product development | CAE software
Right: BASF’s Ultrasim was
used to develop the backrests for the front seats of the BMW i3
electric car
within Ultrasim starts with the appropriate BASF materials and adequate material models, ranging from the virtual prototype and ideal manufacturing process to the finished mass-produced component. With Ultrasim, BASF says that customers can tailor components for specific requirements – for efficient, lightweight components subject to high levels of stress, for example. The company says the field of application is broad as weight and cost savings are important in many indus- tries, including automotive and electrical/electronics. Integrative simulation starts with checking the
performance of the component on a finished virtual design. BASF points out that if a poorly designed component is chosen, even the best plastic will not be successful as highly stressed components made from fibre reinforced engineering thermoplastics can only develop their full potential through appropriate geometric design. The company says this is where the process known as mathematical part optimisation is so important as it closes a gap in the virtual component calculation, going beyond integrative simulation to ensure a correctly designed component is realised.
Integrative simulation According to BASF, its integrative simulation with mathematical part optimisation builds the production process of the plastic component into the calculation of its mechanical performance. Using a numerical finite element filling simulation as a basis, the anisotropic fibre orientations at each point of the component are trans- ferred to the corresponding areas in the mechanical component. This is achieved using a completely new numerical description of the material, which takes the properties typical of the plastic into account in the
mechanical analysis such as anisotropy, non-linearity, strain rate dependence, tension-compression asymmetry, failure performance, and dependence on temperature. One recent example where Ultrasim has been used
to provide materials and construction information was the development of the hybrid backrests for the front seats of the BMW i3 electric car. BASF says this seat backrest – which weighs just 2kg - is the first injection moulded structural polyamide component to be used for such an application with no covering, meaning the surface of the part is visible in the vehicle interior. The company says the seat backrest owes its final,
complex and slim shape to the early application of Ultrasim. Due to the precise numerical simulation of the materials used for the backrest, release lever and belt guide, the calculated behaviour in the crash simulation matched the subsequent tests very accu- rately. Optimisation could therefore take place on the computer in the early stages, avoiding modifications later on in component development. The backrest, which integrates multiple functions, is
made from a UV-stable PA 6 compound developed by BASF especially for such applications (Ultramid B3ZG8 UV). The company says that as well as providing sufficient rigidity, this material also ensures adequate elongation and toughness to meet the mechanical requirements of the BMW Group over a temperature range of -30°C to +80°C.
Above: The seat backs for the BMWi3 were developed using BASF’s Ultrasim software. It is said to be the first visible automotive interior application of a structural PA part
50 INJECTION WORLD | January/February 2016
Click on the links for more information: ❙
www.ptc.com/cad/creo ❙
www.moldex3d.com ❙
www.solidworks.com ❙
www.plazology.co.uk ❙
www.sigmasoft.de ❙
www.performance-materials.basf.com
www.injectionworld.com
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