LIGHT WEIGHT BODY IN WHITE DESIGN

Jason BalzerLightweight Body & Joining Technical LeaderFord Motor Company

September 26th, 2017

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Agenda:

• Why Light Weight BIW

• Light Weight Design Mindset

Fuel Efficiency Targets

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Source: Green Technology, 2011.

Light-Duty Vehicle Fuel Economy Standards, 1978 - 2025

Mile

s p

er G

allo

n E

qu

ival

ent

Model year

54.4mpge

Fleetwide average in 2025

Impact of Vehicle Mass on Fuel Economy

Gas Guzzler Weights

Andrew Danowitz

Fuel Economy Sensitivity to Vehicle Mass for Advanced Vehicle Powertrains

S. Pagerit, P. Sharer, A. Rousseau

Lightweighting Impacts on Fuel Economy, Cost, and Component Losses; Aaron

David Brooker, Jacob Ward, Lijuan Wang

The EPA says that for every 100

pounds taken out of the vehicle,

the fuel economy is increased by

1-2 percent.

In conventional ICE vehicles a 10% mass reduction;

- Without powertrain re-sizing improves mpg between 1.9%-3.2%.

- With powertrain re-sizing improves mpg between 2.6%-3.4%.

Diesel engine Determination of Weight Elasticity of Fuel Economy for Conventional ICE Vehicles, Hybrid

Vehicles and Fuel Cell Vehicles Forschungsgesellschaft Kraftfahrwesen mbH Aachen Body Department

Rhett Allain - Wired

Year

Ave

rage

Veh

icle

Mas

s /

lbs

Since 1998, the average vehicle mass has

increased by…

17lbs /yr for cars

42lbs /yr for trucks

Average Vehicle Mass 1980-2012 (NA)

5

Vehicles have increased in weight due to;

• Customer Features: Size, Options, etc.

• Safety Regulations & Features

BIW Mass Trend

• Mass of Ford Sedan BIWs are on a decreasing trend.

• From 2007 to 2017 Ford’s average BIW reduction is 17%.

• “Snap Shot of the Industry” shows the average trending down 12.5% over the same time.

• More cost effective weight saves are required.

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• Light Weight Design Mindset

Optimized Design: Topology Optimization

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Full Vehicle

Component Level

System Level

• Mass savings starts at the early in the design phase by insuring that the optimal load paths are defined

• Establishing the ideal load paths allow energy transfer through the structure with the minimum amount of material and material strength

Three applications of Topology:1. Full Vehicle – focus on defining the overall load path strategy

based on vehicle level load conditions2. System – develop geometry to address specific loads within a

given system3. Component – insure the geometry at the component level is

optimized to the local events

• Safety regulations and need for weight reduction have driven the need for higher strength steels

• Increase of up to 104% in the Average Yield Strength of Ford BIWs since 2008

Average Yield Strength

Advanced

High Strength

Steel:

DP1000

Martensitic

Steel

Advanced

High Strength

Steel:

DP600 &

DP800

Mainstream

Boron

High Strength

Low Alloy

Bake

Hardenable

Solution

Strengthened

• Utilize all available forming processes to:

– Enable the utilization of the highest strength materials available

– Improve the geometric properties of a given part

– End goal of achieving reduced cost and mass required to achieve a given level of performance

• Current focus is on Hot Stamping, Roll Forming, and Hydro-Forming

Forming Processes and Geometry

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F-Series: Front End and Body Side

