Automotivedesign

Chassis*design
*pronounced:chase singular chasez plural

Introduction
Loadsduetonormalrunningconditions:
Vehicletransverseonunevenground. Manoeuverp performedby ydriver.

Fivebasicloadcases:
Bendingcase Torsioncase Combinedbending gandtorsion Lateralloading Foreandaftloading g

Bending
Occupants

Payload Fueltank

Duetoloadingin vertical(XZ)plane. Duetoweightof componentsalong thevehicleframe. Staticconditionvehicle structurecanbetreated as2Dbeam. Unsprung mass

Engine

Wheels/ b ki braking

Suspension

Vehicleisapproximately pp ysymmetric y inxyplane. p Componentsliebelowchassis Donotimposeloadsinstaticcondition condition.

Bendingmoment/Shearforcediagramofatypical passengervehicle hi l

Bending
Dynamicloading:
Inertiaofthestructurecontributesintotalloading Alwayshigherthanstaticloading Roadvehicles:2.5to3timesstaticloads Offroadvehicles:4timesstaticloads
m g

Example: E l
Staticloads
Vehicleatrest. Movingataconstantvelocityonaevenroad. Canbesolvedusingstaticequilibriumbalance. Resultsinsetofalgebraicequations.

Dynamicloads
V Vehicle hi l moving i onabumpy b road devenat tconstant t tvelocity. l it Canbesolvedusingdynamicequilibriumbalance. Generallyresultsindifferentialequations.
m g

m a

Torsion
Whenvehicletraverseonan unevenroad. d Frontandrearaxles experiencesamoment. Puresimpletorsion:
Torqueisappliedtooneaxle andreactedbyotheraxle. Frontaxle:anticlockwise torque(frontview) Rearaxle:balanceswith clockwisetorque Resultsinatorsionmoment aboutx axis.
Rearaxle l

Frontaxle

Inrealitytorsionisalways accompaniedbybendingdue t gravity. to it

Torsion
Rearaxle l

Frontaxle

Combinedbendingandtorsion
Bendingandtorsionalloadsaresuper imposed.
Loadingsareassumedtobelinear

Onewheelofthelightlyloadedaxleisraised onabumpresultintheotherwheelgooff ground. Allloadsoflighteraxleisappliedtoone wheel. Duetonatureofresultingloads,loading symmetrywrt xzplaneislost. RR canbedeterminedfrommoment balance balance. RRstabilizesthestructurebyincreasingthe reactionforceonthesidewherethewheelis offground. Themarked
Sideisoffground Sidetakesallloadoffrontaxle Sidesreactionforceincreases Sidesreactionforcedecreases

Bending g

Torsion

tobalancethemoment.

Combinedbendingandtorsion

Lateralloading

Lateralloading
Foramoderncart=1.45mandh =0.51 0 51m. m Criticallateralacceleration=1.42 g ysideforceslimitlateral Inreality accelerationislimitedwithin0.75 g. Kerb bumpingcauseshighloads andresultsinrollover. rollover Widthofcarandreinforcements providessufficientbending stiffnesstowithstandlateral forces. forces Lateralshockloadsassumedto betwicethestaticverticalloads onwheels.

Longitudinalloading
Whenvehicleacceleratesand d l t i decelerates inertia ti f forceswere generated. Acceleration Weight transferredfromfronttoback back.
Reactionforceonfrontwheelis givenby(takingmomentabt RR)

Deceleration Weight transferredfrombacktofront.

Reactionforceonfrontwheelis givenby

Longitudinalloading
Limiting gtractiveand brakingforcesare decidedbycoefficient offrictionb/wtiresand roadsurfaces Tractive andbraking forcesaddsbending throughsuspension. Inertiaforcesadds additionalbending.

Asymmetricloading
Resultswhenonewheelstrikesa raisedobjectsordropsintoapit. Resolvedasverticalandhorizontalloads. Magnitudeofforcedependson
Speedofvehicle Suspensionstiffness Wheelmass Bodymass

Raised object`

Appliedloadisashockwave
Which h hh hasveryless l timed duration Hencethereisnochangeinvehiclespeed Actsthroughthecenterofthewheel.

