2007 Review

More new products launched at Automotive Testing Expo Europe 2007

Teradyne launched an integrated end-of-line tester at its stand. Called i-VIEW Ultra, the unit offers a high-speed communications interface to not only run end-of-line diagnostics, but also load vehicle control modules with calibration information for different applications and markets.

“It has been 18 months in development,” explained David Tunstall, business unit manager. “The unit is designed to military specifications and can withstand 300 drops of up to 1m on a concrete surface. It has no internal cooling fans – cooling takes place externally so there are no fans to clog up.

“The Expo is a good place to launch the product as we can show it to a lot of people at the same time. We have had a lot of interest,” Tunstall continued.

There was a lot of activity at the Delphi stand. In the wake of Delphi Group’s restructuring, its Luxembourg Technology Centre – previously dedicated to the development of Delphi products only – has been successfully opened to outside customers.

“We are targeting not only OEMs, but also other testing centers that might not have the same level of big equipment, like our two climatic wind tunnels and full-size chambers for acoustic and electro-magnetic testing,” said center supervisor Bernard Henrion.

“The Technology Centre’s four-year involvement with Automotive Testing Expo has been a significant help in growing the customer base for its services,” he added.

 “2007 is our fifth time at Automotive Testing Expo, each one more successful than the one before,” said DHM Embedded Systems general manager, Dr Harald Muller. The company develops and manufactures pneumatically operated systems for fatigue testing and is showing a new controller that is able to accurately replicate the forces from actual test tracks. The centerpiece of the company’s stand was a mountain bike, its steering and front suspension being activated by the new control system. “The display is very eye-catching and has attracted a great deal of interest,” said Muller.

“Visitors are surprised to see how much movement there is in the bike’s suspension when it is being ridden on rough ground, he concluded.”

What people said about Automotive Testing Expo Europe 2007

“It is a very good show, and very useful. I will definitely come again.”
Yoshihiro Kawabe, manager, suspension engineering group, chassis engineering development department, technology development division, Nissan Motor Co

“I’m here for all three days. I’m catching up with the latest technology in the halls and in the conference. There’s a great emphasis on technology at each stand, which will help take Lotus into the future.”
Darren Richardson, senior design engineer, Lotus Engineering

“This is our fifth year of exhibiting at Automotive Testing Expo, and we have made many contacts over the years. We have made many new contacts at this year’s Expo, and the show is really big.”
Claus Brinkkotter, head of department, vehicle testing, IAV GmbH

“It’s the best Automotive Testing Expo yet. It is also the biggest I have been to. We found everything we needed in one hour.”
Kari Viantilyness, BRB Finland

“We have been coming to the Expo for five years now. It’s the biggest automotive testing show so we have to be here.”
Martin van Besouw, project manager, powertrain test and engineering, PDE Automotive

Wednesday 9 May 2007

Automotive Testing Expo 2007 proved to be another resounding success, building on the extraordinary success of previous years.

Thousands of visitors and exhibitors capitalized on this unique event to discover the latest product launches and technologies, to create new business relationships and deals, and to learn from the forums.

Froude Hofmann used Automotive Testing Expo 2007 to showcase a range of all-new products, including a configured medium-duty chassis dyno system, a new GUI, and a new test system. Darren Lloyd from the vehicle test products division explained: "Our new Texcel V12 system goes across two platforms: engine and vehicle. Instead of having a dedicated control system for the vehicle, and a different system for the engine, Texcel V12 does both."

The package features transient and steady-state engine testing, an integrated digital control and data acquisition system, a programmable test sequencer, exhaust emission testing, road load simulation, and gearbox and clutch simulation.

“The Expo is great for networking,” Lloyd added. “We make good contacts with agents around the world at this show, which is paying dividends. You have to be here; if you're not here then people wonder why. What better way is there to show people your new products? For us to go and see all the people who visit our stand would take months. It’s a big event to attend, and one you have to attend.”

MTS launched a cost-effective system for testing suspensions and axles for heavy trucks. Dan Barsness, market development manager at MTS, enthused: “We’re working on a new series of testing applications that merge physical testing with virtual testing - we call it mechanical hardware in the loop. The MHIL we showed at the Expo was a proof of concept that demonstrates a real-time vehicle model integrated with certain physical components. The goal is to take time out of development, as we can analyze components before prototypes are made. Many systems tell you about the part, but not how it will behave in the actual car. MHIL reveals the vehicle-level response before a prototype is developed. It can be used for passive or active components. One of the key areas for MHIL will be damper development and tuning. It brings together the best of CAE and the best of physical”.

“We had a lot of interest in MHIL at the Expo. It is the one and only place to be for automotive testing,” Barsness continued.

A special inverter system for all types of test benches was showcased at Converteam’s stand. ProTX can invert chassis dynos, drivelines, braking systems, etc, in a cubicle-mounted modular system.

“The ProTX system is highly flexible to adapt to customer requirements such as all-wheel-drive, special brake systems, etc, all with the same equipment,” stated Andrea Lehmann, project manager, test benches and infrastructure. “The mains inverter gives an active front end so we can supply back to the network, which is important as the inverter usually just gives load, but we are regenerating. Ratings are up to several kilowatts - the biggest we’ve made so far is 4 x 800amps. The system is now UL compliant, and the company is also developing a new controller to add flexibility. The first step was to create the hardware, and we are now rethinking the controller to make the whole system as flexible as possible. It is important for us to get information about the market and to get in contact with our customers. Most of our major customers such as Horiba, BMW, Renault, and AVL were at the expo, so it was a great place to get in contact. During the year we don’t have time to have in-depth discussions with customers or to refresh contacts, but Automotive Testing Expo is great for this,” continued Lehmann.