Structural design of an outer tie rod for a passenger car

This study proposes a structural design method for an outer tie rod installed in a passenger car. The weight of the outer tie rod is optimized by using the aluminum alloy Al6082M, which is developed as a steel-substitute material, and applying structural optimization techniques. The high strength aluminum with improved mechanical properties was developed to reduce the weight of the outer tie rod. The newly developed aluminum alloy Al6082M is applied as the material of the outer tie rod. The static strength due to inertia force, durability and buckling performances are considered in the structural design of the outer tie rod. At the proto design stage of a new outer tie rod, it is cost-effective to utilize FE (finite element) analysis to predict each of these performances. In addition, the current trend in the structural design of automobile parts is to use optimization techniques to reduce the weights of the parts. First, for an arbitrary base design, the static strength, the life cycle and the buckling load are calculated to check whether the design satisfies its criteria. Then, the critical performance is selected so as to include its loading condition only in the optimization process. In this study, the metamodel based optimization process using kriging is adopted to obtain the minimum weight satisfying the critical design requirement. Then, the feasibility of the determined optimum shape is investigated against the other performances. Finally, the optimum design of outer tie rod is modified by considering forging efficiency. The performances of the final design are investigated through simulation and experiment.     

Development of a hardware in the loop simulation system for electric power steering in vehicles

In this paper, a hardware-in-the-loop simulation (HILS) system was developed before the development of an electric power steering (EPS) system in a vehicle. This study was focused on the establishment of the HILS system. Driving conditions are simulated with the HILS system. The actual steering input parameters are confirmed on the monitor while driving the HILS system. The steering forces observed in the simulation with the developed HILS system are similar to those in real vehicle tests. The developed HILS system can be applied in the development of various types of EPS systems.     

A simplified model for evaluating tire wear during conceptual design

In the field of vehicle dynamics, commercial software can aid the designer during the conceptual and detailed design phases. Simulations using these tools can quickly provide specific design metrics, such as yaw and lateral velocity, for standard maneuvers. However, it remains challenging to correlate these metrics with empirical quantities that depend on many external parameters and design specifications. This scenario is the case with tire wear, which depends on the frictional work developed by the tire-road contact. In this study, an approach is proposed to estimate the tire-road friction during steady-state longitudinal and cornering maneuvers. Using this approach, a qualitative formula for tire wear evaluation is developed, and conceptual design analyses of cornering maneuvers are performed using simplified vehicle models. The influence of some design parameters such as cornering stiffness, the distance between the axles, and the steer angle ratio between the steering axles for vehicles with two steering axles is evaluated. The proposed methodology allows the designer to predict tire wear using simplified vehicle models during the conceptual design phase.     

Road identification in monocular color images using random forest and color correlogram

This paper presents a system to identify road and non-road regions from monocular color images of paved and unpaved roads. Despite being a single object, the road in these images is subject to large changes in appearance due to environmental effects and track materials. This condition has challenged the practical application of road identification. The proposed system combines random forest with color correlogram to overcome such conditions and offers a classifier for road and non-road regions in traffic images. As a color feature, the color correlogram depicts the spatial correlation of color changes in an image. Using random forest, road identification is formulated as a learning paradigm. The combined effects of color correlograms and random forest create a robust system capable of identifying roads even in variable situations in real time. This combination is more effective than other combinations, such as a color histogram plus random forest, a color correlogram plus neural network, or a color histogram plus neural network.     

Effect of the fuel injection strategy on first-cycle firing and combustion characteristics during cold start in a TSDI gasoline engine

The first firing cycle is very important during cold-start for all types of spark ignition engines. In addition, the combustion characteristics of the first firing cycle affect combustion and emissions in the following cycles. However, the first-cycle fuel-air mixing, combustion and emissions generation within the cylinder of a two-stage direct-injection (TSDI) engine during cold start is not completely understood. Based on the total stoichiometric air-fuel ratio and local richer mixture startup strategy, the first-cycle firing and combustion characteristic at cold start were investigated in a two-stage direct injection (TSDI) gasoline engine. In addition, the effects of the first injection timing, second injection timing, 1st and 2nd fuel injection proportion and total excess air ratio on the in-cylinder pressure, heat release rate and accumulated heat release were analyzed on the basis of a cycle-by-cycle analysis. It is shown that a larger 2nd fuel injection amount and later 2nd injection timing are more beneficial to the firing of the first cycle in the case of a total excess air ratio of 1.0. The optimum 1st and 2nd injection timing fuel injection proportions are 120°CA ATDC during the intake stroke, 60°CA BTDC during the compression stroke and 1:1. In addition, the firing boundary is a 2nd injection timing later than 90°CA BTDC during the compression stroke in the case of the 1st injection timing from 60°CA to 180°CA ATDC during an intake stroke and involves a 1st and 2nd fuel injection proportion of 1:1 and an excess air ratio of 1.0. The study provides a detailed understanding of cold-start combustion characteristics and a guide for optimizing the reliable first-cycle firing at cold start.     

