Virtual Verification of Split Lines with Given References

Paper i proceeding, 2003

Product development of today is characterized of shortened lead time, increased expectations on the products and lack of time. The importance of the aesthetic design has increased and many brands are no longer competing only with performance but with the design of the products. This paper focus on the possibility to optimize relations between parts based on tolerance aspects and a fixed set of positioning schemes. A tool has been proposed to optimize split lines between parts based on tolerance aspects and a fixed set of locating schemes. The possibility to evaluate design solutions is of high importance. The exterior design of many products involves a number of parts who are in relation between one another. In the automotive industry a big share of the quality aspects is assessed by these relations. The effect of visual and geometrical sensitivity may be evaluated in early stages of the product development process using non-nominal models. Thus time and cost reduction will be met and the visual quality will increase. The tool can also be used as border crossing technical aid for both engineering design and industrial design to enable styling concept evaluation.