Product category:
Process Simulation
News Release from: Flomerics | Subject: CEEMO
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial
Team on 16 April 2007
EFD.Lab fine-tunes new race car design
CEEMO Engineering has used EFD.Lab, the easy-to-use general purpose engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics, to test and optimise a new concept car
CEEMO Engineering has used EFD.Lab, the easy-to-use general purpose engineering fluid dynamics software from Flomerics, to test and optimise a new concept car The entire design optimisation process for the 2-seater chassis took about eight weeks despite the design engineer being a novice in the use of fluid analysis software
This article was originally published on Processingtalk on 31 Jul 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Real-time cooling calculator for data centers
APC has selected Flomerics' Flovent computational fluid dynamics software to develop the world's first real-time cooling calculator for data center design.
Optimising sail design using 3D simulation
Finnish sail maker WB-Sails is using EFD.Lab fluid dynamics simulation software from Flomerics to develop and optimise sails for Star and Finn class Olympic sailboats
"I am an aerospace engineer by background but I had never used CFD software so we did an exhaustive search to find the right tool for the design engineer," said Evan van Wolfswinkel, an Engineer at CEEMO: "EFD.Lab offered the best combination of cost effectiveness and ease-of-use for us.
As a matter of fact, my colleagues who were using a traditional market-leading CFD code were amazed at how quickly I could conduct "what-if" tests".
Regarded as a market leader, CEEMO Engineering develops and manufactures innovative products for the racing industry such as airfoils, body panels and air boxes.
CEEMO has contributed to the success of many racing teams by delivering products for Renault, BMW, Marcos, Lexus and Spyker racing cars.
"Since we had an extensive background in designing various aerodynamic parts for racing purposes, we decided to expand our portfolio by designing a new concept car," explained van Wolfswinkel.
The CEEMO primary goal was to analyse and improve the aerodynamics of the car chassis.
Firstly, van Wolfswinkel checked the ground clearance.
"The results revealed a remarkable amount of down force and explained how the downforce was generated," explained van Wolfswinkel.
He further modified the design by adding a diffuser and adjusting the ground clearance in the front and the back of the car.
He also reduced the drag by making the back rounder.
"After seeing the simulation results, I realized that the change in the shape also reduced the down force and resulted in the diffuser losing its effectiveness.
EFD.Lab was instrumental in helping me better understand the cumulative effects of my changes, and solving the problem".
The process of testing the body and improving it took about eight weeks.
The car is still about two years away from production.
"We've optimised the shape of the concept car and will be moving on to studying the suspension shortly," explained Evan van Wolfswinkel. Request a free brochure from Flomerics ...
• Flomerics: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Processingtalk email newsletter
• Processingtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
