AB2025

Rev.07.08

Advanced Technologies for Design and Fabrication of Composite

Automotive Components
ScottWellman,NVHConcepts
RonAverill,RedCedarTechnology
JohannaBurgueo,RedCedarTechnology

Introduction
Structuralcompositesareavailableinvariousforms
andfunctionality,providingthedesignera
tremendousamountofflexibilitytodevelop
innovativecompositedesignsolutions.Butthese
advantagesoftencannotberealizedwithoutnovel
manufacturingmethodsthatcanaccommodate
heterogeneouspartsofcomplexshape.Today,new
manufacturingmethodsallowthedesignertosatisfy
specificlocalstrengthcriteriabyjudiciousselection
andplacementofmaterials.Atthesametime,the
freedomofcomplexcomponentgeometryprovides
theaddedbenefitsofcombiningmultiple
components/operationsintoaonepiece
compressionmoldedcomponent.
Thesenewmaterialcombinationsand
manufacturingtechniquesprovideavastand
comprehensivesetofnewopportunitiesfornovel
designsolutionsthatexceedpreviousperformance,
overcomepreviouslimitationsandstretchthelimits
ofpreviousengineeringdesignintuition.Inorderto
takefulladvantageofthesenewmaterialsand
manufacturingtechniquesadvancedautomated
designoptimizationtechnologiescanbeusedto
discovercreativesolutions.Thesemethods
dramaticallyimprovetherelevanceandspeedof
complexmanualdesignprocesses,truncatingthem
frommonthstodaysorevenhours.They
concurrentlyexplorehundredsofdesignparameters
andtheirrelationshipsinproductandprocessdesign
scenarios,andintelligentlyseekoptimalvaluesfor
parametersthataffectperformanceandcost.These
designtoolshavebeenusedinthedevelopmentof
severalFRPstructuralprogramssolelyfocusedon
replacingtraditionalmaterialslikesteel,aluminum,
andcastiron.

Inthispaper,anewcompositemanufacturing
methodandanewdesignoptimizationtechnique
arediscussedbriefly.Severalexampleapplications
torealautomotivecompositecomponentsare
describedtoillustratethebenefitsofcombining
advancedmanufacturinganddesignmethodsto
realizenovelcompositesolutionsatafractionofthe
weightofequivalentmetallicparts.
Manufacturing Concept Overview
Compositematerialshavelongbeenutilizedin
variousindustriesincludingautomotive,heavytruck,
aerospace,civilinfrastructure,marineanddurable
goods.Manyapplicationsarecenteredontime
testedmanufacturingtechniquessuchas:Pultrusion,
RIM,SMC,VARTM,Compressionmolding,etc.The
productsoriginatingfromtheseproduction
processesarebeingusedineverydaylife,yetthe
technologybehindfiberreinforcedpolymer(FRP)
compositesisjustbeginningtoblossomintoitsfull
potential.Consolidationofparts,massreduction,
andlocalplacementofmaterialstoincrease
strengthandstiffnessarebutafewofthepossible
benefits.Anewmanufacturingapproachhasbeen
developedthatallowsonetoachievespecific
strengthcriteriavialocalmaterialplacementand
hybridization.
Thisapproachalsoaccommodatescomplex
componentgeometry,whichprovidescustomers
withtheaddedbenefitsofcombiningmultiple
components/operationsinto,insomecases,aone
piecemoldedcomponent.Whileallcomponent
geometriesmaynotbefeasibleasaonepiece
design,thistechnologydoesofferasimplistic
approachtocombiningotherwisemultiple

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AdvancedTechnologiesforDesignandFabricationofCompositeAutomotiveComponents

