Orbital Drive Specification

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Orbital Drive

Power follows movement.

Specification

Orbital Drive is an open-source regenerative energy framework for electric vehicles designed to explore coordinated recovery, management, and reuse of energy generated or normally lost during vehicle operation.

The system treats the vehicle as an interconnected energy environment in which propulsion, braking, airflow, thermal output, solar input, battery storage, and auxiliary loads can be modeled as participating components of a unified energy system.

Orbital Drive is intended for simulation, research, experimentation, optimization, and future hardware integration.

The system must not represent energy recovery as free or perpetual energy. Every recovery mechanism must account for conversion losses, system losses, added mass, aerodynamic drag, thermal limitations, mechanical resistance, and other energy costs. The objective is to reduce net energy loss rather than create energy without an energy source.

Design Principles

Orbital Drive should follow these principles:

Modular system design
Independent energy recovery subsystems
Coordinated energy management
Energy conservation and physically consistent modeling
Net energy analysis rather than gross energy capture
Hardware-independent subsystem definitions
Simulation-first development
Experimental hardware compatibility
Configurable vehicle profiles
Continuous telemetry and diagnostics
Adaptive optimization
Human control over automated energy decisions
Safe failure behavior
Extensible plugin architecture
Clear separation between required and optional capabilities

Core System

The Core System provides the foundational framework required to coordinate energy recovery and vehicle energy management.

It must provide:

Vehicle state representation
Energy state representation
Energy source and sink registration
Energy flow tracking
Recovery system coordination
Energy routing
System state management
Configuration management
Module lifecycle management
Safety state handling
Telemetry interfaces
Simulation interfaces
Hardware abstraction interfaces
Plugin registration and capability discovery

The Core System must allow individual recovery systems to operate independently while providing a common mechanism for coordinating their operation.

Core Modules

Aerodynamic Energy Capture Module

The Aerodynamic Energy Capture Module models the recovery of usable electrical energy from airflow associated with vehicle movement.

The module should support:

Embedded micro-turbine airflow channels
Speed-dependent turbine activation
Airflow-to-electric conversion modeling
Dynamic turbine loading
Adaptive blade load optimization
Airflow condition monitoring
Turbine operating-state management
Energy production estimation
Aerodynamic loss estimation
Drag-aware efficiency balancing

The module must calculate the energy cost associated with aerodynamic energy capture.

Energy recovered from airflow must be evaluated against the additional aerodynamic resistance introduced by the recovery system.

The system should support operating strategies that disable or reduce turbine activity when the energy recovered does not justify the additional drag.

Regenerative Braking Module

The Regenerative Braking Module manages recovery of kinetic energy during vehicle deceleration.

The module should support:

All-wheel regenerative braking
Full-wheel regenerative braking coordination
Predictive braking analysis
Route-aware braking prediction
Terrain-aware braking prediction
Coasting recovery
Driver behavior analysis
AI-assisted deceleration optimization
Dynamic braking energy routing
Regenerative braking efficiency tracking
Friction-braking coordination
Battery acceptance monitoring

The module must account for battery charge limits, motor-generator efficiency, vehicle speed, traction conditions, braking demand, and other operational constraints.

The system should prioritize regenerative braking when conditions permit while maintaining safe braking performance.

Thermal Energy Recovery Module

The Thermal Energy Recovery Module models the recovery and reuse of energy associated with vehicle heat generation and thermal differentials.

The module should support:

Motor heat harvesting
Battery thermal differential monitoring
Power electronics heat recovery
Thermal gradient analysis
Ambient temperature modeling
Environmental heat modeling
Thermal conversion efficiency estimation
Passive thermal energy tracking
Thermal system operating limits
Heat rejection coordination

The module must recognize that thermal energy recovery depends on available temperature differentials and conversion efficiency.

Thermal recovery must not compromise battery, motor, inverter, or other component operating temperatures.

Solar Supplementary Energy Module

The Solar Supplementary Energy Module provides supplemental electrical energy from vehicle-integrated photovoltaic surfaces.

The module should support:

Vehicle-integrated photovoltaic surfaces
Solar energy availability estimation
Solar production modeling
Idle-state charging support
Auxiliary energy support
Low-load trickle charging
Solar contribution tracking
Environmental solar condition modeling
Solar availability forecasting

Solar energy must be treated as an external energy input rather than recovered vehicle energy.

