Dynamic development: a new tool has been produced that can speed vehicle development without cutting corners

摘要

A major thrust in the auto industry is the shortening of the vehicle development process, while improving the quality and durability of products offered to consumers. Indeed, this need is often the main feature within these pages and, as we always say, the key to achieving rapid vehicle programs lies in the development of tools. To this end, the Fatigue Design and Evaluation Committee of the Society of Automotive Engineers of North America has initiated an investigation into the dynamic behavior and associated fatigue damage of an ATV. The objectives of the study are to develop new correlated methodologies that will allow prediction of the durability of components of proposed vehicles by means of digital prototype simulation. An ATV was selected for the study because it was relatively inexpensive, yet its frame and suspension are complex enough to realistically represent components in commercial vehicles. As part of the committee, MTS has used the vehicle as a platform for validating its Empirical Dynamics Models (EDM) software.