CONVENIENT – Complete Vehicle Energy Saving Technologies for Heavy Trucks

This article presents an overview of the interim results achieved in the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7) project CONVENIENT “Complete Vehicle Energy Saving Technologies for Heavy Trucks” (No.312314) which started in November 2012 and concludes April 2016. From the customer viewpoint, fuel efficiency is top priority because of its significant impact in terms of cost (in the European Union (EU), fuel represents about 30% of the Total Operating Costs for a 40-ton tractor-semitrailer combination). Correspondingly, the CONVENIENT project targets a 30% reduction of fuel consumption in vehicles for long-distance freight transport by developing innovative heavy-trucks featuring a suite of innovative energy-saving technologies and solutions by adopting a holistic approach to on-board energy management, considering the tractor, semi-trailer, driver and the mission as a whole. The objective has been to achieve complete vehicle energy management by proposing highly innovative solutions for improved efficiency and enhanced integration of components currently designed independently, integrated and evaluated directly on validator vehicles including energy efficient sub-systems, energy harvesting and active/passive aerodynamics devices. The CONVENIENT Consortium comprises three major EU truck manufacturers, ten Tier 1/2 suppliers, and a network of nine research centres and Universities, representing European excellence in the field of long distance transport research & development (R&D).