The module should allow solar production to be routed toward battery charging, auxiliary systems, or other permitted energy destinations.

Energy Intelligence Module

The Energy Intelligence Module analyzes vehicle conditions and predicts energy requirements and recovery opportunities.

The module should support:

Energy demand forecasting
Driver behavior adaptation
Terrain-aware efficiency prediction
Traffic-aware energy planning
Route energy analysis
Recovery opportunity prediction
Battery usage prediction
Energy consumption forecasting
Continuous optimization feedback
Operating strategy recommendations

The module should use available vehicle and environmental information to improve energy allocation without overriding safety-critical vehicle controls.

Central Energy Orchestration Module

The Central Energy Orchestration Module coordinates energy movement between recovery systems, storage systems, propulsion systems, and auxiliary loads.

The module should provide:

Unified energy routing
Energy source registration
Energy destination registration
Priority-based energy distribution
Propulsion energy prioritization
Battery stabilization prioritization
Auxiliary system allocation
Real-time energy balancing
Adaptive load redistribution
Recovery source coordination
Energy storage coordination
System-wide efficiency optimization

Energy routing should respond dynamically to changing vehicle conditions.

The orchestration system must respect configured priorities, component limits, battery constraints, and safety conditions.

Simulation and Telemetry Module

The Simulation and Telemetry Module provides tools for evaluating vehicle energy behavior before or alongside physical deployment.

The module should support:

Virtual vehicle modeling
Vehicle mass configuration
Aerodynamic configuration
Motor efficiency configuration
Battery capacity configuration
Energy consumption modeling
Recovery system simulation
Route efficiency modeling
Urban driving simulation
Highway driving simulation
Mixed driving simulation
Energy flow visualization
Battery impact analysis
Recovery efficiency analysis
Turbine gain versus drag cost analysis
Regenerative braking analysis
Thermal recovery analysis
Solar contribution analysis
Real-time diagnostics
Historical telemetry analysis

Simulation results should distinguish between energy captured, energy consumed by recovery systems, conversion losses, storage losses, and net energy benefit.

Modular Integration Module

The Modular Integration Module provides the common interface through which core modules and optional plugins interact with Orbital Drive.

It should support:

Module registration
Module discovery
Module activation
Module deactivation
Module configuration
Module status reporting
Capability declaration
Dependency management
Event communication
Energy source registration
Energy sink registration
Telemetry registration
Simulation integration
Hardware integration

A module should be capable of operating independently when its required dependencies are available.

Optional Plugin Modules

Optional plugins extend Orbital Drive without changing the required behavior of the Core System.

Plugins should be independently installable, configurable, enabled, disabled, replaced, or removed.

Predictive Route Plugin

Provides advanced route-level energy planning.

Capabilities may include:

Route energy forecasting
Elevation analysis
Descent recovery prediction
Stop-and-go prediction
Charging opportunity analysis
Route comparison
Energy-aware navigation recommendations

Traffic Intelligence Plugin

Provides traffic-aware energy optimization.

Capabilities may include:

Traffic condition analysis
Stop prediction
Acceleration opportunity analysis
Congestion energy modeling
Traffic-aware regenerative braking prediction
Traffic-aware route optimization

Weather Intelligence Plugin

Provides environmental condition analysis.

Capabilities may include:

Wind modeling
Temperature modeling
Precipitation effects
Solar availability forecasting
Air density estimation
Environmental efficiency adjustments

The plugin should account for environmental effects on aerodynamic energy capture, vehicle efficiency, thermal behavior, and solar production.

Battery Optimization Plugin

Provides advanced battery energy management.

Capabilities may include:

Battery state-of-charge prediction
Charge acceptance modeling
Battery thermal condition analysis
Charging optimization
Battery degradation-aware energy routing
Energy reserve management
Charging priority optimization

Fleet Energy Plugin

Extends Orbital Drive from individual vehicles to fleet-level analysis.

