What is CAE?
In the past, the majority of design verification during product development came from physical prototype testing. An analytical approach relying on engineering judgment was applied to evolving designs using well understood, time proven materials. Make a prototype, test it out, then make changes based on the test results. This make-&-break strategy has its advantages…it’s the real deal, among others.
Over time, designs and materials have become increasingly complex. Initiatives like continuous cost improvement, light-weighting and optimization have put greater demands on product performance, and as a result, on design and engineering.
Today, designers and engineers need to understand the physical behaviors of a complex object. They also need to predict the performance of the design, calculate the safety margin, and accurately identify weaknesses in the design. The end goal is to confidently identify acceptable or even superior designs and materials for each unique product. Through the use of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), collectively known as CAE, this goal can usually be achieved in less time and at a lower cost than with traditional prototyping alone.
Computer-aided engineering (CAE) is the use of computer software to simulate performance in order to improve product designs or assist in the resolution of engineering problems for a wide range of industries. This includes simulation, validation, and optimization of products, processes, and manufacturing tools.
CAE processes
A typical CAE process comprises of pre-processing, solving, and post-processing steps. In the pre-processing phase, engineers model the geometry and the physical properties of the design, as well as the environment in the form of applied loads or constraints. Next, the model is solved using an appropriate mathematical formulation of the underlying physics. In the post-processing phase, the results are presented to the engineer for review.
CAE in the automotive industry
CAE tools are very widely used in the automotive industry. In fact, their use has enabled the automakers to reduce product development cost and time while improving the safety, comfort, and durability of the vehicles they produce. The predictive capability of CAE tools has progressed to the point where much of the design verification is now done using computer simulations rather than physical prototype testing. Even though there have been many advances in CAE, and it is widely used in the engineering field, physical testing is still used as a final confirmation for subsystems due to the fact that CAE cannot predict all variables in complex assemblies (i.e. metal stretch, thinning).