VERA will develop, optimise and demonstrate innovative tailpipe retrofit solutions that address particle (sub-23nm) and NOx emissions of road vehicles running on gasoline and natural gas and driving high mileages within the city (taxi, delivery van, bus), while particular considerations will be made for NH3 emissions. System adaptability will be ensured by a central development methodology for all the retrofit systems, allowing fast and accurate optimisation according to the requirements of each application, while the cost will be minimised using innovative washcoats and compact packaging. A variety of brake retrofit solutions will be developed, deployed and optimised for brake particle emissions of road vehicles, comprising an active filtration system capturing the generated particles and innovative brake discs and pads to reduce brake wear. The combination of the two solutions will aim at the maximum reduction of brake particles, while alternative production techniques will be applied to reduce the cost. Brake particles from metro applications will be also addressed with an active filtration system and properly machined pads, covering two types of braking technologies. The brake solutions of VERA combine unique advantages: they can all be used for first installation on new vehicles, the discs and pads can be manufactured for any vehicle as replacement parts, while the capturing system can be applied from road vehicles to metros. Further to the systems, exposure of workers and passengers in a metro station will be assessed with combined field measurements and modelling of particle dispersion inside stations and tunnels. Following the detailed evaluation of the systems, an impact assessment study will highlight the benefits of the proposed solutions against their cost. Both environmental and health impacts will be analysed, while possible incentive and regulatory schemes for retrofitting will be considered in the scenarios of the cost-benefit analysis.

The project brings together ten participants from industrial and academic backgrounds to provide innovative and mass-production optimised components enabling the efficient integration of powertrain and chassis systems, which will increase EV range and user acceptance. Given the recent progress related to in-wheel motors technology, and the benefits of in-wheel architectures in terms of active safety, packaging and drivability, EVC1000 will focus on in-wheel drivetrain layouts, as well as a wheel-centric integrated propulsion system and EV manager. More specifically, the consortium will develop: - New components for in-wheel powertrains: i) Efficient, scalable, reliable, low-cost and production-ready in-wheel motors, suitable for a wide range of torque and power specifications; and ii) Dual inverters for in-wheel motor axles based on Silicon Carbide technology. The designs will include detailed consideration and measurement of the electro-magnetic compatibility aspects, as well as the implementation of model-predictive health monitoring techniques of the electronic components. - New components for electrified chassis control with in-wheel motors: i) Brake-by-wire system for seamless brake blending, high regeneration capability and enhanced anti-lock braking system control performance; and ii) Electro-magnetic active suspension actuators, targeting increased comfort and electric vehicle efficiency. - Controllers for the novel EVC1000 components, exploiting the benefits of functional integration, vehicle connectivity and driving automation for advanced energy management The new EVC1000 components will be showcased in two production-ready electric vehicle demonstrators of different market segments. EVC1000 will assess the increased energy efficiency and will include demonstration of long distance daily trips. The vehicle demonstration phase will consider objective and subjective performance indicators for human factor analysis, to deliver enhanced customer experience.

The aim of ACHILES is to develop a more efficient E/E control system architecture optimized for the 3rd generation of EVs by integrating four new technological concepts. Firstly, a new wheel concept design will be equipped with full by-wire braking, including a new friction brake concept. Secondly, a centralized computer platform will host the e-drive functionalities and reduce the number of ECUs and networks while fulfilling safety & security requirements. It will support centralized domain controllers required to implement high automation and autonomy concepts, a key requirement for smart mobility. Thirdly, an out of phase control that will allow to intentionally operate the electric motor inefficiently to dissipate the excess of braking energy in case of fully charged batteries. As a fourth concept, a new torque vectoring algorithm will significantly improve the vehicle dynamics. The advances proposed will reduce the total cost of ownership by 10% and increase the driving range by at least 11% while increasing autonomy. ACHILES will be tested and verified in a real demo vehicle and in a brand-independent testing platform. The project consortium is another major asset. Audi, one of the technologically most advanced OEMs, will integrate these technologies to a next generation of EVs prototype. As a leading supplier, Continental will contribute by the innovative brake system. Elaphe, a leading technology company for e-motor design, will develop the suitable motor technology. TTTech, known for its future oriented network technologies for AI and autonomy-based systems, will be responsible for the networking technology. The academia team consists of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Coordinator), Tecnalia, Ikerlan and the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft. It will provide the technological basis, the modelling and the algorithms for this challenging endeavour. Finally, Idiada will conduct the testing and evaluations verifying and proving the achievement of the promised innovation.

Hi-Drive addresses a number of key challenges which are currently hindering the progress of developments in vehicle automation. The key aim of the project is to focus on testing and demonstrating automated driving, by improving intelligent vehicle technologies, to cover a large set of traffic environments, not currently achievable. Hi-Drive enables testing of a variety of functionalities, from motorway chauffeur to urban chauffeur, explored in diverse scenarios with heterogeneous driving cultures across Europe. In particular, the Hi-Drive trials will consider European TEN-T corridors and urban nodes in large and medium cities, with a specific attention to demanding, error-prone, conditions. The project’s ambition is to considerably extend the operational design domain (ODD) from the present situation, which frequently demands interventions from the human driver. Therefore, the project concept builds on reaching a widespread and continuous ODD, where automation can operate for longer periods and interoperability is assured across borders and brands. The project also investigates what factors influence user behavior and acceptance, as well as understanding the needs of other road users interacting with these vehicles. The removal of fragmentation in the ODD is expected to give rise to a gradual transition from a conditional operation towards higher levels of automated driving. With these aims, Hi-Drive associates a consortium of 41 European partners with a wide range of interests and capabilities covering the main impact areas which affect users, and the transport system, and enhance societal benefits. The project intends to contribute towards market deployment of automated systems by 2030. All this cannot be achieved by testing only. Accordingly, the work includes outreach activities on business innovation and standardization, plus extended networking with the interested stakeholders, coordinating parallel activities in Europe and overseas.