Capabilities may include:

Fleet energy monitoring
Vehicle comparison
Fleet efficiency analysis
Aggregate energy demand forecasting
Fleet charging coordination
Vehicle utilization analysis
Fleet recovery performance reporting

Charging Infrastructure Plugin

Provides integration with external charging infrastructure.

Capabilities may include:

Charging station availability
Charging session planning
Charging cost analysis
Energy demand forecasting
Charging schedule optimization
Vehicle-to-charger coordination

Vehicle-to-Grid Plugin

Provides optional support for bidirectional energy exchange between vehicles and electrical grids.

Capabilities may include:

Grid export management
Grid demand response
Vehicle-to-grid energy scheduling
Battery reserve protection
Grid service participation modeling
Energy price-aware scheduling

This plugin must respect battery limits, vehicle availability, user-defined reserve requirements, and applicable electrical safety requirements.

Vehicle-to-Home Plugin

Provides optional bidirectional energy management between a vehicle and a building.

Capabilities may include:

Home energy support
Backup power modeling
Household load analysis
Battery reserve management
Vehicle charging and discharge scheduling
Solar-to-vehicle-to-home energy coordination

Advanced Aerodynamics Plugin

Extends aerodynamic recovery modeling.

Capabilities may include:

Computational airflow modeling
Multi-turbine optimization
Airflow channel analysis
Dynamic airflow routing
Drag optimization
Turbine placement analysis
Vehicle geometry experimentation

Advanced Thermal Systems Plugin

Extends thermal recovery capabilities.

Capabilities may include:

Multi-zone thermal modeling
Heat exchanger analysis
Thermal storage modeling
Thermal priority management
Component-specific thermal recovery
Environmental heat exchange modeling

Driver Assistance Plugin

Provides optional driver-facing energy efficiency recommendations.

Capabilities may include:

Acceleration recommendations
Coasting recommendations
Regenerative braking recommendations
Energy-aware speed recommendations
Efficiency scoring
Driver feedback
Driving pattern analysis

The plugin should provide recommendations without compromising required vehicle safety systems.

Experimental Hardware Plugin

Provides interfaces for experimental physical implementations.

Capabilities may include:

Sensor integration
Energy generation measurement
Turbine instrumentation
Thermal instrumentation
Braking telemetry
Battery telemetry
Motor telemetry
Experimental actuator interfaces
Hardware diagnostics
Calibration support

Experimental hardware must remain isolated from safety-critical vehicle controls unless appropriate automotive validation and safeguards are implemented.

Digital Twin Plugin

Provides expanded virtual representations of physical vehicles.

Capabilities may include:

Real-time vehicle state replication
Simulated component behavior
Predictive component modeling
Recovery-system modeling
Energy-flow visualization
Physical versus simulated performance comparison
Experimental configuration testing

Research and Experimentation Plugin

Provides tools for controlled energy-system experiments.

Capabilities may include:

Experimental scenario creation
Variable isolation
Recovery system comparison
Baseline comparison
Controlled parameter changes
Experimental telemetry collection
Result analysis
Reproducibility support

Energy Flow Model

Orbital Drive should represent energy as a continuous flow through identifiable sources, conversion systems, storage systems, loads, and losses.

The system should distinguish between:

External energy inputs
Recovered energy
Stored energy
Propulsion energy
Auxiliary energy
Conversion losses
Thermal losses
Aerodynamic losses
Mechanical losses
Electrical losses
Control-system consumption
Net energy benefit

Each recovery system should report both gross recovered energy and estimated net energy contribution.

Vehicle State Awareness

The system should continuously evaluate relevant operating conditions, including:

Vehicle speed
Acceleration
Deceleration
Vehicle load
Battery state
Battery charge acceptance
Motor state
Braking demand
Terrain
Road conditions
Traffic
Ambient temperature
Wind conditions
Solar availability
Thermal conditions
Driver input

Available state information should be used to determine which recovery and energy management strategies are appropriate.

Energy Recovery Coordination

Orbital Drive should coordinate multiple recovery systems rather than treating each system as an isolated generator.

For example:

Regenerative braking should respond to deceleration events.
Aerodynamic recovery should respond to airflow and net energy conditions.
Thermal recovery should respond to usable temperature differentials.
Solar generation should operate according to available solar energy.
The Energy Intelligence Module should forecast demand and recovery opportunities.
The Central Energy Orchestration Module should determine how available energy is allocated.

