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Transfer Path Analysis (TPA) is a widely used methodology in Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) analysis of motor vehicles. Either it is used to design a vehicle from scratch or it is applied to root cause an existing NVH problem, TPA can be a useful tool. TPA analysis is closely related to the concept of partial contribution. The very basic assumption in TPA is that the summation of all partial contributions from different paths constitutes the total response (which could be either tactile or acoustic). Another popular concept in NVH analysis of vehicles is the component sensitivity. Component sensitivity is a measure of how much the response changes due to a change in one of the components of the system, i.e., the thickness of a panel or elastic rate of an engine mount. Sensitivity rates are more popular among CAE/Simulation community, simply because they are reasonably easy to calculate using mathematical models.

An overview of model development for seated occupants is presented. Two approaches have been investigated for modeling the vertical response of a seated dummy: finite element and simplified mass-spring-damper methods. The construction and implementation of these models are described, and the various successes and drawbacks of each modeling approach are discussed. To evaluate the performance of the models, emphasis was also placed on producing accurate, repeatable measurements of the static and dynamic characteristics of a seated dummy.

Chemically and heat reactive, expandable sealants are used as “acoustical baffles” in the automotive industry. These acoustic baffles are used to impede noise, water and dust propagation inside of structural components and body cavities. Use of these sealant materials has grown significantly as the demands to improve vehicle acoustic performance has increased. Various test methods have been developed to quantify the performance of these materials through direct comparison of material samples. These investigations use standardized testing procedures to characterize the acoustic performance of a material sample on the basis of controlled laboratory test conditions. This paper presents a step in the progression of evaluating acoustic baffle performance in the vehicle. Standard experimental techniques are used to investigate the influence of the baffles on the vehicle acoustic performance.

Class 8 truck manufacturers use a wide variety of materials for cab floor construction. These include traditional steel and aluminum plate as well as aluminum honey-comb and balsa wood core composites. Each of these materials has unique transmission loss properties. The acoustical performance of the floor system, (cab floor, decoupler, and barrier) depends not only on the acoustical performance of the decoupler and barrier, but also on the cab floor material. This paper outlines an experimental technique for selecting an acoustical floormat system utilizing vehicle and laboratory tests that takes these factors into account.

Weight reduction with maintained part performance is a continuing trend throughout the automotive industry. Acoustical insulation parts (carpet underlay and dash insulators) are no exception. Several years ago, ICI Polyurethanes led the industry in establishing a molded density standard of 48 kg/m3. Although this is the current production standard, the technology drive is toward even lower weights. Recent technological demonstrations show that molded densities of 35-38 kg/m3 are achievable. In addition to removing weight, acoustical performance can be maintained with no deficiencies in physical characteristics.

The area in the neighborhood of the package tray can be a significant path for road noise and exhaust noise. Air extraction routes and loudspeakers add to the difficulty of effective system design. A variety of designs were prototyped and their transmission loss measured in a standard SAE J1400 sound transmission loss suite. The performance of the various designs was compared to an untrimmed piece of sheet metal with embedded air extraction holes. The addition of trim added from 1 dB to 14 dB to the transmission loss. Statistical energy analysis (SEA) models of a variety of package tray systems will also be shown. Both of these techniques can provide design guidance at an early stage of vehicle program development.

This paper presents a software-driven procedure for continuous assessment facilitating an evaluation of non-stationary sound quality. The noise stimuli are presented to the test persons via headphones and a subwoofer from a personal computer. The key feature of the rating procedure is the “zonal pairwise comparison” for the time zones at the beginning and the end of the noise sequences. Evaluation of data together with time variant objective parameters by means of statistical methods is described. The results and models from multiple regession analysis are given.

This paper discusses four general attributes which quantify the character of an impulsive sound event. These attributes include the time duration, amplitude and frequency content of the impulsive noise. A three dimensional plot relating time, frequency and amplitude have been developed for the presentation of the measured data. This format allows graphic illustration of the noise event, providing fast interpretation and communication of the measured sound. Application of this methodology to the sound of an automotive door closing event is presented here. Representative door closing sound events are analyzed, with correlation presented between the attributes above to dynamic events of the physical hardware within the door and vehicle systems. Modifications of the door-in-white, internal door hardware, seal systems and additional content are investigated for their effect on the sound quality of the door closing event. Finally, recommended values for these attributes are presented.

Transient automotive sounds often possess a complex internal structure resulting from one or more impacts combined with mechanical and acoustic cavity resonances. This structure can be revealed by a new technique for obtaining translation-invariant scalograms from orthogonal discrete wavelet transforms. These scalograms are particularly well suited to the visualization of complex sound transients which span a wide dynamic range in time (ms to s) and frequency (∼100Hz to ∼10kHz). As examples, scalograms and spectrograms of door latch closing events from a variety of automotive platforms are discussed and compared in light of the subjective rankings of the sounds.

Pumps are usually tested for performance and efficiency as well as other pump characteristics. With the increased awareness of Noise, Vibration and Harshness (NVH) in the automotive industry, new standardized tests have evolved for testing pumps. Two major tests are the impedance and ripple tests. Information collected on these signatures of pumps is vital for the success of any Fluid Born Noise (FBN) analysis of these important components and the system in which they function. The purpose of this paper is to study the repeatability and reproducibility of such tests for the same pump. Production variability will be found when pumps of the same ‘category’ or part number are tested. The information presented here is important for the generalization of these tests and establishing them as a part of the research, development and design process. A set of pumps commonly used in the vehicle is put to the test.

