Method for fast transient thermal analysis to simulate a vehicle drive cycle

A method for thermally evaluating a system including a heat engine, the method comprising:

• generating a thermal model of the system, including a plurality of components associated therewith including the heat engine;
• executing an experimental design employing the thermal model, wherein the experimental design includes a plurality of input variables and a plurality of output variables for each of the components under steady-state operating conditions, and wherein the output variables include a heat transfer coefficient and a film temperature;
• generating a meta-model for each of the components based upon the input variables and the output variables that are determined from executing the experimental design;
• obtaining, for the system, a time history including a time-based variation of the input variables associated with operating the system in each of a plurality of operating cycles;
• generating a time history for a heat transfer coefficient and a film temperature for each of the components based upon the meta-models for the components and the time histories for the plurality of input variables;
• importing the time history for the heat transfer coefficient and the film temperature for each of the components into a lumped-parameter thermal solver;
• and
• determining a time-temperature profile for one of the components employing the lumped-parameter thermal solver.

A device including a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions, that when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method for thermally evaluating a system including a heat engine, the instruction set executable to:

• generate a thermal model of the system, including a plurality of components associated therewith including the heat engine;
• execute an experimental design employing the thermal model, wherein the experimental design includes a plurality of input variables and a plurality of output variables for each of the components under steady-state operating conditions, and wherein the output variables include a heat transfer coefficient and a film temperature;
• generate a meta-model for each of the components based upon the input variables and the output variables that are determined from executing the experimental design;
• obtain, for the system, a time history including a time-based variation of the input variables associated with operating the system in each of a plurality of operating cycles;
• generate a time history for a heat transfer coefficient and a film temperature for each of the components based upon the meta-models for the components and the time histories for the plurality of input variables;
• import the time history for the heat transfer coefficient and the film temperature for each of the components into a lumped-parameter thermal solver;
• and
• determine a time-temperature profile for one of the components employing the lumped-parameter thermal solver.