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Currently the Automotive industry demands highly competitive product to survive in the global tough competition. The engine cooling system plays a vital role in meeting the stringent emission norms and improving the vehicle fuel economy apart from maintaining the operating temperature of engine. The airflow through vehicle subsystems like the grille, bumper, the heat exchangers, the fan and shroud and engine bay are called as front-end flow. Front end flow is crucial factor in engine cooling system as well as in determining the aerodynamic drag of vehicle. The airflow through the engine compartment is determined by the front-end vehicle geometry, the CRFM and CAC package, the engine back restriction and the engine compartment geometry including the inlet and outlet sections. This paper discusses the 1D modelling method for front-end airflow rate prediction and thermal performance by 1D method. The underbody components are stacked using heat stack and simulated in pressure mode.

With the increase in the number of automobiles on road, there is a very strong emphasis on reducing the air pollution which led to evolution of stringent emission norms. To meet these stringent emission norms, the ideal solution is to optimize the engine hardware and the combustion system to reduce the emission at source thereby reducing the dependency on exhaust after treatment system. Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) engines are gaining popularity worldwide as they provide a balance between fun to drive and fuel efficiency. Controlling the particle emissions especially Particle Number (PN) is a challenge in GDI engines due to the nature of its combustion system. In this study, experiments were performed on a 1.2Litre 3-cylinder 250bar GDI engine to capture the effect of injection strategies on PN.

The trace of rotavator blade is trochoidal path which depends both on tractor forward speed and rotational speed of rotavator. Since this path plays an important role in pulverization, hence pulverization also depends on both factors. In present days system, Rotavator an active tillage implements drawn by tractor is operated by drivers experience and driver set up the speed by throttling the tractor to reach the rated 540 PTO rpm mark in instrumentation cluster. Thus, there is no indication system available to farmer/ Tractor driver to operate the tractor connected rotavator at optimal forward tractor speed and rotational speed of rotavator. Thus, leading to decrease in field quality and performance.

Rotavator is an active tillage implement for breaking the Soil and for the preparation of seed bed for cultivation. The Farmers are currently facing problem due to usage of sub optimal speed of Rotavator which results in more fuel consumption, takes more time for completion of operation. Also, the Current Rental models work on Tractor + Implement as rental combination and customer not able to rent Rotavator as a standalone implement due to non-availability of Tracking information such as hours of utilization on Rotavator. Farmers not able to maintain the service periodicity, if oil change not done in prescribed duration then it may result in improper maintenance and breakdown of the Rotavator. To overcome these problems a smart Rotavator developed consists of an electronic unit fitted on the Rotavator shaft to measure the speed of the shaft rotation and in turn convert to Rotavator speed and also able to convert into Hours of usage based on the starting and stopping of the rotavator.

The adoption of BSVI emission norms for Indian domestic market brought a very stringent window for pollutants. For CI engines, the major impact was in the reduction of NOx by 68% and PM by 82% from BSIV norms. Technologically advanced after treatment systems like SCR / DPF / LNT aid to meet the stringent emission norms. Implementation of high-end after treatment systems in vehicles, requires precise monitoring and fool proof feedback systems. On Board Diagnostics (OBD) makes this possible. OBD is used to monitor the performance of after treatment systems and warn the user in case of deterioration. The challenges in framing OBD strategy increases with more electronic hardware and complex algorithms taking control, to monitor precise information on system performance. For a fool proof OBD monitoring of the exhaust system, a complete understanding of the SCR system and its components in terms of hardware specifications and software functionality is critical.

Turbocharging of diesel engines have undergone various phases of technological advancements proving merits with engine performance. Since VGTs are finding their applications in many automotive engines, it is also crucial on finding out ways to extract maximum benefits from the system. Pneumatic actuated VGTs control the vanes positioning with the help of mechanical linkages and don’t prove good in transient response with relatively slower boost build up. The electronic controlled VGT operates with the aid of DC motor which is linked to the engine management system. The position sensor senses the current position of the actuator which is controlled by the engine management system for delivering the desired boost pressure. The eVGT system thus provides very quick response and accurate control of boost pressure in all the vehicle driving conditions.

It is imperative that all automobile manufacturers conduct vehicle level benchmarking at the initial stage of any new project. From the benchmark information, the manufacturers can set relevant targets for their own vehicles under development. In this regard, an accurate prediction of the engine operating points can improve the correlation of the measured fuel economy of the benchmark vehicle. The present work describes a novel method that can be used for the accurate prediction of the engine operating points of any benchmark vehicle. Since the idea of instrumenting the crankshaft/driveshaft with torque transducers is a costlier and time-consuming process, the proposed method can be effective in reducing the benchmarking. Hence, the objective of this work is to develop a mathematical model to calculate the real-time engine operating points (engine speed and torque) using parameters like vehicle speed, accelerator pedal map, driveline inertia, vehicle coastdown force and gradient.

