ProductLMS

Business challengesDrastically cut time-to-marketImprove product price performanceEnhance lubrication system efficiency

Keys to successCapitalize on LMS Amesim flexibility to create complex system modelsQuickly generate quality data and multiple-criteria analysisUse LMS Amesim to challenge and validate the three sigma limit part dimension tolerances

ResultsCompressed development cycle by up to 30 percentSwitched the testing stage approach from trial-and-error to validation onlyImproved system performance by optimizing parts definition

Siemens PLM Software solution enables SDF to enhance design validation approach and system performance

Delivering at the right price and time“In the future, competition will be even fiercer, so providing continuity as well as updated products will be essential,” fore-casts Francesco Cassani, founder of SDF, a leading manufacturer of tractors, harvest-ers and diesel engines. Cassani knew of whence he spoke: With nearly 90 years of experience, it is clear SDF has learned how

Industrial machinery and heavy equipment

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SDFLeading tractor manufacturer uses LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim to reduce development time by up to 30 percent

to adapt to changing times and environ-ments. The cornerstone of its operations is agility in dealing with production costs and reliability.

The agricultural equipment market is cyclical, as it depends on farm income, changing interest rates and overall farm profitability. Farmers have to strike a balance between various useful capital-intensive investments. They will challenge equipment manufacturers on robustness as well as upfront cost of agricultural machinery.

SDF develops tractor lines for diverse agricultural uses and environments, among them the SAME Explorer, which has undergone continual improvements since its original design in 1983.

Given climate and harvest period uncer-tainty, downtime has a price that farmers cannot afford to pay. The level of upfront investment for agricultural machinery with the latest technologies also has a strong impact on purchasing decisions. It is only natural in this context that SDF constantly revisits its design and production costs and timeline.

Further, stricter environmental regulations on carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), as well as customer interest in limiting fuel consumption, confirm that manufacturers need to constantly and quickly adapt their equipment offer. The latest European (Stage IV) and United States (Tier 4) regulations require an 80 percent cut in nitrogen oxides compared with previous levels, already down 50 percent compared to Stage IIIA/Tier 3. SDF is adjusting its FARMotion signature engine technology accordingly.

“In order to give final customers new state- of-the-art tractors, concepts like time-to-market and value-for-money is becoming more and more important for our company,” says Riccardo Bonacina, who is the base engine validation and reliability lead engi- neer in the research and development (R&D) department at SDF. “A critical busi-ness issue for SDF is a long development cycle that could lead to high development costs.”

One of SDF’s strategies to reduce develop-ment times and costs was to front-load product development in the design phase. It selected LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim™ software from product lifecycle manage-ment (PLM) specialist Siemens PLM Software to perform vehicle dynamics simulations, mechanical simulations as well as hydraulic and thermal circuit simu-lations, including on its lubrication systems, for its FARMotion engine.

“If the simulation at the beginning of the process is robust, then many functional testing loops, which are meant to improve the system, can be skipped,” says

Bonacina. “To find a new solution, it only requires acting on some parameters using LMS Amesim and validating them during the testing phase, instead of starting the complete development phase over like we did some years ago. By using LMS Amesim, the development phase can be reduced significantly, up to 30 percent in some cases.”

Considering that it can take up to four years to design an entire tractor engine from concept to production, it is a great leap forward in controlling product launch planning and ensuring continuously competitive pricing.

Fine-tuning circuit designLubrication systems are an essential component of an engine. The systems play a fundamental role in ensuring high effi-ciency in fuel consumption and engine emissions, as well as lowering the mainte-nance needs of the vehicle. Therefore, SDF continuously evaluates its traditional lubrication systems to improve the general performance of its FARMotion engine.

“We need to design a robust and durable circuit in order to comply with our custom-ers’ expectations regarding engine

FARMotion is the SDF signature engine that has been specifically designed to meet the challenges of the farming sector.

