Optimisation of a Collapsible Economic Container “COLLAPSECON"

Jyoti CNC Automation Ltd. designs and manufactures a wide array of CNC Machines for metal cutting industries. They utilized Altair HyperMesh to optimize the existing design and improve static stiffness of their machines, and Altair HyperWorks to reach the optimized design and arrangement. Altair OptiStruct solver was then used to validate the effectiveness of the optimized product design. The result was an immense benefit in terms of resources and cost saved as mechanical accuracies were ensured right at the stage of the FEA software level, without having to create the physical prototype.

For more than 60 years, L&L Products have been providing unique solutions to the automotive industry. L&L Products Composite Body Solutions (CBS™) structural reinforcement technology is commonly used to enhance overall body-in-white (BIW) stiffness, other benefits include load path management, section integrity, light-weighting, increased durability, while having no impact in body shop practices. CBS™ aims to deliver an efficient solution for both current and future-ready applications requiring lightweighting. L&L Products reduced their concept topology optimization model build times by 80% by using the Altair® HyperWorks® Local Design Space workflow. The ability to create models more efficiently provides a mechanism to arrive at an optimal solution quickly, streamlines in-house processes removing the dependency on other teams, and provides an opportunity to explore more design variants to arrive at a truly optimal solution.

While rail is the most environmentally friendly means of transport, freight trains today do not look much different than those from the past. To reach the climate and energy targets of the European Union while achieving higher payloads and a better ROI, the railway sector needs an innovation boost to build more efficient and sustainable rail freight wagons. TransAnt GmbH, a joint venture with ÖBB Rail Cargo Group and voestalpine Steel Division, was established to bring more efficient and sustainable rail freight solutions to the market. With its innovative concept based on modularity and lightweight design, once operational the company seeks to revolutionize the market as a full supplier of freight wagons. The company used Altair® HyperWorks® for topology optimization – in particular Altair® HyperMesh® – to realize the transition to a weldable structure, Altair® HyperView® for pre- and post-processing, and Altair® OptiStruct® for FEA (including local buckling) and optimization.

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are a rapidly evolving technology and used for a variety of civil and military purposes. To ensure airworthiness, UAS manufacturers rely on advanced simulation and manufacturing techniques to create efficient designs. Aerial systems active throughout Europe and operating with diverse payloads for different missions require a reliable vehicle architecture and fuel supply. To ensure perfectly tuned architecture and a lightweight design while increasing stiffness and strength, Schiebel used Altair solutions in combination with 3D printing. The engineers performed various simulations to optimize the design of AM engine parts. Using Altair’s topology optimization structural design tool, Schiebel reduced the weight significantly while maintaining high stiffness. Subsequently, the system was evaluated by laminar and turbulent flow simulation as well as conjugate heat transfer simulation using Altair CFD™. Contacts, NLFE and complex dynamic systems were modeled with Altair® MotionView® and Altair® MotionSolve®. Schiebel also took advantage of APA solutions.

Etteplan offers engineering solutions to the world’s leading manufacturing companies for industrial equipment and plant engineering. Etteplan’s client Wärtsilä were looking to redesign their valve spring press tools used for mounting cylinder head valves. Altair OptiStruct™ and Altair Inspire™ were used to run topology optimization and finite element analyses to create design concepts, and Additive Works’ Amphyon software simulated the print process. This resulted in Etteplan’s additive manufacturing press tool design being ready to be printed within one week from when the project starting data was frozen.

MOTO-MAQLAB-UC3M was founded in 2010 by students at Carlos III University in Madrid, Spain, to develop a racing motorcycle for the international MotoStudent competition. MotoStudent is an international event held every two years at the MotorLand, Aragon circuit and welcomes university teams from all over the world. The MOTO-MAQLAB-UC3M team won awards in several categories of the fourth MotoStudent edition. Inspired by their successful participation, the students wanted to further develop and improve their race bike designs to repeat or exceed these results. In order to improve their results, the MOTO-MAQLAB-UC3M team needed to reduce the mass in the cycle parts of the bike. Altair solutions enabled the MOTO-MAQLAB-UC3M team to approximate the ideal number of layers, their shape, order, and direction. Mass reduction of 30% was achieved while maintaining the original stiffness.

