Title: A simulation method to estimate closing forces in car-sealing rubber elements

Authors: J. Ordieres-Meré; V. Muñoz-Munilla; A. Bello-García; A. González-Marcos

Addresses: PMQ research group, ETSII, Polytechnical University of Madrid, José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain ' Engineering Department, Kaufil Sealing Technologies S.A., Polígono La Portalada s/n., 26006 Logroño, Spain ' Department of Construction and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Oviedo, Campus Universitario, 33203 Gijón, Spain ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of La Rioja, C/Luis de Ulloa 20, 26004 Logroño – Spain

Abstract: The door-closing process can reinforce the impression of a solid, rock-proof, car body or of a rather cheap, flimsy vehicle. As there are no real prototypes during rubber profile bidding-out stages, engineers need to carry out non-linear numerical simulations that involve complex phenomena as well as static and dynamic loads for several profile candidates. This paper presents a structured virtual design tool based on FEM, including constitutive laws and incompressibility constraints allowing to predict more realistically the final closing forces and even to estimate sealing overpressure as an additional guarantee of noise insulation. Comparisons with results of physical tests are performed.

Keywords: numerical simulation; product design; large deformation; viscoelastic rubber; nonlinear contact problems; viscoelastic properties; closing forces; vehicles doors; door closing; sealing pressure; mechanical operations; virtual design; vehicle design; finite element method; FEM; noise insulation; vehicle noise.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVD.2012.048979

International Journal of Vehicle Design, 2012 Vol.59 No.4, pp.249 - 271

Received: 21 Apr 2011
Accepted: 02 Sep 2011
Published online: 23 Apr 2013 *

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