The automotive industry has long been searching for efficient ways to improve vehicle performance such as drivability, fuel consumption, and emissions. Researchers in the automotive industry have tried to develop methods to improve fuel consumption and reduce the emission gases of a vehicle, while satisfying drivability and ride comfort issues. Today, by developing computer/software technologies, automotive manufacturers are moving more and more towards modelling a real component (prototype) in a software domain (virtual prototype). For instance, modelling the components of a vehicle's powertrain (driveline) in the software domain helps the designers to iterate the model for different operating conditions and scenarios to obtain better performance without any cost of making a real prototype. The objective of this research is to develop and validate physics-based powertrain models with sufficient fidelity to be useful to the automotive industry for rapid prototyping. Developing a physics-based powertrain model that can accurately simulate real phenomenon in the powertrain components is of great importance. For instance, a high-fidelity simulation of the combustion phenomenon in the internal combustion (IC) engine with detailed physical and chemical reactions can be used as a virtual prototype to estimate physical prototype characteristics in a shorter time than it would take to build a physical prototype. Therefore, the powertrain design can be explored and validated virtually in the software domain to reduce the cost and time of product development. The main focus of this thesis is on development of an internal combustion engine model, four-cylinder spark ignition engine, and a hydrodynamic torque converter model. Then, the models are integrated along with the rest of a powertrain's components (e.g. vehicle longitudinal dynamics model) through acausal connections, which represents a more feasible physics-based powertrain model for model-based control design. The powertrain model can be operated at almost all operating conditions (e.g. wide range of the engine speeds and loads), and is able to capture some transient behaviour of the powertrain as well as the steady state response. Moreover, the parametric formulation of each component in the proposed powertrain model makes the model more efficient to simulate different types of powertrain (e.g. for a passenger car or truck).

The problem of how to explain the fundamental nature of organisms for biology commonly falls under two causal systems, mechanistic and teleological. These systems however, fall into fundamental logical problems when put to the test. Many biologists also claim that these systems miss the essential nature of organisms. Historically one of the most important discussions of this problem occurs in Immanuel Kant’s Critique of Judgment, and this work has been chosen as the basis for an investigation of possible ways to avoid the inherent problems that occur with mechanistic and teleological explanations in current biology. By evaluating Kant’s claim, that organisms are not accurately describable by our standard causal explanations, it could be assessed in light of current discoveries whether we have the ability to develop a new causal or acausal system by which to explain organisms. From this analysis, and in agreement with Kant’s investigations of the problems of ‘design-like’ characteristics in organisms, both causal mechanistic and teleological explanations were found to be inapplicable for use in any comprehensive and accurate understanding of organisms and evolution. They are recommended at best to be considered as heuristics. Following this, an investigation of alternate methods of explanation apparently not prone to the problems of mechanistic and teleological causal explanations were characterised and assessed. This lead to the uncovering the system of extremal principles, a system that claims to be acausal and seems to have direct application to fundamental aspects of biology and evolution. This acausal system of extremal principles can for example, be used to describe the class of solitons. Types of solitons (biosolitons) exist in organisms and are important aspects of processes such as morphogenesis, DNA replication, self organization in the cytoskeleton, and locomotion to name a few. They also exhibit the properties of the quantum wave-particle fermions. It is proposed that further investigation of the system of extremal principles and their influence in biology through phenomena such as biosolitons can provide the basis for the development of a new acausal system of explanation or an extra aspect for standard causal models. This, it is concluded, will allow a potential avenue for creating a new and logically more consistent explanatory system in relation to fundamental aspects of the phenomenon of evolution, organisms and the environment.

