The Grand Opening of "Global Connection 2023 of Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers"

On  October 21, 2023, at 19:00 Beijing time, the third "Global Connection of  Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers" was grandly launched online. This  event was organized by the Global Alliance of Overseas Chinese Society Automotive Engineers, with  co-hosting support from Association of Chinese Automobile Engineers in France;  Japan Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers; North American Association of  Chinese Propulsion System Engineers; North American Chinese Society of  Automotive Engineers; Promotion Association for scientific and technical  Cooperation between Austria and China; UK Chinese Society of Automotive  Engineers; Association of Chinese Automotive Engineers in Germany. The event  included both online and offline parts, featuring in-depth discussions and  exchanges on a range of hot topics in the automotive industry,  involving over twenty technical experts and scholars from around the world.

Figure  1: Some Committee Members and Distinguished Guest Speakers for North America  and Japan session of Global Connection 2023 of Overseas Chinese Automotive  Engineers

The  Global Connection of Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers aims to promote  collaboration and knowledge sharing on a global scale, providing a platform  for innovation and advancement in the field of automotive engineering. We have  gathered exceptional automotive engineers and experts from around the world to  collectively explore the latest developments and cutting-edge technologies in  the field of automotive engineering. The first part of the online conference  for the Global Connection is hosted by Dr. Le Zhao, a director of the North  American Association of Chinese Propulsion System Engineers.

Figure 2: Host to start the event (Dr. Le Zhao, Director  of the North American Chinese Powertrain Engineers Association)

At the opening ceremony, Dr. Wei Jing, the Chair of the rotating Organizing Committee for this edition of the Global Connection, and President of the North American Association of Chinese Propulsion System Engineers, delivered a welcome address and introduced the main contents of the conference. The event is structured in both online and offline. In the online conference, the keynote address was delivered by Academician Minggao Ouyang, titled "New Energy Vehicles and New Energy Revolution," and another presentation was given by Academician Xianghong Cao, analyzing the future of automotive powertrains and the refining industry. The online conference was divided into two parts, featuring North American and Japanese session as well as European session. The North American and Japanese session included presentations from four distinguished guest speakers, primarily covering research in automotive powertrains, along with an analysis of the characteristics, trends, and global expansion challenges of the Chinese automotive industry. The European session on the second day primarily focused on research in autonomous driving and the opportunities and challenges faced by automotive powertrains in the context of carbon neutrality. The final segment included a roundtable discussion on the topics of the invited guest speakers' presentations and the transition to the next edition of the Global Connection event.

Figure 3: The Welcome  Address from Dr. Wei Jing, President of the North American Chinese Powertrain  Engineers Association

Professor Hongming Xu, the  inaugural rotating chairman of the alliance and the Director of the Advanced  Automotive Research and Education Center at the University of Birmingham in  the UK, extended gratitude on behalf of the Global Alliance. He expressed thanks  to the two invited academicians who delivered keynote speeches, the experts  and entrepreneurs who presented special topic reports, as well as the  alliance's sponsor Aramco, strategic partner FISITA, strategic partner and  collaborating media partner Gasgoo, and all the association members who worked  diligently to prepare for the conference.

Figure  4: Professor Hongming Xu, the Inaugural Rotating Chairman of the Global  Alliance of Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers and Director of the Advanced  Automotive Research and Education Center at the University of Birmingham in  the UK, expressed gratitude on behalf of the Global Alliance

