Configurable and adaptable trucks and trailers for optimal transport efficiency

Today heavy duty trucks are designed and optimized towards a limited variance set of usage and for maximum payload. With European Commission's targets for reducing the consumption of fossil energy resources, increasing transport - and fuel efficiency, future trucks-trailers must be easily adaptable for each freight, load and mission. And during the operation phase, the vehicle combination automatically adjusts itself to the actual driving environment in terms of traffic situation, topology, and payload. The TRANSFORMERS project combines a modular approach for mission rightsizing by means of hybridization, truck engine downsizing and a trailer design that addresses simultaneously aerodynamics and load efficiency improvements. The overall goal is to achieve 25% energy load efficiency (in energy/km.tn) in a real world application taking into account the needs to maintain road infrastructure and traffic safety. This paper will give an introduction to the project, pre-standard for a hybrid on demand vehicle and its objectives towards greening surface transport.