Off-Highway Vehicle Engineering (OHVE)
The Department of Industrial Engineering (DIN) and the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL) offer the specialization on Off-Highway Vehicles mainly focusing on agricultural and earth moving machinery.
These machines are complex, integrating a wide range of mechanical, hydraulic, and electrical systems designed to perform various tasks, such as material handling, road transport, and field operations. Furthermore, modern machinery incorporates advanced technologies like GPS, automated steering, and precision farming tools. Designing such vehicles requires specialized knowledge and training, as well as a solid understanding of the interaction between the vehicle and its environment.
The Off-Highway Vehicle Engineering (OHVE) program equips professionals with the skills necessary for the development of off-highway vehicles. The curriculum covers key topics such as electrification, fluid power systems, terramechanics, precision farming, power transmissions, and their control.
The knowledge will be provided using a learning-by-doing approach leveraged by the involvement of major worldwide manufacturers of agricultural machinery and using the large experimental farm of University of Bologna (AUB) as basecamp of field activities where students can be in touch with vehicles.
Enrolled students will take the following specialisation courses in powertrain which are offered in the 2nd and 3rd semester of the program:
- Electric Drives/Electric Propulsion Systems
- Fluid power actuation
- Power transmission and terramechanics for off highway vehicles
- Off-highway vehicle dynamics
- Precision farming machinery
- Computer aided design and product lifecycle management
- Control and testing of off-highway powertrains
Courses descriptions of this curriculum are available in the Course structure Diagram section.