The first invited keynote speaker is Professor Minggao Ouyang, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and a professor at Tsinghua University's School of Vehicle and Mobility. Professor Ouyang received his doctoral degree from the Department of Energy Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark in 1993. He is renowned as an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a professor at Tsinghua University, founding editor of the International Journal of Transportation Electrification "eTransportation," and the first chairman of the International Association for Hydrogen Energy and Fuel Cells. Professor Ouyang has been dedicated to research in new energy power systems and transportation electrification. From 2007 to 2021, he served as the chief expert for China's National New Energy Vehicle Technology Special Project. He has received ten scientific and technological awards both domestically and internationally, with a cumulative economic benefit exceeding 10 billion RMB from technology dissemination. He has nurtured 20 student startup companies, including those listed on the Science and Technology Innovation Board. With over 350 published academic papers in SCI journals and more than 30,000 citations, Professor Ouyang held an h-index of 92 and had been recognized as one of the world's highly cited scientists by Clarivate Analytics. Academician Ouyang provided a comprehensive analysis of China's path to the resurgence of new energy vehicles from a national strategy, technological breakthroughs, market policies, and industrial carbon reduction perspectives. He delved deep into the planning and layout of new energy vehicles in China, highlighting technological breakthroughs and innovations from the "10th Five-Year Plan" to the "13th Five-Year Plan." His presentation particularly focuses on the policy support and market development characteristics at the stages of market introduction, growth, and take-off, concluding with an outlook on the development of new energy electric vehicles in the context of carbon neutrality and the opportunities and challenges they bring as a core component of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterized by green and intelligent transformations.

Figure  5: Professor Minggao Ouyang, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences  and a professor at Tsinghua University's School of Vehicle and Mobility,  presenting on "New Energy Vehicles and New Energy Revolution."  

The second  invited keynote speaker is Academician Xianghong Cao. He is a senior member of  the Sinopec Group's Technology Committee and worked for Yanshan Petrochemical,  China's first large-scale integrated petrochemical enterprise, for thirty  years. He has held various roles, including Director and Senior Vice President  of Sinopec Corporation, Chief Engineer, and Director of the Technology  Committee of Sinopec Group. He was elected as an Academician of the Chinese  Academy of Engineering in 1999 and as a Foreign Member of the U.S. National  Academy of Engineering in 2009. Academician Cao has long been involved in  technical development and management in the refining and petrochemical  industry. He has been responsible for over ten major technical and equipment  projects in refining and petrochemicals and has organized the significant  technological upgrading of more than twenty refining units. Since 2003, he has  served as the Director of the Technical Committee on Petroleum Products and  Lubricants Standardization in China, overseeing the research and development  of China's National II, National III, National IV, National V, and National VI  standards for gasoline and diesel. He has made outstanding contributions to  the progress of China's refining and petrochemical industry and has received  several national awards, including the National Prize for Progress in Science  and Technology. Academician Cao's presentation focused on the future of  automotive powertrains and the refining industry. He discussed the development  trends in future power systems and refining technologies, as well as how to  adapt to evolving market demands. His insights provide us with profound  knowledge about the future of energy and automotive engineering, guiding our  thinking on the future direction of the automotive industry and the  significant challenges related to sustainability and efficiency.

Figure  6: Academician Xianghong Cao, Academician of the Chinese Academy of  Engineering and Senior Member of the Technology Committee at Sinopec,  presenting on "The Future of Automotive Powertrains and the Refining  Industry."

Next is the third agenda  item of the conference, featuring keynote presentations by distinguished guest  speakers in the North American and Japanese sessions of the Global Connection.  We are fortunate to have invited four senior experts from the global automotive  industry. These four speakers delved deeply into topics of research on  automotive engines and power battery technology, the development trends in the  Chinese automotive industry, and compliance analysis for international  expansion.

Figure  7: Global Connection of Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers - North American  and Japanese Session

First, we have  Rolf Reitz, a Senior Partner at the Engine Research Institute at the  University of Wisconsin-Madison and an Emeritus Professor of Mechanical  Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He delivered a  presentation titled "Flame Propagation and Data-Driven Kinetics Modelling  for Dual-Fuel Engines." In this presentation, he elaborated on the  development process of dual-fuel models and how big data analysis is applied  to simplify the chemical reaction mechanisms of diesel-ammonia. This  innovative modelling and mechanism simplification process provides valuable  practical experience and a theoretical foundation for optimizing combustion in  multi-fuel engines and engineering applications.