To support its goal of accelerating the development cycle, early in 2020 NIAR commissioned a study to assess the scalability of Altair Radioss™, Altair’s structural analysis solver for highly non-linear problems under dynamic loadings. Regular support from an Altair engineer ensured swift familiarization with Radioss. The study was performed on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). OCI with its bare metal HPC shapes that use low latency RDMA interconnect provided highly scalable infrastructure-as-a-service (IAAS) for Radioss.

Payload is a key performance measure for military vehicles, determining how many personnel and/or goods can be carried. Reflecting this, the US Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC) is engaged in a project to reduce the curb weight of vehicles, and thereby boost payloads, by redesigning and replacing existing components with lighter alternatives. Specifically, GVSC is combining topology optimization with additive manufacturing to realize significant weight savings, without compromising other critical requirements. Altair was contracted for external expertise to create new component designs. The results included achievement of 67% mass reduction for an alternator bracket, and cheaper costs than the current machined baseline.

The idea for its cooling technology for electric motor systems was born at high-tech start-up Dynamic E flow (DEF), when the founders first experienced an overheated engine of an electrical car. The existent development process at DEF used analytical methods and physical testing to confirm results. With increasing customization, that process was not flexible enough to handle various design possibilities. With the need for a simulative design approach, DEF employed Altair software to tackle its multi-physical design challenges, and to meet all the customer requirements for their unique motors, test hundreds of variants, and to check the feasibility of the customized product.

Truck dynamics, control system, thermal, and fatigue analyses all need to be completed when designing a new truck design. Using Altair HyperWorks, Hitachi achieves a 10% weight reduction in the main frame and rigid body, while maintaining product quality.

At the end of 2015, the XPRIZE foundation launched the Shell Ocean Discovery competition, a three-year global challenge to advance deep-sea exploration using autonomous subsea drones. Teams competed to develop underwater robots that could fully map 500 km2 of seafloor at a 4 km depth in less than 24 hours with no human intervention. One of the competing teams was TEAMTAO, a collaboration of Newcastle University, SMD (Soil Machine Dynamics Ltd), and UK Research and Innovation. Altair joined the project as a technical design partner and provided the team with simulation expertise to virtually simulate, optimize, and test the devices. Altair simulation specialists followed a simulation-driven design approach in order to save on development time and physical prototyping.

TGM Lightweight Solutions is an engineering services company with a focus on lightweight design and strategic weight optimization for aircraft, rail cars, road vehicles, and marine vessels. For a recent customer project requiring weight reduction of a railway container, TGM used Altair HyperWorks to achieve the target weight. Topology optimization helped identify the weight savings potential, resulting in material and cost savings, and a 20% reduction in weight while meeting tight development schedules.

One of the competing teams in the Formula SAE competition is FST Lisboa of the University of Lisboa, Portugal. 39 students from seven different faculties use their know-how on motorsport technology and high-precision engineering to design and build a racing car fit for the competition. For their last car, the team had to design a new set of rims to further reduce the weight of the rim set by 25 percent. With linear static analyses and topology optimization solutions from Altair, the team was able to make sound geometry choices for the rims, and reduce the weight of the components, while meeting all compliance requirements.

When Ana Casares Crespo, a former member of the ARUS Andalucía Racing team from University Seville in Spain, was looking for a final degree project, the team was inspired by the capabilities of Altair’s software. They came up with the idea to improve the impact properties of the vehicle nose cone laminate with the help of simulation. With more than seven students actively using Altair products to improve various aspects of the vehicle, the decision to incorporate Altair tools was an obvious choice. They wanted to make use of the knowledge they had gained from previous studies for structural design of aerodynamic packages. The team conducted static analysis and topological optimization using tools from the Altair HyperWorks™ suite, which helped them create optimized, lighter components. To improve the impact properties of a Formula SAE car’s nose cone laminate, the Altair solution included structural analysis, and topology optimization verifying structural behavior of a new material. The benefits were improved impact characteristics and fracture properties, and lighter components.

BOTT stands for “Battle of the Twins,” a racing category for motorbikes with two-cylinder four stroke engines. Bottpower is a Spanish motorsport engineering company located in Valencia. They specialize in designing and building custom motorbikes for racing and street use. They design and build parts, systems, and prototypes for other companies. A project challenge at Bottpower was to design a lightweight stay bracket for their motorbike that could withstand the main and aerodynamic loads. The goal was finding the optimal weight and stiffness ratio to reduce weight while ensuring safety measures. All of this had to be done quickly in order to arrive on time at Addit3D, Spain's most important 3D-print fair, to showcase the bike. The optimal design for aerodynamic loads was found using Altair software.

To expand the rpm range of a motorcycle engine, a new type of rocker arm with lower inertia was needed at KTM. The new rocker arm was required to have the same, or better stiffness and deformation level as the previous design. KTM used Altair HyperWorks™ for nonlinear topology optimization and nonlinear structural analysis to develop the new rocker arm. Thanks to this, the component inertia could be reduced by 15 percent, component mass was reduced by 21 percent, and the stiffness increased by 14 percent which lead to an extension of the rotational speed by 150-200 rpm.

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is a renowned global architectural, urban planning, and engineering firm. Known for some of the world’s most technically and environmentally advanced buildings, SOM applies creativity and emerging technologies to design buildings for the future. SOM designed the new United States Courthouse in Downtown Los Angeles to be an open and transparent public space, while also constantly considering the materials used in the project and the project's environmental footprint. The structural design specialists at SOM used Altair OptiStruct to generate an ideal project plan that considered sustainable regulations and manufacturing constraints.

Rimac Automobili’s main challenge has been to design a monocoque as a single carbon fiber part with an unprecedented size. Hence, in the development of the monocoque, the main topic to manage was the material, a lightweight, carbon fiber reinforced with epoxy resin. As this carbon fiber is an orthotropic and brittle material, its representation in a finite element (FE) material card is very difficult. To meet this challenge the company introduced Altair HyperWorks™ into their development process.

PATAC needed to develop an efficient CAE simulation management platform to accommodate their changing needs and accelerate digital growth.

Renault Nissan Mitsubishi Alliance is a French-Japanese strategic partnership between the automobile manufacturers Renault (based in France), Nissan (based in Japan) and Mitsubishi Motors (based in Japan). Today, the automotive group has 122 manufacturing plants worldwide with nearly 450,000 employees controlling ten major brands: Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Infiniti, Renault Samsung, Dacia, Alpine, Datsun, Venucia, and Lada. The ambition of the alliance is to offer autonomous drive, connectivity features, and services on a wide range of affordable vehicles. As part of the Renault Chassis Le Mans plant, which is building car-to-ground connecting components for the Renault Group and for the Alliance, the CTC Chassis Technical Center is a CAD engineering center where 350 engineers and technicians are working with a focus on testing and validation. Renault has been using SimSolid to perform simulations to develop lighter chassis faster.

Using Altair simulation software, Gurit supports Western Sydney University's Bridgestone World Solar Challenge team, helping them design the most efficient and aerodynamic car possible, while ensuring driver safety and adhering to class rules.

Formula SAE is a collegiate design series run by Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), which challenges students to design, build and compete with an open wheel style car across various events. The competition pitches various teams across different static events focusing on the teams engineering design decisions, cost planning, marketing strategies and vehicle inspections. The teams also have to compete under various dynamic events like acceleration, skid-pad, autocross and the endurance run where even the fuel economy is checked.

