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1999-01-0344
Rick Neal
Delphi Chassis Systems
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ISSN 0148-7191
Copyright 1999 Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc.
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Printed in USA
1999-01-0344
Rick Neal
Delphi Chassis Systems
Copyright 1999 Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
In late 1994, Delphi Chassis Systems and Casting Technology Company (A joint venture between Amcast Industrial and Izumi Industries) began a joint development
program for an aluminum front knuckle conversion slated
for application on mainstream passenger cars. This was
the first high volume production two-cavity squeeze cast
aluminum conversion program of its kind. Previously, aluminum conversions on front knuckles were limited to
comparatively small volume single platform programs.
This joint program is applicable to volumes in excess of
1.5 million cars annually. Squeeze casting was selected
based on the superior physical and mechanical properties, dimensional capabilities, integrated process controls, and previous success with the squeeze cast
aluminum front knuckle used on other lower volume
applications.
known iron design). The print established spatial relationships for connections to the lower ball joint, steering arm,
strut attachment, brake caliper, and bolt on bearing.
Table 1 compares the properties of cast iron commonly
used for front knuckles to the published values for the
A356 alloy identified for use. A356 is considered by many
to be the work horse of the aluminum casting industry. It
is a versatile, readily available alloy offering good
strength and excellent casting properties. For the purposes of this program, mechanical properties normally stated as typical were used as statistical
minimums. This was a first in the aluminum casting
industry. Previously, the term minimum meant that no
sample pulled subsequent to heat treat shall be below
the stated value. Mechanical properties are generally not
normally distributed and have therefore not been subject
to statistical process control. The magnitude of the program (1.5 million vehicles) necessitated the creation of a
new standard for statistical control of mechanical properties.
Table 1.
Property Comparison
Aluminum
Statistical Min.
Iron Minimum
Tensile
276 MPa
414 MPa
Yield
207 MPa
276 MPa
Property
Elongation
Fatigue
8%
10%
7
70 MPa, N = 10
Typical
Density
2.7
E-6
kg/mm3
The FEA design output underwent Design for Manufacturability (DFM) review during a six-month series of joint
DCS/CTC Product Design and Manufacturing Engineering meetings. Draft, fillet, radii, and parting lines, machining stock, and design features necessary to allow for
employment of a two cavity tooling design were applied.
The two cavity design criteria were of particular importance as this significantly improved the cost effectiveness
of the aluminum front knuckle conversion.
Table 2.
Feature Tolerance
Feature
Design 3
Standard
Basic Feature
Draft
3 typical, 1 locators
Fillet
R6 typical, R2 possible
Radii
R3 typical, R1 possible
Parting Lines
Draft 3 typical
Design 2
Design 1
Design 3
Design 2
Design 1
The output from the DFM is shown in Figure 2. A comparison to the Figure 1 shows a design refined for castability
and ready for construction of prototype tooling. It is
important to note that the final design resulted in a mass
increase of 0.23 kilograms over the initial FEA model
(final weight of 2.73 kg). This is not uncommon (due to
draft, fillet, and rounds) and should be understood in the
early planning and costing stages.
Initial squeeze cast tooling is typically suitable for production application provided there are minimal design
changes subsequent to construction. Products produced
from first tools are therefore representative of production
processes. Process development is accelerated as well
since there are no unusual limitations placed on the process to protect an inferior grade tool material.
MATERIAL VALIDATION
could not be uniformly evaluated using standard mathematics for normally distributed data. Tensile, yield, elongation, and fatigue tests do not generally produce
normally distributed data, therefore, Weibull B1 analysis
was agreed upon as being the optimum statistical tool to
evaluate mechanical properties. The transition was made
more comfortable when it was understood that B1
approximates x-bar 3 sigma if the data is normally distributed. Phase three also confirmed that the two-cavity
vertical squeeze cast process was Weibull B1 capable to
the required properties shown in Table 1.
Phase one established a base line for mechanical properties during prototype production. Samples were pulled
from four locations for tensile and fatigue testing as noted
in Figure 4.
Table 4.
Property
Specification
Statistical
minimum
Capability
B1
Average
Tensile
276 MPa
307 MPa
329 MPa
Yield
207 MPa
231 MPa
259 MPa
Elongation
8%
8%
10.5 %
Fatigue
N = 107
70 MPa
90 MPa
103 MPa
Yield strength
259 Mpa (37.6 ksi)
260
240
220
200
180
Fatigue strength
103 Mpa (14.9 ksi)
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
1.00E+03
1.00E+04
1.00E+05
1.00E+06
1.00E+07
1.00E+08
Cycles to Failure, N
Chart 2.
Temperature
Table 5.
Time
Solution
1000 F
12 hours
Feature
Measurement
Quench
Low as possible
Fast as possible
Grain Size
0.56 mm
Age
310 F
3 to 5 hours
Silicon Modification
Porosity Content
None Observed
1mm
13 m
8mm
28 m
DESIGN VALIDATION
PRE-LAUNCH STRATEGY
The pre-launch strategy was to use a production two-cavity die and process to insure validation integrity within the
development process. A dual path cast iron program was
also implemented to mitigate program risks. The cast iron
back-up program was active until the lab design validation was successfully completed.
HT Temper
Selection
GENERATION II DESIGN
Casting Technology Company and Delphi Chassis Systems began a redesign of the lightweight front knuckle in
late 1996. The redesign of the lightweight knuckle was
initiated to:
HT Equipment
Setting
Equipment
PPAP
HT Equipment
Adjustment
HT Equipment
Verification
HT Process
Selection
HT Process
Modification
Process
PPAP
HT Process
Verification
Approved
Production
Chart 3.
SUMMARY
The reduced weight of the part allowed for an improvement in casting cycle rate. The savings offset the cost of
the tooling.
The near net shape improvements reduced the amount
of chips generated by machining operations. Typically,
melt loss associated with reprocessing of machining
chips is three to four times higher than the melt loss for
bulk aluminum. This concept is a primary driving force for
near net designs by casting foundries.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
1. Patrick Cheng Metallurgist, Casting Technology
Company
2. Craig Conaty - Engineering Manager, Casting Technology Company
3. Jim Kahrhoff Process Engineer, Casting Technology Company
4. Michael Martyniak Sr. Project Engineer, Delphi
Chassis Systems
5. Mike Waldrop Sr. Process Engineer, Delphi Chassis Systems
6. John Martis Sr. Quality Engineer, Delphi Chassis
Systems
REFRENSES
1. The Aluminum Association, Standards for Aluminum Sand
and Permanent Mold Castings