The  next speaker is Assistant Professor Yiyang Li from the University of Michigan,  USA. His presentation is titled "The Decoupling of Particle Size with  Lithium Diffusion and Reaction Times in Polycrystalline Battery  Particles." This research introduced a novel high-throughput  single-particle electrochemical platform, which discovered that there is no  correlation between particle size and reaction and diffusion times. It has  opened up a new field that enables robust statistical quantification of  individual particles in batteries and other electrochemical systems.

The third guest speaker is Mr.  Zhengwei Gan, the Intelligent Connected Development Manager for Greater China  Region at the German Technical Inspection Association (TÜV SÜD). His  presentation is titled "Compliance with UN-ECE R157 Regulation." He  delved into the requirements of the United Nations Economic Commission for  Europe (UN-ECE) regulation on advanced-level intelligent vehicles, discussing  topics such as the UN-ECE, the relationship between regulations and derived  regulations, the five main pillars of UN-ECE R157, and summarizing how vehicle  manufacturers should address these five aspects.

The  last guest is Mr. Zhou Jincheng, Director and Board Member of Fourin China  Research Department. He presented "China in the World of  Automotive," where he discussed the impact of the pandemic on the Chinese  automotive industry over the past three years. He emphasized the development  of China's domestic automotive industry, which has pulled ahead of foreign  brands in the past three years, and the opportunities that lockdowns and  global supply chain imbalances have brought to China's exports. Mr. Zhou also  highlighted the critical role of the Chinese battery industry in global  strategies, including the formation of an independent technical system and the  challenges of technological confrontation. His profound insights provide us  with a unique perspective on the Chinese automotive industry, where these  challenges and opportunities will play a pivotal role in future developments.

Figure  8: Some Committee Members and Distinguished Guest Speakers from the European  session for the Global Connection 2023 of Overseas Chinese Automotive  Engineers

On October 22, 2023, at 19:00 Beijing  time, the online European session of the second day of the Global Connection,  hosted by Dr. Tang Huayin, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the All-UK  Chinese Automotive Engineers Association, was successfully held. The six  invited guest speakers primarily focused on research in autonomous driving and  the opportunities and challenges that automotive powertrains face in the  context of carbon neutrality. The session concluded with a roundtable  discussion to summarize the key points and transition to the next Global  Connection event. We were honored to invite several industry veterans and  renowned scholars to engage in discussions and exchanges on the current state  and prospects of automotive electrification and intelligence development.

Figure 9: Global Connection of  Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers - European Session, Host to start the  event (Dr. Huayin Tang, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of UK Chinese  Society of Automotive Engineers)

First, Dr. Kailin Tong, a  Senior Researcher at the Virtual Vehicle Research Institute of Graz University  of Technology in Austria, delivered the opening presentation on  "Development and Prospects of Autonomous Driving Motion Planning."  He began by summarizing the history and classifications of motion planning  algorithms. Dr. Tong pointed out that there are still challenges in the field  of autonomous driving, such as path planning in complex urban environments,  real-time decision-making, and vehicle-to-vehicle coordination. He also  discussed the future prospects, emphasizing the need for more intelligent and  adaptive motion planning algorithms to address diverse traffic conditions and  enhance safety and comfort.

Next,  Dr. Hexuan Li, a researcher at the Institute of Automotive Engineering at Graz  University of Technology in Austria, presented "Development and  Simulation of Highly Automated Driving Functions on a Full Vehicle Test  Bench." The presentation primarily focused on the establishment of sensor  models in virtual simulation and the implementation of vehicle-in-the-loop  simulation. It was highlighted that vehicle-in-the-loop simulation testing  provides a feasible solution to balance time, cost, and road testing. The  advantage of this approach is that it covers all vehicle components, providing  a simulation foundation for both development and validation.

Dr. Lihe Chen,  Executive Director of Association of Chinese Automotive Engineers in Germany,  presented the report titled "Lightweighting - the Essential Path to  Carbon Neutrality in the Automotive Industry." The presentation began  with an analysis of the essence of lightweighting and the impact of EU carbon  neutrality regulations on international development strategies for businesses.  It introduced the Federal Lightweighting Strategy and Lightweighting  Technology Transfer Plan in Germany, provided examples of lightweighting  technology innovation (innovative wheel manufacturing technology), and  concluded by giving an overview of the background and planning for the  China-Europe Magnesium Carbon Neutrality Industrial Demonstration Project.

