Blended Braking in Hybrid Electric Tracked Vehicles: A Critical Review of Dynamic Capability Boundaries, Brake-Force Allocation, and Mission-Level Coordination

Abstract

Blended braking combines regenerative braking from traction motors with friction braking to meet braking safety and stability requirements while recovering kinetic energy. Existing reviews have mainly addressed regenerative-braking architectures, brake-force distribution, brake-by-wire control, energy management, and energy-recovery strategies for electrified wheeled vehicles. However, these topics are less often integrated with the bilateral dynamics, time-varying power and actuator capability, allocation–actuation feedback, and mission-state inheritance that characterize hybrid electric tracked vehicles. This review therefore examines blended braking from the perspective of physical feasibility and dynamic capability. It reviews braking force–torque–power relationships, control methods, regenerative power paths, actuator characteristics, thermal and aging effects, complex missions, and validation evidence, drawing on tracked-vehicle studies and transferable mechanisms from electrified wheeled vehicles and brake-by-wire systems. The literature indicates that nominal component ratings alone cannot define online allocation boundaries. Effective blended braking requires estimation of currently available capability, braking-target feasibility assessment, coordinated allocation and actuation, feedback of actual actuator output, and continuous capability updating as operating and mission states evolve. These elements provide a common framework for linking bilateral vehicle dynamics, electrical and thermal constraints, actuator realization, and mission-level capability management in hybrid electric tracked vehicles.