A MATLAB/Simulink-based closed-loop electric vehicle powertrain simulation platform for modelling vehicle dynamics, battery behaviour, PMSM motor performance, power flow, regenerative braking, and intelligent speed control.
Smart EV Powertrain Simulator integrates the major electrical, mechanical, and control subsystems of an electric vehicle into a single closed-loop MATLAB/Simulink simulation environment.
The Smart EV Powertrain Simulator is an engineering simulation project developed using MATLAB and Simulink to model the behaviour of a complete electric vehicle powertrain.
The simulator starts with a reference drive cycle, compares the desired vehicle speed with the actual vehicle speed, and uses a closed-loop driver controller to generate throttle and braking commands.
The commands are then processed through the EV powertrain:
Drive Cycle
│
▼
Driver Controller
│
├──────────────► Brake
│
▼
Battery
│
▼
Inverter
│
▼
PMSM Motor
│
▼
Transmission
│
▼
Vehicle Dynamics
│
▼
Vehicle Speed
│
└──────────── Feedback ────────────► Driver Controller
The project also includes a dedicated EV Powertrain Dashboard for monitoring important vehicle and powertrain parameters during simulation.
The main objectives of this project are:
- Model a complete EV powertrain using MATLAB/Simulink
- Develop a closed-loop vehicle speed controller
- Model battery power, voltage, current, and SOC
- Model inverter power conversion
- Model PMSM traction motor behaviour
- Implement single-speed transmission
- Model longitudinal vehicle dynamics
- Implement regenerative braking
- Analyse vehicle speed and acceleration
- Monitor powertrain parameters using a dashboard
- Perform engineering calculations using MATLAB scripts
- Organize simulation results and technical documentation
- LFP battery cell model
- Battery pack sizing
- Series/parallel cell calculation
- Battery voltage calculation
- Battery current calculation
- Battery power calculation
- SOC estimation
- Charge/discharge efficiency
- DC-side battery power input
- Motor-side power output
- Two-level inverter representation
- Configurable inverter efficiency
- Configurable modulation index
- PMSM traction motor model
- Power-to-torque conversion
- Torque-speed limitation
- Constant torque region
- Constant power region
- Motor RPM calculation
- Motor torque monitoring
- Motor power monitoring
- Single-speed transmission
- Gear reduction
- Torque multiplication
- Wheel torque calculation
- Vehicle-speed-to-motor-speed conversion
- Rolling resistance
- Aerodynamic drag
- Tractive force
- Braking force
- Road grade
- Vehicle acceleration
- Vehicle speed
- Vehicle distance
- Desired-speed input
- Actual-speed feedback
- Speed error calculation
- PID controller
- Throttle logic
- Brake logic
- Throttle limiting
- Brake command generation
- Regenerative braking logic
- Regenerative efficiency
- Maximum regenerative power
- Minimum regenerative operating speed
- Battery charging representation
The project includes a dedicated Simulink dashboard displaying:
Vehicle
- Vehicle Speed
- Brake Force
- Vehicle Distance
- Vehicle Acceleration
Battery
- SOC
- Battery Voltage
- Battery Current
- Battery Power
Motor / Powertrain
- Motor Torque
- Motor Power
- Motor RPM
The Smart EV Powertrain Simulator is built using engineering and simulation tools commonly used for electric vehicle powertrain development.