“ Because we have LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim in-house, the engineering skills remain inside the com-pany. Starting the creation of the model and finding solutions is quick and we are then free to modify circuits and components. We do not depend on outsourced engi- neering companies for every simulation we need.”

Riccardo Bonacina Base Engine Validation and Reliability Lead Engineer SDF

reliability,” says Bonacina. “Even if the circuit corresponds to a classic lubrication system, we search for ways to optimize it in order to implement the right solution for the pump, ensure that the piston cooling jets are efficient and, ultimately, avoid any engine failure.”

To complement testing and reduce devel-opment times, the SDF Engine Validation Department switched to model-based sys- tems engineering (MBSE). MBSE enables them to considerably reduce iterations between the design and testing phases. They started with different simulation soft- ware, but quickly decided to change to LMS Amesim.

“At the beginning, we performed simula-tions with another software and collabo- rated with an engineering company,” says Bonacina. “We started the development phase on the prototype engines and discovered there was a very big difference in the pressure between the initial simula-tions and the samples that we were testing. So we decided to start again using second modeling and verification with the 1D simulation software, LMS Amesim.”

Using LMS Amesim facilitates new compo-nent and circuit modeling thanks to its conversion functionality between 3D and 1D and the extensive library of hydraulic components. With rigorous 1D modeling capabilities in place, the SDF engine

“ By using LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim, the development phase can be reduced significantly, up to 30 percent in some cases.”Riccardo Bonacina Base Engine Validation and Reliability Lead Engineer SDF

Thanks to LMS Amesim, engineers are able to import 3D modeled components and carry out fast modeling of engine lubrication systems to complete simulations.

validation team was able to isolate the component that did not behave in virtual simulations the way it did in real testing conditions: in this case, the hydraulic-lash adjuster. By using LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim, the engineers were able to apply the precise clearance data and correctly calibrate the entire model.

Opening up new possibilitiesUsing LMS Amesim, SDF engineers conduct assessments of lubrication system compo-nents. They are able to diagnose loss of efficiency in the system and have gained fresh insight into the circulation of oil in the lubrication circuits. It has enabled them to design a smaller, more efficient oil pump. To validate the new pump, SDF engineers ran a series of simulations with LMS Amesim. It enabled them to promptly evaluate how the pressure and oil flow reacted to the new equipment.

“Thanks to the calibrated and optimized model, we had already defined the final specifications,” says Bonacina. “We can have the final tool ready without any intermediate steps. The calibrated model permits you to virtually obtain results quickly for all the matrix combinations. We only have to cross-check these compo-nents on a test bench by comparing them

with the simulations. If all the validations are met, we are sure that the engine is safe in all regards.”

The tests are conducted under various conditions such as temperature and size deviation. The engineering teams also take into consideration possible size deviation of other components, such as the crank-shaft or the piston cooling jet. It is indeed rare in the industry that all manufactured components are exactly the same size. Slight size discrepancy is a common condi-tion, especially at the beginning and end of the production process. To limit the quality risk, specifications are used to define the tolerance limits for each of the components according to how they will be applied.

Thanks to LMS Amesim, it was possible for SDF to evaluate the impact of part produc-tion deviations on system performance by simulating minimal and maximal dimen-sions. These limits correspond to plus/minus three sigma during production. It even opens the door to redefining part tolerances, while still maintaining system quality requirements. Loosening tolerance specifications could translate into time and cost benefits for suppliers and internal production teams.

LMS Amesim is used to gain a better understanding of the flow distribution efficiency at different locations in the engine and at various speeds.

“ I appreciated the user-friendly interfaces and the flexibility. You can easily design and simulate a high-complexity system by coupling different LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim solu-tions and products.”

Riccardo Bonacina Base Engine Validation and Reliability Lead Engineer SDF

Oil flow distribution – Nominal engine

Smoothly validating systems under critical conditionsTractors must contend with rough terrain and harsh conditions that can affect the engine. The acute effects of the terrain and conditions on the agricultural vehicle engine can also be used as parameters to validate the engine.