operationsstemmingfromthesteelorcasting
industries.
Design Overview
Thedesignofmodernvehiclestructuresisdrivenby
manycompetingcriteria,suchasimprovedsafety
andfuelefficiency,lowercost,enhanced
performance,andincreasedstyleflexibility.In
addition,theintroductionofnewmanufacturing
processesandmaterialssignificantlyincreasesthe
availabledesignspace,orthesetofallpossible
designsforaproblem.Thisisespeciallynotablein
thedesignofcompositestructuresbecause,in
additiontothemanyformsofcomposites,thefiber
orientationofeachplywithinalaminatecanvary
independentlythroughouta180degreerange.In
ordertoexplorethislargedesignspacemore
effectivelywhiletryingtoreducedesigncycletimes,
engineerscannowtakeadvantageofautomated
designoptimizationandsimulationsoftwaretools.
Thesetoolscangreatlydecreasethetimerequired
toidentifyasetoffeasible,orevennearoptimal,
designspriortobuildingandtestingthefirst
prototype.Moreover,thesetoolsalsoovercomethe
limitationsofhumanintuitionandallowthe
designersfreedomtoseekcreativesolutionsthat
arenotobvioustoeventhemostexperienced
engineer.Thisistrueingeneralbutparticularlytrue
withshapeoptimizationproblems,whichcaninvolve
potentiallyhundredsofdesignvariables.
HEEDS(HierarchicalEvolutionaryEngineeringDesign
System)isthedesignautomationsoftwarethatwas
usedtofindoptimaldesignsforeachofthe
compositeautomotivepartsdetailedbelow.This
softwarecombineslocalandglobaloptimization
techniquesinordertomoreefficientlysearchthe
designspace.Itcandramaticallyimprovethespeed,
quality,efficiencyandrelevanceofcomplexmanual
designsearches,truncatingthemfrommonthsto
daysorevenhours.Thisispartlyaccomplishedby
quicklyidentifyingdesignattributeswithsuperior
potentialandusingthemtoimproveandaccelerate
thesearchforanoptimumsolution.Itconcurrently
exploreshundredsofdesignparametersand
intelligentlyseeksoptimalvaluesforparameters
thataffectperformanceandcost.Inaddition,for
problemsthatcontainmanydesignvariablesand
criteria,itallowstheusertodecomposetheoverall
problemintoasetofsmaller,moretractable
problems.Thisdesignautomationisabletousethe
powerandavailabilityofcheapcomputingresources

toobtainimprovedresults.Italsocanbeintegrated
withinexistingdesignprocesses.Therefore,itis
possibletouseanycombinationofcommercialand
inhouseproprietaryandlegacyanalysiscodesto
completetheproductdesign.
Roll Restrictor Bracket Example
TherollrestrictorbracketshowninFig.1was
designedtomeetthefunctionalityofanexisting
steelpart.Thebracketattachestothetransmission
andengine,andsupportsarollrestrictorbetween
thetworollrestrictorattachmentpointslabeledin
Figure1.
Design Requirements and Challenges

Themajorperformancerequirementofthisbracket
wasthatithaveanaturalfrequencygreaterthan
500hz.Constraintswerealsoplacedonthestresses
withinthestructureundermultipleloading
scenarios.Theobjectiveoftheanalysiswasto
minimizemass.Geometricalconstraintsfixedthe
transmission,engine,androllrestrictorattachments
points.Additionally,alargeaccesshole,shownin
Figure1,wasnecessaryyetwasnotpartofthe
originalsteelpart.

Fig.1.Finaldesignofrollrestrictor.

Eglassfabrichasaboutoneeighthtoonetenththe
stiffnessofsteel.Therefore,inorderforthe
compositeparttomeetthespecifiedvibration
constraint,specialattentionwasgiventothe

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AdvancedTechnologiesforDesignandFabricationofCompositeAutomotiveComponents

thicknessandshapeofthebracket.Inclusionofplies
ofuniaxialfiberswasconsideredaswell.
Theoriginalsteelpartdidnothavethewebwhich
connectsthetopandbottomplatesshowninFig.1,
butdidhaveaplateweldedalongthefrontfacein
Fig.1thatsignificantlyaddedtotheoverallstiffness.
Oneofthegoalsforthedesignofthecompositeroll
restrictorwasthatitbeonepieceandnotrequire
anyassembly.Inordertoaccomplishthisgoal,the
brackethadtobedesignedsuchthatamoldcould
slideoutafterthecompositeset.Thispreventedthe
useofanystructuralstiffenerlikethatonthe
originalsteelpiece.
Acommonwayofaccomplishingthisdesigntaskis
tomakeaninitialguessconcerningwhichregions
shouldbethickerorhaveadifferentshape,and
virtuallytesttheseassumptionsusingfiniteelement
modelingorsomeotheranalyticalscheme.Ifthe
targetsarenotsatisfied,thenthemodelcanbe
changedandretested.Thismanualprocessmight
needtoberepeatednumeroustimes,avery
cumbersomeandtimeconsumingapproachthat
oftenresultsinadesignthatisatbestsuboptimal.
Automateddesignoptimizationleadstoamuch
moreefficientandeffectivesearchforanoptimal
solution,andoftenleadstoamuchbetterdesignby
simultaneouslyconsideringamuchlargernumberof
designvariablesthancouldbeachievedmanually.
Analysis