| Technology / Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| MATLAB | Engineering calculations, parameter management, component calculations and result generation |
| Simulink | Dynamic modelling and simulation of the complete EV powertrain |
| MATLAB Project | Project organization, path management and reproducible project setup |
| MATLAB Scripts (.m) | Battery, motor, inverter, transmission, vehicle dynamics and regenerative braking calculations |
| Simulink Models (.slx) | Integrated powertrain model, dashboard and subsystem-level simulation |
| MATLAB Function Blocks | Custom component behaviour such as battery, inverter, motor and vehicle dynamics |
| Scopes & Visualization | Monitoring battery, motor, vehicle and controller variables during simulation |
| Git | Version control and project history |
| GitHub | Remote repository, project documentation and source-code hosting |
The project combines several modelling approaches:
- Physics-based calculations for vehicle forces and power requirements
- Mathematical models for battery, inverter, motor and transmission behaviour
- Dynamic Simulink models for time-domain simulation
- Closed-loop control for vehicle speed tracking
- Drive-cycle based testing for evaluating vehicle response
- Regenerative braking modelling for energy recovery
- Data logging and visualization for analysing simulation results
.m → MATLAB calculation and configuration scripts
.slx → Simulink models
.prj → MATLAB Project file
.mat → Stored calculation and simulation results
.png → Generated plots, diagrams and project visuals
.md → Project documentation
The simulator uses SEV-01, a compact electric SUV configuration, as the reference vehicle.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Vehicle Type | Compact Electric SUV |
| Vehicle Mass | 1650 kg |
| Drive Configuration | Front Wheel Drive |
| Top Speed | 150 km/h |
| 0–100 km/h Target | 9.5 s |
| Passenger Capacity | 5 |
| Drag Coefficient | 0.30 |
| Frontal Area | 2.40 m² |
| Rolling Resistance Coefficient | 0.010 |
| Wheel Radius | 0.34 m |
The reference battery system uses an LFP 32700 cylindrical cell model.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Chemistry | Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) |
| Cell Type | 32700 Cylindrical |
| Nominal Cell Voltage | 3.2 V |
| Maximum Cell Voltage | 3.65 V |
| Minimum Cell Voltage | 2.50 V |
| Cell Capacity | 6 Ah |
| Continuous Current | 18 A |
| Peak Current | 30 A |
| Internal Resistance | 0.006 Ω |
| Cell Mass | 0.145 kg |
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Target Pack Voltage | 400 V |
| Target Pack Energy | 45 kWh |
| Initial SOC | 100 % |
| Maximum SOC | 100 % |
| Minimum SOC | 0 % |
| Maximum Battery Power | 50 kW |
| Discharge Efficiency | 95 % |
| Charge Efficiency | 90 % |
The traction motor is represented using a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM) model.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Motor Type | PMSM |
| Rated Power | 105 kW |
| Peak Power | 160 kW |
| Base Speed | 6000 RPM |
| Maximum Speed | 12000 RPM |
| Maximum Efficiency | 96 % |
The implemented motor characteristic contains two main operating regions:
Motor Torque
│
│─────────────── Constant Torque
│ Region
│
│ ╲
│ ╲
│ ╲ Constant Power
│ ╲ Region
│
└──────────────────────── Motor Speed
Base Speed
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Three-Phase Voltage Source Inverter |
| Topology | Two-Level |
| Switching Frequency | 10 kHz |
| Efficiency | 98 % |
| Modulation Index | 0.95 |
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Single Speed |
| Gear Ratio | 10.25 : 1 |
| Efficiency | 97 % |
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Regenerative Efficiency | 75 % |
| Maximum Regenerative Power | 80 kW |
| Minimum Regenerative Speed | 10 km/h |
Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator/
│
├── Documentation/
│ ├── Architecture/
│ ├── Battery.md
│ ├── Controller.md
│ ├── Design_Decisions.md
│ ├── Drive_Cycle.md
│ ├── Installation_Guide.md
│ ├── Inverter.md
│ ├── Motor.md
│ ├── Project_Log.md
│ ├── Regenerative_Braking.md
│ ├── Transmission.md
│ ├── User_Manual.md
│ └── Vehicle.md
│
├── DriveCycles/
│
├── Images/
│ ├── Dashboard.png
│ ├── Energy_Flow.png
│ ├── Motor_Characteristics.png
│ └── Powertrain_Model.png
│
├── Models/
│ ├── Smart_EV_Powertrain.slx
│ └── Smart_EV_Powertrain_Dashboard.slx
│
├── Results/
│ ├── DriveCycle/
│ ├── Motor/
│ ├── PerformanceSummary/
│ └── RegenerativeBraking/
│
├── Scripts/
│
├── .gitattributes
├── .gitignore
├── Coding_Standard.md
├── LICENSE
├── README.md
├── Run_Project.m
└── Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator.prj
Make sure the following are installed:
- MATLAB
- Simulink
- Git
A MATLAB installation capable of opening the included .slx models is required.
Open a terminal or Command Prompt:
git clone https://github.com/devsurya2004/Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator.gitNavigate into the project:
cd Smart-EV-Powertrain-SimulatorOpen:
Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator.prj
The MATLAB project file is recommended because it manages the project environment and paths.
Open:
Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator.prj
in MATLAB.
