Vehicle Dynamics I: Accelerating and Braking (iversity)

Vehicle Dynamics I: Accelerating and Braking (iversity)

From Bugatti Veyron to Volkswagen Beetle, from racing to passenger car: study about their acceleration and braking and learn from two applications from automotive mechatronics.

In this first part of Vehicle Dynamics, we illuminate the longitudinal dynamic aspects of vehicles.
Clear and brief: acceleration and braking.
In Detail: After an introduction, we will look at driving resistances and slip, explain the demand of power and limits of a car, then clarify the needs for a clutch and gears and look at the rear and front weights during acceleration and braking. The course will be finished by two applications from automotive mechatronics.
By the end of the course you will …

  • understand basic principles of accelerating and braking a car.
  • know the driving resistances and their influences on vehicle dynamics.
  • understand the discrepancy between demands and limits of powertrain.
  • understand the necessity of gears and clutch.
  • understand the correlation between braking, wheel load and recovery of energy.
  • be able to calculate simple properties of a car.

Course structure

This course has a total of 12 chapters, and the topics for each chapter are the following:
Chapter 1: Preliminaries
Chapter 2: Introduction and Rolling Resistance
Chapter 3: Resistances: Grading, Acceleration, Aerodynamic Drag
Chapter 4: Real and ideal characteristic maps
Chapter 5: Approximation of the ideal map: Clutch and transmission
Chapter 6: Driving performance and axle loads
Chapter 7: ABS: Anti-lock Braking System
Chapter 8: ACC
Chapter 9: Homework Solutions Chapters 1 -3
Chapter 10: Homework Solutions Chapter 4 - 5
Chapter 11: Homework Solutions Chapter 6 - 8
Chapter 12: Solution of the exam

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Cómo autoconstruir tu vivienda (Coursera) Coursera
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Cómo autoconstruir tu vivienda (Coursera)

Aprenderás las bases y los procedimientos precisos paso a paso para que puedas llevar a cabo la autoconstrucción de una vivienda básica, segura y económica para ti y tu familia; también te será de gran utilidad si estás buscando aprender a reparar, mejorar la estructura de tu vivienda e incluso si buscas autoemplearte.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Designing Effective Science Communication (Coursera) Coursera
University of Colorado Boulder

Designing Effective Science Communication (Coursera)

Although many would prefer to leave science in the past and no longer engage with it once completing compulsory science classes in school, the reality is that engaging with science is an integral part of our daily lives. Moreover, for the safety and wellness of human society, it is necessary to engage with scientific information. We are faced with the necessity of examining scientific evidence on topics ranging from conservation to public health and make decisions that impact not only our families but those around us.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Vehicle Dynamics III: Vertical oscillations (iversity) Iversity
Helmut-Schmidt-Universität - Universität der Bundeswehr Hamburg

Vehicle Dynamics III: Vertical oscillations (iversity)

From Bugatti Veyron to Volkswagen Beetle, from racing to passenger car: Learn how they behave on a country road and on the autobahn! In this third part of Vehicle Dynamics, we will illuminate the vertical dynamic aspects of vehicles. In short, we will describe the elements involved when a car drives on a bumpy or rough street.

No sessions available
13-24 Weeks
Quantitative Formal Modeling and Worst-Case Performance Analysis (Coursera) Coursera
EIT Digital

Quantitative Formal Modeling and Worst-Case Performance Analysis (Coursera)

Welcome to Quantitative Formal Modeling and Worst-Case Performance Analysis. In this course, you will learn about modeling and solving performance problems in a fashion popular in theoretical computer science, and generally train your abstract thinking skills. After finishing this course, you have learned to think about the behavior of systems in terms of token production and consumption, and you are able to formalize this thinking mathematically in terms of prefix orders and counting functions. You have learned about Petri-nets, about timing, and about scheduling of token consumption/production systems, and for the special class of Petri-nets known as single-rate dataflow graphs, you will know how to perform a worst-case analysis of basic performance metrics, like throughput, latency and buffering.

Nov 16th 2026
4 Weeks
Introduction to Physical Chemistry (Coursera) Coursera
University of Manchester

Introduction to Physical Chemistry (Coursera)

Chemical reactions underpin the production of pretty much everything in our modern world. But, what is the driving force behind reactions? Why do some reactions occur over geological time scales whilst others are so fast that we need femtosecond-pulsed lasers to study them? Ultimately, what is going on at the atomic level? Discover the answers to such fundamental questions and more on this course in introductory physical chemistry.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Major Engineering Projects: Governance, Risk and Scope (Coursera) Coursera
University of Leeds

Major Engineering Projects: Governance, Risk and Scope (Coursera)

Gain confidence when dealing with stakeholders of major projects by learning to identify and manage those that are involved in the project planning and delivery. This course will enable you to explore project governance in theory and practice. Through real life examples you’ll understand how the critical challenges of the governance in major projects are resolved.

Nov 9th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There (Coursera) Coursera
University of Michigan

Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There (Coursera)

This course provides an introduction to the most powerful engineering principles you will ever learn - Thermodynamics: the science of transferring energy from one place or form to another place or form. We will introduce the tools you need to analyze energy systems from solar panels, to engines, to insulated coffee mugs. More specifically, we will cover the topics of mass and energy conservation principles; first law analysis of control mass and control volume systems; properties and behavior of pure substances; and applications to thermodynamic systems operating at steady state conditions.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
The Diversity of Exoplanets (Coursera) Coursera
University of Geneva

The Diversity of Exoplanets (Coursera)

In this MOOC, you will have the opportunity to practice several methods of detection and characterisation of exoplanets. You will discover their statistical properties and the current state of knowledge we have in this very recent field of research. You will also understand the limitations and biases of the different detection techniques.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks