Search Results

Lightweight design is a key factor in general engineering design practice, however, it often conflicts with fatigue durability. This paper presents a way for improving the effectiveness of fatigue performance dominated optimization, demonstrated through a case study on suspension brackets for heavy-duty vehicles. This case study is based on random load data collected from fatigue durability tests in proving grounds, and fatigue failures of the heavy-duty vehicle suspension brackets were observed and recorded during the tests. Multi-objective fatigue optimization was introduced by employing multiaxial time-domain fatigue analysis under random loads combined with the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II with archives.

With the increase of motor speed and the deterioration of operating environment, it is more difficult to predict the transient temperature field (TTF). Meanwhile, it is difficult to obtain the temperature test dataset of key nodes under various complete road conditions, so the cost of bench test or real vehicle test is high. Therefore, it is of great significance to establish a high fidelity, lightweight temperature prediction model which can be applied to real vehicle thermal management for ensuring the safe and stable operation of motor. In this paper, a physical model simulating electromagnetic-heat-flow multi-physical coupling of permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) in electric drive gearbox (EDG) is established, and the correctness of the model is verified by the actual EDG bench test.

In this paper, an equivalent conversion method is proposed to apply the six-dimensional force road spectrum of the four-axle vehicle on the same platform to the three-axle through the axle load comparison. Further, the feasibility of the devolved equivalent conversion method is verified, and the fatigue performance improvement of the wishbone support structure of a commercial vehicle is finally achieved. Specifically, firstly, the load spectrum at each attachment point of the suspension for the three-axle vehicle is obtained through the iteration of the multi-body dynamic model. Furthermore, the finite element model of the suspension for the three-axle vehicle is established; the analysis of fatigue life for the suspension structure is performed by extracting stress amplitude through the multi-axis cyclic counting method and calculating equivalent force amplitude through McDiarmid’s criterion, combined with the SN curve of the material.

Aiming at the laborious process in motor structure modeling for acoustic noise calculation, an improved stator structure modeling scheme is proposed, which includes stator structure simplification and equivalent material parameters identification. The stator assembly is modeled as a homogeneous solid with the same size as the stator core, and the influence of model simplification is compensated by orthotropic equivalent material parameters. The equivalent material parameters are acquired through an optimization algorithm by minimizing the error between FEM calculated modal frequencies and the modal tested results. With the stator assembly model, the motor assembly model is built, and the constrained modal characteristics of the motor assembly are verified by comparing the modal frequencies to the resonance bands in the vibration acceleration spectrum. Finally, the motor structure model is used to calculate the electromagnetic noise of an induction motor.

In this paper, the principles, advantages and disadvantages of the main technology of variable strength design of automobile B-pillar Based on the finite element simulation technology, the local stress variable strength design effect of Automobile B-pillar structure is simulated, compared and evaluated. The simulation results show that with the same mechanical properties, the overall lightweight degree of B-pillar structure with variable strength design can be reduced by about 8.9%. With the expansion of the strengthening area of variable strength design of parts, the degree of lightweight of parts can be further improved. It can be seen that the local stress variable strength design method provides a new technical option for the lightweight design of automobile parts.

Air foil bearings are gradually applied in air compressors in fuel cell vehicles for the advantages of high speed, oil-free and non-contact. Advanced air foil bearings with different structures are used to improve the performance of air compressor. Accurate modeling of the complex structures in air foil bearings has become a research hotspot in recent years. This paper presents a theoretical model for a double-top-foil air foil journal bearing (DAFJB) for centrifugal air compressors used in fuel cell vehicles. The foil structure is modeled by finite element method (FEM) using shell elements. Coulomb law and penalty function method are applied to model the tangential and normal behavior of the contact areas. The local contact between the middle top foil and the bump foil, the bump foil and the bearing sleeve are modeled using node-to-segment contact method. The large-area contact behavior between two layers of top foils is modeled by simplified surface-to-surface contact scheme.

Calculating accurately iron bridge saturation effects of the magnetic field, for Permanent Magnet Assisted Synchronous Reluctance Motors (PMASynRMs), remains to be a knotty problem. This paper presents an analytical modeling method to predict open-circuit magnetic field distributions and electromagnetic performances of PMASynRMs, considering iron bridge saturation effects. This analytical modeling method combines the magnetic equivalent circuit method, superposition principle, the solution of the governing Maxwell’s field equations and a complex relative permeance function. A quadruple-layer PMASynRM are remodeled into four surface-inserted permanent magnet synchronous motors (SPMSMs) which have different surface-inserted permanent magnets.

