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FEM simulation of a complete wheel under dynamic loads
CADFEM provides knowledge transfer to Brock Alloy Wheels for efficient FEM simulation of a tire with rim under dynamic loads.

Reliable rims even with unfavorable loads

Sector: Automotive supplierSpecialist field: Structural mechanics

Brock Alloy Wheels GmbH is known as a high-quality rim manufacturer that focuses on the topological optimization of geometries as early as the product planning phase. The interaction of the rim with the surrounding tire has a significant influence on stresses, especially under dynamic load scenarios.

Summary

Task

Up to now, the static strength validations of the respective rim designs have been carried out with FEM analyses of the "bare" rims. Effective methods are required for the model design of complete wheels and for the analysis of the typical dynamic load cases.

Solution

With the present analysis setup, Brock Alloy Wheels is able to demonstrate to the customer during the development phase that the required specifications of the rim are met when interacting with the tire.

Customer benefits

Based on the simulation results, design improvements were made at an early stage. In addition to providing the required documentation to validate the current design, the previous housing design was validated and the knowledge regarding the strength of the housing was expanded.

Project Details

Task

Brock Alloy Wheels GmbH is known as a high-quality rim manufacturer that focuses on the topological optimization of geometries early in the product planning phase. This enables the manufacturer to use the material in a resource- and cost-saving manner on the one hand and to guarantee a special driving experience on the other. The static strength verification for the validation of the rim designs has so far been carried out with FEM analyses of the "bare" rims. However, the interaction of the rim with the surrounding tire has a significant influence on the stresses, especially under dynamic load scenarios. This requires effective methods for model design of complete wheels as well as for the analysis of typical dynamic load cases.


Customer Benefit

With the present analysis setup, Brock Alloy Wheels is able to demonstrate to the customer during the development phase that the required specifications of the rim are met including its interaction with the tire. In addition, the potential for improvements for various static and dynamic application scenarios can be identified at an early stage.

"FEM analysis is used at Brock to test the structural behavior of a wheel type. Simulations that run through real-life everyday scenarios and other loading conditions are used to determine in advance how optimization can be achieved even before production begins. In doing so, weak points are uncovered, the power-to-weight ratio is improved, and the material usage is determined. In addition, an exact statement about the service life can be made. The result is record-breaking development times". (www.brock.de/unternehmen)


Solution

The challenge in the simulation of complete wheels is to map the complex tire structure. For this purpose, Ansys Mechanical offers numerous material models for the hyper-elastic rubber behavior and above all a simple illustration of the embedded steel mesh by means of reinforcing elements. The compressible air volume can be considered as an additional hydrostatic element without the need for a complex fluid structure interaction analysis. With this model structure it is also possible to efficiently perform typical dynamic load cases such as drop and roll tests by means of implicit transient FEM calculation. The knowledge transfer from CADFEM to Brock Alloy Wheels was carried out by demonstrating the analysis during a customised course. Typical load cases were discussed together, and the respective solutions were individually communicated to Brock employees by the CADFEM experts.

Images: © Brock Alloy Wheels 


Enterprise Account Manager

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