Fusion: A-Pillar / Roof Rail & B-Pillar

Mustang: A-Pillar / Roof Rail

Edge: A-Pillar / Roof Rail & D-Pillar

Hydro-Forming

Roll Forming

Hot Stamping

Hydro-Forming Evolution

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31PARTS

18PARTS

20BENDS

STAMPED STEELFIRST HYDROFORM

STEEL

FIRST ALUMINUM

HYDROFORM

12PARTS

6BENDS

FRONT-END SUPER DUTY/EXPEDITION

31WEIGHT

%

– 59WEIGHT

%

–

FRONT-END SUPER DUTY FRONT-END F-150

A-Pillar / Roof Rail: Closed Section Design

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DP1000 Hydro-formed Tube

Gage: 2.0mm

DP1000

Gage: 2.0mm

DP1000

Gage: 1.5mm

HSLA 350

Gage: 1.6mm

HSLA 350

Gage: 1.8mm

HSLA 350

Gage: 1.8mm

Mild

Gage: 1.2mm

2014 Mustang 2015 Mustang

Replacement of complex stampings with a tubular structure enables:

• The use of higher strength steel within a reduced package

• Increased vehicle performance

• Reduced package requirement

Concept initiated on F-150 and proliferated across vehicle lines

Vehicle Material Mass Savings

F-150 DP800 6.1 kg

Fusion DP1000 4.2 kg

Mustang DP1000 3.9 kg

Continental DP1000 4.5 kg

F-150 6000 Series

Expedition 6000 Series

• 1st Gen (production) – Max strength stamping technology available. YS=> 1000 Mpa, TS=> 1300 Mpa.

• 2nd Gen (pre-production) – Inc. YS & TS. YS=>1400 Mpa, TS=> 1800 Mpa.

• No Springback, enabling complex parts.

• Technology is rapidly expanding.

– 2016 Civic = 14% Boron (from 1%)

– 2016 Volvo V90 = 29% Boron

Boron - Hot Stamping

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• Maximum High Strength Stamping material.

• Processing dependent.

• High Cost.

Heating

880-930°C

3 – 10 min

Stamping (600-800°C)

+ Hardening (>> 50 K/s )

Transfer

Volvo V90 ’16Civic ’13 vs. ’16

Tailored Material Thickness

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Tailor Rolled Blank introduced to place gage where needed to meet the performance

requirements and provide mass savings

Mass savings of 1.2 kg achieved over the conventional Hot Stamping approach.

Very costly weight savings technology

Variation of gauge allowed for the

elimination of the B-Pillar

Reinforcement

Aluminum: Post Form Heat Treatment

15

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

6HS2-T81 6HS2-T82

Str

ess [

MP

a]

YS UTS

6HS2-PFHT

STAMPING

HEAT-TREAT

OVEN

BODY SHOP

PAINT

• Ford developed a novel Post Form Heat

Treatment (PFHT) cycle for 6XXX sheet alloy

(Industry-first) that results in a:

• 66% increase in Yield Strength

• 6% increase in Ultimate Strength

• PFHT is used to strengthen sheet parts for

yield-limited applications

• 14 stamped parts undergo the PFHT

operation

PFHT Process

New Materials – 3RD Generation Advanced High Strength Steel

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Developments in steel related to 3rd Generation Advanced High Strength Steel offer opportunities:

• Increased Yield Strength allows for gauge reduction of strength driven parts

• Yield Strength increased combined with improved ductility offer opportunities to optimize parts requiring energy absorption

Composites - Resent Usage within Ford Motor Company

/// 17

• SMC – Multiple Applications

• Hood (FN9 Continental, Mustang, Raptor, Windstar)

• Fenders (FN9 Continental, Raptor)

• Decklids (SN95 Mustang, MKS)

• Radiator Supports

• Carbon Fiber

• New Ford GT (Body Structures and Closures)

• Wheels (Ford Shelby GT)

• Battery Box Covers (PHEV, BEV)

• Driveshaft 2013 Shelby GT

Carbon Fiber Application Philosophy / Needs

/// 18

Philosophy

• Defining High Volume as about 100k units per year

• Considering performance line of vehicles (100 to 40k units per

year)

• Weaves have too much operator handling to be efficient for

Ford Motor Company volumes

• Applied in mixed material vehicles.

Needs

• Lower cost materials & processing

• High volume joining methods and associated processes.

• Corrosion testing correlation with real life along with corrosion

mitigation methods when used in conjunction with steel,

aluminum and/or magnesium.

• In Plant repair methods.