Afin de satisfaire les besoins futurs en énergie et de réduire l’impact environnemental, l’application de l’énergie renouvelable propre a été récemment reconsidérée. Dans ce contexte, un intérêt croissant pour le système d’alimentation isolé a été mesuré.Le besoin de topologies de faible puissance alimentées par un générateur photovoltaïque, évitant l’utilisation de transformateur, accentue l’étude de systèmes d’alimentation autonomes de basse tension. D’où la nécessité d’étudier les stratégiesde contrôle associées garantissant la stabilité, la fiabilité et l’efficacité.À mesure que les systèmes d’alimentation autonome deviennent plus complexes, les non-linéarités jouent un rôle de plus en plus important dans le comportement du système. La modélisation doit refléter avec précision la dynamique des composants et du système. En outre, les outils d’analyse des systèmes dynamiques devraient être fiable, même dans différents régimes de fonctionnement, fournissant des prédictions précises du comportement de ces derniers. Ce travail est consacré à l’étude d’un système photovoltaïque autonome. La structure proposée se compose d’un panneau photovoltaïque, d’un hacheur et d’une charge connectée en cascade via un bus continu. Les efforts de recherche se concentrent sur le processus de modélisation et l’analyse de stabilité du système. Une implémentation avec une description complète du modèle est ainsi détaillée est validé epar des résultats de simulation. Après avoir donné l’état de l’art, le manuscrit est divisé en quatre parties. Ces parties sont dédiées à la modélisation d’une installation photovoltaïque, à l’amélioration de la simulation numérique, et à l’étude de dynamique de ce système sous contrôles numériques.La thèse présente un aperçu des modèles de générateurs photovoltaïques. Ensuite,un modèle électrique modifié du panneau photovoltaïque est proposé. Nous avons également détaillé le processus de modélisation de l’installation photovoltaïque.Un solveur amélioré de modèle Differential-Algebraic Equations (DAEs) est ensuite développé. Une dixième approche de modélisation est aussi présentée. Nous avons également décrit le système photovoltaïque par un modèle discret simplifié. Ensuite, l’analyse de stabilité du système étudié est détaillée. En outre, nous avons étudié le comportement chaotique qui apparaît dans l’installation photovoltaïque basée sur le hacheur à deux cellules. Le but de la dernière partie est de montrer comment stabiliser l’orbite chaotique du système. Enfin, pour atteindre cet objectif, la commande par retour d’état retardé Time-Delayed Feedback Control (TDFC) est appliquée. / In order to satisfy future energy requirement and reduce environmental impact, application of clean renewable energy, have been reconsidered recently. In this context, a growing interest in isolated power system has been observed. The need of low power topologies fed by photovoltaic array avoiding the use oftransformer open the study of small-scale stand-alone power system. Hence, theneed to study the associated control design strategies ensuring stability, reliability and high efficiency.As systems become more complex, nonlinearities play an increasingly importantrole in stand-alone power system behaviour. Modeling must accurately reflect component and system dynamics. In addition, analysis tools should continue to workreliably, even under various system conditions, providing accurate predictions of systems behaviour.This work is devoted to the study of a stand-alone photovoltaic power system.The proposed structure consists on photovoltaic array, a dc-dc buck converter, anda load connected in cascade through a dc bus. The research efforts focus on themodeling process and stability analysis, which leads to an implementation with acomprehensive description validated through simulation results.After giving the state-of-the-art in second chapter, the manuscript is divided into four chapters. These parts are dedicated to photovoltaic plant modeling, the numeric simulation improvements and dynamic investigation of the photovoltaic system under digital controls.The thesis presents an overview of the photovoltaic generator models. Then, amodified photovoltaic array model is proposed. We also detailed the photovoltaic plant modeling process. An improved Differential-Algebraic Equations (DAEs)solver is then investigated. We also described the photovoltaic system by a simplified discrete model. Then, the dynamic stability analysis is detailled. In addition,we have studied the chaotic behaviour that appears in the photovoltaic plant basedon the two-cell dc-dc buck converter.The aim of the last part is to show, using control theory and numerical simulation,how to apply a method to stabilize the chaotic orbit. Finally, to accomplish this aim, a time-delayed feedback controller is used.

This diploma thesis deals with creation of elektromechanical model in Modelica language which is subsequently imported into LabVIEW environment. The Modelica language, LabVIEW graphical programming tool and Functional Mock-up Interface 2.0 standard are described in the introduction of this thesis. Functional Mock-up Interface is a tool independent standard witch, defines a standardized interface to ModelExchange and Co-simulation of complex system components. The model of electromechanical system was created based on Functional Mock-up Interface standard. Part of the work focuses on the Functional Mock-up Unit storage possibilities and LabVIEW support to import models of this type. The imported model was simulated and tested in this environment. Finally, the instance of Functional Mock-up Unit was connected with LabVIEW FPGA target for the purpose of model HIL simulation on CompactRIO platform.

This thesis solves the use of Modelica models in Matlab/Simulink enviroment. The first part is focused on Modelica language and Functional Mock-up Interface, a standard way for model exchange and co-simulation of dynamic models, which is supported by most Modelica oriented tools. Based on this standard FMUtoolbox was created and it provides the ability to import and simulate models exported as Functional Mock-up Unit. The tool provides a Simulink block, graphical and command-line interface.

This thesis deals with modeling dynamics of printing machine, made by SOMA Engineering, in toolbox SimScape of simulation program Simulink/Matlab. There are descibed properties, progress, important principles and laws of modeling in this toolbox. The first part is focused on creating models, which consist as mechanical as eletrical and control parts. In the second part is explained how to create user interface to control models and creating standalone application, executable without installation of Matlab or Simulink. In last part is explained principle of identification parameters of material from the measured data, using an optimalization algorithm Nelder-Mead. Created models and identification algorithm are controlled via user interface.

Wie hoch ist die Leistungsdichte, Energieeffizienz, Fahrdynamik oder der Fahrkomfort? Wie wirken unterschiedliche, physikalische Systeme zusammen und wie können die mechatronischen Zusammenhänge verständlich dargestellt werden? Solche und andere Fragestellungen tauchen im Entwicklungsprozess immer wieder auf und lassen sich nur schwer zufriedenstellend beantworten. Die Systemsimulation liefert da einen effizienten Ansatz, welcher es dem Entwicklungsingenieur ermöglicht bereits in der Konzeptphase virtuelle Prototypen zu erstellen. Mit diesen kann dann das physikalische Verhalten simuliert, analysiert und anschließend optimiert werden. Dadurch ergibt sich bereits in den frühen Phasen der Produktentwicklung die Möglichkeit, alle zukünftigen Entscheidungen auf einer validen Basis zu treffen. ESI ́s SimulationX liefert für diese Anwendungsfälle eine umfassende softwaretechnische Lösung. Besonders im Bereich der E- Mobility sowie ihrer Peripherie ermöglicht die Software mit seinen anwendungsspezifischen Modellbibliotheken eine ganzheitliche Betrachtung.