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Historically, polyurethane foam has been classified and determined by IFD (Indentation Force Deflection) and density. The IFD test measures the load bearing property of the foam at a given deflection. However, the expectation of the automotive specifications is that these properties will also define durability and comfort of the foam when used in complete seat applications. Today’s automotive customers are asking for vehicles that last longer, with higher expectations in comfort, appearance, and durability performance. New targets are vehicles that will have satisfactory performance for 150,000 to 200,000 miles. We at Johnson Controls believe that to achieve these types of customer performance standards, new definitions of the molded foams are required. This paper will explain how a new test measurement, called hysteresis loss, is required to meet these new customer requirements.

This paper describes a new 4.5-Liter V8 engine, VK45DE, which was developed for the use in the Infiniti Q45 sporty luxury sedan. The VK45DE engine, the replacement of the VH41DE for the Infiniti Q45 2000 model, is a new generation V8 engine that produces high output power at top-end speed and also generates ample torque at low and middle engine speed. Furthermore, this engine achieved best in class quietness that is pleasing the customer throughout the range of loads and speeds. Development efforts were focused on how to highly balance the need for performance with the need for quietness and smoothness. This paper provides details of this VK45DE engine as well as highlights of individual technologies that support highly balanced performance of this engine.

Multiple automotive systems are now being developed which require an imager or vision chip to provide information regarding vehicle surroundings, vehicle performance, and vehicle passenger compartment status. Applications include lane departure, lane tracking, collision avoidance, as well as occupant position, impaired driver, and occupant identification. These applications share many requirements, including robust design, tolerance for the automotive environment, built in self-test, wide dynamic range, and low cost. In addition, each application has unique requirements for resolution, sensitivity, imager aspect ratio, and output format. In many cases, output will go directly to vehicle systems for processing, without ever being displayed to the driver. Commercial imager chips do not address this wide spectrum of requirements. A CMOS imager chip has been designed to address these unique automotive requirements.

European car manufacturers, setmakers and research institutes have been working for the last decade on Adaptive Frontlighting Systems (AFS). Due to the fact, that an AFS is no longer a single part of the car, it will have to be regarded in systems context with sensor and control devices resulting in a rising complexity. In order to help the engineer in developing an AFS, the software-tool AFSim has been programmed providing functions to swivel and to dim the light-distribution of a headlight on a freely programmable road with curves. The software package AFSim has been recently expanded with further functions facing the range of a headlight.

High intensity discharge lights (HID) are the innovation step that is now beginning to penetrate in all car classes. Investigating drivers, all results show that the benefits are visible to them and positively accepted. The quantification of the improvements has yet been insufficiently examined. In this article some of the aspects will be highlighted.

This study proposes a new calculation method for generating real nighttime lamp-lit images. In order to improve the color appearance in the prediction of a nighttime lamp-lighted scene, the lamp-lit image is synthesized based on spectral distribution using the estimated local spectral distribution of the headlamps and the surface reflectance of every object. The principal component analysis method is introduced to estimate the surface color of an object, and the local spectral distribution of the headlamps is calculated based on the illuminance data and spectral distribution of the illuminating headlamps. HID and halogen lamps are utilized to create beam patterns and captured road scenes are used as background images to simulate actual headlamp-lit images on a monitor. As a result, the reproduced images presented a color appearance that was very close to a real nighttime road image illuminated by single and multiple headlamps

The European Union (EU)-Thematic Network sponsored by DG Research of the European Community analyzed the subject of eco-efficient treatment with respect to plastics in End-of-Life Vehicles (ELV). This paper deals with the shredder residue treatment and use for today and in the future.

Product manufacturers are placing new and detailed environmental requirements on their suppliers. These supply-chain management (SCM) initiatives include both compulsory and voluntary requirements, such as requirements for Environmental Management Systems (EMS), Design-for-Environment (DfE) programs, restricted material conformant, take-back commitments, or performance disclosures. In effect, environmental management is no longer limited to site-specific concerns of emissions and waste. Newer product-focused issues now cover issues beyond the site, from product composition, materials selection, recyclability, product-use, to product take-back. In addition, supplier verification of requirements is becoming an important consideration. These trends are illustrated based on experiences and databases with existing company programs in automotive, electronics, telecom, consumer goods and other sectors.

