The University of British Columbia, Capstone Project for my Master of Engineering Study
Design and Simulation of an Electric-Hydraulic Cargo Bicycle
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Creative Fields: Engineering, Design, Simulation
Completion Date: August 2023
Skills: SolidWorks Design and Simulation Tools, ANSYS Fluent CFD Analysis, Python Math
Background: The main purpose of this project is to utilize the high-torque nature of hydraulic motors to help with heavy-duty cargo bicycles. To further optimize the system’s efficiency, a front fairing was proposed by Yulin.
Official Report:
Powertrain Parts Selection:
Researched regulations and product scenarios
Developed a Python script to showcase the range and power output of the system for different motor, hydraulic power unit, and battery size
Selected hydraulic and electric system parts based on research and engineering analysis
Designed an innovative gear-chain system for the hydraulic power system
Integrated selected parts into the bicycle frame, designed necessary connection parts
Validated the part design under working stress using SolidWorks FEA Simulation tools
Fairing Design and CFD Simulation:
Designed a front fairing to replace the conventional cargo box, to improve the aerodynamics of the bicycle and increase the cargo capacity
Setup computational fluid dynamic simulation in ANSYS Fluent to understand the airflow through the bicycle and validate the fairing design
Optimized the fairing design and achieved a drag coefficient of 0.337, which is 50% lower than the bicycle without the fairing
Increased theoretical range nearly 100 km
Contribution and Disclaimer:
This project was assigned by my M.Eng. supervisor, Dr. Dana Grecov, and was planned as a one-person project. Therefore, the show result was contributed by myself, based on existing studies by previous researchers Hongyu Zhu and Colin Noort, and with great guidance from my advisor Mohammad Javad Shariatzadeh.