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The design and testing of innovative components and control logics for future vehicular platform represents a challenging task in the automotive field. The use of scale model vehicles constitutes an interesting alternative for testing assessment by decreasing time and cost efforts with a potential benefit in terms of safety. The target of this research work is the development of a customized scale vehicle platform for verifying and validating innovative control strategies in safe conditions and with cost reduction. Consequently, the electrification of a radio-controlled 1:5 scale vehicle is carried out and a customized remote real-time controller is installed onboard. One of the main features of this commercial product is its modular characteristics that allows the modification of some component properties, such as the viscous coefficient of the shock absorbers, the stiffness of the springs and the suspension geometry.

Electric motor noise mitigation is a challenge in electric vehicles (EVs) due to the lack of engine masking noise. The design of the electric motor mounting configuration to the motor housing has significant impacts on the radiated noise of the drive unit. The stator can be bolted or interference-fit with the housing. A bolted stator creates motor whine and vibration excited by the motor torque ripple at certain torsional resonance frequencies. A stator with interference fit configuration stiffens the motor housing and pushes resonances to a higher frequency range, where masking noise levels are higher at faster vehicle speeds. However, this comes with additional cost and manufacturing process and may impact motor efficiency due to high stress on stators. In this paper, a thin sheet metal NVH ring is developed as a tunable stiffness device between the stator and the motor housing. It is pre-compressed and provides additional torsional rigidity to mitigate torsional excitations.

The descent phase of GAGANYAAN (Indian Manned Space Mission) culminates with a crew module impacting at a predetermined site in Indian waters. During water impact, huge amount of loads are experienced by the astronauts. This demands an impact attenuation system which can attenuate the impact loads and reduce the acceleration experienced by astronauts to safe levels. Current state of the art impact attenuation systems use honeycomb core, which is passive, expendable, can only be used once (at touchdown impact) during the entire mission and does not account off-nominal impact loads. Active and reusable attenuation systems for crew module is still an unexplored territory. Three configurations of impact attenuators were selected for this study for the current GAGANYAAN crew module configuration, namely, hydraulic damper, hydro-pneumatic damper and airbag systems.

The automotive sector’s growing focus on sustainability has been spurred to investigate the creation of sustainable resources for different parts, emphasizing enhancing efficiency and minimizing environmental harm. For use in automobile flooring trays and underbody shields, this study examines the impact of injection molding on composite materials made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and Linum usitatissimum (flax) fibers. As processed organic fiber content was increased, the bending and tensile rigidity initially witnessed an upsurge, peaking at a specific fiber loading. At this optimal loading, the composite exhibited tensile strength, flexural strength, and elastic modulus values of 41.26 MPa, 52.32 MPa, and 2.65 GPa, respectively. Given their deformation resistance and impact absorption attributes, the mechanical properties recorded suggest that such composites can be efficiently utilized for automotive underbody shields and floor trays.

The present study focuses on the impacts of pistachio shell particles (2–10 wt.%) on the mechanical and microstructures properties of Al–Cu–Mg/pistachio shell particulate composites. To inspect the impact of the pistachio shell powder content with Al–Cu–Mg alloys, the experimentation was carried out with different alloy samples with constant copper (Cu) and magnesium (Mg) content. Parameters such as hardness, tensile strength with yield strength and % elongation, impact energy, and microstructure were analyzed. The outcomes demonstrated that the uniform dissemination of the pistachio shell particles with the microstructure of Al–Cu–Mg/pistachio shell composite particulates is the central point liable for the enhancement of the mechanical properties. Incorporating pistachio shell particles, up to 10 wt.%, is a cost-effective reinforcement in the production of metal matrix composites for various manufacturing applications.

ALONG with larger tires, independent wheel suspensions, higher speeds, and the dynamic and vibrational problems associated with these innovations, came the need for chassis frames having a high resistance to torsional movements. The X-member-type frame has been the most generally adopted means for obtaining increases in this direction. However, the past few years have seen the need for torsional rigidity in the chassis frame to be intensified. Although considerable gains have been made, in general, these gains have been accomplished not by major improvements in the design of the structure but by the addition of material. Consequently, the weight of the chassis frame has become a serious problem, so much so that in many cases special heavy frames are being used for the open-body types where the need for a stiff frame is acute.

This paper describes the results of the study and research on ovate wire helical springs which have been jointly conducted by the members of the Japan Society for Spring Research consisting of the engineers from material suppliers, wire and spring producers and automotive manufacturers as well as researchers at Japanese universities. Attention is focused particularly on two types of wire cross sections, typical elliptical shape and Fuchs' egg-shape. Stresses on these two cross sections were analyzed by numerical calculations within the range of practical specification, and then the results have been compared with those of round wire spring. As a result, it has been found that the elliptical wire spring is superior to Fuchs- egg-shaped one for general application. Simple designing methods for the both types of wire helical springs have been developed based on the findings from the stress analysis.

Currently automotive design is facing multi facet challenges such as reduction in greenhouse gases, better thermal management, and low cost solution to market, vehicle weight management etc. Considering these challenges, efforts had been taken to improve weight management of engine while optimizing the cost of it. Good ‘engine breathing’ is usually associated with efficient intake system e.g. high flow air filter, a well-designed manifold, cylinder block, cylinder head and cylinder head cover etc. However, efficient ‘crankcase breathing’ is an equally important function of any engine. Even in a new engine, the combustion pressure will inevitably pass the piston rings into the crankcase. If an engine’s breathing system should become blocked or restricted, the crankcase will pressurize causing lots of problems to the engine. Prior to 1963 most vehicle engines vented their vapors and oil deposits to atmosphere and the road surface.

