Joint Concern over Battery Health and Thermal Degradation in the Cruise Control of Intelligently Connected Electric Vehicles Using a Model-Assisted DRL Approach

Eco-driving aims to enhance vehicle efficiency by optimizing speed profiles and driving patterns. However, ensuring safe following distances during eco-driving can lead to excessive use of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), causing accelerated battery wear and potential safety concerns. This study addresses this issue by proposing a novel, multi-physics-constrained cruise control strategy for intelligently connected electric vehicles (EVs) using deep reinforcement learning (DRL). Integrating a DRL framework with an electrothermal model to estimate unmeasurable states, this strategy simultaneously manages battery degradation and thermal safety while maintaining safe following distances. Results from hardware-in-the-loop simulation testing demonstrated that this approach reduced overall driving costs by 18.72%, decreased battery temperatures by 4 °C to 8 °C in high-temperature environments, and reduced state-of-health (SOH) degradation by up to 46.43%. These findings highlight the strategy’s superiority in convergence efficiency, battery thermal safety, and cost reduction compared to existing methods. This research contributes to the advancement of eco-driving practices, ensuring both vehicle efficiency and battery longevity.