For pioneering a new material application and technology without a road map, Guerrilla Gravity used Altair OptiStruct in the early design design phase. The result was the development of lightweight, high-performance bikes, that are 300% more impact resistant than other frames on the market that use traditional carbon fiber materials, at significant cost savings and shortened timelines.

Czech company Duratec Ltd. develops handmade bike frames using both aluminium and composite materials. For a recent project at Duratec presenting the latest approach in development of carbon fiber optimization of the bike frame, Altair HyperWorks was used for model creation in Altair HyperMesh, optimized via the Altair OptiStruct code and evaluated in Altair HyperView in the development and optimization of a lightweight composite racing bike frame.

Israeli motorsport company Griiip has designed a new, fast and professional race car that combines efficiency in racing with a competitive purchase price and low running costs, to make it more affordable. By harnessing the power of data, Griiip has created the first smart connected race car – the G1 – and with it, an entirely new racing series. Accessing the software via Altair's new Startup Program, Griiip engineers employ several products from the Altair HyperWorks™ suite, among these Altair Radioss™ for crash simulation, Altair OptiStruct™ for structural optimization, general FE analysis as well as Altair HyperMesh™ and Altair HyperView™ for pre- and post-processing tasks in the development of race cars.

Established in the year 1969, Imperial Auto is one of the biggest integrated manufacturers of ‘Fluid Transmission Products (FTPs) in the world. The company has eight dedicated manufacturing and assembly plants in India. The grand vision of the company’s top management can be easily gauged from the strategic and technical alliances that Imperial has formed with major international players in their industry.

INTECH DMLS is playing the visionary role in the field of metal-based DMLS 3D printing in India since its inception in 2012. The company with this rich expertise in metallurgy and machining, established themselves rapidly as the leader of the Metal Additive Manufacturing industry in India. Sinteneering Innovations®, the company’s tagline signifies its commitment to innovation in manufacturing and marks the beginning of a new era in metal manufacturing.

With over 2 decades of experience in manufacturing Aluminum Heat-exchangers such as Condensers, Evaporators, Heaters, Radiators, Oil Coolers, IHX and Roof AC units, Pranav Vikas (India) Private Limited (PVL) today is one of the largest and most diversified Heat-exchanger manufacturers in India. The company currently is the only fully integrated Condenser manufacturer in India with their own state-of-the-art Micro-tube facility at Ranjangaon, Pune. PVL serves leading global and Indian Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) in the Passenger, Commercial, and Off-road vehicle segments.

Sharda Motor Industries Limited (SMIL) is the market leader in the country in the manufacturing of exhaust systems, catalytic converters, independent suspension systems, seat frames, seat covers (two and four wheelers), soft top canopies, and stamped part for white goods products. Their state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities help them to continuously focus on new products, innovation, technology upgradation, and research & development. The facility seamlessly caters to various emission norms ranging from BS4, BS6, and Tier 4.

Tucked away in a remote location in the mountains, designed by ZHA, the Lushan primary school, when complete, will be an educational institute located 160 kilometers North-West of Nanchang, the capital of China’s Jiangxi province.

Melbourne-based Integrated Design and Engineering Solutions (IDES) provides full “systems-life-cycle” tailored engineering solutions to fulfill demanding defence requirements. For the LAND 121 Phase 3A project involving the procurement of Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon light trucks for the Australian Army, the IDES team had to design a protective module for a G-Wagon variant intended for surveillance and reconnaissance (S&R). Altair HyperWorks was instrumental in enabling the quick, efficient and accurate development of an optimum design for the vehicle rollover protection structure (ROPS), saving valuable time while revising and significantly improving the structures’ strength and safety.

The National Composites Centre (NCC), in collaboration with the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) and University of Warwick (WMG) worked on a collaborative project to develop a Cross-Catapult technology demonstrator; the Mono-Ski or Sit-ski, a device for sports that uses adaptive equipment on mountain slopes, designed for individuals with lower extremity limitations. Composites were used extensively in the new Sit-ski design with the Altair HyperWorks™ suite being utilized throughout the development process.

