Overview: Mobility & Production

Environmental stress and scarcity of raw materials necessitate rethinking mobility and production. Researchers in the Field of Expertise Mobility & Production at TU Graz investigate novel vehicle technologies and drive systems as well as information and data transmission for traffic control and positioning.

They also develop more economical and time-saving product manufacturing processes that allow for design changes and novel materials without loss of quality. Research results of TU Graz deliver ground breaking solutions to today’s challenges in terrestrial and air traffic, aerospace and production engineering and management. 

Engine and Powertrain

• Thermodynamic working process of combustion engines
• Engine development and construction
• Development and trial of simulation tools
• Development of measuring and testing technology
• Propulsion systems
• Driving dynamics
• Development of fuel surrogates
• Calculation and measurement of emissions and air pollution
• Identification of emission factors, emission prognoses, air quality measurements, gathering data regarding the spread of pollution
• Evaluation and development of alternative concepts

Electromobility

• Drive concepts for electric and hybrid vehicles and their implementation
• Regulation and energy concepts of electric vehicles
• Comparison of different hybrid concepts
• Driving dynamics of electric vehicles
• Human-machine interface and operating concepts
• Challenges for production
• Safety of electric vehicles and batteries
• Energy supply in electric vehicles

Hydrogen-based mobility

• Fuel cell development, monitoring and control
• Development of vehicle drive systems based on fuel cells and internal combustion engines
• Accelerated stress-, safety and runaway tests
• Hydrogen: Component development, storage and safety issues
• Fuel reformer

Active and passive safety

• Theoretical and experimental driving dynamics
• Modelling and simulation of chassis components
• Wheel-rail contact
• Innovative propulsion systems
• CAD-CAE technologies
• Accident research
• Biomechanics
• Integrated vehicle safety
• Occupant and co-driver protection
• Development of new testing methods
• New development methods

Production and Process Technology 

• Additive manufacturing (powder and wire based)
• Forming technologies and precision machining
• Non-circular grinding of powertrain parts
• Materials modelling and selection
• Process design and simulation
• Joining technologies and failure analysis
• Material-flow planning and simulation
• Agility and data security in production (smartfactory@tugraz)
• Energy and resource management in production
• Processes for the sustainable production of energy carriers such as hydrogen and methanol
• Industrial engineering, factory and location planning
• Business IT and optimisation methods
• Systems engineering, modelling and simulation

around 120 researchers from 7 faculties of TU Graz