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white paper

Make an engineering impact on vehicle electrification with the digital twin

Reading time: 12 minutes

Vehicle electrification is on. Automakers feel the pressure to innovate while aiming at producing mass-market vehicles. The fierce competition requires adopting a real-time comprehensive digital twin framework that bridges virtual and physical engineering and preempts late technology defects or unexpected poor performance. Front-loading design using simulations from the early stages of prototype development enables the virtual investigation of hundreds of possible architectures. In this whitepaper, we’ll discuss how coupling simulation with physical testing methods at various stages of development permits advanced validation of the system even before it exists, accelerates innovation, and provides a competitive edge.

Streamline the e-car development process from early requirements & product definition to validation & testing

Performance engineering is at the heart of innovation when it comes to new mobility. The entire transportation industry needs to adapt and deliver solutions that offer optimal drive range, performance, life and in-vehicle experience at the lowest possible cost. This white paper addresses multiple aspects of the performance engineering of electrified vehicles:

  • How the digital twin enables the virtual assessment and exploration of the various design options of e-powertrain components to select the combinations that fit global system performance requirements

  • How automakers can balance the performance attributes –NVH, drivability, range, safety, aerodynamics and thermal and energy management – during the integration phase, and physically validate the components and architecture choices

  • How integrated simulation and testing solutions help OEMs and suppliers accelerate product design while simultaneously optimizing vehicle autonomy and other automotive megatrends

Seamless integration of testing and simulation methods helps frontload the testing and validation of electric vehicles designs

Concerns like range, vehicle performance, safety, durability and cost remain prominent among consumers. On top of those focus engineering areas, OEMs need to address the same performance issues as with any other vehicle such as driving dynamics, NVH quality, durability and many more. They need to balance all these parameters in the earliest stages of design and frontload decisions in this phase. There is no magic formula for optimal design and there are almost as many design variants as there are manufacturers. Seamless integration of testing and simulation methods will help frontload engineering decisions for better designs, faster.

Avoid late Stage problems in the electrified vehicle with a comprehensive Digital Twin

Regardless of the stage of the development process or the engineering discipline, integration is key. The examples in this white paper show that manufacturers must always keep in mind the entire vehicle to be successful. The only way to achieve a proper balance of all requirements and avoid late-stage troubleshooting is to generate a realistic and comprehensive digital twin of the car, one that accurately describes its properties, characteristics and attributes even before it physically exists.

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