Making sensible investment decisions with the help of simulations

The eMOBILE-PLAN planning system provides public transport companies and bus operators that are still at the very beginning of the changeover process with valuable support to make sound investment decisions. With the help of simulations, various deployment concepts can be tested and the effects on various operational areas analysed before the first e-buses are purchased. On which blocks can the e-buses be used? Is intermediate charging necessary? Which charging concept and infrastructure is ideal for each company? Will personnel and vehicle requirements increase? Questions like these and many more can be clarified with the help of eMOBILE-PLAN in order to rule out wrong decisions and safeguard investments. Particularly helpful in the initial phase: even the use of e-buses from different manufacturers can be simulated.

Precise knowledge of the range for efficient e-bus deployment

A good range prediction is important in the everyday use of electric buses, as the battery capacity does not decrease linearly but decreases depending on e. g. weather conditions (heating and cooling systems use energy) and topography. Historical vehicle and operating data from the evaluation system and current data such as the weather are used for the MOBILErange calculation. This makes it possible to avoid vehicle breakdowns. Precise knowledge of the range also means that fewer charging reserves need to be factored in. A good range prediction also has numerous advantages for dispatchers and supervisors: They have to intervene less in the planned process and, if the range does run short, they have more time to take appropriate dispatching measures. The vehicles' State of Charge (SoC) can be monitored in the fleet management system (e. g. LIVEavl) during each block.

Punctual, needs-based and cost-optimised charging

As the electric bus fleet gradually grows, the charging processes can no longer be managed without IT support. A charge management system is required that knows the charging status required for the next block and controls and monitors the charging processes accordingly. MOBILEcharge ensures that buses are charged on time, according to demand, preconditioned and cost-optimised at all times. This is achieved by reducing cost-intensive peak loads that drive up the price of electricity. To do this, MOBILEcharge creates a charging plan that distributes the charging processes over the entire period available for charging. This makes it possible to reduce the maximum charging capacity by 50 %.

Which vehicle should be used on which block? Vehicle scheduling is a complex process that becomes significantly more difficult with a growing bus fleet. With the additional complexity caused by the requirements of electromobility, excellent planning is practically impossible without IT support. This is where a depot management system such as eMOBILE-DMS comes in.

The system has all the essential information on charging, vehicles and planned blocks and takes it into account for scheduling: the vehicles with their equipment and charging status on arrival, the charging capacities in the depot, the possible parking spaces and the planned blocks with their requirements. Possible short-term changes in supply (i.e. the availability of vehicles) and demand (i.e. the upcoming blocks) will be considered when allocating parking spaces and blocks.