Asymmetricloading
Resolvedverticalforcecauses:
Additionalaxleload VerticalinertialoadthroughCG Torsionmoment

tomaintaindynamicequilibrium equilibrium. Resolvedhorizontalforce causes:

Bendinginxzplane Horizontalinertialoadthrough CG Momentaboutzaxis

tomaintaindynamicequilibrium. Totalloadingisthe superpositionofallfourloads.

Allowablestress
Vehiclestructureisnotfully yrigid g Internalresistanceorstressisinducedtobalance externalforces Stressshouldbekepttoacceptablelimits
StressduetostaticloadXdynamicfactoryieldstress
Shouldnotexceed67%ofyieldstress. stress

Safetyfactoragainstyieldis1.5 Fatigue g analysis y isneeded

Atplacesofstressconcentration Eg.Suspensionmountingpoints,seatmounting points. points

Bendingstiffness
Importantinstructuralstiffness Sometimesstiffnessismoreimportantthan strength Determinedbyacceptablelimitsofdeflection ofthesideframedoormechanisms.
Excessivedeflectionwillnotshutdoorproperly

Localstiffnessoffloorisimportant
Stiffenedbyswagespressedintopanels Secondmomentofareashouldbeincreased

Bendingstiffness
Thinpanelsseparatedbyhoneycomb structurereducedvibration Localstiffnesshastobeincreasedat:
Door Bonnet B Suspensionattachpoints Seatingmountingpoints Achievedbyreinforcementplatesandbrackets.

Torsionalstiffness
Allowabletorsionforamediumsizedcar:8000to10000N m/deg / Measuredoverthewheelbase Whentorsionstiffnessislow:
Structuremove upanddown and/orwhip Whenparkedonunevengrounddoorsfailtoclose Doorsfailtoclosewhilejackingifjackpointsareatacorner

Torsionstiffnessisinfluencedbywindscreens TSreducesby40%whenwindscreensremoved O Open topcarsh havepoortorsional i lstiffness iff Handlingbecomesverydifficultwhentorsionalstiffnessis low.

Chassistypes Ladderframes
Usedbyearlymotorcars Earlycarsbodyframedidnot contributemuchforvehicle structure.
Mostlymadeofwood whichhaslow stiffness Cross beam

Carriedallload(bendingand torsion) Advantages:

Canaccommodatelargevarietyof bodyshapesandtypes Usedinflatplatforms,boxvans, tankersanddetachablecontainers

Siderails

Stillusedinlightcommercial vehicleslikepickup.

Chassistypes Ladderframes
Siderailsfrequentlyhaveopen channelsection Openorclosedsectioncrossbeams Goodbendingstrengthandstiffness Flangescontributelargearea momentofinertia. Flangescarryhighstresslevels O Open section i :easyaccessf forfi fixing i bracketsandcomponents Shearcenterisoffsetfromtheweb Localtwistingofsideframeis avoided Loadfromvehicleisappliedonweb
Avoidsholesinhighlystressesflanges

Verylowtorsionalstiffness.

Chassistypes Ladderframes
Clockwisesideframebending

Torsionincrossmemberis reacted dby b bending b d of fside d frames Bendingincrossframesare reacted t dby b t torsion i of fside id frames Allmembersareloadedin torsion Opensectionsarereplaced byclosedsectionsto improvetorsionalstiffness
Strengthofjointsbecomescritical Maxbendingoccursatjoints Attachmentofbracketsbecomes morecomplex l

Anticlockwisecrossframetorsion

Chassistypes cruciformframes
Cancarrytorsionalloads,no elementsoftheframeis subjectedtotorsionalmoment. Madeoftwostraightbeams Haveonlybendingloads Hasgoodtorsionalstiffnesswhen jointincenterissatisfactorily designed Maxbendingmomentoccursin joint. Combiningladderandcruciform frameprovidesgoodbendingand goodtorsionalstiffness Crossbeamsatfrontandbackat suspensionpointsareusedto carrylateralloads

Chassistypes Torquetubebackbone frame Backbone

Mainbackboneisaclosed boxsection Splayedbeamsatfrontand rearextenttosuspension mountingpoints Transversebeamsresist lateralloads Backboneframe:bending andtorsion Splayedbeams:bending Transversebeams:tension orcompression
Splayedbeams

Transverse beam

Chassistypes Spaceframes
Inallframestillnowlengthinone dimensionisverylesscompared tothe h other h twodi dimensions i Increasingdepthincreases bendingstrength Usedinracecars Allplanesarefullytriangulated Beamelementscarry yeither tensionorcompressiveloads. Ringframesdependsonbending ofelements
Windscreen,backlight Enginecompartment,doors Lowershearstiffness

Indiagonalbracedframes stiffnessprovidedbydiagonal element

Chassistypes Integralstructures
Moderncarsaremassproduced Sh tsteel Sheet t lpressings i and dspot twelds ld usedtoformanintegralstructure Componentshavestructuraland otherfunctions Sid frames Side f +depth d h+roof fgives i good d bendingandtorsionalstiffness Geometricallyverycomplicated StressdistributionbyFEMonly Stressdistributionisfunctionof appliedloadsandrelativestiffness betweencomponents Advantages:

Stifferinbendingandtorsion Lowerweight Lesscost Quietoperation

It is particularly useful in assessing possible load paths. The methodology is based on the idea that the vehicle can be represented (approximately) by sub-assemblies or components that can in turn be represented by plane surfaces. These plane surfaces are held in equilibrium by forces which arise from vehicle loads and which are transmitted to and from adjacent SSS and eventually through to the ground. Adjacent SSS have equal and opposite forces acting on them.

StructuralanalysisbySimpleStructural Surfaces f (SSS) ( )method h d

Manymethodstodetermine loadsandstresses Elementarymethodisbeam method,FEMisadvanced methodandSSSisintermediate DevelopedbyPawlowski in1964 Determinesloadsinmain structuralelements Elementsareassumedtoberigid initsplane p Cancarryloadsinitsplane
Tension,compression,shearand bending

Loadsnormaltoplaneand bendingoutofplaneisinvalid andnotallowed A Simple Structural Surface is rigid in its own plane but flexible out of plane. That is, it can
carry loads in its plane (tension, compression, shear, bending) but loads normal to the plane and bending out of the plane are not possible. Figure 6.20 illustrates diagrammatically the principle of the Simple Structural Surface.

SSSmethod Analysisofsimplevan ( (torsion case) )

SSSmethod Analysisofsimplevan ( (torsion case) )

Tenstructural componentsare considered Ifgeometryisknownand axleloadsareknown, edgeloads(Qs)canbe d determined. d Forafullyladenvanfront axleloadislighter. BymomentbalanceRr canbedetermined.
R'r Rf * tr = * tf 2 2

SSSmethod Analysisofsimplevan ( (torsion case) )

TheequilibriumofSSS2andSSS 3areobtainedbytaking momentsasRf andRr areknown. SSS2(frontcrossbeam)

P2w

Rf * tf = 0 2
R'r * tr = 0 2

SS3(Rearcrossbeam)

P3w

P2andP3willbeequalin magnitudeastheyactatthe widthofthevehicleandthe torqueatthefrontandrearmust beequal.

SSSmethod Analysisofsimplevan ( (torsion case) )

Considering gSSS6 Q1 toQ5 willoccur aroundperiphery Appliesopposite momenttoP2 andP3 TakingmomentatA
P 3(l1 + l 2 + l 3) Q 3(l1 + l 2 + l 3 + l 4) Q 4(h1 h 2) Q 2 h 2 P 2l1 = 0

ConsiderSSS4(frontpanel)
Q 6 h 2 Q1w = 0

ConsiderSSS5(reardoorframe)
Q 6 h1 Q 3 w = 0

 ConsiderSSS8(floorpanel)
Q 6(l1 + l 2 + l 3 + l 4) Q 2 w = 0

SSSmethod Analysisofsimplevan ( (torsion case) )

ConsiderSSS9(windscreenframe)
Q 6(h1 h 2) Q5 w = 0 sin

ConsiderSSS10(Roof)
Q 6l 5 Q 4 w = 0

SixunknownsQ1 toQ6 SubstituteQ2,Q3 andQ4 intheeqn ofSSS6 Q6 canbe b obtained bt i dand d hencerestofthe unknownscanbederived

SimpleStructuralSurfaces representingasalooncarin bending

MaterialfromJ.H.Smith,2002

Passengercar
Morecomplexthanboxtypevan Detailedmodelvaryaccordingtomechanical components
Frontsuspensionsloadsappliedtofrontwingas forstrutsuspension Rearsuspension(trailingarmortwistbeam)loads toinnerlongitudinalmemberunderthebootfloor SSSsvarieswithbodytypes

