Enhancing the Design Development Cycle Through Computer Integrated Engineering for Durability

Today's competitive market is applying pressure to improve quality and durability, while reducing the time required for design development. This can be accomplished with more effective use of computer integrated engineering tools during the design iteration process. Durability assessment is the principal focus of this paper. Durability assessment typically has occurred late in the development process since it has been accomplished through laboratory or field testing.

Integration of the durability assessment process with finite element analysis in design development has been under taken to illustrate the value of bringing test data into the analysis process. Experimentally measured road load data and data measured from simulation testing have been used to establish the loading conditions for a Finite element analysis of an automotive chassis component. This provides a direct interpretation of durability in the finite element analysis process, rather than the typical strength interpretation provided by stress contours. Design changes can be evaluated for durability under service loading conditions without having to remeasure the service data. Such integration provides further value to both test and analysis by allowing easier validation and verification of models with measured data from real environments.