The demand for improved vehicle fuel economy drives the auto engineers to look for opportunities in weight reduction of automotive systems and components. This paper presents inventions on the design and development of a lightweight spindle. In this new product, the spindle body is made from an Al alloy for a substantial weight reduction in comparison to the tradition iron spindle body. The shaft of the spindle is made from high strength steel to meet strength requirements. The design shows the unique feature of the joining area between the spindle body and shaft. The related joining process is applied to produce a strong joint between the two parts made of different materials. The testing results will be presented and discussed. A spindle with an aluminum body reduces weight up to 30 % in comparison to the traditional iron spindle. Several designs and structures were presented of a spindle body made of an aluminum alloy using different assembly processes. Design option-A has a simple structure. However, the joint strength has not been validated. Further work is needed on this design. Design option-B uses the traditional assembly process, but this design increases complexity and introduces extra weight. Design option C has the simplest structure. The test results of the prototype show that a strong joint exists between the shaft and aluminum body. Inertia friction welding process has been applied to this design. Moreover, the inertia friction welding process allows for high production rates. Further development and testing are underway to finalize the designs for implementation.
Design and development of light weight Al spindle
Entwurf und Entwicklung eines leichten Aluminiumspindels
2002
5 Seiten, 11 Bilder, 1 Quelle
Conference paper
English
Design and Development of Light Weight Al Spindle
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