Fundamentals of Commercial Vehicle Aerodynamics
Duration: 2 Days
Aerodynamic considerations in the design and operation of commercial vehicles have significant implications to fuel economy, engine cooling, handling, and safety. Aerodynamic drag, in particular, is an important customer concern due to its significant influence on the fuel operating cost of heavy trucks.
The airflow around the vehicle and through the engine compartment produces pressure distributions that result in aerodynamic forces and moments. The aerodynamic characteristics are determined by the overall shape of the vehicle, the detail shape of each body panel, the design and location of tires, the underbody, and cooling components. Integrating drag-reducing features into the vehicle design requires an understanding of the basic principles and their application.
This seminar will detail the fundamentals of aerodynamics and the tools (wind tunnels, track testing, and airflow visualization) used in the design of commercial vehicles. Testing of scale models, measurement methods, and data interpretation will be covered, as well as the influence of crosswinds and interpretation of surface pressures.
Attendees will receive a copy of the SAE J1252: Wind Tunnel Test Procedure for Trucks and Buses
Learning Objectives
By attending this seminar, you will be able to:
- Describe the fundamentals of road vehicle aerodynamics with specific application to heavy duty trucks
- Analyze drag, lift, aero pressures, and air flow
- Describe the basics of flow visualization and the instrumentation needed to measure aerodynamic data
- Identify appropriate testing methods and opportunities to reduce drag
- Describe wind tunnel and on-road testing methods
- Identify some of the major sources of aerodynamic drag and related shape parameters
Who Should Attend
Engineers, product designers, and managers who are associated with projects where vehicle aerodynamics will likely play a role will benefit from this course.
Prerequisites
Participants should have an undergraduate engineering degree.
Topical Outline
DAY ONE
- Review of Basic Information on Fluid Dynamics
- Definitions
- Fluid classification
- Ideal gas law
- Properties of fluids
- Laminar and turbulent flow
- Fluid Statics
- Fluid statics
- Hydrodynamics equation
- Manometry
- Standard atmosphere
- Fluid Dynamics and the Bernoulli Equation
- Aerodynamics and the Laws of Physics
- Mass flow rate and the Continuity Equation
- Internal Flow
- Laminar and turbulent
- Friction factor and pressure loss
- Flow measuring techniques
- Applications
- External Flow
- Fluid motion and kinematics
- Ideal flow (inviscid)
- Viscous effects & separation
- External flow characteristic features and examples
- Pressure drag and forces on immersed bodies
- Euler's Equation and Bernoulli's Equation
- Streamlines
- Applications
- Dimensional Analysis and Aero Models
- Dimensional analysis
- Similitude
- Examples
DAY TWO
- Flow Visualization
- Techniques and interpretation
- Smoke flow videos
- Truck Aerodynamics
- Drag and fuel economy
- SAE J1252: Wind Tunnel Test Procedure for Trucks and Buses
- Truck aerodynamic features
- Effect of crosswinds and wind averaged-drag coefficient
- Add-on devices
- Operational considerations
- Cooling drag
- Wind Tunnels and On-Road testing
- Types of test sections
- Wind tunnels
- Blockage corrections
- Ground simulation
- Correlation
- ABCD coast down method
- Wind tunnel-to-road drag correlation
- SAE J1321: Fuel Consumption Test Procedure Type II
- CFD in Product Development
- Overview
- Benefits
- Verifying results
- CFD quality
- Course Assessment and Summary
Instructor(s): Jack Williams
Mr. Williams is the principal at Airflow & Aerodynamics Engineering, LLC and an independent consultant specializing in the design and development of thermal management systems and vehicle aerodynamics. He is an adjunct faculty member at the Lawrence Technological University (LTU) and a guest lecturer for their MSAE Program on Automotive Mechanical Systems. In addition to his consulting work, he conducts professional development seminars for engineers on cooling systems, HEV battery thermal management, and road vehicle aerodynamics. Mr. Williams has over thirty years engineering management experience in product development at Ford Motor Co. Additionally, he was an aerodynamics project leader with the USAF Aeronautical Systems Division at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio where he specialized in engine/aircraft integration, gas turbine engine performance, inlet design, and aircraft mission analysis. An active member of the SAE, Mr. Williams has authored over twenty technical papers, given invited lectures at major mid-west universities, and has received professional awards and international recognition for his innovative work. He is a recipient of two Henry Ford II Technology Awards, the SAE Industrial Lectureship Award, the SAE Oral Presentation Award, and the SAE Forest R. McFarland Award. He holds a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Detroit and an M.S. in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering from the United States Air Force Institute of Technology.
Fees: $1,215
; SAE Members: $1,095
1.3 CEUs
For additional information, contact SAE Customer Service at 1-877-606-7323 (724/776-4970 outside the U.S. and Canada) or at CustomerService@sae.org.
