A&P Leichtbau
Production Planning of Lightweight Components
Motivation and Procedure
There is a clear trend towards material and composite manufacturing design for future body structures . The continuously increasing demands on the body structure with low weight can only be fulfilled by the targeted use of materials, construction methods and appropriate production technoligies. The limits of conventional body structures in pure and thin metal construction – including the use of advanced materials – are obvious.
Research Objectives
The aim of the project is to explore a process and a methodology in order to make it possible to use the "hybrid" principle in various points of the body under relevant production conditions. Through such an unification lightweight potentials can be expected, which today would not be feasible with classic body materials and construction methods. Because two different "production cultures" – with the aim to obtain a maximally economical lightweight structure – will be merged in this project , clear objectives of this research project must demonstrate d. These include the representation of the entire process chain from application potentials in the body shop to the exploration of the respective optimal materials , the topology (cast ), and the topography ( sheet ) , the interaction potentials to the item production facilities to imaging an economic production management system.
Research Areas
The content of this industrial research project is the exploration of an ideal synthesis of cast-intensive hybrid metals in sheet steel/ cast aluminum, sheet steel / Mg cast and sheet aluminum / Mg cast for highly loaded structures (such as pillars and longitudinal and transverse beam), whereby the cast structure locally, that is decidedly, strengthen the very thin-walled sheet metal structures, thereby preventing local b ulging occurances .
Research and Project Partners
- RWTH Aachen University
- Werkzeugmaschinenlabor (WZL)
- Tower International
- Imperia Automotive Engeneering
- Hochschule Aachen
- GIesserei Institut der RWTH Aachen
- VW (Anwender)
- Porsche (Anwender)