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Written by Stuart Birch and Bill Visnic
Finding the right ratio of "emphasis" (aka "compromise") between design and engineering priorities long has been part of the enduring magic behind the conception and creation of vehicles. Today"s increasingly advanced CAD and CAE software solutions have arguably eased this tension and reduced the longstanding conflict to more of a mere tussle, but now it"s going a step further: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and its close partner, simulation-software expert Exa, say design software has become so sophisticated that by 2020 they can eliminate the need to build physical prototypes of a new vehicle under development. At later stages of development, there always will be the need for driveable prototypes, of course. But the two companies say Exa"s integrated visualization tools and Jaguar"s decade-plus of focused experience in applying them create a technology platform for simulation-driven development Ales Alajbegovic, Exa"s Vice President ofGround Transportation Applications, added, "We use Exa for all of our current-production vehicles to work on development the aerodynamic properties of those vehicles. Another example is the F-Pace (crossover): here we use Exa to achieve perfect lift balance you have seventy "counts" of lift on the front and rear, which really contributes to the sporty driving experience of the vehicle. "We"ve also used it (Exa simulation software) to help improve the aerodynamic drag. We have apertures in the front bumper which we use to turn the airflow around the front corner to really improve the aerodynamic efficiency of the vehicle. "All of this," he said, "was done in the virtual world before we ever had any physical properties. We really only validated with a physical (prototype) right at the end of the process, as we have all of the confidence in these virtual tools."<br /> Beyond aerodynamics to full-vehicle validation <br /> Jaguar is confident about its 2020 timeframe for eliminating prototype builds largely because its decade of collaboration with Exa has generated an "evolution" of prototype reduction, starting with the elimination of earliest prototype phases, said the Exa spokesperson.<br /> Mark Stanton, JLR"s Director of Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) and formerly its Director of Vehicle Engineering, said the company is aiming to achieve full vehicle verification exclusively through digital simulation by 2020, going straight from virtual into the final physical production vehicle: "The use of Exa software now is really key in what we do at Jaguar Land Rover. We used over 36 million hours of CPU time in 2014 on Exa, and that"s the equivalent of about 7,000 physical wind tunnel tests, so that"s pretty immense!" He added: "We are trying to left shift" (from physical) our engineering, and virtual engineering is absolutely a key part of that shift. It enables us, far earlier, to validate that we have met all requirements for the program and ensure that we have the quality baked in right up front." Jean-Paul Roux opened Exa"s European office in 2002, further expanding the company"s client list. Together with JLR, this now includes BMW, Delphi, Denso, FiatChrysler, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota, VW, and major commercial vehicle and off-highway companies
Date written: 05-Jul-2016 10:53 EDT
More of this article on the SAE International Website
ID: 4140
Finding the right ratio of "emphasis" (aka "compromise") between design and engineering priorities long has been part of the enduring magic behind the conception and creation of vehicles. Today"s increasingly advanced CAD and CAE software solutions have arguably eased this tension and reduced the longstanding conflict to more of a mere tussle, but now it"s going a step further: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and its close partner, simulation-software expert Exa, say design software has become so sophisticated that by 2020 they can eliminate the need to build physical prototypes of a new vehicle under development. At later stages of development, there always will be the need for driveable prototypes, of course. But the two companies say Exa"s integrated visualization tools and Jaguar"s decade-plus of focused experience in applying them create a technology platform for simulation-driven development Ales Alajbegovic, Exa"s Vice President ofGround Transportation Applications, added, "We use Exa for all of our current-production vehicles to work on development the aerodynamic properties of those vehicles. Another example is the F-Pace (crossover): here we use Exa to achieve perfect lift balance you have seventy "counts" of lift on the front and rear, which really contributes to the sporty driving experience of the vehicle. "We"ve also used it (Exa simulation software) to help improve the aerodynamic drag. We have apertures in the front bumper which we use to turn the airflow around the front corner to really improve the aerodynamic efficiency of the vehicle. "All of this," he said, "was done in the virtual world before we ever had any physical properties. We really only validated with a physical (prototype) right at the end of the process, as we have all of the confidence in these virtual tools."<br /> Beyond aerodynamics to full-vehicle validation <br /> Jaguar is confident about its 2020 timeframe for eliminating prototype builds largely because its decade of collaboration with Exa has generated an "evolution" of prototype reduction, starting with the elimination of earliest prototype phases, said the Exa spokesperson.<br /> Mark Stanton, JLR"s Director of Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) and formerly its Director of Vehicle Engineering, said the company is aiming to achieve full vehicle verification exclusively through digital simulation by 2020, going straight from virtual into the final physical production vehicle: "The use of Exa software now is really key in what we do at Jaguar Land Rover. We used over 36 million hours of CPU time in 2014 on Exa, and that"s the equivalent of about 7,000 physical wind tunnel tests, so that"s pretty immense!" He added: "We are trying to left shift" (from physical) our engineering, and virtual engineering is absolutely a key part of that shift. It enables us, far earlier, to validate that we have met all requirements for the program and ensure that we have the quality baked in right up front." Jean-Paul Roux opened Exa"s European office in 2002, further expanding the company"s client list. Together with JLR, this now includes BMW, Delphi, Denso, FiatChrysler, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota, VW, and major commercial vehicle and off-highway companies
Date written: 05-Jul-2016 10:53 EDT
More of this article on the SAE International Website
ID: 4140
