Integrated Vehicle Design Laboratory
Automotive vehicle design is a challenging process that requires knowledge from a variety of disciplines, including engineering, business, policy, and industrial design. Many times these core disciplines and even their corresponding sub-disciplines have strong tradeoffs among one another, and so it becomes critical that design decisions are made in an integrated manner to account for these interactions.
In practice, this may be accomplished qualitatively through cross-disciplinary design teams. Although such approaches are both useful and necessary, they are limited since they do not explicitly address the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary interactions in a quantitatively rigorous manner.
Our mission is to complement qualitative methods for integrated vehicle design by developing and using novel, quantitative integrated design methods that can facilitate the determination of the best overall vehicle design solutions.
Faculty
Michael J Alexander-Ramos
Associate Professor-Educator, CEAS - Mechanical Eng
688 Rhodes Hall
August 2023 - Present
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
University of Cincinnati
Current Members
Thibaut Amoussougbo
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Automotive industries; design optimization; fuel-efficient vehicle; autonomous vehicle; manufacturing processes; entrepreneurship.
Saeed Azad
Ph.D. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Multidisciplinary modeling & design optimization of automotive systems; electric & hybrid-electric vehicle design; powertrain design; vehicle dynamics; crashworthiness; finite element analysis; computer-aided engineering.
Mustafa Bandukwala
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Multidisciplinary design optimization; hybrid-electric ground vehicles design; hybrid-electric propulsion turbine for UAV; automotive powertrain systems design.
Mohammad Behtash
Ph.D Pre-Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Multidisciplinary modeling & design optimization of automotive systems; electric & hybrid-electric vehicle design; powertrain design; vehicle dynamics; crashworthiness; finite element analysis; computer-aided engineering.
Sushrut Dandawate
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Hybrid-electric/electric vehicle design optimization; autonomous vehicle design optimization; EV battery utilization optimization; alternative energy sources for vehicle propulsion; connected vehicle systems
Abhivamshi Maduri
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Hybrid-electric vehicles; multidisciplinary design optimization; automotive systems design; autonomous vehicles; computer-aided design.
Sushant Thotakura
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Multidisciplinary design optimization; hybrid-electric vehicles; vehicle powertrains; alternate energy sources for vehicle propulsion; alternate powertrain for propulsion.
Former Members
Gulnaaz Afzal
M.S. Candidate, Aerospace Engineering
Research interests: Hybrid-electric propulsion systems; electric ears; autonomous driving systems; design, manufacture, and testing of Hyperloop; battery-enabled turboprops; flight control systems; fluid mechanics; design of noise cancellation device
Arian Houshmand
M.S., Mechanical Engineering (2016)
Sai Krishna Sumanth (Sumanth) Nakka
M.S. Candidate, Mechanical Engineering
Research interests: Hybrid-electric ground vehicles design; hybrid-electric UAV design; multidisciplinary design optimization; automotive systems design.
2020
- Saeed Azad successfully defended his Ph.D. dissertation, titled “Combined Design and Control Optimization of Stochastic Dynamic Systems”, on June 29. Congratulations Saeed!
2019
- Saeed Azad presented his paper titled “Reliability-based MDSDO for Co-design of Stochastic Dynamic Systems” at the 2019 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition, November 11-14, in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- Sumanth Nakka successfully defended his M.S. thesis, titled “Co-Design of Hybrid-Electric Propulsion System for Aircraft using Simultaneous Multidisciplinary Dynamic System Design Optimization”, on November 5. Congratulations Sumanth!
- Sushrut Dandawate, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2019. Welcome Sushrut!
- Gulnaaz Afzal successfully completed her M.Eng. capstone, titled “Parametric Study for Co-Design of a Series Hybrid-Electric UAV using Simultaneous MDSDO”, during Summer 2019. Congratulations Gulnaaz!
- Mustafa Bandukwala, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Summer 2019. Welcome Mustafa!
