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In order to achieve the proper automobile interior sound, the tailpipe noise of the exhaust system must be considered as a main contributor. This paper describes a study of the achievement of dynamic sound quality through exhaust system design. Firstly, we determined the vehicle's interior sound quality and established a target sound using a subjective assessment of 10 benchmark vehicles. The exhaust noise target is determined by means of transfer path analysis focusing on the noise source and how it's impacted by the muffler design. The exhaust system is commonly modeled as a combination of source strength and impedance. We obtained the source character by the wave decomposition method using two microphones and six loads ultimately leading to an optimized design of the inner muffler structure. Based on this study, we achieved dynamic interior sound and improved exhaust system performance.

Fluctuation in the sound pressure level of the interior noise of an on-road vehicle is always caused by unpredictable factors such as wind gusts, traffic, roadside obstacles, and changing drive-by-drive conditions, and is hence, not reproducible in nature. Since the human brain is known to be more sensitive to noise that is amplitude-modulated than noise at a steady level [1], it is important to evaluate and improve the NVH performance of a vehicle in terms of the fluctuating interior noise likely to be experienced by drivers or users. To this end, an evaluation system was developed as part of this study, the details of which are presented in this paper. The system is composed of hardware for database storage and replay of sounds, and software for synthesizing the noise signals. For given wind tunnel test results, the evaluation system yields a wind noise model that can synthesize wind noise signals for any wind scenario.

This paper describes a systematic approach to the development of a luxurious driving sound. In the first step, the luxurious sound is conceptualized through jury test, factor analysis and regression analysis. From the results, the main factors and the correlation equation for the luxurious sound are extracted. Also, customer's preference for the luxurious sound is investigated from the customer clinic. In the second step, three core axes and the detailed indices for luxurious sound are defined and quantified. These core axes are a dynamic sound character, a sound balance and a sound harmony. These core axes are also composed of detailed indices and quantified by guide lines. In the third step, each contribution of the sub-systems for sound quality is identified and the target values and methods for implementing the luxurious sound are suggested. In this process, noise path analysis and the customer's preference in each region are considered.

Customer vehicle usage monitoring is one of the most fundamental elements to consider in the process of developing a durable vehicle. The extant method to research customer vehicle usage takes considerable time and effort because it requires attaching a series of sensors to the vehicle-gyroscope, accelerometer, microphone, and GPS-to gather information through data logs and then to analyze data in a computer where designated analyzing software has been installed. To solve the problem, this paper introduces a new concept of integrated system developed to examine customer vehicle usage that can analyze data by collecting it from a variety of sensors installed on a smartphone.

Light weighting is a critical objective in the automotive industry to improve fuel efficiency. But when redesigning parts for light weight, by changing from metal to plastic, the resulting design gives NVH issues due to differences in part mass and material stiffness. Many parts were not converted from metal to plastic because of NVH issues that could not be solved. Many engine parts such as cylinder head cover, air intake manifold, oil pan and etc. previously made of metal have since long been replaced with plastic. But timing chain cover has not been replaced because of the aforementioned issue. Sealing performance due to the dynamic characteristics of the application is another challenging factor. In this paper, the key aspects of the plastic timing chain cover as well as its advantage are presented.

The main contribution of this paper is to employ a sound and vibration theory in order to develop a light and cost effective plastic intercooler pipe. The intercooler pipe was composed of two rubber hoses and one aluminum pipe mounted between an ACV (Air Control Valve) and an intercooler outlet. The engineering design concept is to incorporate low-vibration type bellows and an impedance-mismatched center pipe, which replaces the rubber hoses and aluminum pipe respectively. The bellows were designed to adapt powertrain movement for high vibration transmission loss to the intercooler outlet. Also, the impedance-mismatched center pipe was implemented to increase reflected wave by using relatively higher modulus than bellows part and applying a SeCo (Sequential Coextrusion) processing method.

In diesel engine development, fuel consumption, emissions and combustion noise have been main development objectives for fuel economy, low emissions and NVH. These main objectives can be achieved with advanced engine technologies. As electronic actuating systems are widely applied on diesel engines, elaborate control is required. This is because the main development targets are greatly affected by engine control parameters but frequently have a trade-off relationship. Therefore, the optimization of combustion control parameters is one of the most challenging tasks for improvement. As an efficient method, the DOE methodology has been used in engine calibration. In order to develop a mathematical model, the input and output values must be measured. Unlike other variables, combustion noise has been continually reported to have better indication method in simplified way. In this paper, advanced noise index from cylinder pressure signal is applied on engine test.