Condition monitoring through signal analysis is not as well established for reciprocating engines as it is for rotating machines. One of the reason is that it has to deal with non-stationary vibrations. In this paper, some new statistical indicators are defined for the detection and separation of close transient events. They can also be used for diagnostic purposes, for instance for valve mechanics or for combustion rises. Their performances are compared on real vibrations of a small 4 cylinder diesel engine and it is finally verified that they allow the reconstruction of the engine cycle.

The dynamic behavior of an OHC valve train system of a spark ignition engine is investigated to characterize the source and transmission of the valve train (VT) vibration and noise and to improve the VT design for better sound quality. The spectral properties of vibration caused by highly transient dynamics of VT system are characterized for the high frequency ranges over 3 kHz, although the overall sound pressure level due to the VT is negligible [1, 2]. For the analysis of valve train a lumped parameter model with 4 d.o.f.'s is developed and validated with the experimental results from a test rig. Experiments are performed on the test rig to measure the valve acceleration, the surface vibration of cylinder head during the operation, and the transfer functions. Also a measurement of cylinder head vibration in a real vehicle has been performed to correlate with the rig test results.

An extensive experimental study of noise generating mechanisms of two production models of automotive alternators is presented. It was established that aerodynamic noise (generated by cooling fans) is dominating at high speeds (above 3,000 rpm), while electromagnetic noise is the most intensive at low rpm. Two directions of noise reduction are proposed and validated: reduction of noise levels generated by alternators to be achieved by using axial flow fans for cooling instead of presently used bladed discs, and radical reduction of operating speed of alternators by using variable transmission ratio accessory drives.

Modern production is intensified by the extensive application of computing art to structure design. This paper deals with the results of numerical simulation of electromechanical commutating devices. Speed of operation, vibrostability, reliability and durability are basic characteristics, which can be satisfied by studying mathematical models of mechanical and magnetic systems. During the impact interaction of elastic links several modes of vibrations are excited. By developing certain conditions, the amplitudes of the higher modes can be increased by changing the intensity of energy dissipation and responsiveness of the mechanical system. Such parameters as the position and configuration of the contact elements, ratio of their natural frequencies and others should guarantee the smallest amplitudes of rebounds with a possibility to minimize transient processes occurring in the building ofthe operation.

Accessory belt “chirp” noise is a major quality issue in the automotive and truck industry. Chirp noise control is often achieved by very tight pulley alignment, a guideline being .33 degree maximum belt entry angle into each grooved pulley. Occasionally belts will chirp at pulleys where the system alignment is this good or better. This study offers an explanation for such occurrences. This is a study to see if fundament groove side sticking theory correlates with the belt entry angle, and how the coefficient of friction relates to this entry angle. The study combines theory with lab data. In summary, the study fundamentally links the coefficient of friction of the belt to the belt chirp noise phenomenon, and allows the projection of a belt's general tendency to chirp to be predicted by the measurement of belt coefficient of friction on a test stand.

Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) method is used to predict Sound Transmission Loss (STL) of sound barrier assemblies (SBA) commonly used in automotive dashmat design. Tests are performed for dashmat plaques with and without design features, and SEA equations have been used for predicting transmission loss with acceptable accuracy below the interception (cavity resonance) frequency. For frequency range higher than interception point, the SEA software used overestimates STL. For dashmat tests with design features, test results and SEA predictions are generally agreeable.

In Statistical Energy Analysis and Energy Flow Analysis models of connected beam systems, it is necessary to determine the power reflection and transmission coefficients of the structural joints. The use of a spectral element formulation to estimate the joint coefficients for any number of rigidly connected beams oriented at any angle in all three dimensions is presented. The longitudinal, transverse, and torsional wave types are modeled and assembled into beam elements. A force is applied to the system and the magnitudes of the transmitted and reflected waves are identified and used to calculate the joint's power reflection and transmission coefficients. Examples are presented to illustrate the procedure.

The energy finite element method (EFEM) was developed to utilize available finite element geometric models for high frequency structural-acoustic analysis. Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) is a lumped parameter approach currently in widespread use for high frequency analysis. In this investigation, EFEM and SEA models were developed for components of a heavy equipment cab. A generalized joint process (GJP) was developed and used for processing the various joints between structural subsystems. The structural predictions were compared to each other as well as to measurements.

Over the last years, SEA has been recognized as a useful tool to model and analyze the high-frequency vibro-acoustic behavior of fully assembled complex structures. This paper discusses the experimental derivation of the loss factor model of a passenger car. The paper outlines the different steps which need to be taken to obtained a fully validated experimental SEA model. This includes the subdivision into subsystems, the PIM measurement campaign, the derivation of the loss factors and their associated confidence levels and the model validation. The paper further details how the experimental SEA model was used to quantify and investigate the airborne and structure-borne contributions to the interior noise level for a road noise test condition. The operational power inputs to the vehicle were indirectly determined from operational response measurements. A contribution analysis showed that airborne noise sources dominated structure-borne noise sources above 500Hz.