VehiclestructuresrepresentedbySSS

Busorboxtypevehicle

Van

P Passenger car

SSS andNotSSS

Structuresthatarestructuralsurfaces

ImagefromJ.C.Brown,2002

StructuresthatareNOTsimple structural lsurfaces f

ImagefromJ.C.Brown,2002

Halfsaloonmodel
Limitedto5Loads
F1z=(radiator,bumper,battery)/2 F2z 2 =(engine)/2 F3z=onefrontpassengerandseat F4z=onerearpassenger,seat, t and dhalf h lffuel f ltank t k F5z=(luggage)/2

1UDL(body (b weight) h)

Process
Calculate Ca cu atereactions eact o satfront o ta and drear ea a axles es (takingmomentsandverticalforceequilibrium)
Rzf/ /2 Rrz/2

CalculateforcesineachoftheSSS 11equationswith11unknowns(K1, ..K10,M) canbeevaluatedfromSSS1toSSS8 Equilibriumofrightframetobeverifiedwith forcesandmoments

HalfSalooncarmodel Bending

Figure

TransverseSSS representingthestrut tower ResolvingForces

K1 +K2 Rfz f /2=0

SSS1

Moments
K1 =Rfz*w1/( /(2*(w ( 1+w2))

Figure

SSS2 Upperfrontlongitudinal ResolvingForces

K1 K K3 u(l1 +l3)=0

Moments
K1l3 u*((l1+l3)2/2)M=0

Figure

SSS3
Lowerfrontlongitudinal ResolvingForces
F1z +F2z +K5 K2 K4 =0

Figure

SSS4
enginefirewall ResolvingForcesandby symmetry y y
K5 K6 =0

Figure

SSS5

FloorCrossbeam(Front) Resolvingforcesandbysymmetry
K7K4F3z =0

Figure

SSS6

Longitudinalunderboot Resolvingforces K9+K8 Rrz /2+F5z=0 Moments: K9 =(Rrz*l6/2 F5l10)/(l5+l6)

Figure

SSS7

Floorcrossbeam(rear) Resolvingforcesandbysymmetry
K9K11F4z =0

Figure

SSS8
RearPanel Resolvingforcesandby symmetry y y
K10K8 =0

Figure

SSS9

Righthandsideframe Resolvingforces
K6 K7 +K11 +K10 u*(L+l6 l3)=0

MomentsaboutA
K10*(L+l6 l3)+K11*(L l3 l5)K7*(l4 l3)u*(L+l6 l3)2/2=0

Conclusion
SSSs1to9aresubjecttoloads Therearboottopframe,rearscreen,roof, windscreen floorpanelandbootfloorhave windscreen, noloadsappliedtothem The Th side id frame f carries i the h major j loads l d and dis i themainstructuralmember fordetermining the h bending b di stiffness iff and dstrength h of fthe h car.

SSSrepresentationofasalooncarin torsion
Frontaxleisassumedto belighterthanrear. Maximumtorque q that canbeappliedis: Rfz andRrz arereaction loadsatsuspension mountingpoints Rrz canbeobtained.
Rfz R ' rz * tf = * tr 2 2

SSS1(Struttower)
Thecar's ar'sali alignment nmentandstructural str t ral rigiditydependsonthestruttower.

Resolvingforces:
Forcesarenotbalanced.

Momentbalance

Rfz P1+P2 =0 2

Takingmomentaboutthemedial edge

P1 =

Rfz f w2 * 2 (w2 +w 1)

P1andP2 canbedeterminedfrom theaboveequations. Asthisisahalfmodel,loadsonthe leftstruttower(SSS1)willbe equal lbut b opposite i in i direction di i

 SSS2(Upperfrontlongitudinal)
LoadP1 fromstruttoweristransmitted.

Forcebalance
P3 P1 = 0 Momentbalance
P1 isequaltoP3 createsamomentin clockwisedirection momentM M balances Momenttakenwrt rear edge g

M'Pl 1 3 =0

SSS2haveequalbutopposite loads loads. P3andMcanbefound.

 SSS3(Lowerfrontlongitudinal)
P2 fromstruttoweristransmitted

Forcebalance:
P2 +P4 P5 =0 Momentbalance:
Taken k wrt rearedge d

p2l4 P5 = (l4 l5)

SSS3haveequaland oppositeloads. loads P4andP5canbe found.