This work studied the control technique for the engine clutch engagement at launch for the TMED parallel HEV for the improved drivability and dynamic performance. Analysis are done on the speed synchronization of the clutch plates, the speed control using the starter motor (ISG), and the fluid pressure control for the clutch. Possible external factors such as changes in the friction coefficient of transmission fluid, temperature variation, auxiliary power and pressure losses are identified and their effects on the targeted dynamic performance are examined. The targeted system performance was achieved with a learning control technique using fluid pressure as the only control input. This involves the compensation for the effect of external factors on the fluid pressure profile and this effect is memorized for the subsequent slip-launch application.

The effects of electrolyte on the cyclability of Li/S battery were investigated in this work. The electrochemical properties of single component ether solvents and a binary mixture of ether solvents were studied. These ether-based electrolytes have polysulfide shuttle problems which result in severe low Coulombic efficiency. To overcome these issues, sulfone-based solvent which forms a stable passivation film at the anode surface were used. As a result, the proper composition of sulfone-based electrolyte were obtained. Its capacity and reversible capacity retention were improved to 715 mAh/g and 72.6% which were increased by 52.1% and 63.1%, respectively, compared to those of ether-based electrolyte.

Development of eco-friendly vehicles have risen in importance due to fossil fuel depletion and the strengthened globalized emission control regulatory requirements. A lot of automotive companies have already developed and launched various types of eco-friendly vehicles which include hybrid vehicles (HEVs) or electric vehicles (EVs) to reduce fuel consumption. To maximize fuel economy Hyundai-Kia Motor Company has introduced eco-friendly vehicles which have downsized or eliminated vibration damping components such as a torque converter. Comparing with Internal Combustion Engine(ICE) powered vehicles, one issue of the electric motor propulsion system with minimized vibration damping components is NVH (Noise, Vibration and Harshness). The NVH problem is caused by output torque fluctuation of the motor system, resulting in the degradation of ride comfort and drivability.

This paper proposes an effective nonlinear bicycle model including longitudinal, lateral, and yaw motions of a vehicle. This bicycle model uses a simplified piece-wise linear tire model and tire force tuning algorithm to produce closely matching vehicle trajectory compared to real vehicle for wide vehicle operation ranges. A simplified piece-wise tire model that well represents nonlinear tire forces was developed. The key parameters of this model can be chosen from measured tire forces. For the effects of dynamic load transfer due to sharp vehicle maneuvers, a tire force tuning algorithm that dynamically adjusts tire forces of the bicycle model based on measured vehicle lateral acceleration is proposed. Responses of the proposed bicycle model have been compared with commercial vehicle dynamics model (CarSim) through simulation in various vehicle maneuvers (ramp steer, sine-with-dwell).

Many high risks of failure in developing and applying new technologies exist in the recent automotive industry because of big volume of selling cars in a global market. Several recalls cost companies more than $ 100 million per problem. New technologies always have uncertainty in performing intended functions at various given conditions despite the fact that engineers do their best to develop technologies to meet all the requirements. Uncertainty of new technologies put companies into danger of failing in their business. Therefore, many companies tend to take interest in reducing risks from the uncertainty in technologies, but the increasing complexity of modern automotive technologies make it difficult to develop complete technologies. A new engineering methodology called SPEED Engineering was introduced to reduce the risks of new technology applications and to facilitate engineers to conceive innovative ideas dominating the market in the future.

The worldwide automotive industry is currently preparing for a market introduction of hydrogen-fueled powertrains. These powertrains in fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) offer many advantages: high efficiency, zero tailpipe emissions, reduced greenhouse gas footprint, and use of domestic and renewable energy sources. To realize these benefits, hydrogen vehicles must be competitive with conventional vehicles with regards to fueling time and vehicle range. A key to maximizing the vehicle's driving range is to ensure that the fueling process achieves a complete fill to the rated Compressed Hydrogen Storage System (CHSS) capacity. An optimal process will safely transfer the maximum amount of hydrogen to the vehicle in the shortest amount of time, while staying within the prescribed pressure, temperature, and density limits. The SAE J2601 light duty vehicle fueling standard has been developed to meet these performance objectives under all practical conditions.

