The Role of the Computer in Turbocharger Design Development and Testing

The design process of turbocharger impellers is recursive, involving several iterations in aerodynamics and stress analysis before finalised drawings may be produced. A comprehensive interface to both forms of analysis is discussed which relieves the designer of tedious data preparation, providing graphical interaction throughout.

This interaction has been extended to the production of NC tool paths for die making and prototype manufacture and the data base created by the design procedure can be accessed for casting inspection.

Finally, use is made of real time data acquisition from test cells to feed the latest empirical data into the design process.