This paper deals with the study of the phenomenon of crevice corrosion of aluminium by using an example of a corrosion failure of a joint in the automobile coolant circuit. A number of joint failures were studied to understand the corrosion pattern and for various metallurgical aspects like chemistry, hardness and microstructure. The corrosion products were analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDS). This analysis indicated that the corrosion products mostly contained Aluminium Oxides with other contaminants like chlorides. The studies revealed that the clamped joint of the aluminium part and rubber hose led to the formation of a crevice with the engine coolant acting as the corrosive medium. The corrosion behavior at the location was affected by environmental factors like temperature, pH and chloride contamination.

In any industry, early detection and mitigation of a failure in component is vital for feasible design changes or development iterations or saving money. So it becomes pivotal to capture the failure mode in an accelerated way. This theory poses many challenges in devising the methodology to validate the failure mode. In real world, vehicle head lamp is exposed to all possible kinds of harsh environments such as variable daily ambient, rain, dust and engine compartment temperature …etc. This brings rapid thermal stress onto headlamp resulting into warpage cracks. At vehicle level on particular model, this failure is typically observed after 20,000-25,000 kms in a span of 3-4 months of running. Any corrective action to revalidate the design change or improvement will need similar timelines in regular way to test, which is quite high in product development cycle.

The cabin cool down performance is influenced by heat load, AC system components and Air handling components. The air handling components are AC duct, vane and vent. Design of AC duct vane plays a crucial role in the airflow directivity in cabin which enhances the cabin cool down performance. Simulations are carried out by rotating the vanes manually and requires post process for every iteration. It leads to more time consuming and more number of simulations to achieve the target value. Research articles focusing on automation and optimization of vane articulation studies are scanty. Thus, the objective of this work is to execute the vane articulation study with less manual intervention. A parametric approach is developed by integrating ANSA and ANSYS FLUENT tools. With Direct Fit Morphing and DoE study approach from ANSA delivers the surface mesh model for the different vane angle configurations.

Aerodynamics of on-road vehicles has come to the limelight in the recent years. Better aerodynamic design of vehicle would improve vehicle fuel efficiency with increased acceleration performance. To obtain best aerodynamic body, the series of design modifications and different testing methodologies must be involved in vehicle design and validation phase. Wind tunnel aerodynamic force measurement, road load determination and computational fluid dynamics were the common methods used to evaluate the aerodynamic behavior of the vehicle body. As a novel approach, the present work discusses about the on-road (Real time) testing methodology that is aimed to evaluate the aerodynamic performance of vehicle body using surface pressure mapping. A 64-Channel digital pressure scanner has been utilized in this work for mapping the pressure at different locations of the typical vehicle body.

This paper makes an attempt to focus on a study to evaluate angle of vision and obstruction in a vehicle, it is an objective assessment through different percentiles of population. In a view of Safety and comfort of a driver, a good perception of environment in which his vehicle is operating will be a determining component. Driver visibility and hidden corner in vehicle is a major safety area for passengers and pedestrian. Driver eye vision is an important key factor to design vehicle windshield, rear window and A-Pillar/ B-Pillar, positioning of side view mirror and IRVM based on anthropometry data. This study focuses on method of capturing and measuring the i) Driver's Direct field of vision that the driver sees directly by moving his/her eyes ii) Driver's Indirect field of vision in which driver views indirectly by using imaging devices Rear View mirror, Display cameras. iii) Driver's Angle of obstruction - by A pillar, B pillar.

Diesel engines are known for their excellent low-end torque, better drivability, performance, and better fuel economy. The increase in customer demands pushes to deliver higher power and torque along with fuel economy. This requirement puts a great challenge on the overall weight of the engine. This paper explains the holistic approach followed along with optimizing the rocker arm cover to achieve the weight target without compromising on durability and cost in the commercial segment 2.5-liter Diesel Engine. This paper presents a complete overview of the design and development of Rocker Arm (RA) cover to meet Strength, Durability, NVH and Aesthetic in Commercial Engine where base design is in aluminum which is mounted on cylinder head with a separate breather system. From aluminum the base design of Rocker arm cover is optimized to sheet metal where in there is reduction of 43% in weight and cost saving of 13%.

Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) simulations are an integral part of the product development process in an automotive industry. The conventional approach involving pre-processing, solving and post-processing is highly time-consuming. Emerging digital technologies such as Machine Learning (ML) can be implemented in early stage of product development cycle to predict key performances without need of traditional CAE. Oil Canning loadcase simulates the displacement and buckling behavior of vehicle outer styling panels. A ML model trained using historical oil canning simulation results can be used to predict the maximum displacement and classify buckling locations. This enables product development team in faster decision making and reduces overall turnaround time. Oil canning FE model features such as stiffness, distance from constraints, etc., are extracted for training database of the ML model. Initially, 32 model features were extracted from the FE model.

The side door closing effort is one of the main evaluating parameters which demonstrates the build quality of the vehicle. The side door hinge axis inclination is one of the key attributes that affect the side door closing effort. Commonly, the hinge axis is inclined in two directions of a vehicle to have necessary door rise during the door opening event. Due to the process and assembly variations in the door assembly, the upper and lower hinge axis of the side door deviates from the design axis. In this paper, the deviations in the side door hinge axis and its effects on the side door closing velocity is discussed. The deviations of the side door hinge axis are studied with a coordinate measuring machine. The side door closing velocity of the vehicle is measured with the velocity meter. The study revealed that side door closing velocity is increasing with an increase in the deviation of the top and bottom door hinge axis from the design hinge axis.

The contribution of engine borne noise is the major source of vehicle noise in diesel powered vehicles. The engine noise can be minimized by modification of engine components design and also with different acoustic abatement techniques. The research activities were carried out on 4-cylinder CRDe engine for SUV application. All the emission and performance parameters along with combustion noise was captured continuously for all the part load points from 1000 RPM to 2750 RPM with respect to the different road conditions and driving cycle. This paper targets on reducing the combustion noise at the noise prone zones only on the basis of the injection strategies ensuring no ill effect on the emissions and fuel economy. The first step was the reduction of rail pressure which helped noise levels to be reduced by almost 6 dB at noise zones. Main injection timing retardation was tried at all possible zones which influenced in considerable noise reduction at various zones.

In farm tractors, front end loaders are becoming popular attachments for primarily material handling such as loading, moving and unloading of woodchips, sand, gravels etc. It is also used for some severe load application such as tree uprooting and ripping operation which requires validation of loader frame and tractor as well. To validate the design, a standard pull-push test is carried out on tractor with loader in a laboratory. In this test front loader bucket is pushed against a rigidly clamped fixture with full engine throttle and maximum hydraulic cylinder pressure of loader. To avoid surprise failures during the test, a virtual simulation method needs to be developed and validated. In this paper, a method has been proposed by authors for the above objective. A multi-body dynamics model of tractor with loader is created in MSC ADAMS and actual event is simulated using test loads & boundary conditions.

Connected vehicles technology is experiencing a boom across the globe. Vehicle manufacturers have started using telematics devices which leverage mobile connectivity to pool the data. Though the primary purpose of the telematics devices is location tracking, the additional vehicle information gathered through the devices can bring in much more insights about the vehicles and its working condition. Cloud computing is one of the major enabled for connected vehicles and its data-driven solutions. On the other hand, machine learning and data analytics enable a rich customer experience understanding different inferences from the available data. From a fleet owner perspective, the revenue and the maintenance costs are directly related to the usage conditions of the vehicle. Usage information like load condition could help in efficient vehicle planning, drive mode selection and proactive maintenance [1].

Diesel engines have occupied a significant position in passenger car applications in the present automotive sector. Turbochargers find a very prominent role in diesel engines of all applications in order to achieve desired power and better fuel economy. Gaining higher torque at lower engine speeds with low smoke levels is a very tough task with fixed geometry turbochargers due to availability of lower air mass resulting in higher smoke emissions. Variable geometry turbochargers are capable of providing better torque at lower speeds and reduced smoke emissions on Common Rail Diesel engines. The Variable Geometry Turbocharger types used in this study are straight profile nozzle vanes (sample A) and curved profile nozzle vanes (sample B). The curved profile vanes as seen in sample B results in reduced variation of circumferential pressure distortions.

Improving the fuel economy of the vehicle resulting in energy conservation on long run is a challenging task in the automotive field without compromising the emission margins. Fuel economy improvement by effective driving is the main focus of this paper by the proper utilization of gears which can enable good fuel economy even when the vehicle is driven by different drivers. GSI technique was implemented on Sports utility vehicle operating with 2.2 l engine. Tests were carried with GSI and the effect of fuel consumption and emissions were compared to the regular driving cycle. Optimization of various gear shifting points were analyzed and implemented for better fuel economy keeping the drivability in mind, meeting the BS4 emission norms comfortably. The experiments were carried out in both cold and hot conditions to check the effect of GSI and positive results of fuel economy improvement was yielded.