This paper outlines an improved methodology to perform calculations to verify the compliance of automotive door latch systems to minimum legal requirements as well as to perform additional due diligence calculations necessary to comprehend special cases such as roll over crashes and locally high inertial loadings. This methodology builds on the calculation method recommended by SAE J839 and provides a robust and clear approach for application of this method to cable release systems, which were not prevalent at the time J839 was originally drafted. This method is useful in and of itself but its utility is further increased by the application of the method to a Computer Aided Design (CAD) template (in this case for Catia V5), that allows some automation of the calculation process for a given latch type. This will result in a savings of time, fewer errors and allows for an iterative concurrent analysis during the design process.

Currently, the interest in accelerated reliability testing (ART) of electric vehicles parts has been increasing. In particular, an electric motor and battery are vital components of battery powered electric vehicles. The electric motor has two major roles, to discharge or charge battery when it is driven or braking. For analyzing the exact behavior mechanism of electric motor and predicting lithium-ion battery cell degradation, new accelerated reliability testing technology is required. This paper describes the results of research and development in new approach to reliability testing for electric vehicles. The methodology to measure a precise motor output torque of the rotating rotor using telemetry system was provided. The electric energy quantities as well as the used quantities of the electric power were also analyzed. The results of research and development in new approach to reliability testing for electric vehicles were systematized and reflected in development.

Engine calibration on the powertrain test bed with transient mode is proposed with dynamic powertrain test bed having low inertia dynamometer. Automated ECU (Engine Control Unit) calibration system is completed with the combination of experimental design software, powertrain test bed, evaluation tools and their electrical interfaces. The process is composed up of the system interface definition, test design using DoE skill, test proceedings by step sequence of connecting systems, measured data collecting, mathematical model and optimization result extraction at the end. All the processes are automated by interfaces between the systems. Acceleration surge is minimized by proposed process by optimizing combustion control labels and tip in driveability is maximized by manipulating torque filter labels of EMS (Engine Management System) logic. Their detailed steps from the problem definition to the verification test results of improved design with vehicle test are presented.

It is necessary for vehicle horns not only to satisfy regulations on the sound level but also to fulfill various demands related with sound quality. For example, a disk type horn which is attached on most of small size vehicles has been required to improve its sharp feeling sound. However, the improvement of horn sound has been deterred mainly due to the deficiency of the understanding on how design factors are related with emotional judgments on horn sound. In addition, a proper CAE tool is not available in the process of horn design since it is difficult to describe multi-physical phenomena engaged with horns. The purpose of this study is to improve the sound quality of a disk type horn. In order to achieve this goal, firstly, acoustic characteristics of horns were obtained through a series of experiments. In addition, various sound quality metrics were examined in order to derive design factors affecting sound quality enhancement.

A comprehensive investigation was carried out in order to develop the idle sound quality for diesel V6 engine when the engine development process is applied to power-train system, which included new 8-speed automatic transmission for breaking down the noise contribution between the mechanical excitation and the combustion excitation. First of all, the improvement of dynamic characteristic can be achieved during the early stages of the engine development process using experimental modal analysis (EMA) & the robust design of each engine functional system. In addition, the engine structural attenuation (SA) is enhanced such that the radiated combustion noise of the engine can be maintained at a target level even with an increased combustion excitation. It was found that the engine system has better parts and worse parts in frequency range throughout the SA analysis. It is important that weak points in the system should be optimized.

Wide attention to fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) comes from two huge issues currently the world is facing with: the concern of the petroleum reserves depletion due to consequent oil dependence and the earth global warming due in some extent to vehicle emissions. In this background, Hyundai, along with its sister company Kia, has been building the FCEVs and operating their test fleet with several tens of units at home and abroad. Since 2004, 32 passenger vehicles have been offered for the Department of Energy's controlled hydrogen fleet and infrastructure demonstration and validation project in the U.S. In the meantime, from 2006, 30 passenger vehicles as well as four buses, featuring the in-house developed fuel cell stack and its associated components, are currently under the domestic operation for the FCEV learning demonstration led by the Ministry of Knowledge and Economy.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and reduce the suspension rattle noise. First, the characteristics of the rattle noise are analyzed experimentally in the time and frequency domain. It was found that the rattle noise and vibration at shock absorber mounting point are strongly correlated. Second, the sensitivity analysis of design parameters is performed using a half car model in ADAMS. The result of the simulation model is verified by comparison with test. Finally, the influence of design parameters for the rattle noise is investigated. The study shows that the shock absorber mounting bushing is the most sensitive parameter to affect the suspension rattle noise. This paper shows how the suspension rattle noise can be improved.