 SSS5(Floorcross beam)
Momentbalance:

P4(tf 2w2) P7w=0

SSS6(Longitudinalunderbootfloor)
Forcebalance:

R ' rz P9 + P8 =0 2 Momentbalance:
R ' rz * l 6 P6 9 = SSS 6 willhaveequaland 2 * (l 6 + l 5) oppositeloading P7,P8 andP9 canbefound.

 SSS4(Enginefirewall)
Momentbalance:

SSS7(rearfloorcrossbeam)
Momentbalance:

P5(tf 2w2) Qh 1 1 Q 2w= 0

SSS 8 ( (rear floor fl crossbeam b ) Pt 9 r Qh 1 2 Qw 3 =0

Momentbalance:

SSS10(rearfloorcrossbeam)
8 tMoment P r Q 1 (balance: h 3 h 2) Q 4 w = 0

Q 1( h h 1) Q 6w = 0 cos

 SSS12(Roofpanel)
Momentbalance:

SSS13(Backlightframe)
Momentbalance:

Ql 1 8 Q 7w= 0

QSSS 14 (T t f frame) ) 1 ( h h(Trunk 3 ) ktop Q 8w =

c o s balance: Moment

SSS15(rearfloorcrossbeam)
Moment balance: Ql 1 7 Qw 9 =0

Q 1( l 5

l 6) Q

10

w = 0

 SSS16(Mainfloor)
Momentbalance:

Q1 (SSS L l5 l 3 )16 Q 11w = 0 11 SSS are in

complimentaryshear SSS9(sideframe)
MomentaboutA:

Q4(L+l6 l3) +Q3(Ll5 l3) +P7(l4 l3) +M'+Q6(l9cos) Q7(hh1) 11equationsand11unknowns Qcoc 8 Q.. (L+l6 l7 l3) Q8sin(h3 h1) 1 Q11.Canbesolved. Q9(h3 h1) Q10(h1h2) Q11(h1) =0

 Examinationoffigurereveals:
Shearforceisappliedtoallpanels Including gwindscreenframe, ,backlight g frame,trunkframe,rearpanel,floor panelandtrunkfloorpanel Shouldhavegoodshearstiffness Floorpanelrequiresswagingto preventbuckling. Windscreenframeandbacklightframe mustbeconstructedwithstiffcorner joints Thisensuresshearistransferredto roof. Inotherwordstheseframesmustnot shear. Asinglepoorframestiffnesswillresult inpoorvehicletorsional stiffness

 Examinationoffigurereveals:
Windscreenframeandbacklightframe arestiffenedbyglass,whichactsas shearpanel Glassesarebondedtoframes Thisensuresglassisretainedinfrontal impacts p Glassissubjectedtoshearstress Ifsurroundingframesarelessstiff glassmaycrack Rearpanelandtrunktopframeare subjectedtoshear. These2componentsarenotvery goodSSSsduetolargediscontinuity causedbytrunklid. Overcomebyhighsillorliftover Thismakespooraccessforloading luggage

 Examinationoffigurereveals:
Siderearpanelswhichhousesrear lightsaremadewidelikethesidesof thetrunktopframe. Abetterstructurewillincorporatea panelorcrossbraceintheplaneof rearsearback. back Mostofthemoderncardonothave thisascustomerspreferfoldingseats.

Computationalmethods
Structuralanalysisisnowfundamentalin vehicledesignprocess Finiteelementmethod(FEM)isa promisingtoolinstructuralanalysis Vehiclestructuresaredividedintosmall elements FiniteelementsdeformswhileinSSS structuresareassumedtoberigid Staticand/ordynamicequilibrium equationsalongwithmaterialconstitutive equationsaresolvedusinglinearalgebra ComplexityofFEMincreasedasdetailof vehiclemodelincreases Beamelementsrepresentsills sills,window pillars,enginerailsandfloorcrossbeams Floor,roof,bulkheadscanbemodeledby equivalentbeamsthathavestiffness equivalenttoshearpanels

Computationalmethods
Recentmodelsuseplate and dshell h llelements l to accuratelyrepresentsheet metalcomponents Number N b of floads l d and d numberofelementsresults inaverylargedataset. Longmodelpreparation timeandlongcomputer solvingtime InitialloadingtoFEMcanbe derivedusingrigidbody methodslikeSSS.