Add Virtual Vehicle Custom Component

In Virtual Vehicle Composer, a component is any vehicle system, subsystem, or part that is specified in the Data and Calibration pane. Engines, electric motors, brakes, and tires are all components. If the default options for a certain component do not cover your needs, you can create or import one.

You can use a Custom component catalog to designate a list of custom components that you frequently use, such as a 600 N-m electric motor. You can create or import a component and add it to the catalog for future use. The catalog is an XML file that can point to saved components in different storage locations. All vehicle configurations within your project can access the custom component catalog.

You select the Custom component catalog file on the Setup pane.

You can add a component to the Custom component catalog in two ways:

• Modify an existing Virtual Vehicle Composer component and save it as a new component.

• Import your own Simulink^® component model and its data from another source. It must be compatible with the Model template you select.

Save a Modified Virtual Vehicle Composer Component

You can save a modified component. For example, assume you are configuring a battery-electric vehicle with a single motor having 600 N-m maximum torque, but the only option for an Electric Vehicle 1EM has 450 N-m. You can resize it to 600 N-m in Virtual Vehicle Composer and save it as a custom component.

On the Data and Calibration pane under Component Selection, select Electric Machine 1. Click on Motor Resize.

The motor has 450 N-m maximum torque and 211 kW maximum power. To increase the torque to 600 N-m but keep the speed capability the same, increase the desired torque and power by the same proportion. Type in 600 for Desired Torque[Nm] and 281000 for Desired Power[W]. Then click Resize Motor.

After resizing the motor, click on Parameters. The Save as New Component button is active.

On the next pane, type in the File name for your component. Click Save to save the data in a .mat file.

This motor is now a custom component. The motor is in the list under the default selection for Electric Machine 1. The File name is appended to the original component name.

Import a User-Defined Simulink Component Model

If you have a Simulink component model and its data from another source, you can import it to the Custom component catalog. It must be compatible with the Model template you select.

To import the component as a certain type, such as an Electric Machine 1, navigate to its section of the app. In the Custom Components section of the toolstrip, click Import Component.

In the Import Component pane, for Custom Data, click Browse.

In the next pane, navigate to your model file and select it. Click Open.

When the Import Component pane reappears, the Component Name is the component type appended with the filename of your imported component.

Click Import. This model is now a custom component that Virtual Vehicle Composer can reference.