Mabe is a Mexico-based international appliance company designing, producing and distributing a wide spectrum of home appliances such as washing machines, dryers, cooking ranges, refrigerators, air-conditioners, microwaves, etc. Altair technology has enabled Mabe to increase the capacity of their washing machines by 35%, and the spin speed by 24% while reducing the cost per cubic foot by 10%.

APA Partner, DSA, uses Altair HyperMesh, AcuSolve, and Virtual Wind Tunnel to create high-quality hydrodynamic mesh and models for ship and marine structures.

For a competition launched for the Museum of the 20th Century, Zaha Hadid Architects re-invented a similarly radical approach by applying new advances in technology to generate structural and architectural expression. With Altair’s assistance, they created a plug-in for their design tool, enabling topology optimization. Altair HyperMesh was used for finite element preprocessing mesh generation, with Altair HyperView providing post-processing and visualization solutions. Structural analysis solver Altair OptiStruct provided advanced analysis and optimization algorithms.

Photovoltaic specialist Thesan, a subsidiary of global manufacturer Savio S.p.A, manufactures, and distributes mounting structures, consisting of a so-called Purlin, a Rafter, and a Pole (and Hat), designed to withstand potentially occurring loads from wind and snow, as well as dead loads. Drawing on the Savio Group’s competence in the design of steel and aluminum structures and thanks to a team of over 40 engineers, they are to satisfy every construction requirement of photovoltaic power plants at all altitude and climatic conditions, using any specific fixation requirements. For a recent project requiring optimization of a mounting structure of a medium sized PV field with a power of 5 MW, engineers used HyperWorks. The benefits included reduced material usage, reduced manufacturing and transportation costs and improved competitiveness for Thesan.

The challenge in the development of Arcimoto’s SRK Generation 8; an all-electric, multi-purpose/utility commuter vehicle, included creation of an optimized platform that offers 3-wheeled stability, a space frame enclosure for protection, and a rear swing arm that handles the load requirements and also follows the visual design of the vehicle. HyperMesh® provided an environment for rapid model generation allowing Arcimoto to answer queries by helping them perform the analysis in OptiStruct® in an easy, time efficient manner. Using RADIOSS® for the physics helped them achieve repeatable and accurate results, reduce simulation cycle times and allow for evaluating multiple design scenarios thus enabling better decisions.

Inspired by zooplankton Radiolaria, artist and architect IL Hoon Roh began creating series of objects known as “Radiolara Experiment” which, through extensive experimentation and collaboration with Altair, ultimately led to the creation of the sophisticated Table Ex-08.

Sujan CooperStandard manufactures (anti-vibration) NVH products for leading automotive companies. Currently, the automotive industry is under extreme pressure because of environmental norms and has to adhere to stringent government policies related to pollution control and one of the simplest ways to address these is to optimize designs and reduce weight of products and components. They began using Altair HyperWorks on the on the recommendation of their joint venture partner CooperStandard. The team decided to improvise design of their Torsion Vibration Damper using Altair solutions like solidThinking Inspire to optimize designs of the brackets and OptiStruct for structural integrity of the designs. Altair solutions have helped Sujan CooperStandard get their product designs right the first time and consistently meet their time, cost and quality targets.

Automotive suppliers are facing many challenges in having in-house simulation capabilities compared to that of OEM’s. One of the ways to overcome these challenges is to invest in simulation technologies that require an affordable initial investment, the ownership cost of which is low, the codes are reliable & proven, and the suite of tools provide suppliers access to a broad range of solvers (a true multi-physics environment) helping them pick and choose the solvers as per their simulation requirements. In the early stage of in-house simulation implementation at Endurance Technologies, HyperWorks was being adopted primarily for pre and post processing due to its extraordinary FE modeling solutions. With constant support, Altair team has helped Endurance in exploring and implementing various HyperWorks solvers at Endurance Technologies.