The calculation scripts are located in:
Scripts/
These scripts perform calculations for:
Vehicle
Battery
Motor
Motor Characteristics
Transmission
Inverter
Regenerative Braking
Drive Cycle
Performance Summary
Open:
Models/Smart_EV_Powertrain.slx
The main model integrates:
Drive Cycle
↓
Driver Controller
↓
Battery
↓
Inverter
↓
PMSM Motor
↓
Transmission
↓
Vehicle Dynamics
↓
Vehicle Speed
└──────────────► Feedback
Run the simulation using the Simulink Run button.
Open:
Models/Smart_EV_Powertrain_Dashboard.slx
The dashboard provides a high-level view of the simulated EV.
The project includes a dedicated Simulink dashboard for monitoring important vehicle and powertrain variables during simulation.
The dashboard provides visual monitoring of:
- Vehicle speed
- Vehicle acceleration
- Vehicle distance
- Battery SOC
- Battery voltage
- Battery current
- Battery power
- Motor torque
- Motor power
- Motor RPM
- Brake command
The PMSM traction motor is modelled using continuous torque-speed and power-speed characteristics.
The characteristics demonstrate the two main operating regions:
- Constant Torque Region: 0–6000 RPM
- Constant Power Region: 6000–12000 RPM
The model uses a base speed of 6000 RPM and a maximum motor speed of 12000 RPM.
Simulation and engineering results are organized inside:
Results/
Current result categories include:
Results/
├── Battery/
├── DriveCycle/
├── Inverter/
├── Motor/
├── PerformanceSummary/
├── RegenerativeBraking/
├── Simulink/
├── Transmission/
└── VehicleDynamics/
Selected plots and simulation outputs can be used to analyse the behaviour of the complete EV powertrain.
Detailed technical documentation is available in:
Documentation/
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| Battery | Battery modelling and calculations |
| Controller | Driver controller and PID control |
| Design Decisions | Major engineering decisions |
| Drive Cycle | Drive-cycle implementation |
| Installation Guide | Detailed installation procedure |
| Inverter | Inverter implementation |
| Motor | PMSM motor model |
| Regenerative Braking | Regenerative braking model |
| Transmission | Transmission model |
| User Manual | Detailed project usage |
| Vehicle | Vehicle dynamics model |
| Project Log | Development history |
The simulator follows a modular architecture where each major EV component is represented as an independent Simulink subsystem.
┌─────────────────┐
│ Drive Cycle │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Driver │
│ Controller │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Battery │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Inverter │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ PMSM Motor │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Transmission │
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Vehicle Dynamics│
└────────┬────────┘
│
▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ Vehicle Motion │
└────────┬────────┘
│
└──────► Feedback
Possible future improvements include:
- Detailed electrochemical battery modelling
- Battery thermal modelling
- Battery State-of-Health estimation
- Cell balancing
- Advanced BMS implementation
- Detailed PMSM dq-axis modelling
- Field-oriented control
- Detailed inverter switching model
- Semiconductor loss modelling
- Motor thermal modelling
- Tire-road interaction
- Advanced energy management
- Predictive control
- Hardware-in-the-loop implementation
- Real-time embedded implementation
Contributions, suggestions and improvements are welcome.
To contribute:
git clone https://github.com/devsurya2004/Smart-EV-Powertrain-Simulator.gitgit checkout -b feature/your-featureModify the relevant MATLAB, Simulink or documentation files.
git add .
git commit -m "Add your feature"git push origin feature/your-featureSubmit a Pull Request describing:
- What was changed
- Why it was changed
- How it was tested
- Any limitations or known issues
If you find a problem or have an improvement suggestion, please open an issue in the GitHub repository.
Useful issue information includes:
- Description of the problem
- MATLAB version
- Simulink version
- Steps to reproduce
- Error messages
- Screenshots where applicable
This project is licensed under the MIT License.
You are free to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the project, subject to the conditions of the license.
See the LICENSE file for the complete license text.
Suryadev P M
Electrical and Electronics Engineering
Interested in electric vehicles, power electronics, MATLAB/Simulink modelling, and powertrain systems.
Smart EV Powertrain Simulator
Project ID : SEV-01
Version : 1.0
MATLAB + Simulink
│
▼
Vehicle Dynamics
│
├── Battery
├── Inverter
├── PMSM Motor
├── Transmission
├── Driver Controller
└── Regenerative Braking
│
▼
Closed-Loop EV Simulation
│
▼
Dashboard Visualization
Smart EV Powertrain Simulator
Modelling the complete EV powertrain from drive cycle to vehicle motion.