- Saeed Azad was selected as one of the 2019-2020 Graduate Student Engineers of the Month based on his academic performance, student leadership, and service to the broader college and university community. He will be honored during the month of December 2019. Congratulations Saeed!
- Saeed Azad successfully defended his Ph.D. candidacy exam, titled “Combined Design and Control Optimization under Uncertainty”, on April 26. Congratulations Saeed!
- Michael Alexander-Ramos presented the lab’s research work, titled "Co-Design of Large-Scale & Stochastic Dynamic Systems", at the U.S. Army CCDC Ground Vehicle Systems Center in Warren, Michigan, on April 8.
2018
- Gulnaaz Afzal recently published an article titled ‘’The Beginning and Rise of Hyperloop UC” that was featured on the CEAS website discussing Hyperloop UC. Congratulations Gulnaaz!
- Michael Alexander-Ramos presented his lab’s papers titled “Robust MDSDO for Co-Design of Stochastic Dynamic Systems” and “Decomposition-based MDSDO for Co-Design of Large-Scale Dynamic Systems” at the 2018 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences, August 26-29, in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
- Mohammad Behtash successfully defended his M.S. thesis, titled “A Decomposition-based Multidisciplinary Dynamic System Design Optimization Algorithm for Large-Scale Dynamic System Co-Design”, on July 5. Congratulations Mo!
2017
- Gulnaaz Afzal, an M.S. student in aerospace engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2017. Welcome Gulnaaz!
- Abhivamshi Maduri, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2017. Welcome Abhi!
- Michael Alexander-Ramos presented his lab’s paper titled “Comprehensive PHEV Powertrain Co-Design Performance Studies using MDSDO” at the 12th World Congress on Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, June 5-9, in Braunschweig, Germany.
- Michael Alexander-Ramos was selected as a Darwin T. Turner Scholars Program Breakfast of Champions honoree for his hard work and dedication to students in his MECH 2020 – Statics & Particle Dynamics class. Congratulations!
- Michael Alexander-Ramos presented the lab’s research work, titled "Multidisciplinary Dynamic System Design Optimization of Plug-In Hybrid-Electric Vehicle Powertrains", at NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, on January 27.
- Thibaut Amoussougbo, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Spring 2017. Welcome Thibaut!
- Sushant Thotkaura, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Spring 2017. Welcome Sushant!
- Sai Krishna Sumanth Nakka, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Spring 2017. Welcome Sumanth!
- Arian Houshmand successfully defended his M.S. thesis, titled “Multidisciplinary Dynamic System Design Optimization of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Powertrains”, on November 4. Congratulations Arian!
- Mohammad Sherbaf Behtash, an M.S./Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2016. Welcome Mohammad!
- Saeed Azad, a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2016. Welcome Saeed!
- Michael Alexander-Ramos presented the lab’s research work, titled "Multidisciplinary Dynamic System Design Optimization of Hybrid-Electric Vehicle Powertrains", at The Ohio State University's Center for Automotive Research (CAR) in Columbus, Ohio, on March 22.
- A new, refreshed course on design optimization (MECH6012 - Design Optimization) will be offered in Spring 2016. This course will introduce formal, mathematical modeling and optimization techniques as an effective approach for solving challenging engineering and product design problems.
- Arian Houshmand, an M.S. student in mechanical engineering, joined the IVDL in Fall 2015. Welcome Arian!
Peer-Reviewed Journal Publications
2020
- Azad, S. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “A Single-loop Reliability-based MDSDO Formulation for Combined Design and Control Optimization of Stochastic Dynamic Systems”, Journal of Mechanical Design [accepted].
- Nakka, S. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “A Simultaneous Combined Optimal Design and Control Formulation for Aircraft Hybrid-Electric Propulsion Systems”, Journal of Aircraft, 2020. DOI: 10.2514/1.C035678.
- Behtash, M. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “A Decomposition-Based Optimization Algorithm for Combined Plant and Control Design of Interconnected Dynamic Systems”, Journal of Mechanical Design, Vol. 142, No. 6, 2020. DOI: 10.1115/1.4046240.