The penetration of rainwater through the heating ventilation and air conditioning system (HVAC) of a vehicle directly affects the provision of thermal comfort within the vehicle passenger compartment. Present vehicle designs restrict considerably the air-management processes due to reduced space and tighter packaging. The motivation for the study is to get an insight into factors affecting the water ingress phenomenon when a stationary vehicle is subjected to water loading such as heavy rain when parked or waiting in a traffic light or when in a car wash. The test programme made use of a compact closed circuit full-scale automotive climatic wind tunnel that is able to simulate wind, rain and road inclination. The tunnel was developed as part of the collaborative research between the Flow Diagnostics Laboratory (FDL) of the University of Nottingham and Visteon Climate Control Systems [1].

The Auto/Steel Partnership established the Light Truck Frame Project Group in 1996 with two objectives: (a) to develop materials, design and fabrication knowledge that would enable the frames on North American OEM (original equipment manufacturer) light trucks to be reduced in weight, and (b) to improve corrosion resistance of frames on these vehicles, thereby allowing a reduction in the thickness of the components and a reduction in frame weight. To address the issues relating to corrosion, a subgroup of the Light Truck Frame Project Group was formed. The group comprised representatives from the North American automotive companies, test laboratories, frame manufacturers, and steel producers. As part of a comprehensive test program, the Corrosion Subgroup has completed tests on frame coatings. Using coated panels of a low carbon hot rolled and pickled steel sheet and two types of accelerated cyclic corrosion tests, seven frame coatings were tested for corrosion performance.

Usinor has developed organic and inorganic films, for many automotive applications. The surface post-treatments made by the coil-coater provide additional functions to the metallic coated steel, such as lubrication or corrosion protection, and offer an excellent compromise between car manufacturing, steel utilisation and costs saving. Even though the organic coating thickness can reach 8 μm, steel products can be welded and electro-painted, thanks to metallic pigments within the coating, which make the polymer conductive. In some particular cases, where high flexibility and formability are required, the best solution is organic non-pigmented systems with lower thickness from 1 to 2 μm. Other pre-painted steel systems with thicker organic coatings have the potential to replace ED-paint or to remove Primer-Surfacer on paint lines by the car manufacturer.

The future of automotive vehicle interiors is becoming more complex each year. Extensive consumer research demonstrates that consumers want new convenience features. However, increased electronics and communications content could potentially pose unwanted distractions to the driver. This study examined objective variations in driver performance while tasked with operating a variety of interior feature controls. Data from thirty-one test participants were used in the evaluation of three control interface alternatives. Objective driving simulator measurements included vehicle velocity, steering wheel angle, and vehicle position within the driving lane. Session video and subjective responses were also recorded. Examples of data analysis and interesting findings will be discussed.

Metal Injection Molding (MIM) has become an established process over the past 20 years for producing small complex metal parts. A variety of industries have benefited from the capabilities of the MIM process. Some examples include orthodontic brackets, medical instruments, firearm components, lock mechanisms, and electronic data storage devices. More recently (over the past 5 years) the MIM process has found applications in the automotive industry in a variety of systems including steering columns, seat mechanisms, sunroof systems, ignition locks, airbags, and engines. This paper discusses some of the benefits that the MIM process has brought to these automotive applications.

This paper will describe the BorgWarner Interactive Torque Management (ITM) system for FWD based AWD systems as well as the utilization of P/M technology for critical components within this system. The ITM is an electro-mechanical coupling device. The device consists of an electromagnet, ball ramp and wet clutch system. The system can be mounted anywhere in the drive line as well as integrated into components such as transfer cases and transaxles. The clutch actuation force is dependent on the current applied to the electromagnetic coil, providing a truly variable torque transfer device. The decision to make extensive use of P/M technology in the structural portion of this system was based on the net shape capability and weight reduction combined with the ability to chose from a wide range of engineered materials that resulted in the most economical total system package.

