Development and validation of a model to detect active gear via OBD data for a Through-The-Road Hybrid Electric Vehicle

Recently, the possibility of upgrading conventional vehicles to Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV's) is gaining interest. Among the different options for hybridization, researchers are focusing on electrification of rear wheels in front-driven vehicles, transforming the vehicle in a Through-The-Road (TTR) parallel HEV. This paper deals with the research work on the development of a kit for converting a conventional vehicle into a TTR Hybrid Solar Vehicle (HSV). In order to develop an effective and safe control strategy for wheel-motors, a precise real-time knowledge of the Driver Intention is required. In particular, the detection of the active gear is needed. In this paper, a mathematical model for the real-time identification of the active gear, using only data measured by the On Board Diagnostics (OBD) port, is presented and validated over on road experimental data.