Research Projects

Ambient Air Temperature

The project objective is to rethink the conventional HVAC outlets configuration and appearance and evaluate the non-conventional design concepts, to seek maximum design freedom and the potential integration of the HVAC outlets as part of the interior design feature. The simulation tool will enable the validation of air flow within the cabin for these new concepts for vent design.

Rapid & Agile Geometry

This project is a deep dive into the technology and techniques for including packaging constraints in the virtual design process of vehicles.  Included in the scope of this project are techniques from CAD, CAE and possibly hybrids of both.  The result of this project is aimed to be a detailed description of the possible implementation paths for this often forgotten aspect of design and simulation.

Automated Knowledge Based Feature Recognition System

This project aims at developing a knowledge based feature recognition system for aerospace engineering design that will automate the feature information extraction from CAD models as well as provide interpretation and support for aircraft stressing analysis. 

GM RAMSIS ™ Ingress/Egress Simulation

The aim of the GM RAMSIS ™ Ingress/Egress Simulation project is to implement a CAD simulation tool that can predict and assess the ingress/egress motions for passenger car entry and exit.  The results of ingress/egress motion simulation experiments will be integrated into the human modelling software RAMSIS.  The result will be a tool that will enable product designers/engineers to optimise the design of driver/passenger entry and exit points for greater ease of use. 

Proactive Maintenance

The main scope of this project is to develop a new quality improvement tool to collect diagnostic and reliability data from a large number of test vehicles. A new user software tool will be used for data mining to statistically determine faults and precursors of faults. Assumed consumer behaviour and usage patterns will also be able to be verified.

Software Complexity Management

The aim is to improve and develop software to meet the demand for current and ever increasing functionality and shorter development horizons. The project will particularly address environments where much of the vehicle is developed, virtually. Developing effective staff training methods to implement the new technology is an important provision in the program schedule.

Virtual Integrated Design Environment

The outcome sought from this project is the support of a longer term vision to enable the automotive industry based enterprise to drive the integration and efficiency of the vehicle development process. Preliminary work will see the mapping of the conceptual framework for the vehicle development process, and capability and practice in Australia. Tested guidelines will be developed to assist engineers and virtual teams to engage with product information and enterprise capability. The final component of the project will develop requirements for IDEs including requirements for product development based automation and integration frameworks.

Multi-Disciplinary Optimisation

This project aims to reduce the vehicle development time by streamlining important design activities, and integrating them into a common framework for global optimization. This framework will include the ability to incorporate noise and vibration, durability and crash-worthiness assessment of vehicle body-in-white structures. The project enables increased engineering earlier in the vehicle design process by exploiting a range of coarse and fine grain analysis tools. This ultimately leads to a more refined and higher quality product for the consumer.

Virtual Training

This will include an investigation of the use of virtual environment & technology to train workers in aspects of their job potentially assisted by augmented reality, wearable computers and haptics. The outcome will be the design and implementation of a proof of concept demonstrator for use in training. This investigation is aimed at enabling up-front training before prototype hardware becomes available.

Whole of Life Engineering

Aerospace design and engineering are highly weighted to 3D modeling and proof by analysis as opposed to test and demonstration. Tools for these processes are well established and in use. However at the production and in-service phase the use of data changes and engineering support becomes by-and-large manual. The project is intended to plug this gap by developing environments, tools and processes for engineers supporting production and in-service maintenance.