Cool Visteon product benefits

Visteon's PrecisionCooling system integrates the control of a vehicle's cooling components into an electronic control module that monitors and regulates the flow of fluid and air throughout the engine. Click to enlarge image.

A smart engine-cooling system delivers improved fuel economy and reduced emissions. Visteon's PrecisionCooling integrates the control of a vehicle's engine-cooling components into an electronic control module that monitors and regulates the flow of fluid and air throughout the engine.

Unlike a traditional engine-cooling system that employs a mechanical water pump, a fan (electrical or mechanical), and a thermostat, PrecisionCooling's main elements are a variable speed water pump (electric or viscous), a variable speed fan (electric or viscous), a coolant flow control device (most systems will use a five-port valve), and a control module. "We provide coolant flow and airflow that is independent of engine rpm," said Keith Liederman, a system engineer at Visteon.

PrecisionCooling is expected to provide up to 5% city/highway combined fuel economy improvement based on full-size pickup truck baseline comparisons to chassis dynamometer testing. The improved fuel consumption occurs because of reduced friction, faster warm-up, and reduced power requirement to drive the coolant system. Improved emissions occur because of the fast warm-up as well as the consistent engine operating temperature.

With PrecisionCooling, at every point the system looks at component-draw and the actual-use mode (startup, power acceleration, and economy/cruise control). "With this system, we can warm up the coolant before it goes to the heater core, and that's a parameter that's adjustable based on an OEM's needs," said Liederman.

PrecisionCooling is undergoing 10-year, 241,000-km (150,000-mi) durability testing. "The system is revolutionary for the industry because a system like this is not on the market. We can show benefits for a/c and heater performance as well as fuel economy and emissions," said Ali Jalilevand, Program Manager for PrecisionCooling North America.

PrecisionCooling can be applied to any vehicle. Target application time is the 2005 model year.

- Kami Buchholz

OEMs not into full systems just yet

Automakers and suppliers altered the product-development landscape in the 1990s when suppliers began to assume systems design and engineering responsibility. Globalization, the drive to achieve shorter development times, cost pressures, and other industry trends continue to steer the industry toward systems thinking. But the industry is not into full systems mode just yet.

"While the potential for systems integration and systems control has yet to be fully realized, and full implementation of systems thinking is a work in progress, indications are that full systems thinking will dominate the industry within 20 years," said Bill Hunt, Vice Chairman and President of the Troy, MI-based ArvinMeritor, Inc., during a plenary session at the Global Powertrain Congress in Detroit. Hunt believes in the next two decades, OEMs will concentrate on the defining, developing, final assembling, and marketing of vehicles rather than focusing on design and assembly of vehicle systems.

"OEMs continue to depend on components or subsystems in most applications, and the move toward full systems varies not only from one OEM to another, but from one vehicle system to another," said Hunt. How far along OEMs have moved from components toward full systems implementation varies—based on the technology as well as the time and freedom available to develop the systems, according to Hunt.

Developing systems, rather than engineering individual components, reduces complexity and cost while improving performance and quality.

"In developing the integrated corner module, for example, ArvinMeritor also developed technical capabilities for vehicle dynamic stability and control, active and passive systems, and algorithm development," Hunt said.

A key requirement of OEM and supplier technological partnering is two-way communications. "There must be no distortion between transmitter and receiver with each party providing open, complete information," said Hunt. The outcome of open communication benefits all parties. "I am confident that by adopting a systems approach to the design and manufacture of motor vehicles, we can enhance our ability to build the kinds of products that customers will buy, and buy again."

- Kami Buchholz