The separation and analysis of the torque of the permanent magnet synchronous motor is of great significance for optimizing the torque output of the motor. Based on the frozen permeability method, the virtual work principle (VWP) or the Maxwell stress tensor method (MSTM) is often used to separate the torque for torque analysis. However, considering the influence of non-ideal factors such as motor saturation, cross-coupling and flux harmonics, there are differences in torque separation between the VWP and the MSTM, which has been researched and analyzed in this paper. Based on this, for the assisted airspace barrier design of a surface-inserted permanent magnet synchronous motor, to conduct theoretical research on the torque optimization design, this paper uses the VWP to separate the average torque and the MSTM to separate the torque ripple.

An accurate finite element (FE) model is the basis for the numerical prediction of vibration and noise of permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs). This paper provides an equivalent modeling method of PMSMs considering the orthotropic material parameters of the stator system. First, a theoretical analysis of the influence of orthotropic material parameters on modal characteristics is implemented. Subsequently, the influence of orthotropic material parameters on the modal frequency of the stator is analyzed through the FE method. Then, the modal parameters of the stator core and the stator assembly are obtained by modal tests. According to the equivalent FE model and modal parameters, the orthotropic material parameters of the stator system are acquired. Moreover, to save the calculation time and simplify the modal identification process, the influence of windings is taken into account through additional mass and additional stiffness during the modeling process.

As the international community strengthens the control of carbon dioxide emissions, electric vehicles have gradually become a substitute for internal combustion engine vehicles. The battery pack is one of the most important components of electric vehicles. The strength and fatigue performance of the battery support plate not only affect the performance of the vehicle but also concern the safety of the driver. In the present study, the finite element model of a battery pack for fatigue analysis is completely established. The random vibration stress response analysis and acceleration power spectral density response analysis of the support plate for the battery pack are carried out, and the accuracy of the finite element model is verified by a random vibration test.

In this paper, a linear oscillatory actuator (LOA) with moving magnets used in active engine mount is modeled and theoretically analyzed considering its performance decline at high temperature. Firstly, a finite element model (FEM) of the LOA with moving magnets is established. The actuator force is decomposed to ampere force and cogging force through formation mechanism analysis. By using the FEM, ampere forces and cogging forces of the LOA with moving magnets under different current loads and different mover positions are calculated. The FEM and calculation method are validated by bench level test. The voice coil constant and cogging coefficient at normal temperature are identified, which indicates the actuator force is a linear model related to the current and the mover position.

The mechanism of automobile brake hot spots is unclear, which is a problem in the brake industry. Complex coupling between friction, heat, contact, and structure is the main difficulty in revealing the mechanism of brake hot spots. This paper proposes a new way to study the mechanism of hot spots by analyzing the deformation behavior of brake discs under asymmetric mechanical loading. The actual brake is simplified into a brake disc and friction lining system, and a transient dynamic finite element model under asymmetric mechanical loads is established to analyze the deformation characteristics of the brake disc. The normal deformation of the brake disc under asymmetric mechanical loads consists of two parts: low-frequency bending deformation and high-frequency waviness deformation, which are caused by the squeezing effect of the asymmetric brake pressure on the brake disc and the constraint modal vibration of the brake disc.

Off-road trucks, tractors and earth-moving machines are at high risk of accidents involving falling objects or rollovers. Therefore, these machines need proper protective structures to protect operators. This study investigates the crashworthiness optimization of a hydraulic excavator cab roof rail based on an improved bi-directional evolutionary structural optimization (BESO) method considering two different load cases (a lateral quasi-static load and an impact load from the top of cab, respectively). In the crashworthiness optimization problem, a weighted summation of external works done by the two different load cases is treated as the objective function while the volume of design domain is treated as the constraint. A mutative weight scheme is proposed to stabilize the optimization and balance the two load cases. Finite element (FE) model is established and two prototypes are fabricated based on the optimal design.

The mechanical claw is an important functional part of intelligent sanitation vehicles. Its performance significantly influences the functional reliability and structural safety of intelligent sanitation vehicles. The load of the trash changes extensively during the work of the mechanical claw. Hence, a comprehensive consideration of structural uncertainty during designing is needed to meet performance requirements. Uncertainty optimization design should be applied to reduce the sensitivity of structural performance to uncertain factors and ensure the robust performance of the mechanical paw structure. In this study, a numerical model of the mechanical claw of novel intelligent sanitation vehicles is established first in SolidWorks, and a finite element model is built by Optistruct. Based on the analysis of uncertain load factors of the mechanical claw, a robust mathematical model of uncertain factors is established by the Gauss-Chebyshev and Smolyak algorithm.

