Practical Application of CAE to the Design of Motorcycles

In product development of motorcycles, application of CAN at the initial design stage is more necessary than ever to ensure the reliability of the product and also to shorten the lead time of product development. Finite element method (FEM) plays a crucial role in this respect. In the application of FEM to the development of small vehicles, such as motorcycles, analysis must he carried out in a short period and at a low cost. However, FEM requires complex operations and therefore, designers have been unable to use this method satisfactorily. In order to improve these matters, we have developed a system, called STAGE-FEM, which enable the engineers to make FEM models of components of motorcycle and to evaluate the analysis results easily.