“The model enabled us to optimize the oil pump and validate it in the worst condi-tions,” says Bonacina. “I was able to check a very critical situation that can happen in the field, in which we reach an oil temper-ature of 120 Celsius, the component size deviation limit is at the maximum and the oil filter suffers clogging. After 1, 2, 3, 400 working hours, the oil filer is often blocked and the pressure characteristics are differ-ent so you have to ensure that the engine will also perform well under these condi-tions. The simulation can help you reach a high level of confidence in advance of testing.”

Gaining independence and flexibilitySDF started using LMS Amesim 10 years ago to model and simulate vehicle hydrau-lic circuits and dynamics. Over time, other divisions have embraced the benefits of LMS Amesim. The engine validation divi-sion is one of them.

“Because we have LMS Amesim in-house, the engineering skills remain inside the company,” says Bonacina. “Starting the creation of the model and finding solutions is quick and we are then free to mod- ify circuits and components. We do not depend on outsourced engineering compa- nies for every simulation we need. I appre-ciated the user-friendly interfaces and the flexibility. You can easily design and simu- late a high-complexity system by coupling different LMS Amesim solutions and products.”

To leverage LMS Amesim to its full poten-tial, SDF engineering teams were able to rely on the cooperation developed with BSim, a partner of Siemens PLM Software in Italy. Bonacina comments: “They are

helping us in many ways to model and choose the right solution for simulation in order to have a reliable model that can provide results in less time.”

Using LMS Amesim for hydraulic circuit simulations (specifically, the engine oil circuit and cooling system) and mechani-cal simulations (specifically shaft vibrations), the SDF engine validation engineering team was readily able to target and achieve lubrication circuit optimizations.

“Thanks to all the LMS Amesim licenses, you can build everything that you need for your analysis,” says Bonacina. “You can upload hydraulic systems, mechanical systems and electronic systems simultane-ously, and from that you can generate the results you are looking for. The flexibility

Engineers compare the oil pressure behavior of a three-cylinder tractor in a normal working situation (top graph), and a clogged oil filter at maximum oil temperature (bottom graph) using LMS Amesim.

Oil pressure vs engine RPM

Oil pressure vs engine RPM

Solutions/ServicesLMS Imagine.Lab Amesim www.siemens.com/plm/lms-amesim

Customer’s primary businessSDF is one of the world’s lead-ing manufacturers of tractors, harvesters and diesel engines. Its products are distributed under the brands DEUTZ-FAHR, SAME, Lamborghini Trattori, Hürlimann, Grégoire and Lamborghini Green Pro. SDF has eight production plants, 13 commercial branches, two joint ventures, 141 importers and more than 3,000 dealers worldwide. www.sdfgroup.com

Customer locationTreviglio Italy

PartnerBSim www.bsim.it

of LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim is a key feature. You can choose many different components and the mathematics behind it is very robust.”

Staying ahead of a demanding marketBuilding on its positive experience, SDF intends to continue to extend the use of LMS Amesim; for example, to simulate transient conditions to study the system warmup and pressure buildup. Other mod- els have been developed using the hydrau-lic component design library, such as the pressure-reducing valve for the piston cooling jet. The extensive multi-domain

libraries of LMS Amesim are efficient assets for modeling and design. SDF aims to fully capitalize on front-loading the design of engine systems and subsystems using LMS Amesim so it can keep its competitive edge.

“The requirements for time-to-market, product reliability and durability have changed dramatically over the last 20 years,” says Bonacina. “And model-based systems engineering and a front-load approach are key solutions for complying with those requirements. Without model-based systems engineering, it would be difficult to compete.”

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“ The flexibility of LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim is a key feature. You can choose many different compo-nents and the mathematics behind it is very robust.”Riccardo Bonacina Base Engine Validation and Reliability Lead Engineer SDF