New metal fitting geometry and optimization of the swaging parameters for an automobile power steering hose

To solve the power steering (PS) hose oil leakage problem in automobile applications, a new geometry design of the metal fitting is required, and the swaging conditions applied to the PS hose should be optimized. In this study, a new metal fitting geometry for the PS hose was proposed. A CAE simulation for both the proposed and the conventional metal fittings was conducted, and both the stress and the strain in the PS hose were compared. An experimental verification was also performed with these two different metal fittings. Additionally, the swaging conditions were optimized by the durability cycle time, which was measured in an impulse test of the swaged PS hose. For a more economical production, practical working conditions were also recommended and experimentally verified.     

Establishment of an installation process of a valve seat to a cylinder head using the cae technique

Valve seats press-fitted in the cylinder head function to hold exhaust gas inside the ignition chamber and to transfer heat to the coolant moving in the water jacket of the head. The press-fitting of the valve seats to the head at ambient temperature has been widely spread out due to its many advantages over pressing with frozen valve seats or with a heated head. The benefits include lower equipment costs, lower running costs, and fewer installation faults during the press-fitting. Nevertheless, a systematic approach for pressing at ambient temperature (ATP; ambient temperature press-fitting) has not been studied and analyzed to date. A technique to check the reliability of the press-fitting by measuring hoop strain inside the valve seat and the FEM procedure to simulate ATP is developed in this study. The FEM procedure of ATP developed here exhibits a concurrence with experimental results. Utilizing the DOE (Design of Experiments) technique, we determined the effects of various geometric parameters and the optimal shapes of the valve seat and cylinder head. The optimal shapes have been successfully applied in an actual engine and varified in a running-engine test.     

Simplified dynamics model for axial force in tripod constant velocity joint

Tripod constant velocity (TCV) joints are common components in automotive and mechanical applications. The benefits of the TCV joint are its high plunge capacity and high torque capacity. During power transmission, the friction inside the joint generates an axial force according to the kinematics. This force causes noise and vibration problems. In this study, a simplified multi-body dynamic model based on a phenomenological TCV joint friction model is developed. This model considers the generated axial force (GAF) of a TCV joint with different lubricate conditions. The efficiency and accuracy are verified by comparison with other prediction models and experiments. Thus, this model can be used to design and control the manufacture process of TCV joints.     

Combustion characteristics of LPG and biodiesel mixed fuel in two blending ratios under compression ignition in a constant volume chamber

This study aims to investigate the combustion characteristics of mixed fuel of liquefied propane gas (LPG) and biodiesel under compression ignition (CI) in an effort to develop highly efficient and environmentally friendly mixed fuelbased CI engines. Although LPG fuel is known to be eco-friendly due to its low CO₂ emission, LPG has not yet been widely applied for highly efficient CI engines because of its low cetane number and is usually mixed with other types of CI-friendly fuels. In this study, a number of experiments were prepared with a constant volume chamber (CVC) setup to understand the fundamental combustion characteristics of mixed fuel with LPG and biodiesel in two weight-based ratios and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) conditions. The results from the current investigations verify the applicability of mixed fuel of LPG and biodiesel in CI engines with a carefully designed combustion control strategy that maximizes the benefits of the mixed fuel. Based on the results of this study, ignition is improved by increasing the cetane value by using higher blending ratios of biodiesel. As the blending ratios of biodiesel increased, CO and HC decreased and CO₂ and NO_x increases.     

Analytical study of pressure pulsation characteristics according to the geometries of the fuel rail of an MPI engine

In a conventional MPI engine, a pulsation damper is usually mounted on the fuel rail to diminish undesirable noise in the vehicle cabin room; however, pulsation dampers are quite expensive. Therefore, several studies have focused on reducing fuel pressure pulsation by increasing the self-damping characteristics of the fuel rail. This paper details the development of a fuel rail that reduces pulsation using a self-damping effect. Using an oil hammer simulation technique, pressure pulsation characteristics were investigated with respect to the aspect ratio of the cross-section, wall thickness, and fuel rail material. Increasing the aspect ratio and decreasing the wall thickness efficiently reduced the pressure pulsation. In addition, the pressure pulsation characteristics were investigated with respect to the resonant engine speed and injection period. These simulated data can be used to reduce the pressure pulsation peak and to avoid the resonant point in the design stage during the development of a fuel rail.