Multiple systems may operate simultaneously when their combined operation provides a positive net energy benefit and remains within all system constraints.

Adaptive Operating Logic

The system should continuously evaluate whether each recovery mechanism is beneficial under current conditions.

A recovery system should be able to:

Activate
Reduce output
Increase output
Enter standby
Deactivate
Report unavailable conditions
Report insufficient energy conditions
Report thermal limitations
Report storage limitations
Report safety limitations

The system should favor net efficiency rather than maximum energy capture.

Safety and Constraints

Orbital Drive is an experimental energy-management framework and must not be treated as a replacement for certified automotive safety systems.

Any hardware implementation must account for:

Electrical safety
Mechanical safety
Thermal safety
Battery safety
Braking safety
Vehicle stability
Component failure
Sensor failure
Communication failure
Power-management failure
Emergency shutdown
Safe fallback behavior

Experimental recovery systems should fail toward a safe state.

No energy recovery optimization should compromise required braking, steering, propulsion, thermal protection, battery protection, or other safety-critical vehicle functions.

Simulation Requirements

The simulation system should allow users to define a virtual vehicle and evaluate energy behavior under different operating conditions.

A simulation should be capable of modeling:

Vehicle mass
Aerodynamic characteristics
Motor efficiency
Battery capacity
Battery operating limits
Driving conditions
Terrain
Vehicle speed
Acceleration
Deceleration
Recovery systems
Energy loads
Environmental conditions

Users should be able to compare different configurations and determine whether a recovery technology produces a meaningful net benefit.

Experimental Validation

Experimental implementations should begin with simulation and controlled testing before deployment in operational vehicles.

Validation should include:

Baseline vehicle measurements
Recovery-system measurements
Energy input measurements
Energy output measurements
Conversion-loss measurements
Added energy consumption measurements
Aerodynamic drag measurements where applicable
Thermal impact measurements
Battery impact measurements
Safety testing
Failure testing
Comparative efficiency analysis

Claims of efficiency improvement should be based on measured net energy performance rather than gross energy production.

Specification Branding License (SBL)

Standard

Fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant system
Copyleft enforced for network deployments
Required attribution:
- Roxanne Ardary
- https://www.roxanneardary.com/

Optional

Specification Branding License (SBL)
- Attribution-free commercial deployment
- Pricing based on scale, usage, and deployment scope
- https://roxanneardary.com/orbital-drive/

License & Notice Requirements

Orbital Drive is released under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).

By contributing to this project, you agree that your contributions will also be released under this license.

Please note the following:

All contributions must comply with the AGPL-3.0+ terms.
Under Section 7 of the license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works must preserve attribution to:
Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.
Orbital Drive specifications are free to use with attribution. A Specification Branding License can be negotiated upon request.
The project’s notice.md file tracks attribution requirements and contributor acknowledgments. Any update that adds new contributors or modifies attribution should also update notice.md.
When submitting a pull request, ensure that any new files maintain the attribution headers where applicable.
Network-deployed versions of this software must also remain fully AGPL-3.0+ compliant, including exposure of source code modifications when applicable under the license.

For full legal details, please refer to the AGPL-3.0+ license and the project’s notice.md file.

Notice – Orbital Drive

Attribution Requirement: Under Section 7 of the AGPL 3.0+ license, all redistributions, forks, and derivative works, including network-deployed versions of this project, must provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com.

Contributors

This file tracks contributors and their specific contributions to the project.

Roxanne Ardary, roxanneardary.com – May 10, 2026
Created the repository for Orbital Drive. Established the foundational architecture, energy recovery framework, and system design for a multi-source regenerative vehicle energy platform.
Add other contributors here – [Date]
[Describe contribution in one sentence]

License – Orbital Drive

This repository is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 or later (AGPL-3.0+).

Key Points:

You are free to use, modify, and distribute the code.
All redistributions, forks, and derivative works or network-deployed versions must also be licensed under AGPL-3.0+ and provide attribution to Roxanne Ardary and roxanneardary.com as required under Section 7 of the license.
The software is provided “as is,” without warranty of any kind.

For the full license text, see GNU AGPL-3.0 License.