Dr. Jun Yang, a Reader in  the Department of Aeronautics and Automotive Engineering at Loughborough  University in the United Kingdom, shared the presentation titled "Fully  Autonomous Safety Driving and Control of Port Rubber-Tyred Gantry Cranes."  The presentation introduced the fully autonomous and safe control architecture  of Rubber-Tyred Gantry (RTG) systems. Several key technologies within this  framework were analysed, including motion planning, interference suppression,  safety control, nonlinear underactuated control, lane detection, multi-object  detection, and tracking. Finally, the application of these technologies in  automated port scenarios was demonstrated through experiments and field test  results.

Following that, Mr. Junxing  Huang, the founder and CEO of the startup AlitaPower, presented "The Last  Mile of Power Battery: Current Status and Future Prospects of Retired Battery  Recycling and Second-Life Applications." He emphasized the need to ensure  the true environmental friendliness of electric vehicles by decarbonizing the  grid and properly handling retired batteries. The presentation then delved  into the analysis of battery recycling and second-life applications, covering  the current state of technology, the necessity of recycling and market  drivers, the supply chain related to recycling and second-life applications,  and future trends and challenges.

Lastly, Dr. Yiran Liu, a board member of UK Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers, delivered a presentation titled "Opportunities and Challenges Faced by Traditional Automakers in Pure Electrification." The report provided a detailed analysis of the development and evolution of traditional automakers in the electric vehicle market, covering different automakers, various levels of passenger vehicles, and the current status and impact of supporting infrastructure like charging stations. The presentation highlighted the challenges and opportunities faced during the electrification transition  

Figure  10: Summary Roundtable Discussion of the Global Connection 2023 of Overseas  Chinese Automotive Engineers

The final segment of the Global Connection 2023 of Overseas Chinese Automotive Engineers was the summary roundtable discussion and closing ceremony. Participating in the roundtable discussion were Dr. Shanjin Wang, President of Association of Chinese Automobile Engineers in France; Dr. Xinxin Man, Vice President of Japan Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers; Dr. Wei Jing, President of North American Association of Chinese Propulsion System Engineers; Dr. Daqing Zou, President of North American Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers; Dr. Jianbo Tao, Vice President of Promotion Association for scientific and technical Cooperation between Austria and China; Dr. Huayin Tang, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of UK Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers; and Dr. Yuxue Qin, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of Association of Chinese Automotive Engineers in Germany. Dr. Huayin Tang, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of UK Chinese Society of Automotive Engineers, moderated the roundtable discussion. During the discussion, the leaders of various associations provided a summary and analysis of the topics presented by the invited speakers. This included the development trends in powertrain systems, how traditional Chinese automotive companies can effectively promote technological advancements in various powertrain systems in the context of carbon neutrality, as well as the advantages accumulated and challenges faced in the industry's development. On the other hand, in the context of the hot topic of autonomous driving, the discussion covered verification methods involved in the transition from research to engineering application of autonomous driving, as well as the challenges in intelligent safety and compliance.

Figure 11: the Global connection 2024 organization

(Promotion Association for scientific and technical Cooperation between Austria and China)

Finally, Dr. Wei Jing,  President of North American Association of Chinese Propulsion System  Engineers, passed the baton for the organization of the Global connection 2024  to Dr. Jianbo Tao, Vice President of Promotion  Association for scientific and technical Cooperation between Austria and China.  Professor Hongming Xu, Chair of Global Alliance of Overseas Chinese Society  Automotive Engineers, and Director of the Advanced Automotive Research and  Education Center at the University of Birmingham in the UK, delivered the  concluding remarks and expressions of gratitude, looking forward to seeing  everyone again in 2024!  

We would like to express our gratitude to the sponsors, Aramco, the strategic partner and media platform, Gasgoo, and the strategic partner FISITA for their strong support and friendly sponsorship of the Global connection 2023 event and the Global Alliance.