Class-8 Heavy Truck Duty Cycle Project Final Report - Center for ...

7. LESSONS LEARNED
The HTDC project spanned a period of over three years; covered many facets of research and
engineering; and involved many researchers, engineers, technicians, and industry professions; thus
the lessons learned were varied. They include both positive and negative lessons. Some lessons
learned were immediately incorporated into the testing protocols being employed at the time and
allowed for more productive and efficient research and data collection. Other lessons learned were of
a nature that did not allowed for more immediate or short-term adaption; however they may be of
possible benefit for future research.
For the purposes of this discussion, lessons learned will be discussed in two sections: Positive and
Negative. The negative lessons learned have been separated into corrected/incorporated and unable
to correct/incorporate.
7.1 POSITIVE
Many facets of the partnership development, testing, and data collection proved to be valuable to the
overall program in ways that were not originally identified or fully appreciated. These are described
in the following positive lessons learned.
7.1.1 Lessons Learned from the Pilot Test
Because of the effort put forth by Dana and ORNL in the Pilot Test and by ORNL in the Build-Up
Phase, the DAS system functioned quite well during the FOT. There was very little down-time
related to equipment internal to the test vehicle (VBox, eDAQ).
Lesson Learned: In-situ testing of final equipment configurations, along with n appropriate burn-in
period for all systems to be employed in the test is an effective way to insure longevity and robustness
of equipment during a real-world FOT.
7.1.2 Routine Data Collection Procedures
Additional lessons learned in the pilot phase of this project were assimilated during the FOT resulting
in a simplification of the task at hand, or an improvement in the quality of the results. Specifically,
technical problems that were identified during the Pilot Test were corrected and incorporated in the
software and procedures used in this phase. The data uploading and archiving procedures employed
in this phase resulted in quick problem diagnosis and minimal data loss.
Lesson Learned: Data should be downloaded frequently and basic statistics should be generated
closely thereafter in order to determine that the sensors are working as expected.
Lesson Learned: Data should be backed up often to prevent data losses from memory overflow.
7.1.3 Fleet Selection
Schrader is a forward-looking, technology-savvy fleet. This facilitated good understanding and
insightful communication between Schrader and ORNL regarding the HDTC goals and objectives as
well as ORNL’s approach to conducting this research. This, in turn, allowed the integration of the
data collection equipment within the test vehicles of the FOT to proceed efficiently.
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