Developing Airbags
All airbags start out as a square 3D bag shape, are tailored to requirements in CAD, and simulated to determine performance. Inflators are standardized along positional requirements, and adapted to regional legislation. Aluminum canister inflator of the mid-1980s dwarfs today’s disc inflator. Both have the same output, but disc design can be used for both […]
Designing the 2016 Chevy Volt
The 2016 Chevy Volt, says designer John Cafaro, was designed to look “dynamic,†not like a jellybean. John Cafaro has designed cars like the Corvette and trucks like the Silverado. This time, the assignment was the extended range electric vehicle, the 2016 Volt. GM’s Pam Fletcher says that the new battery system has 192 cells […]
Designing Seats the PLM Way
A complete seam definition in SDE comes from it converting curves into seams by associating 2D to 3D attributes, including seam, thread or needle type, and length to a curve. SDE automatically combines these seams into pieces, which are associated with materials. SDE can generate engineering drawings as required for the seat covers, drawings that […]
Creating the C-HR
Yes, that’s a Toyota: the 2018 C-HR. No, it doesn’t look like anything that’s come from that brand (at least since the 2000 Celica). This is the Scion Concept revealed in 2015 that was transformed to the production 2018 Toyota C-HR. (Because Scion no longer exists.) Top engineer on the C-HR, Hiroyuki Koba, wanted to […]
Cutting Weight and Costs with Laser Welding
Laser welding can be advantageous in many applications, such as welding differential housings. The welds are strong, and it is possible to eliminate weight in the application—in this case, as many as three pounds if laser welding is used in place of threaded connections. According to EMAG Corp., replacing the classic screw connection between a […]
CAM Does More in 2017
In Edgecam 2017 R1, a dialog box lets users add pre-machined part files and specify where those parts are to be mounted on a multi-component work-holding device. In Alphacam 2017 R1, new depth control settings for the tip angle of the tool and the cone angle of the hole let machinists drill the actual holes […]
CAE from Powertrain to Radar Systems
In Fluent 17.0, the anode and cathode micro porous layers of proton exchange membrane fuel cells can be modeled separately from the gas diffusion layers. The result: more accurate simulations. Radar analysis in Ansys 17.0 can simulate electromagnetic waves in environments ranging from small (such as in the passenger cabin) to huge (the real world […]
Bosch, ZF and NVIDIA
The ZF ProAI system for autonomous driving is based on an NVIDIA processor. Related Suppliers Bosch Rexroth Corp. NVIDIA ZF Group Although automotive suppliers Bosch (bosch.com) and ZF (zf.com) are competitors, they have one thing in common: as both companies help drive automated driver assistance systems (ADAS) technologies forward, both companies are working with NVIDIA […]
Bosch Gets to the Point
The anatomy of a piezoelectric inline injector. Variations on this technology can be used for diesel or gasoline direct injection engines. Bosch’s latest diesel particulate filter is made of sintered metal instead of ceramic, and features wedge-shaped slices packed in a cylinder. They are thinner at their leading edge, and the circumference of the cylinder […]
Better Inspection Software Improves Quality Management
PolyWorks 2016’s measurement sequence editor lets operators use drag-and-drop to change the order of measurement operations, control device moves, trigger CMM-specific operations, add prompts and images, and define conditional operations. PolyWorks’ offline simulation functions automatically generate simulated point cloud data and probed points from CAD geometry. Operators can simulate measured object components, data alignments, data […]