- Azad, S. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “Robust MDSDO for Co-Design of Stochastic Dynamic Systems”, Journal of Mechanical Design, Vol. 142, No. 1, 2020. DOI: 10.1115/1.4044430.
2019
- Azad, S., Behtash, M., Houshmand, A., and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “PHEV Powertrain Co-Design with Vehicle Performance Considerations using MDSDO”, Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, Vol. 60, No. 9, 2019, 1155-1169. DOI: 10.1007/s00158-019-02264-0.
2011
- Alexander, M. J., Allison, J. T., Papalambros, P. Y., and Gorsich, D. J., "Constraint Management of Reduced Representation Variables in Decomposition-Based Design Optimization", Journal of Mechanical Design, Vol. 133, No. 10, 2011 [special issue]. DOI: 10.1115/1.4004976.
- Alexander, M. J., Allison, J. T., and Papalambros, P. Y., “Reduced Representations of Vector-Valued Coupling Variables in Decomposition-based Design Optimization”, Structural and Multidisciplinary Design Optimization, Vol. 44, No. 3, 2011, 379-391. DOI: 10.1007/s00158-011-0636-9.
- Alexander, M. J., Allison, J. T., and Papalambros, P. Y., "Decomposition-based Design Optimization of Electric Vehicle Powertrains using Proper Orthogonal Decomposition", International Journal of Powertrains, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2011, 72-92 [invited paper]. DOI: 10.1504/IJPT.2011.041910.
Conference Proceedings
2019
- Azad, S. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “Reliability-based MDSDO for Co-Design of Stochastic Dynamic Systems”, 2019 International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition, Salt Lake City, UT, November 11-14, 2019, IMECE2019-10632. DOI: 10.1115/IMECE2019-10632.[Typeset issue]
2018
- Azad, S. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “Robust MDSDO for Co-Design of Stochastic Dynamic Systems”, 2018 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, August 26-29, 2018, DETC2018-85855. DOI: 10.1115/DETC2018-85855.
- Behtash, M. and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “Decomposition-based MDSDO for Co-Design of Large-Scale Dynamic Systems”, 2018 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, August 26-29, 2018, DETC2018-85935. DOI: 10.1115/DETC2018-85935.[Typeset issue]
2017
- Azad, S., Behtash, M., Houshmand, A., and Alexander-Ramos, M. J., “Comprehensive PHEV Powertrain Co-Design Studies using MDSDO”, the 12th World Congress on Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, Braunschweig, Germany, June 5-9, 2017. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-67988-4_6.
2010
- Alexander, M. J. and Papalambros, P. Y., "An Accuracy Assessment Method for Two-Dimensional Functional Data in Simulation-Based Design", 13th AIAA/ISSMO Multidisciplinary Analysis Optimization Conference, Fort Worth, TX, September 13-15, 2010. DOI: 10.2514/6.2010-9134.
- Alexander, M. J., Allison, J. T., Papalambros, P. Y., and Gorsich, D. J., "Constraint Management of Reduced Representation Variables in Decomposition-Based Design Optimization", 2010 ASME International Design Engineering Technical Conferences, Montreal, Canada, August 15-18, 2010, DETC2010-28788. DOI: 10.1115/DETC2010-28788.
2009
- Alexander, M. J., Allison, J. T., and Papalambros, P. Y., "Reduced Representations of Vector-Valued Coupling Variables in Decomposition-Based Design Optimization", the 8th World Congress on Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, Lisbon, Portugal, June 1-5, 2009.
Courses
MECH 2020 – Statics & Particle Dynamics
MECH 6012 – Design Optimization
Other Relevant Courses
AEEM 6022 – Optimal Control
EECE 6019 – Probability and Random Processes
EECE 6036 – Intelligent Systems
MECH 6016 – Powertrain Design & Analysis
MECH 6096 – Internal Combustion Engines