Striking the right balance between strength and durability on the one hand
and material cost and weight on the other, remains a challenge,
especially when developing high-performing electric vehicles.
A vehicle battery pack is extremely heavy. It can make up to more than 30% of the total
vehicle weight. This significantly alters the mass distribution of an electric car,
leading to a different road load distribution on the suspension and also new loads within the
vehicle body. This can lead to durability issues that were not existing before.
Also, the overall vehicle weight needs to be reduced to extend the driving range,
which makes overdesigning to safely meet durability no viable option. So then what is?
The answer lies in the coupling of test and simulation,
a tandem that has become key in dealing with balancing issues faster, cheaper and earlier-on.
The Simcenter portfolio is built upon this idea to facilitate a true hybrid way of engineering.
A good process starts and ends - with accurate data, in this case, on the
vehicle operational loads. It will serve as input for virtual and physical validation afterwards.
With the combination of Simcenter SCADAS and Simcenter Testlab, you can connect a
wide range of different types of sensors and capture loads in the most extreme conditions.
Needless test reruns are avoided thanks to a set of embedded methods,
such as automated data clean-up, and on-the-spot analysis and reporting, allowing for in-the-field
validation. As such, Simcenter allows you to accelerate your testing schedule.
Furthermore, by using load data mining services, you can define realistic and customer correlated
durability targets and procedures. Simcenter helps to account for geographic differences
and adapt product requirements, considering local roads, driving habits and vehicle loading. This
truly impacts development time and increases return on investment of expensive facilities
such as dedicated test benches. When it comes to design optimization
and virtual product validation, it is crucial to consider fatigue early in
the process. Simcenter 3D virtually optimizes components by predicting the impact of material,
geometry and welding changes. It assesses upfront how a component reacts under stress or vibration.
Developing lighter, yet stronger components also requires a fast
and accurate structural analysis process. The Simcenter platform offers this, with a premier
FEA solver for computational performance, accuracy, reliability and scalability.
It allows engineers to run structural analysis to virtually investigate
product performance under all possible operating conditions.
Yet, physical components could still fail. So what if you could quantify the remaining useful
lifetime of components, subsystem and machines under their specific real-use conditions?
Simcenter Engineering and Consulting services have developed a methodology
to identify potential problems in advance and locate components that are likely to fail.
Using prognostic health management and failure prediction methodologies, our experts use data
analytics and virtual sensing technology to gather deeper system insight during condition monitoring.
By connecting real data with system simulation or CAE 3D simulation
in a digital twin, targeted preventive actions can be taken before a predicted failure occurs.
In a nutshell, Simcenter solutions and services provides the right answers for engineering
lighter, stronger and more durable vehicles at all design stages, without compromise.
Visit the website for more information.