Automotive Engineering
Engineers having expertise in vehicle technology are called automotive engineers.
Automotive engineering deals with the different elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software, and safety engineering, all concerned with automobiles.
The technology which goes into designing, manufacturing, and operation of a vehicle is termed as automobile engineering.
The various sections of automobile engineering may be briefly classified as below:
* Service engineering
* Product engineering
* Design engineering
* Development engineering
* Manufacturing engineering
Practically every part of vehicle design falls under automotive engineering, including its design, right from its initial concepts to its manufacturing phases.
There are three broad sections in automobile engineering, and these are, product engineering, development engineering, and manufacturing engineering.
As far as product engineering is concerned, the design engineering part is also included in that section. Product engineers deal with the design of the automobile right from its conceptual stages, taking it through the design phase on to the manufacturing activity.
Product engineers are also responsible for testing the sub-assemblies of the vehicle before it is approved to be a qualified part that can be fitted during manufacturing of the vehicle.
Various parts that go into a vehicle have a specification, and this specification is decided by the development engineer in automobile engineering.
For example, the development engineer will provide the production engineer with the spring rate that he would want to utilise in the vehicle, so as to achieve the right ride characteristics of the automobile.
In turn the manufacturing engineer decides how to produce that spring.
Much of research goes into the aspects of crash scenarios in vehicles. This is designed and implemented by the safety engineering people. The design is tested under stringent conditions laid down by the government and follows strict quality control.
The regulations set by the government include, the functionalities of air-bag and seat belts in the vehicle, the safety related to front and side crash possibilities, the roll-over resistance, etc.
These are tested and assessed by various methods and tools, and at times in real simulated crash scenarios.
The product engineer is also responsible to measure the fuel efficiency of the vehicle in terms of miles per gallon or kilometer per litre, and also tests the emission of the vehicle by measuring the hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), and evaporative emissions.
The vehicle dynamics, which are essentially the noise, vibration, and harshness of the vehicle, are tested by the vehicle dynamics engineer, to ensure that the vehicle has been manufactured with the right dynamics specifications that have been set by the design engineers.
The performance of the vehicle is the impression of the driver as he drives the vehicle and tries to perceive the different aspects of the vehicle’s manner of performance.
This would include its power and pick-up, the acceleration, sound of the engine, the feel of the acceleration pedal, and the shift quality.
The performance of the vehicle is observed with different running conditions of the vehicle, such as, wide-open throttle acceleration, 0-60 mph (0-100 km/h), or highway passing over.
The engine performance is tested by the perception of the driver on the shift quality of the vehicle. It is the test of the vehicle to an “automatic transmission banana event“.
The engine, the transmission, driveline, the suspension, etc. are the ones which are included in testing automatic transmission banana event of the vehicle.
Automotive engineering deals with the different elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software, and safety engineering, all concerned with automobiles.
The technology which goes into designing, manufacturing, and operation of a vehicle is termed as automobile engineering.
The various sections of automobile engineering may be briefly classified as below:
* Service engineering
* Product engineering
* Design engineering
* Development engineering
* Manufacturing engineering
Practically every part of vehicle design falls under automotive engineering, including its design, right from its initial concepts to its manufacturing phases.
There are three broad sections in automobile engineering, and these are, product engineering, development engineering, and manufacturing engineering.
As far as product engineering is concerned, the design engineering part is also included in that section. Product engineers deal with the design of the automobile right from its conceptual stages, taking it through the design phase on to the manufacturing activity.
Product engineers are also responsible for testing the sub-assemblies of the vehicle before it is approved to be a qualified part that can be fitted during manufacturing of the vehicle.
Various parts that go into a vehicle have a specification, and this specification is decided by the development engineer in automobile engineering.
For example, the development engineer will provide the production engineer with the spring rate that he would want to utilise in the vehicle, so as to achieve the right ride characteristics of the automobile.
In turn the manufacturing engineer decides how to produce that spring.
Much of research goes into the aspects of crash scenarios in vehicles. This is designed and implemented by the safety engineering people. The design is tested under stringent conditions laid down by the government and follows strict quality control.
The regulations set by the government include, the functionalities of air-bag and seat belts in the vehicle, the safety related to front and side crash possibilities, the roll-over resistance, etc.
These are tested and assessed by various methods and tools, and at times in real simulated crash scenarios.
The product engineer is also responsible to measure the fuel efficiency of the vehicle in terms of miles per gallon or kilometer per litre, and also tests the emission of the vehicle by measuring the hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), and evaporative emissions.
The vehicle dynamics, which are essentially the noise, vibration, and harshness of the vehicle, are tested by the vehicle dynamics engineer, to ensure that the vehicle has been manufactured with the right dynamics specifications that have been set by the design engineers.
The performance of the vehicle is the impression of the driver as he drives the vehicle and tries to perceive the different aspects of the vehicle’s manner of performance.
This would include its power and pick-up, the acceleration, sound of the engine, the feel of the acceleration pedal, and the shift quality.
The performance of the vehicle is observed with different running conditions of the vehicle, such as, wide-open throttle acceleration, 0-60 mph (0-100 km/h), or highway passing over.
The engine performance is tested by the perception of the driver on the shift quality of the vehicle. It is the test of the vehicle to an “automatic transmission banana event“.
The engine, the transmission, driveline, the suspension, etc. are the ones which are included in testing automatic transmission banana event of the vehicle.