Initially,asimplefiniteelementmodelwasbuilt
basedontheshapeandthicknessoftheoriginal
steelpart.Itwasfixedatthetransmissionand
engineattachments,andacylindricaltubewas
placedbetweentherollrestrictorattachmentpoints
toensurethatthepointswouldmovetogether,as
theywillwhentheactualrollrestrictorisinplace.
ThemodelwasanalyzedusingEglassfabric
throughout.Asexpected,thepreliminaryresults
showedthatthepartwasmuchtooflexiblerelative
tothe500hz.constraint.(Asimplereplacementof
steelwithcompositematerialisseldomsuccessful.)
Themainmodeofvibrationwastorsion,sotheweb
wasaddedtohelpcontrolthetwistingand,although
thewebhelped,thefrequencyofthenatural
vibrationwasstillnothighenough.Thefirstmode
shapeindicatedthattheregionbetweentheaccess
holeandthetransmissionattachmentswastoo
flexible.Atthispoint,theautomateddesign
optimizationsoftwarewasusedtodeterminethe

bestshapeattheendnearthetransmission,the
requiredthicknessofdifferentregionsofthepart,at
whatorientationunidirectionalfibersshouldbe
aligned,andwhetherornotunidirectionalfibers
shouldbeusedatall.Thefinalshapeisshownin
Figure1.Notetheripplesinthetopplate,which
werebasedontheshapeoptimizationresults.The
compositecomponentis40%lighterthanitssteel
counterpart.Intheend,itwasfoundthat
unidirectionalfiberswerenotagoodchoiceof
materialbecausethepartdidinvolveafairamount
oftorsionandfabricwasabetterchoice
Control Rod Example
ThecontrolrodshowninFig.2wasdesignedto
replaceanequivalentsteelpart.Bushingsfitinboth
endsthroughwhichtherodisattachedtothe
chassisononeendandanaxleontheother.

Fig.2.Finalcontrolroddesign.
Design Requirements and Challenges

Thisrodwasdesignedforasetoffiveinertialload
casessimulatingvehiclemovementssuchasbraking
andgoingoveracurb.Theseloadsweredetermined
usingthemultibodydynamicsanalysiscode
ADAMS.Aswithmanycompositeapplications,the
challengeindesigningthispartwasinthe
connections,specifically,connectingthecylindrical
rodportiontotheendsandensuringasmooth
transitionthroughout.Thegeometricalconstraints
wereattheends:theinnerdiameteroftheends
wasfixedsothatbushingscouldbemounted,and
theouterdimensionhadtobesmallenoughinorder
tofitwithinabracketdesignedfortheoriginalsteel
rod.

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AdvancedTechnologiesforDesignandFabricationofCompositeAutomotiveComponents

Analysis

Designautomationsoftwarewasusedintandem
withafiniteelementsolvertoiterateonthedesign
andfindanidealsolution.Becausecompositesdo
notfailaccordingtothevonMisescriterion,therod
wasdesignedbylimitingtheprincipalstrainvalues.
Stiffnessrequirementswerenotdefinitivelyknown
priortotheanalysisoftherod,sotwoextraload
caseswereincludedinthedesigntotestthedesign
underpureaxialandpurebendingloads.The
optimizationparametersconsistedofaconstrainton
themaximumprincipalstrainandanobjectiveof
minimizingthedeflectionsofthetwostaticload
cases(axialandbending)inordertomaximizethe
stiffnessofthepart.Acylindricalcrosssectionfor
therodwasselectedduetothepresenceof
torsionalloads.Thedesignautomationtoolwas
usedtodeterminethethicknessofmaterialalong
therod,whetherthematerialshouldbefabricor
unidirectionalfibers,andtheorientationofany
unidirectionalfibersthatareneeded.Althoughthe
steelrodwassolidthroughout,itwasdetermined
thatthecompositepartcouldbehollow.The
softwaredeterminedtheplylayupandthetotal
masssavingsovertheoriginalsteelpartwas50%.
Upper Control Arm Example
TheuppercontrolarmshowninFig.3wasdesigned
toreplaceanequivalentaluminumpartandisa
componentofanindependentfrontsuspension
system.Twobushingsfitineitherendofthecylinder
andaballjointbearingattachestotheholeatthe
top.
Design Requirements and Challenges