In the automotive industry, lost foam casting is a relatively new technology, which is gaining popularity among manufacturers. Lost foam casting is a process in which an expanded polystyrene pattern is formed into the shape of the part to be cast. More complex parts are fabricated by simply gluing several simple patterns together. The pattern is then coated with a refractory material consisting of a mineral mixture and binders. Finally, hot metal is poured into the pattern, evaporating the expanded polystyrene and taking shape of the coating shell. However, the automotive industry has observed that a significant number of these fabricated, coated patterns are damaged, or do not meet specifications prior to casting. These are not reusable and inevitably are landfilled. It is the goal of this project to develop a simple, reliable, and inexpensive technology to recover expanded polystyrene from the glue and coating constituents.

Although computer models for vehicle and sub-system performance simulations have been developed and used extensively in the past several decades, there is currently a need to enhance the overall availability of these types of tools. Increasing demands on vehicle performance targets have intensified the need to obtain rapid feedback on the effects of vehicle modifications throughout the entire development cycle. At the same time, evolution of the PC and development of Web-based applications have contributed to the availability, accessibility, and user-friendliness of sophisticated computer analysis. Web engineering is an ideal approach in supporting globalization and is a cost-effective design-analysis integration business strategy. There is little doubt that this new approach will have positive impacts on product cost, quality, and development cycle time. This paper will show how Microsoft Excel and the Web can be powerful and effective tools in the development process.

The GE Operations Services and Solectron Corporation Six Sigma Program improved printed circuit board (PCB) throughput, response time, and capacity through the use of Lean Manufacturing concepts and the application of Lean Manufacturing techniques. This paper illustrates how Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma complement each other for maximum benefit. The issues confronting the PCB industry include capacity and responsiveness to customer delivery demands. Rigorous Six Sigma Methods of Measurement and Analysis pointed towards Lean Manufacturing solutions. Lines were unbalanced, WIP clogged the flow and used valuable space, material flow interfered with operations, and non-value added (NVA) time exceeded 95% in some cases. Graphical techniques and time studies pointed toward sensible flow, reduction of bottlenecks and proper allocation of space and human resources. The resulting improvement allowed for 142% capacity increase and 47% cycle time reduction. Defects were reduced by 93%.

Seat Effective Amplitude Transmissibility (SEAT) values can be obtained from direct measurements at seat track and top or estimated from transmissibility data and seat track input. Vertical transmissibility was measured for sixteen seats and six subjects on the Ford Vehicle Vibration Simulator, and these 96 functions used to estimate the seat top response for rough road input. SEAT values were calculated, and good correlation to values computed from direct seat top measurements obtained (R2 of 0.86). Averaging transmissibilities and direct seat measurements over the 6 subjects to obtain correlations for the 16 seats improved R2 to 0.94, validating this approach.

Low back pain is the most common physical complaint of motor vehicle drivers and passengers. Various seat back contours have been developed to improve low back comfort, and lumbar support has some advantages. Recently, a series of experiments have demonstrated that a continuously inflating and deflating (BackCycler®) lumbar support bladder system can reduce low back discomfort, stiffness and fatigue in drivers with and without clinical back problems. As demonstrated by radiographic movies, this system works by gently keeping the user's lumbar spine moving through greater and lesser forward curves (lordosis). The purpose of this paper is to present the efficacy research and to review the proposed mechanisms of action for this emerging seating comfort technology.

For an automobile seat, lateral support is considered to be one of the most essential elements for comfort. This report examines lateral support with two selected seats. Driver's movement while cornering was observed by seat pressure distribution (S.P.D.), and muscle activity was simultaneously recorded in electromyogram (EMG). S.P.D showed larger lateral movement of driver and EMG showed higher muscle activity on a poor lateral support seat than on a good lateral support seat. The higher muscle activity on the poor seat was explained as an effort to compete against the larger lateral movement of the body. Thus, poor lateral support was proved to lead to heavier physical burden.