Summary

/// 19

• Stronger lighter vehicles are needed.

• Ford is reduced the BIW weight faster than the industry.

• Ford is open to any and all technology required to meet Regulatory

and Customer requirements.

• We’re interested in working with Suppliers that can deliver cost

efficient weight reduction technologies.

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THANK YOU

Electric Vehicle & Mass

Analysis of Parameters Influencing Electric Vehicle Range;

Martin Mruzek*, Igor Gajdáč, Ľuboš Kučera, Dalibor Barta

Lightweighting Impacts on Fuel Economy, Cost, and Component

Losses; Aaron David Brooker, Jacob Ward, Lijuan Wang

A similar relationship between power required or range and vehicle mass exists for electric vehicles

B-Pillar: Closed Section Design

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Reinf Center

Hinge Pillar

1.4 mm Boron

Reinf Ctr

Bdy Plr - Upr

1.0 mm Boron

Plr Bdy Lock Inr

1.2mm Boron

Tube – Front Body Pillar

1.4 mm DP1000

Tube – Rear Body Pillar

1.8 mm DP1000Bracket Center Pillar Upper

1.2 mm DP800

Hinge Reinforcement Outer

1.75 mm DP800

Plr Bdy Lock Inr

0.75 mm HSLA 340

Closed section concept was extended to the B-Pillar for the Fusion enabling:

• Elimination of large press hardened parts

• Use of AHSS

• Reduced intrusion during side impact

• 6 kg mass reduction

SUSTAINABILITY“GREEN”

SAFETY “SAFE”

DESIGN “SMART”

Drive green. Drive safe. Drive smart.

Drive quality.

TechnologyLeadership Commitments

• Design leadership on each new program

• Leadership in interior comfort / convenience, infotainment technology

• Global platforms with right proportions

• Improve emotional appeal

• Leadership safety technology / feature content

• Achieve public domain targets and 3rd party recommended buys

• Breakthrough features for family safety

• Leadership in fuel economy with every new or significantly refreshed entry

• More renewable, recycled materials

• Vehicle light weighting

LEADERSHIP FOUNDATION “QUALITY”

Sustainability – Clear Technology Priorities

Our leadership commitments

around Quality, Green, Safe and Smart

consistently guide our product

development team priorities every day

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Structural Castings

Typical Steel Design Die Cast Design

5-7 Stampings welded into one assembly with

welds nuts and studs

1 Casting

C2 DesignAn industry wide shift from stamped shock towers to cast aluminum

components has begun.

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Expected benefits:

• Reduced component mass

• Increase local and vehicle level stiffness

• improved dimensional accuracy through part integration

• Efficient attachment integration – elimination of brackets.

Going forward . . .

Automotive aluminum castings and market trends

Norberto F. Vidaña Market Intelligence Aluminum

Regulation Changes

Extrusions

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Advantages Afforded by Extrusions:

• Freedom to place material where you need it

• Addition of internal ribs / reinforcements to

improve the effectiveness of the design

section

• Closed section without discrete connection

pointsFront Header Section

Front Header

Rocker Reinforcements

Shotguns1

Extruded Applications on the F-150

Case Study: Front Header

Stamped to Extruded

Part Reduction: 3 to 1

Mass Reduction: 2.9 kg

A-Pillar / Roof Rail1

Lower Rad Support

1 Additional geometry changes achieved through bending and hydro-forming processes

Tailored Material Properties

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Typical

mechanical

properties:

Rm = 550 Mpa

Re = 400 Mpa

Ɛ(A5) > 20%

Typical

mechanical

properties:

Rm = 1450 Mpa

Re = 1100 Mpa

Ɛ(A5) > 6%“Soft”Hard area

Transition zone

from soft to hard

area

• Rails were shortened for donor vehicle to provide correct vehicle

proportions

• Mass of the vehicle increased over the donor vehicle

Mixed Material BIW

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The Original

Aluminum Hood

Wood Structural Frames

Steel Panels

The Future . . .