Asinthecontrolrodexample,thecontrolarmwas
designedforasetoffiveloadcasesbasedonvehicle
movementssuchasbrakingandgoingoveracurb.
Theinnerdiameterswherethebushingsandball
jointareinsertedarefixed.Additionally,another
componentofthesuspensionsystemmovesthrough
themiddleofthepart,thusnecessitatingthelarge
holeinthecenter.
Analysis

Designautomationsoftwarewasusedintandem
withafiniteelementsolvertodetermineagood
designwhileincorporatinggeometricaland
performanceconstraintsandobjectives.The

constraintplaceduponthemodelwasonethatkept
themaximumprincipalstrainsbelowaminimum
value.Theobjectivewastominimizemass.Thearms
ofthepartthatconnectthecylindertotheballjoint
arehollow,andthedesignautomationsoftwarewas
usedtodeterminethematerialthicknessnecessary
forthesearms.Thetotalmasssavingsofthis
compositeuppercontrolarmovertheequivalent
aluminumpartwas25%.

Fig.3.Finaldesignofuppercontrolarm.

Torque Arm Example

Designautomationsoftwareusedintandemwith
ABAQUS/CAEanditsassociatedimplicitsolverwas
calledtoimproveuponthedesignofthetorquearm
showninFig.4.Thispartissimilartoonepublished
byBotkin,etal1.
Design Requirements and Challenges

TheparametersshowninFig.5aretheonlyfactors
affectingshapewhichcouldbemodified.Thegoalof
thisanalysiswastominimizetheweightofthepart,
whileconstrainingthemaximumVonMisesstressto
aspecifiedvalue.
Analysis

Thisparameterdrivenoptimizationwas
accomplishedusingdesignautomationsoftwarethat
workedtogetherwithapreprocessorandfinite
elementsolver.Thepreprocessorwasusedsothat
theshapeofthetorquearmcouldbeparameterized
andremeshedforeachevaluation.Without
remeshing,onlyminimalchangesinshapecould
occursoasnottodistortelements.The
preprocessorcanbecalledthroughapythonscript,
andthisenabledthedesignautomationtooltouse
thepreprocessortocreateandmeshadesignbased
onspecifiedvaluesforthefourshapeparameters.
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AdvancedTechnologiesforDesignandFabricationofCompositeAutomotiveComponents

anduppercontrolarmweredesignedtobe
manufacturedfromEglassusingacompression
mold,resultinginmasssavingsof2550%overthe
equivalentsteelcomponents.

Fig.4.Geometryoftorquearm.

Fig.6.Geometryoffinaldesign.

Fig.5.Designparametersofthetorquearm.

Thefinalshapeofthetorquearmisshownbelowin
Fig.6.Fig.7illustratestheconvergenceofthemass
objective,whileFig.8showsthestressconvergence.
Throughtheintegrationofdesignautomation
softwarewithafiniteelementcodespreprocessor
andsolver,asolution20%lighterthantheoriginal
designwasachieved.Itshouldbenotedthat
attemptstosolvethisproblemusingpurelylocal
searchresultedinsuboptimalsolutions(local
optima)beingfound(Botkin,etal.,20021).

Fig.7.Trajectoryofmass.

Conclusions
Althoughthebasegeometriesofeachcomponent
discussedinthispaperaredifferent,theywereall
manufacturedutilizingthesameinnovative
manufacturingapproach.Theuniqueabilityofthis
methodtocombinemultipleoperationsintoaone
piecemoldedcomponent,localizefiberalignment
relativetospecificloadbearingcharacteristics,
combinemultiplemanufacturedglasstypes,and
offertheabilitytovarymaterialthicknessthrougha
componentscrosssectionallowunparalleleddesign
flexibilitywhenchallengedwithtodaysvehicle
weighttargets.
Throughthecombineduseofdesignautomation
softwareandnewadvancesinthemanufacturingof
advancedcompositematerials,largesavingsin
weighthavebeenfoundforautomobile
components.Arollrestrictorbracket,controlrod,

Fig.8.Trajectoryofstress.

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