The Smart Move trial is a suite of studies conducted between September 2009 and April 2011 and funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The approach adopted by Cenex follows technology from the laboratory to the test track through to real-world fleet deployment. This has yielded a comprehensive and unique evidence base for low carbon vehicle performance. A summary of the Smart Move work streams is presented below together with links to further information.
Real-world deployment
The Smart Move Case Studies - The Cenex Smart Move Case Studies report presents the results of a five month trial incorporating electric vehicles into major fleets across the UK looking at integration issues, attitudes, economics, carbon savings, technical performance of the vehicles and much more. The case studies and EV performance analysis focused on five organisations - Indesit (a household appliance manufacturer), Stagecoach (a bus operator), Commonwheels (a national car club), Groundwork (a national UK regeneration charity) and Asda (a supermarket). The full report can be downloaded here
The Smart Move trial, description and initial results - The description and initial results report details a study integrating the first generation demonstrator smart ed into public sector fleets in the North East of England during early 2010. The report demonstrated that back-to-base vehicle fleets can provide a successful ‘early adopter’ market for EVs, even in the absence of a widespread EV infrastructure network. The report was also one of the first to quantify the effect of range anxiety on vehicle usage patterns. The full ‘Smart move trial report’ can be downloaded here
Laboratory and test track evaluation
Driving style and duty variation – this study was completed in collaboration with Millbrook Proving Ground and highlighted the variation in motoring, regeneration and overall performance efficiency of an EV on different track based circuits. The work was referenced by the Energy Saving Trust as inspiring its EV driver training scheme. The full ‘Driving style and duty variation study’ report is available for download from here
EV range testing – range and energy consumption variation was studied in both the real-world and over laboratory drive cycles. The study looked at comparative performance of EVs over high speed, city, hill and urban test routes and is accompanied by a study of the Mitsubishi i-MiEVs three different drive mode settings on range. The full ‘EV studies seminar: range testing’ presentation is available for download from here
University collaborations
Efficiency of rapid charging systems – this study was performed by Cenex in collaboration with the University of Sunderland and Strathclyde University and quantified the efficiency of an EV rapid charging unit located at the Metro Centre shopping complex in Gateshead. The study highlighted the efficiency variation of the charger at different battery state of charge levels along with the power factor and harmonic distortion levels at the charger. The study highlighted that EV energy consumption can be reduced through appropriate and scheduled rapid charging, but also that charger and system design can play a significant role. The full ‘Efficiency of electric vehicle rapid charging systems’ paper is available for download from here
Performance of an EV during real-world usage – this study by Cranfield University looked at the real-world data from the Smart Move trial and examined the efficiency of the EV under differing road congestion levels on varying road types. The study also looked at the common operating points of the electric motor and compared the power demands on the EV batteries during the Smart Move trial with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) specification for EV battery testing.
Traffic flow – this study by the Transport Operations and Research Group at Newcastle University looked at the well-to-wheel emissions increase from EVs during stop-start city driving when compared with steady-state higher speed operation. It goes on to hypothesise how EV emissions can be reduced through the use of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS).