To overcome some drawbacks of using UHSS (Ultra High Strength Steel) in vehicle weight reduction, like spot weld HAZ (Heat Affected Zone) softening, hard machining and brittleness, a new solution of ultra-high stress strengthening was proposed and applied to the ridgelines of thin-walled structures in this paper. Firstly, stress distribution characteristics, the laws of stress variation and the compressed plate buckling process of the rectangular thin-walled beam under compressive and bending load were analyzed in elastic plastic stage by theory and Finite Element (FE) simulation. Secondly, based on elastic plastic buckling theory of the compressed plate and stress distribution similarity of the buckling process of the thin-walled box structure, three factors influencing the ultimate resistance enhancement of thin-walled hat section beam were found, and the rationality and accuracy of cross section ultimate resistance prediction formulas were also verified by FE simulation.

For electric vehicles, electromagnetically excited noise from the traction motor is one of the main acoustic noise sources, especially for automobiles driven at low speed that mechanical noise and aerodynamic noise are minor. To analyze the characteristics of the electromagnetically excited noise and propose noise reduction suggestions, an accurate noise prediction model is essential. In this paper, a multi-physics model to predict the electromagnetic force excited acoustic noise of induction motor is presented. First, a Three-Dimensional (3D) transient electromagnetic model of the motor was established using the Finite Element Method (FEM). By inputting the current signal collected in the noise test as the current source in the FEM model, the uneven distributed time-varying magnetic forces, which included the influence of the current harmonics due to Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM), was calculated. Then, a structural model was built.

Based on the classical dq theory, this paper proposes a new electromagnetic torque analytical model (AM) for interior permanent magnet synchronous motor (IPMSM) considering ripple characteristics, including permanent magnet (PM) torque ripple and reluctance torque ripple. The analytical expression of PM torque considering the effect of PM flux linkage harmonics is first derived according to dq transformation and energy method. Then, an improved inductance calculation method considering the non-sinusoidal magnetic field distribution and cross-coupling effect is proposed, and the reluctance torque model is established by taking the influence of inductance harmonics into consideration. Subsequently, the total electromagnetic torque can be obtained by the superposition of PM torque and reluctance torque. Finally, the proposed AM was verified by finite-element method (FEM).

The noise and vibration of electric vacuum pump (EVP) become a major problem for electric vehicles when the vehicle is stationary. This paper aims at the EVP’s abnormal noise of an electric vehicle when stationary. Driver’s right ear (DRE) noise was tested and spectrogram analysis was carried out to identify the noise sources. In order to attenuate this kind of abnormal noise, a new EVP rubber mount with a segmented structure was introduced, which optimized the transfer path of vibration. Then dynamic stiffness and fatigue life of the EVP mount with different rubber hardness were calculated through finite element analysis (FEA) approach. Bench tests of fatigue life and DRE noise were performed to validate the FEA results. Test data of the sample mount shows that sound pressure level of DRE was dramatically attenuated and thus passengers’ ride comfort was enhanced.

With the rapidly developing automotive industry and stricter environmental protection laws and regulations, lightweight materials, advanced manufacturing processes and structural optimization methods are widely used in body design. Therefore, in order to evaluate and improve the pedestrian protection during a collision, this paper presents an impact simulation modeling and structural optimization method for a sport utility vehicle engine hood made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP). Head injury criterion (HIC) was used to evaluate the performance of the hood in this regard. The inner panel and the outer panel of CFRP hood were discretized by shell elements in LS_DYNA. The Mat54-55 card was used to define the mechanical properties of the CFRP hood. In order to reduce the computational costs, just the parts contacted with the hood were modeled. The simulations were done in the prescribed 30 impact points.

In this study, the vibroacoustic characteristics and torque fluctuation of switched reluctance motors (SRMs) with different phases and poles have been analyzed in detail. Also, the common four SRMs, i.e., three-phase 6/4 SRM, four-phase 8/6 SRM, five-phase 10/8 SRM, and six-phase 12/10 SRM, have been selected. First, the spatial-temporal distribution characteristics of radial force in SRMs were revealed by virtue of the analytical derivation, which was validated by the 2D Fourier decomposition based on the finite-element results of radial force. Second, a multiphysics model, which was composed of an electromagnetic field, a mechanical field, and an acoustic field, was established to predict the noise behaviors of SRMs with different phases and poles. Third, the relationship between the torque fluctuation and the phases / poles of SRMs, and the relationship between the noise and the radial force / phases / poles are all analyzed.