverstone