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In the vehicle front closure development process, it is very important to meet the durability functional attributes such as Fit and finish, slam event and ease of closing effort. Conventionally softer seal & bump-stop stiffness properties are required for better flushness, but a stiffer seal & bump-stop will help to arrest the hood over travel during the slam event. It is always a challenging and iterative process to arrive at an optimum combination of these design parameters to meet both the flushness and slam targets. This paper highlights the six sigma approach to identify the effect of various control factors like Seal & Bump stop stiffness, latch position, bump-stop design clearance to meet the durability functional attributes. This approach suggests optimum design which is less sensitive to noise factors such as build tolerances on the latch position and the bump-stop design clearance.

Cargo box is one of the indispensable structures of a pickup truck which makes it capable of transporting heavy cargo weights. This heavy cargo weight plays an important role in durability performance of the box structure when subjected to road load inputs. Finite element representation for huge cargo weight is always challenging, especially in a linear model under dynamic proving ground road load durability analysis using a superposition approach. Any gap in virtual modeling technique can lead to absurd cargo box modes and hence durability results. With the existing computer aided engineering (CAE) approach, durability results could not correlate much with physical testing results. It was crucial to have the right and robust CAE modeling technique to represent the heavy cargo weight to provide the right torsional and cargo modes of the box structure and in turn good durability results.

The thermal comfort for the passenger inside the cabin is maintained by the HVAC system. To ensure a comfort for the 2nd row passengers in the cabin, it is very essential to design an efficient HVAC and rear console duct system which can deliver sufficient airflow with less pressure drop. The primary focus of the study is to assess existing airflow of the center console duct using CFD and propose improvement in its duct shape to meet the passenger comfort sitting in the rear seat. In this study, the vehicle cabin model, HVAC system and duct design was modeled using the design software UG. To analyze and estimate the behavior of the air flow of the system, a steady state simulation was performed using STAR CCM CFD software. The performance of the console duct system is judged by parameters like distribution of airflow, velocity at console duct outlet, pressure drop through the duct and the uniformity of the air flow at the passenger locations.

The main function of mobile air conditioning system in a vehicle is to provide the thermal comfort to the occupants sitting inside the vehicle at all environmental conditions. The function of ducts is to get the sufficient airflow from the HVAC system and distribute the airflow evenly throughout the cabin. In this paper, the focus is to optimize the rear passenger floor duct system to meet the target requirements through design for six sigma (DFSS) methodology. Computational fluid dynamics analysis (CFD) has been used extensively to optimize system performance and shorten the product development time. In this methodology, a parametric modeling of floor duct design using the factors such as crossectional area, duct length, insulation type, insulation thickness and thickness of duct were created using CATIA. L12 orthogonal design array matrix has been created and the 3D CFD analysis has been carried out individually to check the velocity and temperature.

The Air Induction system (AIS) must provide sufficient and clean air to the engine for its desired combustion thus enhancing engine performance. The critical functions which effect the performance are pressure restriction and acoustic performance. The ideal design of AIS effectively reduces the engine noise heard at snorkel, which contributes to the cabin noise. Good acoustic expertise and several tests are required to optimize the design of AIS. Multiple resonators are commonly used in passenger cars to attenuate the noise. This paper emphasize on One Dimensional (1D) approach to optimize the resonators in the AIS to meet the functional requirements. In AIS, the flow happens from the snorkel to the engine air intake whereas the engine noise propagates in the opposite direction. The unsteady mass flow through the intake valves causes pressure fluctuations in the intake manifold and these propagate to intake orifice and are radiated as noise which is heard at snorkel.

Noise pollution is a major concern for global automotive industries which propels engineers to evolve new methods to meet passenger comfort and regulatory requirements. The main purpose of an exhaust system in an automotive vehicle is to allow the passage of non-hazardous gases to the atmosphere and reduce the noise generated due to the engine pulsations. The objective of this paper is to propose a Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) approach followed to optimize the muffler for better acoustic performance without compromising on back pressure. Conventionally, muffler design has been an iterative process. It involves repetitive testing to arrive at an optimum design. Muffler has to be designed for better acoustics performance and reduced back pressure which complicates the design process even more.

Fan shroud is one of the critical components in an engine cooling system. It helps in achieving optimum air flow across the heat exchangers. The major challenge is to design a fan shroud which meets noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) requirements without compromising on air flow targets [1]. An improperly designed fan shroud will cause detrimental effects such as undesirable noise and vibration, which will further damage the surrounding components. In current days, multiple simulations and test iterations are carried out in order to optimize its design. The objective of this paper is to provide a design framework to achieve optimized fan shroud that meets NVH requirements in quick turnaround time using Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) approach [2]. The purpose of the Engine cooling system is to maintain the coolant temperature across the vehicle.

Based on current trends, there is a huge demand for lightweight components, which improves fuel efficiency and reduces cost of the vehicle. Stiffness based optimization process is simple and straightforward while durability (Misuse load case) based optimizations are relatively complex due to its highly nonlinear behavior. However, durability performances are critical in a front cradle design. So a process needs to be identified for creating a new light weight front cradle design. This study talks about the process of identifying new cast aluminium cradles achieving NVH and durability performance. Load path study using topology optimization is done based on compliance method for the durability load case. A concept model is generated from the topology results. This concept model is further optimized for thickness of ribs and walls by the application of various shape variables. All the critical non linear durability load cases are linked for the shape optimization study.

The advanced Optimization techniques help us in exploring the light weight architecture. This paper explains the process of designing a lightweight track bar bracket, which satisfies all durability performance targets. The mounting locations and load paths are critical factors that define the performance and help in the development of weight efficient structure. The process is to identify the appropriate bolt location through Design of Experiment (DOE) and topology based studies; followed by section and shape optimization that help to distribute material in a weight efficient manner across the structure. Load path study using topology optimization is performed to identify the load path for durability load cases. Further shape optimization is done using hyper study to determine the exact thickness of the webs and ribs. A significant weight reduction from the baseline structure is observed. This process may be applicable for all casting components.

Current generation passenger vehicles are built with several electronic sensors and modules which are required for the functioning of passive safety systems. These sensors and modules are mounted on the vehicle body at locations chosen to meet safety functionality requirements. They are mounted on pillars or even directly on panels based on specific packaging requirements. The body panel or pillar poses local structural resonances and its dynamic behavior can directly affect the functioning of these sensors and modules. Hence a specific inertance performance level at the mounting locations is required for the proper functioning of those sensors and modules. Drive point modal frequency response function (FRF) analysis, at full vehicle model for the frequency range up to 1000 Hz, is performed using finite element method (FEM) and verified against the target level along with test correlation.

In an automotive air conditioning, aero-acoustic noise originating from HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) unit is one of the major concerns for the customer satisfaction. “Fan blower excessive noise” is one among the top issues for all automotive manufacturers. In this paper, a 3D computational analysis is carried out for a passenger car HVAC unit to predict the noise originated from the HVAC unit. HVAC modeling is done using uni graphics and ANSA and the analysis is carried out using the commercial CFD software STAR CCM+. The inputs for the analysis are the airflow at HVAC Inlet, blower speed and the pressure drop characteristics of evaporator, filter and heater core. The computational model is done by considering the blower region as MRF (Moving Reference Frame) and the air flow is considered incompressible. DES (Detached Eddy Simulation) model is used to resolve the eddies generated by the turbulent flow.