This paper reports on seventy additional tests conducted using a mechanical device described by Bonugli et al. [4]. The method utilized quasi-static loading of bumper systems and other vehicle components to measure their force-deflection properties. Corridors on the force-deflection plots, for various vehicle combinations, were determined in order to define the system stiffness of the combined vehicle components. Loading path and peak force measurements can then be used to evaluate the impact severity for low speed collisions in terms of delta-v and acceleration. The additional tests refine the stiffness corridors, previously published, which cover a wide range of vehicle types and impact configurations. The compression phase of a low speed collision can be modeled as a spring that is defined by the force-deflection corridors. This is followed by a linear rebound phase based on published restitution values [1,5].

Options for CNVII emission legislation are being widely investigated in a national program organized by China Vehicle Emission Control Center (VECC) since early 2020. It is foreseen that this possibly last legislation in China will have more stringent emission requirements compared to CNVI, including among other changes especially a further reduction of nitrogen oxide (NOx), inclusion of nitrous oxide (N2O) and sub-23 nm particle number (PN). This study investigates the technical feasibility to fulfill a CNVII emission legislation scenario, based on a modified CNVI 8 L engine operating under both cold and hot World Harmonized Transient Cycle (WHTC) and Low Load Cycle (LLC).

The target of the upcoming automotive emission regulations is to promote a fast transition to near-zero emission vehicles. As such, the range of ambient and operating conditions tested in the homologation cycles is broadening. In this context, the proposed work aims to thoroughly investigate the potential of post-oxidation phenomena in reducing the light-off time of a conventional three-way catalyst. The study is carried out on a turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine by means of experimental and numerical activities. Post oxidation is achieved through the oxidation of unburned fuel in the exhaust line, exploiting a rich combustion and a secondary air injection dedicated strategy. The CFD methodology consists of two different approaches: the former relies on a full-engine mesh, the latter on a detailed analysis of the chemical reactions occurring in the exhaust line.

The machining process is employed to transform a workpiece into a predefined geometry with the assistance of a cutting tool. Throughout this process, the cutting tool undergoes various adverse effects, including deformation, stress, thermal gradient, and more, all of which impact tool sharpness, surface finish, and tool life. These outcomes are also influenced by cutting parameters, specifically cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut. The present investigation aims to demonstrate the application of ANSYS analysis software in predicting stress, deformation, thermal gradient, and other factors on the tool insert tip for various machining parameters. To achieve this, an experimental setup was arranged to collect cutting force and temperature data using a dynamometer and thermocouples during the machining process of maraging steel with a tungsten carbide tool insert. Experiments were conducted with different combinations of machining parameters using design of experiments (DoE).

When designing a connecting rod, one needs to pay attention to the buckling strength of the rod. The buckling strength is heavily affected by the beam section, and Johnson's buckling equation is used to estimate the buckling strength of a given beam section. This approach is acceptable if the beam section geometry is constant from the small end to the big end. But, recent expectations for light weight, low NVH, and low fuel consumption engines require optimizing the connecting rod section geometries to be progressively changing from the small end to the big end. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is often used to evaluate the buckling strength of a rod that has complex changes in beam section. There are two primary FEA methods to do this. One is an eigenvalue method and the other is an explicit dynamic method.

The current market demand and ever tightening global legislation mandate automotive OEMs to improve vehicle fuel consumption and reduce carbon based emissions. One approach to do so is by downsizing of gasoline engines. The reduced engine displacement causes lesser pumping and frictional losses and lower gas to wall heat transfer making engine more efficient. While downsizing an engine can enhance fuel economy it also brings down the power output. The power lost can be compensated by integrating a turbocharger to the engine to increase the boost pressure however, this again may create an abnormal combustion event known as low-speed pre-ignition (LSPI). The increase of pressure and temperature inside the combustion chamber at high loads also leads to a pre-ignition induced super knock and in severe cases, LSPI leads to broken piston rings, damaged pistons and bent connecting rods.

Ducted Fuel Injection (DFI) engines have emerged as a promising technology in the pursuit of a clean and efficient combustion process. This article aims at elucidating the effect of piston geometry on the engine performance and emissions of a metal DFI engine. Three different types of pistons were investigated and the main piston design features including the piston bowl diameter, piston bowl slope angle, duct angle and the injection nozzle position were examined. To achieve the target, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations were conducted coupled to a reduced chemical kinetics mechanism. Extensive validations were performed against the measured data from a conventional diesel engine. To calibrate the soot model, genetic algorithm and machine learning methods were utilized. The simulation results highlight the pivotal role played by piston bowl diameter and fuel injection angle in controlling soot emissions of a DFI engine.

Opposed-piston two-stroke engines offer numerous advantages over conventional four-stroke engines, both in terms of fundamental principles and technical aspects. The reduced heat losses and large volume-to-surface area ratio inherently result in a high thermodynamic efficiency. Additionally, the mechanical design is simpler and requires fewer components compared to conventional four-stroke engines. When combining this engine concept with alternative fuels such as hydrogen and pre-chamber technology, a potential route for carbon-neutral powertrains is observed. To ensure safe engine operation using hydrogen as fuel, it is crucial to consider strict safety measures to prevent issues such as knock, pre-ignition, and backfiring. One potential solution to these challenges is the use of direct injection, which has the potential to improve engine efficiency and expand the range of load operation.